Have you noticed how the blinker blinking fast? This is a strange situation since the blinker needs to blink at the same pace all the time. Blinking too fast can indicate a problem. That’s why we got you covered and we are going to cover the most probable reasons why this is happening and how to sort it out.
Blinkers are one of the crucial components that do an enormous job in keeping us safe on the road. Without them, probably would be a ton of accidents and many people will die. That’s why they are so ingenious and also a basic invention at the same time. An invention that saves thousands of lives without us even knowing it.
Sometimes they can malfunction and problems can start to develop. That’s why making sure that they are in perfect working order is key if you want to guarantee your safety on the road. Also, the safety of the pedestrians and other participants in the traffic. So, when you notice how blinker blinking fast occurs. This situation can indicate a problem. And we are going to cover more about it.
In this article, we are going to learn what blinkers are and how do they work. Then we will learn the probable reasons why the blinker blinking fast problem happens and how to fix it. Then we will discuss the costs to fix this problem. Later we will also learn what to do if your blinker fails and you end up in this situation. So, let’s get into it.
What Are Blinkers And How Do They Work?
Blinkers or turn signals are devices that are located on your vehicle. These devices are built-in for the purpose of signalization and they show other people in the traffic what are your intentions and where do you want to go.
There are four turn signals or blinkers on each car. One on every four corners of the vehicle. They are styled to also look good and make the vehicle more appealing. Usually, they are molded into the design.
In modern vehicles, they are even blended in with the headlights and act as a whole unit. Which makes them even more appealing to customers to have their headlights and turn signals into one big assembly.
Nevertheless, this also improves the maintenance as well. Since it is one housing, swapping a bulb is fairly easy and could be done in minutes.
There are also two extra blinkers on some vehicles that are mounted onto the fenders of the vehicle. They are not mandatory in the US. But still, some manufacturers include them.
The turn signals are always blinking in yellow color to help you not to confuse them with other lights that are on the vehicle.
Having proper working blinkers is mandatory by law. And if your blinkers aren’t working right and you notice the blinker blinking fast or not blinking at all it means that you have a problem with your vehicle. You will not be able to register the car if you have this problem or you could get fined if the police notice you.
That’s why the problem needs solving. That’s why we are going to help you out in the following article and we will teach you the reasons for the blinker blinking fast problem. So, follow along.
Reasons Why Blinker Blinking Fast
If you noticed that the blinker blinking fast then this is good. You are aware that there is a problem that needs solving. But first, be aware that blinkers on some cars blink faster than blinkers on other cars. And if it’s the first time you drive this car then this might be perfectly normal for this vehicle.
If you notice how the blinker blinking fast all of a sudden and you have this car for a while. Then probably this problem is caused by some of the components inside of the blinker system. And which are these components or reasons that can cause this problem to appear in the first place we are going to cover in the following chapters.
Faulty Light Bulb
One of the first things that you need to do is to check the light bulb. It is a simple thing but the whole problem could be only in this one bulb.
Maybe something inside during these long years has malfunctioned and is causing it to blink too fast and too aggressively.
That’s why remove the bulb and inspect its condition. Make sure that it looks good and all the connections are pretty clean. If it’s not, clean them off.
Then place the bulb inside of the housing and give it a try. If it works then excellent. If it doesn’t work then you will need to get a new light bulb. But from where?
Remove the bulb from the other side and give it a test. If the problem gets solved it means that you need to buy a new blinker bulb. If the problem is not solved then it means that you need to dive deeper and troubleshoot more. And that’s what we are going to cover next.
Bad Connection With the Connector
The second thing you need to do is to inspect the connection switch of your blinker. This is the case because there could be moisture that has gotten inside and the connection is short-circuiting. This can cause a number of malfunctions including blinker blinking fast.
The first thing you need to do is to unplug the connector from the light bulb and then see the connections. If there is rust on them, get sandpaper and clean off the rust.
Also, check the connector from the bulb. Make sure that all of the metal is clean and then give it a try. If the problem was the connection with the switch, then you are good to go. You got your problem solved in a minute.
But this doesn’t always be the case and the problem could persist and you will experience this issue again. If that is the case you need to do deeper troubleshooting in order to solve the problem.
Bad Connector
A bad connector can also be one of the primary culprits why this blinker blinking fast problem happens. But why is this the case?
The connector is connected to the wiring, this wiring connects to the wiring installation of the vehicle. This means that the connector could also malfunction and cause problems.
