Who made the sequential light units we all bought a few years ago? Thundercats electrical or something like that?
I installed mine today and I've been having some problems with it. At first I had a bad ground, and now I have two problems. The lights sometimes sequence, sometimes not. When they do sequence, after 3 or 4 times they all blink together for a couple of times and then start sequencing again.
And the universal bulb I came with seems to be a little iffy. If I wiggle it, I can see the unit start to sequence again, so I think I need another one of them, but I can't find one. The local parts stores run the number on the package, but they don't have any in stock; and don't carry them.
Okay, I took the universal socket apart, it was a little loose, thats fixed. I took a video of what the car is doing. The drivers side works better than the passenger side. The passenger side seems to blink all together more than sequence. And the factory flasher seems to work better than the electronic one provided in the kit.
(http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/rr148/jpc647/th_107_0040.jpg) (http://s478.photobucket.com/albums/rr148/jpc647/?action=view¤t=107_0040.mp4)
Thunder Chicken made the kits but doesnt love us enough anymore to keep making them :(
I know he discontinued making them. Okay, I'll pm him. Sweet.
Well I figured out the problem. I don't know how to explain it, so I made a pretty little picture. Ground the sequential unit on the body of the car, or anywhere didn't work. The one ground wire from the unit, when ground to either of the universal lights would make that side work perfectly, but the other side not. So I grounded them both, and everything seems to work okay. I'm not an electrician, and I can't explain why it works, but it does. That's good enough for me, I suppose.
(http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/rr148/jpc647/107_0054.jpg)
Alright, I decided to use a snowbrush to apply brake and watch the sequential lights. Everything seems to work, except when the brakes are on. So I went to take the universal out of the light housing, and....... it won't come out. After looking at the socket, the universal socket light appears to have melted the plastic on the housings.
Now, one bulb broke coming out, one didn't. Has anyone else had this problem? Has anyone ever checked? I don't know what to do. Do I have to buy new sockets with newer, less drawing expensive bulbs? anyone else had this problem?
I had that setup in my car for a few years. Never had a problem with it. I used the bulbs and sockets that were provided with the kit. I recently replaced it with a setup that doesn't sequence the lights when you apply the brake. I hear it's technically illegal to sequence the brake lights.
I've not heard of this problem. The sequencer has no control over the innermost lights (the universal socket ones). The wire going to them from the sequencer is a direct pass-through, the sequencer only delays the center, then the outer lights. The innermost sockets should have no effect on its operation.
When you say they don't work with the brakes on, do you mean they don't work at all, or that they simply don't sequence and instead all flash at the same time?
Also, what do you have that sequencer's ground wire connected to? I see by your diagram that you've got it connected to the universal sockets, but what's actually grounding the sockets?
I mean they simply don't sequence. The diagram has changed. I ended up grounding the universal sockets directly into the taillight grounding wire. I think maybe the universal socket is the problem. If I disconnect the left one and let them flash, the two outer ones work. Maybe the socket is loose, I'll pull the spring and try to make it tight again.
I was also wondering, in regards to the tail lamp melting, did you guys ground the inner most light socket down flush to the rounded housing? There was a cylindrical section about an inch or so long the original bulb mounted in. That's what started to melt, so I ground it flushed, remounted the light, in hopes the heat was just building up in that area because the light was so close to the plastic, and causing the problem.
And they were originally just connected to the universal sockets, I thought that was ground enough, lol. Now they are tied into the ground wires in the taillight harness.
Instead of using the universal sockets, I Dremmeled out the shape of the standard brake light bulb sockets and wired a couple spares in that I had. It was kind of a pain, but I wanted the regular sockets instead of the universals.
I have a couple spare sockets, but how'd you dremel out the plastic to allow the stock sockets to 1/4 turn in?
just make the sockets on your inner lights look like the other 2 holes. I did that and it works fine. Also its not illegal to sequence your brake lights if they blink less than 4 times. At least that's FL law. It is most likely different in different states. It doesn't matter though, bikers down here have brake lights that flash repeatedly and it is highly annoying.
I'm getting my kit this week but its the webelectricproducts kit so its prolly a little different.
How does one find out what the actual law governing the sequencing brake light is? I searched through the DMV but didn't find anything except for tinting, etc.
There's a blurb in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108 that requires stop lamps to be activated simultaneously. I've had the sequential lights on my car for about five years and never had a problem. I just recently switched over to the lights that only sequence the turn signals, not the brakes late last year because I didn't want any headache from that one trooper that knows the law and needs to make a point. I don't think the DMV is going to be of much help. You're lucky to get information about tags from them..... If you really want a definitive answer, get something in writing from the state police. At least that way you have proof that you got an official answer if you ever do get stopped. There's a ton of people on here with the older sequential lights and I don't think I've heard of anyone having a problem, so I wouldn't sweat it.
How would sequentials be illegal if you can get them on new mustangs? I even have them on my 65 Bird and that is straight from Ford
The Cougars Unlimited kit in my car has a regular Wagner heavy duty flasher pot (not electronic).
Now Will (weasle) has the same kit for his car, but it came with a Wagner HD flasher that has a ground wire attached. Mine never had that wire. He grounded it to the fuse panel metal surround.
When I hit the brakes, the lights sequence once and then stay lit solidly.
When he hits the brakes, the lights are solid, no sequencing.
When I use a turn signal, the lights sequence immediately.
When he uses a turn signal, the lights go solid, then begin to sequence.
The only difference between our kits is the flasher.
So I suppose if there laws that you need to follow, one way to solve the issue could be with the flasher pot.
Just throwin' this out there.
the laws for here are written in the state statutes, which you can view online. Now that I think about it though, there are none that I know of that are FL specific regarding the sequencing or flashing of the brake lights. That is a federal issue and would have to be no doubt dug out from under megatons of federal statutes. Good luck finding those....:toilet:
As far as the sequencing on the factory cars being illegal, well the new mustangs only sequence the flashers, not the brakes. And the original 65 through 68 or whatever was before all the crackdown on safety lights. Hell it wasn't till halfway through the fox years that a third brake light was required. And as such, any car that was manufactured before the requirements were law are exempt from the necessity, i.e. why 83-85 foxes can get away with no third brake light and still pass inspection.