my 71 duster has a problem with the directionals. they work up front and blink slowly in the dash, but they do not work in the rear. the bulbs and fuses are good. i also had a problem earlier with my rear brake lights not working but i cob jobbed some wiring to bypass the fuse panel/steering column area. ive read of a "combo" switch in the steering column which is supposedly a common problem. what i need to know is 1) where do i find a new one 2) how much should it cost and 3) how do i diagnose that this is the problem? also, how do i remove the horn in order to pull the steering wheel?

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"I don't like these seatbelts, they're too complicated." - my lovely girlfriend in reference to my 71 duster seatbelts

wheres all my electrical geniuses? i cant figure this out myself, im retarded!

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"I don't like these seatbelts, they're too complicated." - my lovely girlfriend in reference to my 71 duster seatbelts

The problem is in your cobbled wiring. From the factory, the brake lamp power goes through the turn signal switch. That's what allows the brake lamps to do double-duty as both brake and rear directional signals. The turn signal switch routes power to the rear lamps either via the brake lamp switch or via the turn signal flasher, depending on the position of the lever. In order for the rears to work as designed, this has to be maintained. What you are calling the "combo switch" is in fact known as the turn signal switch.

Without intending disrespect: If you're asking how to take off the horn button, you really need to start Here before you start trying to take stuff apart, or you're likely to dig yourself into a deeper and more expensive repair job.

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

The quick answer is yes, you'll have to remove the horn button to remove the steering wheel.

even with my rerouting of the brake light wiring the directionals worked ok up until just recently. i understand what your saying dan, and maybe i should but the wiring back to stock and restart from the begining. this thing is just full of lovely suprises... i asked about how to remove the horn button wondering if there was some easy "trick" that i have yet to discover. i know i have to pull the button to remove the steering wheel, that was kinda straight forward. thanks for the help, hopefully once i fix this mess another problem doesnt arise. ive had a ton of bad luck as of late with this old beast...

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"I don't like these seatbelts, they're too complicated." - my lovely girlfriend in reference to my 71 duster seatbelts

Can you post a wiring diagram of just how you cobbled this wiring together? There's no way anyone is going to be able to troubleshoot this without it, unless you re-wire it back to stock.

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"Mad Scientist" Matt Cramer
'66 Dart - turbocharged 225
My blog - Mad Scientist Matt's Lair

all i did was patch into the brake wiring directly after the switch on the pedal to the lines running to the rear of the car. basically, the fuse panel/steering column area was completely removed from the equasion... after thinking about this some, im not 100% sure the blinkers always worked after my "wiring' job. i didnt realize they didnt work until someone told me. maybe theve been out all along and i didnt know it... ill put the wiring back to stock once i get a chance and see where that gets me.

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"I don't like these seatbelts, they're too complicated." - my lovely girlfriend in reference to my 71 duster seatbelts

got the same problem in my 71 dart...although i'm sure i fried the switch (yes there was smoke and everything)...


my girlfriend said the same thing about my seatbelts

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My Dart
GO VOLS!
It's not rocket science, we're just splitting atoms.

There's no way your blinkers could work correctly like that. At best, they would not blink when you hit the brakes, and with your foot off the brakes you would have both blinkers come on at once when you hit the turn signals (unless you got creative and added a couple diodes).

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"Mad Scientist" Matt Cramer
'66 Dart - turbocharged 225
My blog - Mad Scientist Matt's Lair

There is one (and only one) way to fix this problem: Fix the wiring, all the way fixed, so that it's the way it's supposed to be. Wiring diagram applicable to your Duster is Here. The answer to "I know the wiring is hacked, but I want it to work anyway without fixing it right" is "Fuhgeddaboudit".

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一期一会
Too many people who were born on third base actually believe they've hit a triple.

thank you kindly gents for the help, ill let you know how she goes...

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"I don't like these seatbelts, they're too complicated." - my lovely girlfriend in reference to my 71 duster seatbelts

well, i finally got a chance to work on the duster. to start, boy do i feel retarded. i didnt realize that all you had to do to remove the horn was pull it off... just didnt think it was that easy... anyways, i installed the new blinker switch and completely restored all wiring back to stock. all of my blinkers work great but sadly, im back to having no brake lights. im back to square 1, which is ok because i want to get this fixed right and not my usual shortcut way. on the brake lights, all of the bulbs test good and the fuse is ok. the brake light switch seems ok as it worked ok before i "restored" the wiring back to stock.ive got no juice to the sockets themsleves and havent found any obvious broken wires, etc. any other common problem area i should be looking at? thanks again!

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"I don't like these seatbelts, they're too complicated." - my lovely girlfriend in reference to my 71 duster seatbelts

all fixed, everything worked out ok. defintiely a learning experience. btw, the combo switch is getting hard to come by now a days. the only place i could find it through was advanced auto for $46 and they only had 3 in the entire state of ny. thanks for the help!

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"I don't like these seatbelts, they're too complicated." - my lovely girlfriend in reference to my 71 duster seatbelts