1985-1998 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
The front bulbs aren't flashing at all because they're either burnt out or unplugged or something.
What you're seeing, the fast flashing, is the car's way of telling you a bulb is bad. Fast flashing of front bulb would mean rear bulb is burned out, fast flashing of rears means fronts are burned out. To check this, I just pulled both my front turn signal bulbs, in the Trader Joe's parking lot at 9 at night, and got the exact symptoms you are describing.
I doubt both went bad at the same time, probably one side was doing the fast flashing first.
They are pretty common bulbs, Number 1157. No tools are needed to replace them:
Open the hood and there's a silver wire (stainless) spring clip just visible at each front corner, outside of headlight assembly, that you but a thumb on and pop off the sheet metal lip it's hooked over. Then push on the plastic light assembly from inside, straight forward about half an inch, and it will pull right out of the fender and hang down. The bulbs that are bad are the ones with three wires to their base. Give the black plastic assembly a quarter twist counterclockwise and base and bulb will come out of the reflector-lens assembly. Push in on the bulb and give it a few degrees twist counterclockwise I think it is, and it will pop out. Putting the replacement in, it has two side pins at 189 degrees, one sitting high and one sitting low. They need to go in the proper slots, so they line up with the little side detent when you push them down, and will lock in when you turn them a few degrees clockwise.
Re-insert bulb and base into reflector, twist to lock. Lift reflector, line pointed plastic pin at rear outer edge up with little hole in sheet metal, and push straight in. Reach inside, find stainless steel spring clip, and latch it back onto the edge of the sheet metal.
Job done. Total cost for both bulbs maybe $4 at an auto parts store, maybe a hardware store.
Mr. Bubble is right that it's common for the turn signal flasher relay on these cars to give trouble, but I don't think that's your problem here.
The flasher relay MAY be giving trouble but that would be separate from what you are describing. If it is faulty, most commonly it starts with balky 4-way ("Emergency") flashers, failing to come on when button at center top of dash with the orange triangle is doinked and pops up from dash face. If you're having that trouble, post back on here and I'll see it. I think I have more than one spare and I'd send you one for free. I've offered you advice before, you're way the heck up in my home state far from dealers, Saab specialist garages, or junkyards that might have these cars, and you deserve a hand.
Finally, maybe your garage does know something but didn't explain it well. Maybe the front bulb bases or reflectors are damaged in some way, and maybe they do in fact need to be replaced. But it isn't likely, the area is well protected from attack by corrosion, clean, and everything there should look almost like new still. I recall, you did have some major body work on front after an accident, and I guess maybe something could have been messed up then that's coming back to haunt you, like spliced in wiring that has started to corrode at the splice. But I doubt it.
posted by 71.173.65...
, Wed, 17 Oct 2012 08:25:40
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