Need advice about men head light out

[merbesfield]

I just had my ignition switch rebuilt by Rocketdan for my 73 911. He did awesome work. Feels like new. As I was driving out my driveway I lost my left headlight and no turn signals. Today was the first day I have used it after the reinstall. Any advice where to look? I personally did not reinstall the switch so I don't really know what was messed with in the process. I did wiggle all the fuses. My mechanic installed it and unfortunately, he is no longer working for me. I have not been able to speak w him yet. Was hoping someone can point me in right direction so I can look into it tomorrow. Of course it is the week before Werks Reunion, go figure. Sorry for the long post. Appreciate any assistance.

[merbesfield]

If a headlight bulb burned out, would that cause turn signals to not work? The bulb flickered just before it died much the way an incandescent bulb sometimes does just before dying. Another strange thing is I had a left turn signal for a little while after the bulb died and then by the time I was home I had none. Demons?

[HarryD]

I am thinking a coincidence. If one headlight is working but the other not, most likely a burned out bulb. If all of your signals are out you need to check if there is a loose wire. You can look at the wiring diagram to see which wires to verify. Wiring diagram here: Porsche 911 Electrical Diagrams (1965- 1989)

[merbesfield]

Thanks Harry. I also thought it might be a loose wire but I pushed and wiggled everything I could see and no change. I will check again tomorrow and look for loose wires too.

[DRACO A5OG]

From Dr Gerry:



Verify the wiring is correct.

As far as the turn signal, if all wire are in the correct posts, then it may be the stalk

[merbesfield]

DRACO that is awesome. Thanks. Is there a list of what those colors abbreviations are or will it become clear when I am looking at them? The turn stalk has been replaced w the new version sold these days so I don't think that is the cause though it could be that the connections have come loose. I seem to recall Gary (aka ex mechanic) saying he had to remove the stalk wiring to get the switch out. Coincidence? Not likely, everything worked before switch R&R.

[merbesfield]

Ok, turn signals are now working. A prong on plug was bent when inserted so I repositioned it and now have turn signals. But still no low beam!

Q: My headlights are H4, one bulb. Are highband low beam same element? High beam burns when stalk is pulled for flash but does not work if pushed for high on. No low beam at all. Is bulb burned or not bc I have high beam when pull?

[zedsn]

Best thing to do is unplug bulb and get a volt meter and turn on lights to see if you are getting juice to the plug for each high and low beam and go from there. High and low beams are seperate elements.

[DaveMcKenz]

Hi and low beams are different filaments. If you have a test light, you can see if you have power at the bulb. Google H4 pin connections. Or you could swap right and left headlight bulbs and see if the bad light changes to the other side.
Good luck,
Dave

[merbesfield]

Dave thank you. So it is possible for the low beam ellement to burn out and still have high beam. I will pull the light and test for power.

[HarryD]

Originally Posted by merbesfield

DRACO that is awesome. Thanks. Is there a list of what those colors abbreviations are or will it become clear when I am looking at them?

This may help:

WIRE COLORS
English .......................DIN (German)
Black . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Sw
Blue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Bl
Brown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....Br
Green . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..Gn
Gray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Gr
Orange . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .....Or
Pink . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Rs
Purple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...Vi
Red . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..Rt
Turquoise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....Tk
White . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..Ws
Yellow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..Ge

The turn stalk has been replaced w the new version sold these days so I don't think that is the cause though it could be that the connections have come loose. I seem to recall Gary (aka ex mechanic) saying he had to remove the stalk wiring to get the switch out. Coincidence? Not likely, everything worked before switch R&R.

Check they are landed correctly.

[merbesfield]

I want to thank everyone for their help. The day ended with success. I found that one or two of the prongs on one of the plugs that was removed during ignition switch R&R was bent and went outside of the hole it was intended to go in. I guess they all have to be perfect. Each pin is made up of four prongs. One or two of those were bent and were going on the outside of the hole. This fixed my turn signal problem. The headlight issue was a burned out bulb. Replacing the bulb was easy in conversation, but like all things Porsche, whatever could go wrong did, but in the end I persevered.

[DaveMcKenz]

Good job. I'd say about one in four of my "easy"jobs turns out to be a snowball toward oblivion. I usually also persevere, but am humbled.
Dave

[HarryD]

Glad to hear you got it worked out. It is a lot easier the second time .