(Jody.P.Levine@hydro.on.ca) writes:
> The rear turn signal assembly on a TR7 is constructed as follows:
[...stuff deleted...]
> The screws on the lens go through a gasket, the reflector plate, a thick
> foam gasket and finally the sheet metal of the trunk, star washers, regular
> washers and small nuts. [...] One of the wires that goes to both lights is
> black, a ground, with a ring terminal on the end...
Well, the last time I replaced a TR7 taillight, it was because my roommate
ripped the screws out of his old one when trying to seal it a bit tighter,
and didn't trust himself to not do it again with the new one. It was machine-
screw-type threads if I remember right. You're right, they can let go.
The male disconnect terminal sounds right. The ring terminal sounds wrong.
(Particularly if it has a red, blue or yellow collar around the crimp area,
which is a dead tipoff to an aftermarket crimp connector.) One of the two,
at least, must look fairly original. Try temporarily connecting the ring
ground to the male spade lug (hold it with your fingers if you have to) and
see if the grounding improves. If so, replace the ring with a female spade
lug, connect to the existing lug and that should do it.
> So, it would seem that the body is irrelevant in the scheme of grounding the
> tail lamps.
That is _usually_ the case, yes. Marker lamps are often grounded through the
bodywork, particularly on LBCs, but I usually find that taillamp units have
a genuine ground wire attachment which leads (at least a short way) into the
bodywork and grounds in a semi-protected, or at least dry, location there.
> ...was whoever designed this system truly a stupid git?
No, but sometimes an innocent car will meet up with one or two along the way
before you buy it. They're called POs.
> The car decided to stop charging (voltmeter needle at left of centre when
> it used to be to the right of centre, and it's same with the car running
> or not), and the signals don't flash at all. Arrrrggh!
Uh, that's an _amp_meter, isn't it? :-)
Have you got the correct bulb numbers installed? I had an Austin that did
not flash the U.S. standard 1156 bulbs; it insisted on some higher-power
numbers available only from the dealer, of course. Sorry, forgot the numbers.
(maybe 1034?)
Andrew C. Green
Datalogics, Inc. Internet: acg@hermes.dlogics.com
441 W. Huron UUCP: ..!uunet!dlogics!acg
Chicago, IL 60610 FAX: (312) 266-4473
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