1965 Sequential tail light noise

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Last seen
Joined
Dec 28, 2019
Thunderbird Year
1965
G’day from OZ.
i have a 65 thunderbird coupe. Love it.
Have an annoying sound coming from the sequential tail light motor in the trunk, every time the indicator is activated.
Is there a way of fixing this, or is it easier to just replace the motor.
I have looked online at what’s available, just not sure which motor/ part is the correct one to buy.
Any help would be appreciated.
Cheers. Mick.
 
On future posts, please follow posting prompts and include the model year in subject and summarize what your post is about.

"Sequential tail lights" is now "1964 Sequential tail lights noise"
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I don't know if you have bad motor bearings, if a little lubricant can take care of it, or what, but there are electronic replacements available that are silent. Some are drop-in replacements for the 65-66, while others have you starting from scratch on a car such as a 64. Look for the drop-in replacement.
 
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Not sure what kind of a noise you're talking about. Under normal circumstances the motor does make a noise which you can hear from the drivers seat. From the factory, the motor asnd switches were wrapped in an insulated package to reduce the sound. Is your unit still insulated?
 
It is very common for the original sequential flasher motor bearings go dry and the motor starts "squalling". Spraying WD-40 on the shaft where the plastic cam meets the bearing may help. Be careful - do not get any WD-40 on the cam switch contacts!

Some of the later Ford service-part sequencers have screws to hold the motor to the gear box. These can be disassembled and the gears greased. Older parts are riveted together and must be drilled out. Do not remove the motor housing screws to disassemble the motor - it is very difficult to get the brushes back in place without bending the brush springs. Unfortunately, there is no access to the rear motor bearing.

Failure of this part is the reason I developed a plug-in replacement in the late 1980s. The TE-1 electronic sequential flasher is still available from your favorite T-Bird dealer.

Vic Yarberry
 
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Thank you all for the great advice.
After reading your replies & not being real great at auto electrics, I decided to go the easy way. I unbolted the whole unit from its mounting point. Wrapped it in yoga Matt/insulation, turned the unit on its side and let it sit snugg in the trunk behind the back seat. Problem solved. Doesn’t squaw as much on its side & I can’t hear anything n the car. I have the plug in replacement unit coming.
Thanks again for all the great advice.

cheers from OZ.
 
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