1964 Horn and Turn Signals Not Working

J
Last seen
Joined
Oct 11, 2021
Thunderbird Year
1964
Good Morning Everyone,

I have two issues with finishing up this 'Bird

1. Horn not working. If I ground the spring on the turn signal switch it beeps. I traced it down
to no ground on the top plate of the steering wheel, and it appears the center of the column
where the big nut secures the steering wheel is not grounded? Not sure if this is where the
ground should come from? Verified the horn ring works correctly

2. Front and Rear Turn signals do not work. However, the indicators on the fenders do blink and
you can hear the relay clicking.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

Jim
 

This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated. As an eBay Partner, and Amazon Associate I may be compensated if you make a purchase at no cost to you.

Good Morning Everyone,

I have two issues with finishing up this 'Bird

1. Horn not working. If I ground the spring on the turn signal switch it beeps. I traced it down
to no ground on the top plate of the steering wheel, and it appears the center of the column
where the big nut secures the steering wheel is not grounded? Not sure if this is where the
ground should come from? Verified the horn ring works correctly

2. Front and Rear Turn signals do not work. However, the indicators on the fenders do blink and
you can hear the relay clicking.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

Jim
I just fixed my horn yesterday. I could hear the relay clicking which is next to the voltage regulator but no horn. So I knew that it wasn't a fuse. I disconnected the relay and touched both terminals on the connection that had the same color wires (green) with a paperclip and the horn went off, confirming that the relay was the problem. I replaced the relay from Rockauto.com and horn works now. Sounds like a train!
 
Often times with the horn and turn signals it is a ground problem and disconnecting the ground wires and roughing up the contact point to ensure a proper ground is the solution. I restored my 64 in 2002 and found the same problems after everything was repainted and reassembled. I replaced the relays and the voltage regulator and it has been working excellently ever since. Good look.
 
I just fixed my horn yesterday. I could hear the relay clicking which is next to the voltage regulator but no horn. So I knew that it wasn't a fuse. I disconnected the relay and touched both terminals on the connection that had the same color wires (green) with a paperclip and the horn went off, confirming that the relay was the problem. I replaced the relay from Rockauto.com and horn works now. Sounds like a train!
on my 64 base model, I have a wire from one side to the other on the rag gear on the steering shaft and also a wire from steering box to body
 
Hi there,

Thanks for the responses. We did get the horns working, it was the wires on the rag joint.
Cleaned them up and they work.

The turn signals are still baffling. The top fender signal indicators work great, but nothing to
the front or rear signals. Front and rear parking lights work great. Weird.

Thanks,
Jim
 
I would look at the connections on the flasher and out. If the fender indicators are working you know the relay (if there is one) and flasher are working. When fixing electrical connections I routinely use di-electric grease as it helps the connection and helps prevent any corrosion. On the connector to insulation junction I also apply liquid electrical tape. It's clean looking and won't unravel like regular tape when the adhesive gives out.
Remember that the parking lights use a different circuit. The turn and brake lights use a different filament in the bulb and have a different source of power.
 
Back
Top