Please bear with me while I explain the front lamp problems on a 91 Regal :)

[Dinsdale]

I've gone through the wiring diagrams in the Haynes manual but have come to a dead end. I'll write a quick outline of what's going on.

 

Ignition off and parking lights switched on: The front turn lights come on, both sides.

 

Ignition on, parking lights off, and activating left and right turn signals: Left and right work properly.

 

Ignition on, parking lights on, and activating left and right turn signals: The signal lights work on both sides, but never go fully off because they are lit by the parking light.

 

It seems that something is using the turn lights to find an earth, but when I take out all the turn bulbs, I find nothing that has stopped working.

 

Here's the dead end......

 

In the Haynes manual wiring diagrams, I see that there is only ONE park/turn bulb. Its function seems to be determined by either a park-turn relay or by a 'module' with diodes in it. I assume that this bulb functions as a parking light (sidelight in GB English) until the indicator is activated, when it becomes....an indicator bulb. When the signal is cancelled, it goes back to being a sidelight/parking light.....I assume, still.

 

 

But on our Regal, there are TWO bulbs in the plastic lamp units next to each headlamp, not just one. The four bulbs in these two units are orange. There is evidence of someone having worked on all the front lamp wiring.....plastic connectors, sticky tape and so on. I will take all this crappy re-wiring off and re-do it properly, but first I need to know:

 

What is the original setup of the front park/turn lights system on this model? What should be happening? It's a 91 Regal Coupe Limited, 3.1 engine.

 

Has someone possibly taken turn/parking lamp units (with dual bulbs) from a different model and tried to bypass the park/turn relay/module, and failed miserably? I can pop round to the auto electric chap if necessary and translate the English into Polish for him, but it makes sense to ask here first to get as well-prepared as possible.

 

 

Cheers!

Edited November 2, 2014 by Dinsdale

[tornado_735]

Perhaps it was poorly modified to meet european lighting specifications/requirements.

 

Maybe RobertISaar can have a look at the wiring diagrams he has access to, and translate what may be happening. He's kind of a savant when it comes to wiring diagrams. And just about everything else electrical related.

[Imp558]

Try alldatadiy.com, for $20 (Less if you Google coupon codes) you can have schematics that are far superior to Haynes. Haynes manuals are useless. Alldata will give you torque specs and a bunch of stuff.

[RobertISaar]

http://imgur.com/QIu01Ss,QampQfT

 

so, that's what it should look like.

[Dinsdale]

Thanks, guys!

 

Special thanks to Roberts, for taking time to give me the schematics for this model. They are different to any in the Haynes manual.

 

A good point about the mod possibility for the European market, Tornado. I know that the headlamp lenses were changed when it came to Poland from England. The weather is great so I'll carry on with my investigations today.

[Dinsdale]

I just had a "light bulb" moment...... !

 

The front turn/park setup has probably been bodged by someone with no real clue about it. They probably thought:

 

"So, the park light is always on, but the turn is flashing.....that'll do."

 

I just thought that I could ditch the present arrangement at the front and blank off the wires. I could then run wires from the rear of the car, where all is working well, to feed the front park and turn lights. I haven't been able, so far, to think of any reason why this would not be a sensible course of action.

 

I feel fully competent to do this modification safely (fuse, properly-routed cables, correct wire guage and so on), but would welcome any thoughts about this course of action before I proceed.

 

I'd be very happy to dispense with the front park/turn module. The way it is now could be, I suppose, potentially hazardous. It is working in a way in which it was not designed to do. Since I have two separate bulbs on each side, it make sense to me to wire them individually from the rear.

 

I still can't think why this would not be a good solution to the issue. I guess I should eliminate the voltage supply to the front park/turn module? Would doing that affect the turn indicators on the panel?

 

Back to the schematic .

Edited November 2, 2014 by Dinsdale

[Dinsdale]

After chatting with the owner today, I discovered the reason for the front fog lamps being on all the time (when the lights were switched on)........to act as front parking lights .

 

Things can only get better !