One signal flashing faster than the other suddenly

Hi,

Just wondering what might cause this. I was at a stoplight, signalling
right, when all of a sudden it started flashing very fast. The left
flasher was normal. I thought maybe one bulb had died, but both front
and back were working ok. Later (couple of hours) the right flasher
slowed down to normal, then later sped up again. If it's not a bulb,
I'd suspect the flasher unit, but it only affects one side and I doubt
there are separate flashers for each side.

Any clues?

Thanks,

Norm

"Father Guido" <FG@SNL.com> wrote in message
news:k27h32dm0tv6nm26eit9g0fomrfvsr88ko@4ax.com...[color=blue]
> ..., when all of a sudden it started flashing very fast.[/color]

Look for bad grounds in the RH rear tail lamp assemby. Turn on the tail
lamps, and hit the brake. Does the brake light appear dimmer than the LH
side?

SJD

My mother has the same year and model Camry. She had the same problem.
I removed the bulb and cleaned everything up. It worked for awhile
but started to act up again.
This time I put di-electric grease on the bulb base and everything
functioned properly. This has been over a year ago and all is well.
I now coat all bulb bases with di-electric grease.

On 9 Apr 2006 07:16:33 -0700, "Clay" <claytonjaystory@yahoo.com>
wrote:
[color=blue]
>My mother has the same year and model Camry. She had the same problem.
> I removed the bulb and cleaned everything up. It worked for awhile
>but started to act up again.
>This time I put di-electric grease on the bulb base and everything
>functioned properly. This has been over a year ago and all is well.
>I now coat all bulb bases with di-electric grease.[/color]

That's the true solution... Your car should have had the grease
applied from the factory - but people clean it up thinking it
shouldn't be there. Ask at a good auto parts for corrosion
preventative electrical grease, they may have to order it in from the
warehouse. Not expensive, maybe $6. I got the Truck-Lite grease, it
comes in a half-pint paint can that'll last you for decades.

Even if the lamp is lighting up, if it has a bad ground the power
goes through the 'turn' filament, then it goes backwards through the
'tail' filament and finds it's way to ground through the other tail
lights.

The current through the tail filaments is lower, and the low current
trips the flasher into the 'lamp out warning' fast flash mode. Only
takes one lamp out to do this if they sized the flasher right.

--<< Bruce >>--

--
Bruce L. Bergman, Woodland Hills (Los Angeles) CA - Desktop
Electrician for Westend Electric - CA726700
5737 Kanan Rd. #359, Agoura CA 91301 (818) 889-9545
Spamtrapped address: Remove the python and the invalid, and use a net.

"Bruce L. Bergman" <blPYTHONbergman@earthlink.invalid> wrote in message[color=blue]
> That's the true solution... Your car should have had the grease
> applied from the factory - but people clean it up thinking it
> shouldn't be there. Ask at a good auto parts for corrosion
> preventative electrical grease, they may have to order it in from the
> warehouse. Not expensive, maybe $6. I got the Truck-Lite grease, it
> comes in a half-pint paint can that'll last you for decades.
>[color=green]
>> --<< Bruce >>--[/color][/color]

I respectfully disagree. The problem is that the metal contact strip in the
socket that acts as the ground is too thin and looses it pressure against
the bulb. By pulling up and twisting the contact you will restore the
pressure and the bulb will function normally.

On Sun, 9 Apr 2006 19:13:02 -0600, "Mark A" <nobody@nowhere.com>
wrote:

~"Bruce L. Bergman" <blPYTHONbergman@earthlink.invalid> wrote in
message
~> That's the true solution... Your car should have had the grease
~> applied from the factory - but people clean it up thinking it
~> shouldn't be there. Ask at a good auto parts for corrosion
~> preventative electrical grease, they may have to order it in from
the
~> warehouse. Not expensive, maybe $6. I got the Truck-Lite grease,
it
~> comes in a half-pint paint can that'll last you for decades.
~>
~>> --<< Bruce >>--
~
~I respectfully disagree. The problem is that the metal contact strip
in the
~socket that acts as the ground is too thin and looses it pressure
against
~the bulb. By pulling up and twisting the contact you will restore the
~pressure and the bulb will function normally.
~

Thanks for the tips guys. I will pull up the contact (like the old
Christmas lights) and put some vasoline on the contacts and screw the
bulbs back in.

Thanks again!