These problems often happen with the wires. Especially the point when the wires go into the connector. If the wire was pulled by accident maybe some of the insulation got ripped off and is causing some shorts when the blinker is turned on that results in the blinker blinking fast.
The best thing in this situation is to inspect the wiring and see the condition of the wires as well as the connector. Testing the connector with a multimeter tool is going to tell you a lot about its condition.
If you place the multimeter into the connector and the readings are not proper. It means that the connector is bad and it has to be replaced. This connector usually costs somewhere between $30 to $50 and can be easily replaced. Just plug and play. That’s why if this is the problem then this is an easy fix. If this didn’t solve your problem then move on to the next possible reason why this could be happening to you.
Faulty Turn Signal Relay
Another thing that could fail is the turn signal relay. The turn signal relay is the one that could be your prime suspect. But why is this the case?
This is the case because this relay is in charge of the blinkers and tells them when to turn on and how often they should blink.
If the relay is bad, the work of the turn signals will be put in danger and your turn signals will not work properly.
But where this turn signal relay is located and how does it look? This turn signal relay is located in the fuse box which is in the engine bay. In the engine bay, there should be a big black rectangular box.
In this box, all of your fuses and relays are located. You need to pop off the cover and read the scheme that is underneath. The scheme is going to tell you which of the relays is the one that you are looking after.
Make sure that you find the blinker relay and then remove it and replace it. You can also check the relay but this is not a simple procedure and you will need a test lamp and a multimeter and a car battery. This procedure is rather complex.
That’s why I’m going to add a YouTube video where this procedure is carried out. If you don’t have the equipment for testing then it’s also a good idea to just get a new relay and replace the old one. They are not that expensive and are readily available at most parts stores around the country. Just make sure that you find the exact one for your application. Here is the video.
Insufficient Voltage
Insufficient voltage can also be one of the prime suspects when you have issues like this. Why I’m saying this? This is the case because when there is not enough voltage, you are going to have some problems with your electrical systems.
Cars do not like to run on low power. If your battery is low on power, your lights in the car will get dim, your headlights will flicker and blinker blinking fast can also come up as one of the symptoms.
In this case, you should look at your battery and check its condition. The battery should always give at least 12V of power in order for the systems to work properly.
If the battery is giving less power than it should. Then this is probably the reason why you are having this problem with the blinker blinking fast. The battery and the blinker relay are the most common when it comes to these types of problems.
Also, since the battery is charged by the alternator, you also need to make sure that the alternator is working properly and it is charging the battery. Because if the alternator is broken, you constantly are going to experience these symptoms because your battery would never be fully charged. But let’s start first with the battery.
So, How Can You Test The Battery?
In order to check the condition of the battery, you need to get a multimeter. Set the value on volts and place the red probe on the positive and the black on the negative. Then measure the power of the battery. If the battery has more than 12V, then the battery is ok.
If the battery has lover than 11V, this might be it. The next step would be to take this further and see if the alternator is good and is charging the battery properly.
Unfortunately, testing an alternator is a bit tricky. But if the alternator isn’t grinding or producing any whining noises is probably in good working condition.
Bad Ground Connection
Bad ground connection can also be the reason why your blinker blinking fast problem happens. But why is this the case? This is the case because the ground isn’t attached well to the chassis. This creates problems in the work of the electrical system and can cause malfunctions to appear on your car.
To make sure that your ground is ok. You need to check the negative terminal. If there is corrosion on the terminal then make sure that you get a steel brush and brush off the rust buildup that is on the clamp. Remove the clamp and also clean the terminal as well.
If the problem continues, then inspecting the ground connection is also a good idea. Find the mounting place and see if the connection is ok and that is not any rust around it. If there is rust. Clean the rust off with a wire brush or reposition the ground connection to a panel that has low rust and will offer a good ground connection.
If you sorted this and the problem still persists, then visiting a mechanic is also an option. Especially, electricians. Car electricians have a lot of experience in solving problems like this and can tackle this issue in no time.
How To Fix This Problem With Blinker Blinking Fast?
So, how to fix this problem quickly and effectively? We have listed all of the reasons that could cause the blinker blinking fast problem to happen and now let’s see which are the most probable reasons why is this happening. All of them can cause this issue to be honest. But the first things that you need to pay most attention to are the turning signal relay and the battery.
This is the case because the relay is in charge of the blinkers and it tells them when to turn on and off. If the relay is not functioning properly. Then getting a new relay will most likely going to solve your problem once and for all. Relays aren’t expensive and you can find them for like $10 to $30 online or at your local parts store.
