Turn signals and emergency flasher work fine but, while with a right turn the indicator light on the dash flashes normally, with a left turn it flashes once, weakly, and then ceases, although the turn signal lights themselves, front and back, flash on merrily. "I can live with that," I said to myself when, after cleaning all contacts, the situation didn't change. Then I installed a trailer hitch & its wiring and, lo and behold, when I tested the trailer's lights the indicator light functioned normally. Disconnect the trailer plug, and the previous condition returns. Any ideas what's going on?
Bob S.

I would guess a bad connection of a turn signal housing to body connection and thus a bad ground. When the trailer is on the circuit it is then grounded through the trailer's lights grounding through the trailer chassis to the trailer hitch of your car. Any time I have strange behavior with turn signals I always check the rear light housings. I eventually added pigtails to ensure the housing stays grounded.
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Justin 66 122E
Read vclassics tech!

All Respondents, thanks.
What you say about the bulbs makes perfect sense (an enviable quality). I'll check bulbs and, if no discrepancy there, get a new flasher. I did notice that one side seems to flash a little faster than the other. I rotated my store of three flashers once more, and now the dashboard indicator light won't work with any of them, although the signals still do, so , I guess I'd better check that bulb as well. Phil, see what I mean about fiddling with stuff unless it's absolutely necessary -- not that you encouraged me to.
Bob S.

try changing both front and rear to new bulbs with the recomended wattage. Fixed mine that way.
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and the bricks keep on rolling....

Bob, I don't claim to understand it, but I'd bet five of your dollars that a new flasher unit would fix it.

*^)

I may have to go out and spend those five bucks on a new one, but , and I should have mentioned this, I did swap two used ones through there to no avail.
Bob

The problem is that the flasher works on a trip at a certian latch current. If the flasher relay is not latching (flashing) then it can only be one of two things that can cause the current to be too low for the relay to latch:
1)Bulb out or too low wattage
2)Voltage of the circuit too low (hight wiring or connnection resistance)

Buzz the wiring fromhte fusebox to the switch, then relay relay to see if it's 12V.

I had this happen on my 245 due to a very small amount of corrosion on hte ceramic fuse. The supply voltage to teh switch was only 7 volts.
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'89 245 Sportwagon, '04 V70 2.5T Sportwagon

You mean I actually have to think about how that stuff works?!

If adding more load makes it start working, I'd suspect that you have a bulb with too-low wattage in one of the blinkers on the side that malfunctions.

Or maybe a bulb not working for one reason or another.....
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George Downs, Bartlesville, Oklahoma, Central US