Hi everyone,

Well the horn on my 1965 Series 1 OTS stopped working today. When I press the horn button, I can hear the relay click but no sound from the horns. What is my troubleshooting path?

Thanks, James

 

Well I solved the horn issue. I went back out and checked the #3 fuse again and I had inserted it on the wrong side of the holder, thus causing a short with #2 fuse. All is well with the horn.

But .... now the brake lights won't go on. I don't know when they stopped working. The rear tail lights and turn signals work wonderfully. But when I press the brake pedal, nothing happens. I checked fuse #6 for the brake lights, it looks good. I ran the wiper motor which I believe to be on the same fuse, it runs. So I hope this eliminates a possible fuse issue.

Any suggestions? I will be pulling out my service manual to see what I can figure out.
Thanks

 

Did you check the bulbs? Often in older cars when one filament fails it can push enough current to the remaining filament to cause it to fail as well or you just don't realize one bulb is out and eventually the other one fails. But my guess is you've got two bad brake bulbs. A broken wire would likely cause a short which would cause the fuse to fail so odds are its a bulb (though it could be you knocked a wire lose when you were messing with the fuses).

 

Thanks everyone for the support. The horn issue was my fault. I was working on the auxiliary radiator fan a couple of days ago and pulled the #3 fuse but I inserted the fuse incorrectly.

As to the brake lights, tt turns out it is my hydraulic Brake Operation Switch, or to be more specific the wire blade connectors on top of the switch. I couldn't find the switch at first - standing on my head looking under the dash, nope, then the firewall, nope, then the brake booster, nope, then someone mentioned it was on the picture frame - huh? so I finally found it. Who would have thought it was in the front of the car adjacent to the radiator. So, I disconnected the wires from the top of the switch and bridged them with some wire and success!! brake lights. So, I reconnected the wires and pressed the brake peddle and Success!! brake lights. Turns out the top mounted electrical connecters were "wiggly" (technical term) and not making a consistent contact. So I got my super glue out to secure the loose top mounted contacts. A little glue on the contacts, pressed to make contact and wait to dry - Success!! brake lights for now. I think the next step is replacing the hydraulic brake switch with a mechanical switch - more reliable, less prone to being "wiggly" and quicker brake light activation. The installation of the switch is simple - I just need to figure out the wiring. I must say with every issue, I keep learning about the nuances of this car. Solving them provides a sense of accomplishment and investment in the car.

Again, Thanks everyone for the support. Time to go for a drive.
James in Fullerton, CA