Turn signal not blinking

[williamsontw]

I have a 1982 GL1100i, this bike is my first project bike and am hitting a wall with the turn signals. I bought some from ebay and hooked them up off of the spot where the older ones were and they don't blink, so we put the old ones on only to find they didn't blink either. We are using a Haynes manual and the color one online to follow the wiring and haven't figured it out yet. We thought it may be the filament in the turn signals but then the originals don't work...thanks in advance.

[virgilmobile]

Get a test probe with the light in it.Turn on the key,Stop switch to off.One of the wires going to the flasher must have 12 volts on it all the time.When you turn on the turn signal,the electric leaves the flasher,goes to the switch and then directly to the lamps on that side.Of course the lamp needs to be grounded.Here's a simplified pix.

[thrasherg]

You say they don't flash, but it sounds like they don't light up? which is it? If they light up but don't flash it means they are not drawing enough current or the flasher relay has failed. Have you checked that the connections are good? Do the new indicators take a bulb or are they LED's? If they are LED you will have to change the flasher relay or add resistive loads to make them flash..

Gary

[williamsontw]

They are LED signals. The signals light up and stay on when switched on but that's it. We have a new battery.

[bcassel]

That's the problem. The flasher is thermally activated. It requires a significant amperage draw to make it warm up and flash. LEDs don't draw enough amps. You need to replace your flasher with a transistorized flasher that will flash regardless of the load being there or not. Down side is that with a thermal flasher, you always know when a blinker goes out, the other light stays on. With a transistorized the back lamp may be out and the front and the indicator will just happily flash on.

The solution is a quick trip to the parts store and get a transistorized flasher, about $15.

[mtn_boy1]

OK here's one that is driving me crazy on my 83. When I start the bike, it has to warm up to operating temp before turn signals will work. If it is cool outside or raining, they won't work. Is this the flasher going bad or the relay maybe. I kid you not, it seems like it takes engine heat to make the turn signals work.

[WingAdmin]

Could very well be the flasher going. The mechanical flasher relies on heat to make it operate - normally, this heat comes from the current flowing through it. If there isn't enough current, or the flasher is going bad, it won't heat up enough to actuate it. With the added heat from the engine, it might be enough to "tip it over" and make it work.

It could be caused by a faulty connection to some of the turn signal lights. Does it happen both turning left and right signals on? If it only happens on the left, then it's likely that one of the +12V wires going to one of the left lights has a bad or corroded connection somewhere. If it happens for both the left and the right, it could be the ground connection for either the front or the rear (the front shares a ground, and the rear shares a ground). In that case, check to see if the front or rear turn signals seem dim. You can check this by removing a bulb and putting a multimeter across the contacts in the socket - if you're seeing less than 12V then the ground on those sets of lights could be bad.

Or, it could be just a bad flasher. Try replacing the flasher with a mechanical (not an electronic) one - if it still happens, then you've definitely got a bad connection/ground somewhere. If it fixes it, then that's what the cause was.

[mtn_boy1]

It was the flasher. Had to cut off the connector and install sta con blades on the wires. The factory one had 3 prongs side by side (not in a triangle). Once I figured out which one was 12V, which was load, and which was pitot (indicator), cost me 2 15A fuses for guessing wrong LOL, now they work with just the key on. YEE HAW !!! Thanks wingadmin! Y'all ride safe. I'm gonna go twist the throttle !

[Speedy69]

Hi, I'm having the same problem with the left signal.
When I bought the bike it had been changed to a naked wing, all signals worked, the only difference now is that the other person had installed an off road light, no high beam, I removed it and installed a regular headlight with an LED bulb, now the left signal works but the right blinks once and stops, also the bulb on the right one is brighter then the left on.

Any help is appreciated.

[DenverWinger]

The left one is probably lighting up the running light filament, this can happen with bad ground at the light fixture. Check the bulb socket for corrosion, too.