Turn Signal bulb not working properly?

Tiny
NICOLE KARDELL-MILLS
  • MEMBER
  • 2005 SATURN ION
  • 2.2L
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 125,700 MILES
The vehicle listed above is a 3 Quad Coupe. I replaced the left turn signal blinker bulb because it wasn't working. Initially it still came on but did not blink. Now, it does nothing. Inside the car when I signal to turn, the light on my dash blinks rapidly still indicating it's not working. I tried a new bulb several times, used bulb grease, tried to clean the electrical socket, (it looked fine), took it out and reinstalled it so many times and still doesn't work.
When I turn on my emergency flashers, that side does nothing. I don't know what else to do to get it to work again.
I don't know if this is connected to this or not, but my car was not starting properly and almost not starting for the past week. So, I just replaced the battery yesterday. (I think the car has multiple electrical issues anyway before this problem) I have had to replace the battery more times than I should have too. So when I plug in my OBD2 Scanner sensor from FIXED it can't find it so it can't scan the car to tell me the problems. The car is still lagging when I start it and again barely starts after replacing the battery. Oh ya, when I opened the trunk to change the battery, and reached in there, the trunk had water in it. Thats one of the leaks causing my back wheels to rust and I guess its the trunk leaking but no clue where. The other leak was from the rail on the roof/door and was repaired, but the roof liner still gets wet and is coming off. I think there is still an issue there as well. I love my car but these are only a few of the problems I'm having. I don't really want to buy a new car, I can't afford it really. It has a salvage title, has protected me in several little fender bumps, and one car accident where I hit another car, then a deer ran out in front of me and I hit it too! My poor car is falling apart and would love to come and get rehab'd by your team. Thanks so much for your help!
Wednesday, March 8th, 2023 AT 11:42 PM

7 Replies

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,269 POSTS
Hi,

Do any of the signal lamps work? Is it limited to the front or back? I ask because the vehicle doesn't have a traditional signal flasher. Instead, the signal functions are controlled by the body control module (BCM). See pic

If either the front or rear do turn on in any way, then we have a wiring issue. If absolutely nothing happens, there is a chance the BCM has an internal fault.

Let me know.

Take care,

Joe

See pic below.
Was this
answer
helpful?
Yes
No
Thursday, March 9th, 2023 AT 9:14 PM
Tiny
NICOLE KARDELL-MILLS
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
It's the front right passenger side signal bulb. The left side works fine. I'm pretty sure its a wiring problem, but of course, I don't know how fix that! But no worries, I was in an accident yesterday and I no longer have my car. Thanks for your help!
Was this
answer
helpful?
Yes
No
Saturday, March 11th, 2023 AT 9:10 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,269 POSTS
Hi,

Wow, that isn't good. I hope you weren't hurt. Is the vehicle a total loss?

Joe
Was this
answer
helpful?
Yes
No
Sunday, March 12th, 2023 AT 1:47 PM
Tiny
NICOLE KARDELL-MILLS
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
I am fine! Thanks for asking. Its a long story. But I didnt cause it, the mechanic did by not securing my car hood properly. It flew up and shattered my windshield and sunroof glass. Its probably close to total loss, I only have liability!
Was this
answer
helpful?
Yes
No
Sunday, March 12th, 2023 AT 4:41 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,269 POSTS
Nicole, that is horrible. Your insurance shouldn't be responsible even if you had full coverage. If they left the hood open, they are responsible. Have you contacted them?
Was this
answer
helpful?
Yes
No
Sunday, March 12th, 2023 AT 7:12 PM
Tiny
NICOLE KARDELL-MILLS
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
LOL You are awesome! I guess there's more to it than that, but basically that's the gist of it. My car was already damaged by the deer that jumped out in front of me, I think I mentioned that before, so my hood and right passenger side front were damaged already. This was right after I had fixed my car after an accident, I was involved in back in 2019! I spent about $2,000.00 getting it almost looking good again, and then the deer came in 2022! Anyway, after the deer incident, my hood flew up while I was driving, scaring the crap out of me and damaged the car more! It figures right? So, in order to keep that from happening again, I zip tied my hood latch to the hood anchor so it was impossible for it to fly up, but I could still drive it. So, when my car was taken into the mechanic to fix the starter, he was told about the zip tie on the hood latch and he was aware of it because he had to slip it off somehow to get in the hood, but he didn't cut it. He also, didn't re zip tie it and we thought he did.
He told us that he did, but I'm sure he wasn't telling the truth because there was no new zip tie on my car! It was the one I had put on there about a week before! And it was not attached to the right parts, it was hanging from the hood latch anchor thing. Oh, the drama! So far, he has not contacted us to take any responsibility. We called him right after it happened, and he offered to bring me another zip tie for the hood! OMG he then proceeded to try to secure it after I was already in the accident! And he did it wrong! It would have slipped off eventually. I checked it this time and secured it correctly with a new zip tie and proceeded to slowly drive my car to my parents' house where it still sits today. So, there's my story. Unreal huh? Check out the pic!
Was this
answer
helpful?
Yes
No
Monday, March 13th, 2023 AT 12:14 AM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,269 POSTS
Wow. That's a lot of damage. I would think they are responsible since they were the last people to work on it. Actually, I feel confident in court, they would lose. I realize it was zip tied, which isn't a great repair, but it worked. If they felt it was dangerous, they should have insisted on repairing it before you took the vehicle. If you refused, they needed to document that on the repair order. If they didn't, they are responsible.

I hope you get it fixed. Once it is, you may want to sell it since it seems to be attracted to accidents. LOL

If there is anything I can do to help, let me know.

Take care,

joe
Was this
answer
helpful?
Yes
No
Monday, March 13th, 2023 AT 8:06 PM

Please login or register to post a reply.

Sponsored links