projectheaven

I'm having a little bit of a problem with my 72 cutlass convertible. My rear taillights come on but my drivers side rear signal doesnt come on nor does my drivers side taillight. The passenger side is fine.
Does anyone know what could be causing this?

INSANE

start with the simple things first. make sure bulbs are good, probe the wires after that to see if your getting power, could be a burnt socket. good luck.

2blu442

It could also be a bad socket. I've had several 1971-72 tail light sockets get corroded and stop working. I agree with Insane, check the simple things first. If not the bulbs try the plugs in the trunk to see if they're still tight. Or better yet put a test light on the forks to see if your getting power to that point. Then you can isolate if the problem is in the lights or somewhere up front. John

projectheaven

Ok.
But the parking lights work.The bulbs light up. It's just the brake lights and hazards doesn't come on. Could that be a possible flasher or should I keep on with the possibilities you guys gave me? And it's only on the drivers side rear.

joe_padavano

The 1157 has two separate filaments in one bulb. Park lights use one filament, everything else uses the other. One flasher works both sides, so if one side flashes, the flasher isn't the problem. Again, did you check the bulbs?

projectheaven

OK. I put all new bulbs in and everything works but not all the time. I have brake lights but my turn signals only come on sometimes. When I put the hazards on they flash but when i put the turn lever on one side goes out.Is that suppose to happen? I can't get everything to work all the time. Will cleaning the fuse box fuse connectors help me out. I forgot to mention that the car has been sitting for 15 years and everything still operated from the horn to the heater and ac.

MDchanic

Sounds a lot like a bad signal light switch to me.
See if you can put the flasher **** and the signal light lever in positions where everything works just right - if so, then there's your problem.
You may be able to take it out, clean it up good with some contact cleaner and get it to work. Of course, once it's out, you might as well spring for the $30 and replace it.

- Eric

Allan R

Ok, maybe this is dumb. I'll assume you replaced the bulbs with 1157s....but is there any chance you might have 1156's in there too? They will fit BTW, but will be always on when the circuit is hot. The 1156 has only one filament, and this will give the impression you have taillights. But there is no extra filament (like what Joe P was getting at) to make the lights flash.

1. When you put on the park lights, do you have all the lights (front, rear + side marker) on? Does one side look brighter than the other? That would be the side I'd be checking for problems first.
2. Do all 4 assemblies blink when you put on the hazards? If yes this means you have the right bulbs and the sockets are ok too. The flasher has 2 circuits in it though, and the one for normal operation may be fried. This has happened to me before and a simple $5.00 solution (new flasher) solved the problem. Other checks you can do to problem solve....
3. Do the brake lights come on when you step on the brake pedal? If yes your brake light switch is working properly.
4. Put the signal lever to the right. Do all the signal lights there work? (even one burnt out bulb can cause a problem with these older cars). Repeat the process for the left side. If signal lights don't operate after trying all the above things, I would suggest your problem is in the wiring from the turn indicator to the fuse box.

That's my 2¢ worth. Hope you find the problem soon. Otherwise you're going to have to resort to using hand signals. And nowadays I'd say that's more dangerous because not very many people know what they are. Besides the local police might still cite you.

projectheaven

ok! Let me see if I can get all your questions answered and they were good ones by the way.
I am absolutely positive I installed the 1157 bulbs because I have over 10 packs of them.(I have another hardtop cutlass and a 72 SS chevelle that uses them also)
When I put the parking lights on they all come on including side markers front and back and they're all even in brightness.
Yes all four rear lights blink on and off when the hazards are applied. I was thinking for cheap insurance I'd throw a new flasher on for my own personal satisfaction.
The brake lights come on also with no problems
When i put the lever to the right the blinker comes on but not always.Same thing with the left.It takes about 5-10 seconds for it to come on if at all.Thats seems to be the only problem that I'm having now. Could that be a flasher issue?

MDchanic

If it's just a problem with a DELAY until it starts to flash, it could be a flasher.
The same thing will happen if you have an inadequate load on the flasher (lights burned out, corroded, or not connected), but it's probably easy enough to change the flasher first - just swap the 4-way and the turnsignal flashers - if the 4-ways start misbehaving and the turnsignals work fine, you know where you stand.

- Eric

Allan R

Could very well be a flasher. I would recommend you get a heavy duty one if you're going to replace it - they don't cost much. You might also want to clean the two prong cavities on the fuse box first to make sure theres no corrosion there.
1. DISCONNECT THE BATTERY FIRST!!!
2. Take out the old flasher.
3. Spray some Electical contact cleaner into the 2 prong holes. Use a small (rotary) wire brush to clean the two cavities, spray again.
4. Blow dry the cavities or wait for a few minutes for the spray to evaporate.
5. Install the flasher
6. Reconnect the battery.

If this solves your problem, it's way cheaper and easier than taking apart your steering column to replace the signal switch. Hope it works.

Allan R

Eric,
ding ding ding!!
Great call there. I totally forgot about the 2 flasher system so I went to the Chassis manual. Bang on! Page 12-7. The fuse box flasher is only for the 4 ways, the signals is on a pigtail that comes off the IP harness. Duhhhh!

Projectheaven, if you need a copy of the page from the manual LMK and I'll scan it and send it to you.

projectheaven

Sorry for never getting back to you guys but the problem is solved. I ended up replacing the flasher on the fuse box but not before spraying cleaner on every wire and electrical connector i seen. My Convertible I just bought has been sitting for 15 years so theres a few more things that I need to freshen up but she's getting there slowly but surely.

Allan R

Good to hear it was an inexpensive solution! Now you're legal on the road.