push pull light switch

[morris minor man]

hi all iv a morris minor on a 61 plate.i think its a shade older.as its got trafficators..the lights do what they want.they go off when they want ..come on willy nilly.and if the mood takes it it does a disco afect..and some times both lights just dont come on or the opposite side does not light up.so to day iv tried to take the switch out by placing my hands up the speedo.my hands got stuck between the front pannel and the heater,next try i hit a wire on the switch and i got electricuted,so i looked at getting at it in the bulk head behind the battery..i have 2 glove boxes one in front of the steering wheel can i get to it from their???

[bmcecosse]

Welcome to the Forum! You can poke a screwdriver in a small access hole the inner faces of each glovebox - and thereby loosen the clamping screws holding the speedo in place - it then can be carefully pulled forward thus giving you the access you need. Not convinced it's a switch problem - but check it out anyway.

[LouiseM]

Yes, welcome to the messageboard Having just replaced a speedo I found that removing the glove boxes will give much better access to the switches and it's possible to take the driver's side one out without removing the steering wheel. Just a word of caution though, as you say that you've already electrocuted yourself from a safety point of view please make sure that you know what you are doing when dealing with electrics and disconnect the battery before starting. Hopefully someone who has replaced the switch that you are referring to will post here to let you know how it's done.

[mike.perry]

It sounds very much as though you have some loose wires hanging around which need reconnecting.
How do you get electrocuted on 12 volts, apart from shorting a screwdriver across the battery terminals?

[morris minor man]

sounds crazy tho electricuted but it was raining my hand was on the wires and the other hand was on the wet roof while it was running..iv just come in and my son said the same as hes had a go..i will try to take the glove box out..rear lights have been on...but not the front...

[morris minor man]

is it a hard job to take it out????

[LouiseM]

the lights do what they want.they go off when they want ..come on willy nilly.and if the mood takes it it does a disco afect..and some times both lights just dont come on or the opposite side does not light up

Before removing the switch, have you done any other basic checks such as cleaning the bullet connections to the lights and ensuring they are properly earthed? Has this problem just started or has it been the same since you got the car? Or did it start after other work had been done? Is the problem just with the headlights or also the side lights?

sounds crazy tho electricuted but it was raining my hand was on the wires and the other hand was on the wet roof while it was running

What wires were you touching? In your earlier post you say that you "hit a wire on the switch". It's not clear what you mean - is there a loose wire hanging down?

Sorry for all the questions but a bit more information might help people to identify what the actual problem is.

[morris minor man]

hi again well its been a real nightmare..i bought the car..of a guy i know hes had it 8 or so years.he said it was garage maintained.as the guy is getting on in years,after driving it home the near side indicater was not working,and no lights.the old guy said i paid £200.for a rewire??on taking the gluv box out their was burnt wires every where.

[morris minor man]

so i asked my mate for wire and electrical tape,and started to cut out replace the wiring.the bakealite light pull switch had been wragged apart.so i rebuilt it,and rewired it..i got lights..but no indicators.so i rewired the back ones.then front.but the garage who did the work had messed it all up..so now all is working....but the little light on the end of the stalk is flashing all the time..only when i switch on and all the time their after.and goes off when i switch off....only when i replaced the flasher relay..so it could be faulty...but who ever has done the rewire need their head testing..as they had built up birds nests full on miles of wire,choc blocks, under both front wings inches away from the tyres....

[Plin]

I don't like the sound of your wiring mess! What a shame you have to sort out something that the previous owner thought was fixed. Hope you don't have any more nasty surprises.

[morris minor man]

well i took it out today on the open road drives very good.and all the electrics work fine..fingers crossed..so i got back to the old owner this evening..he was shocked..with the workmenship.but very happy now iv only the water by-pass on front of the engine to renew and exhaust to adjust??as it sounds like a tiger tank.bang bang on the back axle...