What do you folks make of this:
My 03 Dodge diesel (2500) did something every strange last Friday. After about 120 miles on the road in a slight drizzle of rain all the time while on the road, my directional lights were messed up. I pulled down on the wiper/directional handle to turn left and the right signal was blinking on the dash. I put the handle up as if to turn right and nothing would blink. After I made the turn and going straight I just tried different positions to see what I could see. Same thing happened. Right lights would blink in a left turn position, and nothing in a right turn position. Then after short time both left and right lights would blink but the directional handle would be in the opposite position for what ever turn was blinking. The blinking lights were on my dash, I don’t know what the outside lights were doing. By the time I got home, about 15 minutes from when I noticed this stuff, they were working correctly, so I couldn?t check what the outside lights were doing.
I might add that my wiper settings, which are the same handle/control as the directional lights, have been giving me “some” trouble now and then for about a year. Turn on the delay wiper settings and they may or may not work. Turn the setting way up on “fast” and they could be in slow delay mode. Then again, put the wipers in the second slow delay click and they may start running full speed. There was no rhyme or reason to what they were doing.
Does anyone have any suggestions as to what might be going on here and what the fix would be?
As always appreciate any and all advice???.Bob
It sounds like there’s a problem with the multifunction switch in the steering column.
This switch is what controls all the circuits that are on that stalk. Turn signals, wipers, high/low beams, etc…
Tester
Ditto.
The other posters may be correct, but trouble in the rain with wipers esed to mean (sometimes) that the engine is poorly grounded to the firewall. The rain makes it worse and mystery problems happen. If you clean the body end of the ground/bonding wire, the problem may disappear.
Guys - THANKS! I stopped by one of the 306 auto parts stores (NAPA) we have here in town and told them what was going on. They said it was probably a PC controller board and would be glad to sell me one for about $150.00 big ones. Sense they didn’t ask any questions I think they were just making an expensive guess. It hasn’t rained so I haven’t checked the wipers lately, but the signals are working perfect.
I think I will open up the case around the steering column and just have a look see.
One thing I failed to tell you guys, and it probably won?t change any of your opinions, but with the wipers when they would just ?stop? working I would snap the multifunction stalk like I was snapping my fingers and spin it real hard all the way on. The fast speed would come on then, right where it was suppose to. That worked every time to get them going. I?ve only done it 3 or 4 times, and the first time was in a panic during a downpour. The wipers just plain stopped and I couldn?t get them working no matter what. So I just ?snapped? the stalk wide open and they started working in fast speed. This was great at the time because I couldn?t see where the heck I was going.
Thanks again???Bob
Hey folks - I fixed it! I finally bought a new multifunction stalk and all my problems have “so far” gone away, and it has been changed out for about two months, and we also have had a ton of rain so the wipers have had a work out.
Here is my “shade tree” opinion why this stalk was causing problems for those that may be interested.
After I switched out the unit, which by the way is pretty easy to do, I decided to take a look inside the ?bad? unit just to determine if I could see anything ?obvious.? I could not see anything that looked like it was any type of mechanical failure, BUT, inside the plastic compartment where all the little nylon gears and levers, etc, that turn and twist, and snap, to make the wipers, directional lights, dimmer, windshield washer, etc., work, it was packed with grease. That grease had wicked all through the unit and onto the circuit board. Actually the circuit board was covered with a very thin coating of grease. It?s my belief that the grease was short-circuiting the board.
As additional information the ?auto parts? places told me the part is usually $150.00, but they don?t carry mine, it was a dealer item. The dealer charged me $53.00. But the dealer did say that this unit is usually 3 times that much for most vehicles. They didn?t know why it was only $53.00 for the 03 Dodge truck. I didn?t complain.