"Father Guido" <FG@SNL.com> wrote in message
news:frjm32t38rgmhf126l381pdvggloknqvt2@4ax.com...[color=blue]
> On Sun, 9 Apr 2006 19:13:02 -0600, "Mark A" <nobody@nowhere.com>
> wrote:
>
> ~"Bruce L. Bergman" <blPYTHONbergman@earthlink.invalid> wrote in
> message
> ~> That's the true solution... Your car should have had the grease
> ~> applied from the factory - but people clean it up thinking it
> ~> shouldn't be there. Ask at a good auto parts for corrosion
> ~> preventative electrical grease, they may have to order it in from
> the
> ~> warehouse. Not expensive, maybe $6. I got the Truck-Lite grease,
> it
> ~> comes in a half-pint paint can that'll last you for decades.
> ~>
> ~>> --<< Bruce >>--
> ~
> ~I respectfully disagree. The problem is that the metal contact strip
> in the
> ~socket that acts as the ground is too thin and looses it pressure
> against
> ~the bulb. By pulling up and twisting the contact you will restore the
> ~pressure and the bulb will function normally.
> ~
>
> Thanks for the tips guys. I will pull up the contact (like the old
> Christmas lights) and put some vasoline on the contacts and screw the
> bulbs back in.
>
> Thanks again![/color]

I would not use Vaseline on the contacts because it can deteriorate rubber.
The best stuff to use is dielectric grease, available at auto parts stores,
or WD-40.
--

Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)

On Tue, 11 Apr 2006 11:33:41 -0500, "Ray O"
<rokigawa@tristarassociatesDOTcomn> wrote:

~
~"Father Guido" <FG@SNL.com> wrote in message

~> Thanks for the tips guys. I will pull up the contact (like the old
~> Christmas lights) and put some vasoline on the contacts and screw
~> the bulbs back in.
~>
~> Thanks again!
~
~I would not use Vaseline on the contacts because it can deteriorate
~rubber. The best stuff to use is dielectric grease, available at auto
~parts stores, or WD-40.

OK, thanks -- WD-40 it is then.

"Father Guido" <FG@SNL.com> wrote in message
news:b22p32tmo33on74gg9qkumr620m8ec2a0m@4ax.com...[color=blue]
> On Tue, 11 Apr 2006 11:33:41 -0500, "Ray O"
> <rokigawa@tristarassociatesDOTcomn> wrote:
>
> ~
> ~"Father Guido" <FG@SNL.com> wrote in message
>
> ~> Thanks for the tips guys. I will pull up the contact (like the old
> ~> Christmas lights) and put some vasoline on the contacts and screw
> ~> the bulbs back in.
> ~>
> ~> Thanks again!
> ~
> ~I would not use Vaseline on the contacts because it can deteriorate
> ~rubber. The best stuff to use is dielectric grease, available at auto
> ~parts stores, or WD-40.
>
> OK, thanks -- WD-40 it is then.[/color]

The problem with WD-40 is that it doesn't leave much of a protective
coating, but it is better than nothing.

good luck!
--

Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)

"Ray O" <rokigawa@tristarassociatesDOTcomn> wrote in message
news:730d6$443c914b$180fead6>[color=blue]
> The problem with WD-40 is that it doesn't leave much of a protective
> coating, but it is better than nothing.
>
> good luck!
>
> Ray O[/color]

When I fixed both on mine about 3-4 years ago, I just cleaned them with
denatured alcohol, and pulled/twisted the spring contacts to increase the
tension. The problem is not corrosion, it is that the spring contacts loose
tension because they are too thin (probably by just a few thousands of an
inch).

I agree with Mark that the problem is the defective socket. Toyota
supposed has a new part for it. But pulling and reinstalling the same
part works. The grease in my experience didn't do anything (but it
should have been there). Toyota really cuts costs can you tell.

Well I fixed it, first I took the back flasher out and reseated it but
it still flashed very fast. So next I took out the front bukd, cleaned
the bulb and socket contacts, and pulled out the contacts, put the
bulb back in and presto, works like a champ.

BTW, the front bulb acts as parking and flasher so it's a standard two
contact twist in bulb, whereas the back is a flasher only and is the
kind with side wires that pushed in.

The front bulb was a bitch to get to. My Haynes book says the remove
the top pin and rotate the parking light bessel out to access the
bulb. But there's also a tab on the headlight that mates with the
parking light bessel and is virtuall welded together after 7 years. In
the end I couldn't push the tab back out and the park on the parking
besse broke off. Fortunately it doesn't really do that much, and the
parking bessel is fairly tight with just the top connector. Haynes
doesn't even mention this operation.