# electrical gremlins



## hans747 (Jul 14, 2005)

Alright, i did a long drive from Florida to NC a few weeks ago, and my truck developed some electrical problems during and since the drive. Here's how it went and what I've done to resolve the problems. Let me know if you think any of these could be related:

1. 11-hour straight drive to NC. 30 minutes outside of my destination, my dashboard goes completely dark. Horn stops working. This happened a few years ago. The horn and dash lights are on the same fuse.

2. A few days later, my driver's side blinker starts doing that crazy fast-blink thing. The front corner marker light and the blinker in the bumper are out.

3. I go to Autozone and buy some replacement bulbs and fuses. 

4. I replace the horn/dash fuse. Now the horn works, but the dashboard lights are still out.

5. I replaced the bulbs in the front corner blinker. They still don't come on, and the blinker is still doing the crazy flashy thing.


Is there a relay that controls all of these items? If so, where is it located?

What else could I be missing here? Thanks...


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## legoman786 (Oct 19, 2006)

You could have shorted the wiring. Was there any rain goin to/at your destination? Check the wires for any unsafe cuts/etc.


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## hans747 (Jul 14, 2005)

Yes, it had rained lightly the same day it had happened. I don't know if that would've set it off, because this truck had lived all its previous 10 years in Florida where is rains hard and sideways (average twice a week). Any rain problems would've probably come up a long time ago.

As for splices, the wires are all intact and stock. The only spot that may be questionable is where I spliced in an aftermarket horn. I'll look into that today. That would explain the horn/dash short. 

But the blinkers are still a mystery.


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## hans747 (Jul 14, 2005)

Alright, i opened up the front bumper blinker because I could see some more condensation in there. Turns out the new bulb had blown and the metal part of it was all covered in water and corrosion. That's what made it blow so quickly. I guess that since it's so much colder in NC, the water intrusion is much worse than in florida because it never evaporates.

I cleaned out all the water with WD40, scrubbed the contacts with baking soda, then rinsed everything with contact cleaner. I don't know if it was the WD40 or the contact cleaner, but the black gasket that is supposed to seal the lens, puffed back up to original condition. Before that, it was all dried up like a raisin.

The front bumper blinkers work great now. But I don't know why the front corner lights don't work. All the contacts (checked where the wire connects to the housing and the socket where the light plugs in) are very clean. Autozone told me to use bulb #194. Is that the right one? OR is there another contact for the corner lights that I'm missing?


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