[N1611F]

I have a 66 Mustang that has just been restored. The right turn signal will not flash and the wiring under the dash gets very hot at the connector coming from the steering column and the flasher. The wiring harness in the engine compartment to the lights is new and the lights worked before the restore. The right turn signal indicator on the dash does not come on either. Does anyone have a clue what the problem is. I have checked all grounds, bulbs, etc. Please, this is driving me nuts.

[Frankinforesthill]

Your problem is simple,
It's not restored as you say or all would work.

[timothale]

hot connectors usually results from a short, or poor connections, corrosions. Google " hammar mustang wiring diagrams" they have both the pictorial and schematics for the 66. Make sure you have good ground connections, , all the wires are connected to the correct places. If you have an emergency flasher system it also can cause problems. The turn signal switch under the steering wheel can wear, excessive current or a poor connection, arcing can start to melt the plastic and you loose operation. The same switch was used on pickups and hooking up a trailer light system would cause current flow above what the system was designed to handle. playing the radio with out the key on by holding down the brake, turn signal on would also over heat some wires. If the brake light switch sticks with the turn signal on can do the same thing, I was an engineer at ford during the mustang years, had Interior trim and electrical systems for a while.

[dsraven]

sounds like you have an issue in the steering column, but try removing the right rear bulb and see if the front bulb will light up when you turn on the signals. then install the rear bulb and do the same for the front bulb as you just did for the rear. maybe it is just a socket problem or a bad bulb or the wrong bulb that only has one contact like a back up light(1156) when it should have 2 (1157) or if you replaced a socket maybe the wires got crossed during the switchover. if the bulbs don't light up ok try unplugging it below the column and test continuity for the lights from there out to the bulbs, or, if you have a jumper wire, connect the jumper wire to a power source at the fuse box (then if there is a problem from there out to the bulb it will just blow a fuse rather than melt a wire) then touch it to the wire for the right turn signals (you will need to know which wire that is before yu start so hopefully you have a wiring diagram). there should be 2 wires for the right turns, one is front right and the other is rear right and works along with the brake light circuit, since they both use the same bulb back there. just curious, do your brake lights work? did you replace the signal switch under the steering wheel? I have seen alot of poor quality signal switches before that will do exactly this problem. do the back up lights work? maybe the bulbs got switched up during the replacement scenario?
good luck, and remember, they are just signal lights. it ain't rocket science if you don't go thinking too much into it. do some quick checks for the right bulbs in the right places and proper grounds connected to the proper wires at the sockets. if that is all a go, remove the bulbs completely and turn on the signals-does the wiring still get hot? if it does then it could be a short in the steering column or the switch itself. check for the right kind of pigtails at the sockets to match the bulbs, ie-a signal/marker bulb has 2 contacts so it has to have a 2 wire pigtail. I have seen that messed up before, innocently enough done. check to see if the pigtail has turned in the socket and isn't touching the bulb contacts properly. check that the ground wire is connected to the wire that is the ground on the socket, it should be connected to touch the outside of the bulb. check for a pinched wire anywhere it goes through metal, like the firewall or in the trunk etc. it does sound like a switch issue though.
sorry for the scattered thoughts, it is early though and I haven't finished my coffee yet....
keep us posted

[302 Z28]

Originally Posted by Frankinforesthill

Your problem is simple,
It's not restored as you say or all would work.

Duh not quite the help he was looking for.

Vince

[N1611F]

The brake lights do work, I replaced the brake light switch but not the turn signal switch under the steering wheel nor the flasher under the dash. The back up lights are not connected. No sockets were replaced just the wiring harness in the engine compartment.

Originally Posted by dsraven

sounds like you have an issue in the steering column, but try removing the right rear bulb and see if the front bulb will light up when you turn on the signals. then install the rear bulb and do the same for the front bulb as you just did for the rear. maybe it is just a socket problem or a bad bulb or the wrong bulb that only has one contact like a back up light(1156) when it should have 2 (1157) or if you replaced a socket maybe the wires got crossed during the switchover. if the bulbs don't light up ok try unplugging it below the column and test continuity for the lights from there out to the bulbs, or, if you have a jumper wire, connect the jumper wire to a power source at the fuse box (then if there is a problem from there out to the bulb it will just blow a fuse rather than melt a wire) then touch it to the wire for the right turn signals (you will need to know which wire that is before yu start so hopefully you have a wiring diagram). there should be 2 wires for the right turns, one is front right and the other is rear right and works along with the brake light circuit, since they both use the same bulb back there. just curious, do your brake lights work? did you replace the signal switch under the steering wheel? I have seen alot of poor quality signal switches before that will do exactly this problem. do the back up lights work? maybe the bulbs got switched up during the replacement scenario?
good luck, and remember, they are just signal lights. it ain't rocket science if you don't go thinking too much into it. do some quick checks for the right bulbs in the right places and proper grounds connected to the proper wires at the sockets. if that is all a go, remove the bulbs completely and turn on the signals-does the wiring still get hot? if it does then it could be a short in the steering column or the switch itself. check for the right kind of pigtails at the sockets to match the bulbs, ie-a signal/marker bulb has 2 contacts so it has to have a 2 wire pigtail. I have seen that messed up before, innocently enough done. check to see if the pigtail has turned in the socket and isn't touching the bulb contacts properly. check that the ground wire is connected to the wire that is the ground on the socket, it should be connected to touch the outside of the bulb. check for a pinched wire anywhere it goes through metal, like the firewall or in the trunk etc. it does sound like a switch issue though.
sorry for the scattered thoughts, it is early though and I haven't finished my coffee yet....
keep us posted

[dsraven]

well, since the front harness was replaced, try unplugging the front harness and see if the rear lights will flash or at least come an bright. they may not flash if there is no front bulbs connected because there isn't enough current draw to make the flasher work. if all the rear stuff works after that, then you know it has to be some connector plugged in wrong or pinched wire in the front harness somewhere. it could also be that the front harness is wired wrong from the factory too, but lets not even think of that scenario yet. I am not familiar with what the steeing column plug looks like under there, but if there is a connector that you could unplug the front signals, then do that and see if the bulbs works out back like they should. or you could just unpin the wires for the front signals at that connector and see if that helps. that eliminates the whole front system from the bottom of the column. if it still gets hot etc, then pull the wheel and check for a bad switch or shorted wire. anything can happen when stuff is all apart. was the column out of the car at any point? were the wire connectors removed from the lower column plug for any reason? could they have been installed back into the wrong spot on the plug? do the wire colours match from one side of the plug to the other at the column?

[N1611F]

The steering column was removed but no wires were taken out of the harness. I will disconnect the new harness going to the front lights and see if the back works OK and let you know.

[Oldguy48]

Originally Posted by Frankinforesthill

Your problem is simple,
It's not restored as you say or all would work.

Wow...I'm certain N1611F appreciated your thoughtful insight. That helped him immensely.