The other thing that could fail is the battery. If the battery has low power most of the time. It could make your components malfunction. The first things that you will notice are the headlight flickering. Then dim lights in the cabin, radio not working, cluster turns on and off and the blinker blinking fast.
All these things can indicate a problem with the battery. Or the alternator if the alternator is not charging the battery. If the battery is old, you can replace it because old batteries are prone to these problems more than new ones. If the battery is fairly new then, you might look on the alternator to see if the alternator is good.
Then if these two things are in perfect working order. You might consider checking other components like the ground connection, light bulb, connector, or some fuse in the fuse box that is in charge of the blinker lights.
Cost To Fix Blinker Blinking Fast Problem?
The cost to fix the problem with the blinker blinking fast is relative. So why is this the case? Let’s say that you want to go the DIY route and repair your car. The price to fix this issue is going to be relatively low because you will only pay for the price and the cost of the multimeter for testing.
The price of the parts like the light bulb, light connectors, blinker relay, a car battery is fairly inexpensive. Most of these components could be found for something between $10 to $50. The battery is the one that is the most expensive component that you could get and it could easily cost you a minimum of $100 for a good 12V battery.
If you choose to go on the other route and you visit a mechanic, more precisely an electrician. You can expect to pay considerably more money to fix your issue.
This is the case because mechanics often demand somewhere between $50 to $100 per hour. And will highly likely include a couple of hours of work, even in some cases they could fix the problem in 15 minutes. But that is the price to pay.
Overall, it is best to visit a mechanic since they know what they are doing. And especially with electrical problems, if you are not experienced, you could easily make a short and burn your car to the ground. So, if you don’t want to experiment and learn from your mistakes. It’s best to pay someone else to do it for you.
What To Do If My Blinker Stops Working While Driving? – Blinker Blinking Fast
This is another good question and strangely in some situations, the relay can fail while you are driving and can fail. When the blinker relay fails, you will see that the turn signals are not working and this means that you need to act quickly and remember the thing that you learned in driving school. And what was that thing?
Hand signals are crucial when it comes to problems like this. Because if you don’t use hand signals, someone could hit you and damage your vehicle, or hurt you in worst cases. And what are the hand signals? Let’s see.
Turn Left
If you want to turn left, you need to put your hand outside of the window at a 180-degree angle. You basically put your left hand straight to the left. This will tell the drivers that you want to turn left.
Turn Right
The signal for turning right is quite different and to indicate that you want to turn right, you need to place your hand out and turn it upwards at 90 degrees from your elbow. Just make sure that there is no traffic behind you when you are performing these maneuvers.
Come To A Stop
If you want to come to a stop you need to place your left hand out from the car and point down at 90 degrees. Doing this will indicate to the drivers behind that you want to stop and they will know this. But this is the case when your brake lights fail.
Car Turn Signal Bulb Replacement Facts:
- A fast-blinking turn signal indicates a burned-out turn-signal bulb on that side.
- A burned-out bulb changes the resistance in the electric circuit, causing the turn-signal flasher unit to change the pace of the flashing lights.
- To check which bulb is out, activate the turn signal for the side blinking faster and take a stroll around the car.
- It’s often harder to replace a bulb on newer cars than on older ones.
- Don’t touch the glass part of the bulb with bare hands while replacing it.
- If both turn signals are flashing rapidly, there may be a bulb burned out on both sides or a problem with the turn signal flasher.
- Corrosion inside the socket can prevent electricity from flowing through the bulb, and cleaning out the socket may help.
- Electrical testing equipment like a voltmeter may be required to test the bulb and the socket.
- The power wire going to the socket can get detached or broken, or the socket’s ground wire could be broken or corroded.
- Rapid flashing of a turn signal is a useful warning device to indicate that the turn signal isn’t working.
Conclusion – Blinker Blinking Fast
In this article, we covered and learned a lot when it comes to the blinker blinking fast problem on your car. We learned what are blinkers and how do they work.
Then we have covered the probable reasons why your blinkers are blinking fast. As we mentioned, there could be a couple of things. Namely, the connector, the bulb inside, the relay for the blinkers or a bad ground, and a bad battery. All these things could indicate this problem. But the most likely issue is the relay for the blinkers or the battery. Because when the battery is not stable, all the lights know to flicker and cause problems.
Then we have learned the cost of fixing this problem. As we noted, fixing this issue isn’t expensive but is tricky because you need to know how to work with a multimeter.
Then we have covered what you can do if your blinkers fail in the middle of traffic. And that is using hand signals. We also covered the hand signals that can be pretty handy for you in these situations.
