77 NYB - turn signal flasher location?

[Great_White]

Hey y'all,

My turn signals went out the other day, so I figured I'd replace to flasher as a first step before I dig in any further. My hazards are working, so I suspect it's the flasher. I will be darned if I can find the bloody thing! I've been rooting around under the dash, pulled the trim panel off to see if it's behind there and having no success. I looked in the factory electrical manual but I honestly can't relate the drawing to reality. Does anyone have a pic I can use as a reference? Here's an attempt to show what I'm seeing.

 

[CBODY67]

Not in the fuse block?

 

[Great_White]

Nope, that is just the black box full of AGC glass fuses and the big 60 amp(?) square metal fuse. I spent a lot of time wrestling with that over the winter, but that's another story. I really hate getting under the dash, my garage is very narrow so the door doesn't have a lot of swing for access.

 

[75LandYacht]

It’s under there.. to the left of the column but before the E brake lever. You may have to pull the knee / lower dash panel under the steering column get to it..

If I can get to my car I’ll post a picture for ya.

 

[CBODY67]

What I discovered is that with the front seat pushed back a bit, I could rotate and hang my knees over the seat back, with my shoulders resting on the floorpan, which gave me a solid and comfortable position in which I could gaze at the undersides of the instrument panel and concentrate on what I was seeing. At least until too much blood settled in my upper body and I had to get upright again. Better than placing my lower back over the rocker panel, by a long shot. That was when I was about 45 yrs younger than now.

I found an old thread via Google on finding it under there. Seems the fuse block has a different mounting that slides out on a bracket, or has a thumbscrew which allows it to swing out for better access? Both flashers should be on it, either side by side or nearby on it, typically.

CBODY67

 

[Great_White]

I'll give the hanging-like-a-bat idea a go. That is definitely a better position to look from, thanks for the tip!

 

[75LandYacht]

Here’s a Picture of it, not the best, but shows the location of it, should help you discover it..

 

[commando1]

 

[Great_White]

I'm seeing my future!

 

[PursuitSpecial]

Wow, what a coincidence, I just had to replace mine last week since the right signal stopped flashing. Interestingly enough the left side still worked, I have no clue why the flasher caused that but it did. Anyway on my 77 Gran Fury, which may or may not be like the other C bodies that year, the turn signal flasher is located on a metal bracket near the steering column at the firewall, not with the block containing the horn relay and 4 way flasher under the dash. It's a very odd flasher, the original one was yellow plastic and it has a tab on top that locks into the bracket to hold it in place while a wire plugs onto the connectors at the base. I don't know if this feature is unique to police cars like mine or if they're all like that.

 

[3175375]

Wow, what a coincidence, I just had to replace mine last week since the right signal stopped flashing. Interestingly enough the left side still worked, I have no clue why the flasher caused that but it did. Anyway on my 77 Gran Fury, which may or may not be like the other C bodies that year, the turn signal flasher is located on a metal bracket near the steering column at the firewall, not with the block containing the horn relay and 4 way flasher under the dash. It's a very odd flasher, the original one was yellow plastic and it has a tab on top that locks into the bracket to hold it in place while a wire plugs onto the connectors at the base. I don't know if this feature is unique to police cars like mine or if they're all like that.

My bet regarding the issue you have with the turn signals isn’t the flasher, it’s something in the left turn circuit. Maybe a bulb heading south or more likely a ground that isn’t the best. The replacement flasher has covered up the root cause…

 

[Great_White]

So after playing Steering Wheel Limbo and finally locating the flasher - thanks for the tips! - I replaced it, and it didn't fix the problem. I then realized I was too smart for my own good (as usual) and the problem was actually a blown 20A fuse in bay 4 of the fuseblock. Arrrggh... All's well that ends well, I guess, right?

 

[PursuitSpecial]

My bet regarding the issue you have with the turn signals isn’t the flasher, it’s something in the left turn circuit. Maybe a bulb heading south or more likely a ground that isn’t the best. The replacement flasher has covered up the root cause…

I replaced both front and rear bulbs with OE style incandescent lights and soldered in auxiliary ground wires to them to rule out all of those things. Both sides blink at the same speed and brightness now so the only thing that it could have been was the flasher. If this car is wired up like a conventional one that shouldn't be possible. I have no clue how the flasher could cause only one side to glow at full brightness but not blink.

 

[Justin Plant]

Welcome to the wonderful world of "what were they thinking"