Weird turn signal issue...
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Aug 2018
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Weird turn signal issue... So I picked up a 2000 trans Am Friday and have been doing a lot of reading and learning.
When I got the car the entire right side of the car didnt work blinker wise left seemed to be fine.
Forward to today I replaced both front blinkers, DRL, hazard and blinker flashers and replaced the passenger side blinker socket.
Turning the hazards on leads to all signals front and rear flashing as well as both left and right dash indicator lights.
The weirdness comes with trying to use the right signal on the switch. The rear blinker now flashes(didnt before as mentioned) but the front doesnt and the dash indicator doesnt flash either. theres zero illumination at all, the blinker doesnt come on and stay solid like a bulb is blown it just doesnt come on at all. However I can hear the click from the switch being engaged.
Brand new to these cars and have covered all the bases on the stuff that seems to be common causes. What gets me is the fact that the dash light doesnt illuminate at all. I know usually if theres an issue in the circuit the light will stay solid on the dash.
My next move is to swap the column switch, however I have a feeling that isnt gonna help much as the rear blinker works fine still.
Any help or input would be greatly appreciated.
Super stoked to own the car. 🤙
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 11,329
Likes: 346
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
There are two things that can affect the front signals but not the rear. The first is the DRL module which controls when the front signals flash and when they are on solid as daytime running lights. The other is the turn signal switch in the steering column... this only applies to Firebirds and pre-98 Camaros which have the brake lights doing double duty as turn signals (which means the front signals have to be handled separately). In this case, the DRL module would not be the cause since the dash indicators are wired direct from the switch and are not controlled by the module - only the front lamps are. We can also eliminate the wiring because the turn signals and hazards use the same wiring from the switch through to the lamps. That means that the turn signal switch is the only logical source of the problem.
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Aug 2018
Posts: 5
Likes: 0
Awesome. Thanks for the reply. I just hopped on eBay to see what was on there. I’m seeing the switch lever for like 30ish bucks but I can’t imagine that has the actual switch mechanism on it. What’s the actual part called that I need to get?
This is a part you definitely DO NOT want to get from eBay. You can get one from any local parts store for the same price. It's a common piece shared by many GM models, so the pricing for steering column parts will be reasonable. If you deal with someone local, you'll not only get it faster, but you'll have someone close by to address issues with:
If you've never worked in a column before, the process is a little intricate and takes some special tools. The part you are replacing comes out in step 21 of this write-up. This write-up is for another part in the column, but for the turn signal switch, you'd just remove the wires from the connector body at the base of the column (Noting which one goes where!!!), tape a string to the wires, and then pull everything out. (This then pulls the string back through the column so you can use it to pull the new wires back down through the column for the new switch.)
https://ls1tech.com/forums/general-m...mn-repair.html
If you've never worked in a column before, the process is a little intricate and takes some special tools. The part you are replacing comes out in step 21 of this write-up. This write-up is for another part in the column, but for the turn signal switch, you'd just remove the wires from the connector body at the base of the column (Noting which one goes where!!!), tape a string to the wires, and then pull everything out. (This then pulls the string back through the column so you can use it to pull the new wires back down through the column for the new switch.)
https://ls1tech.com/forums/general-m...mn-repair.html
