Bob 51 Posted February 6 Report Posted February 6 My Plymouth brake lights stopped working. Have power to switch and put new switch in. Still no lights, Bulbs arw good. Im wondering if it may be the turn signal switch. Parking lights work, left turn signal works and right one is not working in the back. I tested the switch and it is showing it is working with a test meter. Any help appreciated Quote
Solution Harley PHD Posted February 7 Solution Report Posted February 7 It should be the same as my 1950 coronet. The brake light pressure switch goes to the turn signal switch first, then to rear brake lights. There are six wires coming out of the turn signal switch by the steering column, on 2 3way bullet connectors. one of them is the brake signal in. You can check there for brake signal. I made a 3way pig tail of bullet connectors and unplugged the turn side wires and wired the brake signal directly to the taillight wires under the dash. It was in the same 3way connector. this way you can test your circuit from the brake switch to the brake lights. I had to buy a NOS aftermarket turn switch on Ebay and take it apart and file the contacts flat to make it work right. Quote
Bob 51 Posted February 7 Author Report Posted February 7 Thank You, I will give it another go today Quote
desoto1939 Posted February 7 Report Posted February 7 Could also be a grounding issue on the right bucket. ALso the wires that you are showing are not in great shape, bare wires and insulation is missing. Are you sure the bulb is not burned out on the right. Rich Hartung Desoto1939@aol.com Quote
Loren Posted February 8 Report Posted February 8 (edited) I saw an old friend of mine the other day and he told me of a car that another guy had done major surgery to and could not get the low beam head lights to work. Nothing the guy tried would get them on, so he drove with high beams on for a couple years! My buddy borrowed the car and in a short period decided that high beams were not the way to drive at night so he had a look. He discovered that both low beams had burned out. This case reminded me of a lesson I learned 40 years ago to find electrical problems. It's called the split half method and it works like this: DC electric power goes from the battery to the load and then back to the battery. Now there could be many stops along the way like switches and fuses but it always starts and ends at the battery. The split half refer to the quickest way to find the problem. You divide the circuit into two halves. You start at the load, if you have no power to the load then the problem is from the load to the battery. If you don't have power then you divide the circuit again and halfway will likely be the switch. If the switch has continuity when closed but no power then the problem lies between the switch and the battery. Divide the circuit again and that will probably be a fuse. Anyway you get the idea. A shotgun approach is a waste of time. With electrical problems you have to be methodical to be fast! Yes, most electrical issues are bad grounds because "rust never sleeps" and you might think starting at the ground is the quickest way to repair and you'd be right. However if you are going to look at the ground side of things, start at the load and go back to the battery. If our friend had done that he need not have gone any farther because he was right there. Mechanics is not art, it is science. Don't get overwhelmed by what looks like a confusing nest of wires. Edited February 8 by Loren omitted word Quote
Bob 51 Posted February 8 Author Report Posted February 8 Brake lights back working. One of the connections at the bottom of the steering colum for the turn signal wires was loose. All is good now. Thanks again for all the input 1 Quote
Sniper Posted February 8 Report Posted February 8 Thanks for the follow up, may it help someone in the future Quote
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