4 way flasher switch

Hey Nazgul, getting sidetracked is how we learn about these cars.

Anytime you start a project listen carefully to your inner voice. If you hear yourself saying, "well, since this is apart now I might as well..." then you'll know what I mean.

Getting there is half the fun.

absolutely. enjoy the journey!

problems? bring them on! Yeah!

rock 'n' roll

nazgul, I had a similar problem. The button had tape around the outside to hold it in. Mt blinkers never worked and when I tracked down the wiring I found the blinkers run through the emergency flasher switch. I have changed the flasher but now the dome light won't go off. You can watch Ebay they some times come up for sale. The original switch is no longer available and the replacement has a smaller bezel. I got mine from PI.
Richard T.

The Hazard switch is the same switch used on BMW 2002's. Unfortunately, the BMW parts vendor also charge in the neighborhood of $90-$100 for the switch. I would try to rebuild it before shelling out a Benjamin. Follow the steps outlined in the link below, and epoxy the housing. Actually, when you put it back together, wrap the housing with nylon thread or fine wire, then epoxy. That should hold the assembly together for the rest of the car's life.
http://www.banzairunnerpantera.com/updates_hazardswitch.htm

garth66

wow, thanks a whole big bundle, looks like a weekend project, weather is going to be crappy, so time to do something useful, oh my aging back is sure going to hurt after this one!

about wrapping with wire/thread and then using epoxy, sometimes epoxy just does not hold that great to slick surfaces even if surface roughened. a great adhesive that holds to almost anything (but it is flexible) is polyurethane caulk. takes a while to dry, is flexible, but is tough and really lasts.

thanks again

nazgul

RichardT

It looks like you have the wrong flasher unit.
I would say that you have a normally closed unit instead of a normally open. This means that when dormant, power is passing through the warning light.
This is not necessarily a bad thing - at least you can find the switch in the dark!

The other thing to bear in mind is that it matters which type of flasher you have when you turn on the normal blinkers. You may have a pause before the flash - instead of flash then pause. This means that you would need to turn the blinkers on slightly earlier at junctions. It depends whether the Pantera is wired so that the outside blinkers flash in unison with the dashboard telltale or alternately.

Just a thought.

Phil

Thanks Phil. Just as soon as the snow melts i'll get the car out and see what happens when you turn on the turn signals. I still need to track down why the dome light stays on all the time.
Richard T.

Dome light is the interior light, yeah?

I've never looked at mine but:
Try the door open buttons and clean the contacts.
If the on/off switch is integral to the light, the switch mechanism is likely broken or bent.
If switch is on dash you could well have a leak to earth (Interior light switches break the -ve side of the circuit usually)between the -ve pole of the bulb and the switch.

There's not a lot else it can be!

Phil

quote:

about wrapping with wire/thread and then using epoxy, sometimes epoxy just does not hold that great to slick surfaces

Agreed. That's why I recommend wrapping the barrel of the switch with fine wire first. The wire provides the structural integrity to hold the housing together. The epoxy (or JB Weld) is merely to keep the wire in place.

Anyway, get some very fine wire, wrap the barrel of the switch tightly 3-4 times, then twist the ends together in a safety wire fashion. Or, you may be able to use some metallic tape (so it doesn't relax or stretch) to wrap the barrel of the housing and avoid the wire/expoxy route altogether.

Let us know what you do and how it works.

repairing the 4-way hazard switch turned out easier than i thought.

after disassembly, the problem was a bit different than banzairunner's. the switch inards have a "racetrack" (for lack of a better word) that a sprung locating pin rides in. the switch maintains its "off function" when pushed in because the locating pin sits in a sharp bend in the racetrack.

i had two problems, first the short plastic lip on the right-hand side of the racetrack's sharp bend was worn and rounded off allowing the locating to slip off and not sit in the sharp bend, and second-the spring which should apply a downward force onto the locating pin was either worn or bent and was applying no force at all.

first, i reshaped the "bend" by cutting some plastic away with a utility knife blade (absolutly no room for error here-go slow), the result gave the locating pin a slightly deeper bend to sit in so the pin would sit in the notch more securely

second, i cut a small coil spring to fit between the switch case and the nonfunctioning locating pin spring, a dab of hot glue keeps it in place, do not glue the locating pin's arm as it has to be free to move.

the photo shows the racetrack with its inner boundary painted white for better visibility.

i did not wrap with wire and epoxy the case, if i did the fastening nut would not go over the increased diameter of the switch barrel. i think my switch was previously disassembled and because of the multiple disasssemblies now has 4 retaining snaps holding it together instead of the original six. but the four hold it together quite securely.

now to hope it never needs to be used!

nazgul