1990 Dodge Dynasty I have no turn signals at all

1990 DODGE DYNASTY
125,000 MILES
Avatar
DODGERAM150
  • MEMBER
  • 21 POSTS
Should I look to repalce the flasher that controls them? Alsoi found out that I have no tag lights either. On the tag loghts I found out that the wire to the right side light is not conncected I replaced a burned out fuse in the fuse box the fuse that controls the parking and running lights. Sometimes I have a turn signal light. They worked briefly several days ago. Also the battery I am using is not the right one for this car I have the battery that came with it
Apr 20, 2012 at 8:16 PM
Advertisement
Avatar
CARADIODOC
  • CERTIFIED EXPERT
  • 34,306 POSTS
Can't really diagnose it over a computer, so try a different flasher first. If that doesn't solve it, I'll have to find a service manual and you'll need a digital voltmeter to take some voltage measurements.

Do you still have the original radio in the car or does it have an aftermarket replacement?
Apr 20, 2012 at 8:40 PM
Avatar
DODGERAM150
  • MEMBER
  • 21 POSTS
I replaced the fuse that kept burning out with a circuit breaker of the same size. It was a 20 amp fuse. For several days the parking lights worked. Now the dash board lights flicker of and on. I found that the tag lights were missing part of their pig tail connector so I fabricated one out of some wire and a but connector. Could this cause my latest problem?
Apr 21, 2012 at 8:07 PM
Advertisement
Avatar
CARADIODOC
  • CERTIFIED EXPERT
  • 34,306 POSTS
You were having turn signal trouble. Which fuse is bowing, turn signals or running lights? Do you have an aftermarket radio?
Apr 21, 2012 at 8:23 PM
Avatar
DODGERAM150
  • MEMBER
  • 21 POSTS
yes as far as I know the radio is the original radio that came with the car.
Apr 27, 2012 at 6:49 PM
Avatar
CARADIODOC
  • CERTIFIED EXPERT
  • 34,306 POSTS
Dandy. There's a wire to the radio hooked to the tail lights to tell the display when to dim and another wire hooked to the dash lights to tell the display how much to dim. Very often, with aftermarket radios, those wires get used as grounds or they're spliced with electrical tape that unravels on a hot summer day into a gooey mess and lets the wires short against the radio's case. That's why I asked if it was the original radio.

A simple trick to finding a short is to replace the blown fuse with a pair of spade terminals, then use small jumper wires to connect them to a 12 volt light bulb. A brake light bulb works well. When the circuit is live and the short is present, the bulb will be full brightness and hot so be sure it's not laying on the carpet or against a plastic door panel. Now you can unplug electrical connectors and move things around to see what makes the short go away. When it does, the bulb will get dim or go out.

If you do this to the tail light circuit, you can drive that way during the day when those lights aren't needed but since there's so many bulbs on the car, the test light is going to be fairly bright already. You will need to notice when the bulb gets a little brighter which is when the short occurs. I know this sounds complicated but you might also try this with a head light bulb in place of the blowing fuse. A brake light bulb will limit current flow to less than an amp which isn't enough to run all the tail light bulbs on the car. A head light bulb will pass about five amps and will give a better indication in this case when the short is present. With that bulb in the circuit, you can wiggle wiring harnesses, poke at connectors, and try different things to see what makes the short appear or go away.
Apr 27, 2012 at 8:33 PM