I need to replace the turn signal switch on my 88. Has anyone done this that would be willing to throw some advise / tips my way before I begin??

Thanks!

bump

Hey Den I have not changed a switch in along time ,You have to take off the steering wheelto get at it and you have to take the turn signal stalk off by pushing in and turning a quarter turn and then out. you can fish the new cable thru the column with the old switch cable I hope this kinda helps you I am sorry that I can not be more helpful hope fully someone else will jump in here soon with some more tips.

See http://www.fieros.de/en/articles/steering.html

edit: Also see JazzMans photos http://web2.airmail.net/jsavage1/repairprocedures/tiltcolumn/

[This message has been edited by spark1 (edited 07-29-2004).]

what a ***** it is to do.. i did one today on a truck at work.. same thing they havent changed their design in years.

this is what i did for the truck its probably the same may be a little different you will get the hint though

Pop off the horn
first is a 5/8 nut remove it.
Use a colom puller and pull of the steering wheel.
under that is a few things in this order: dust guard, steering lock, horn.
to remove these 3 items you have to first remove the 2 torx bolts on the dust guard then push down on the dust guard and there will be a C-clip on the shaft.
Pop that off (watch though it will go flying)
remove those 3 peices.
Removing the Hazard and signal switch
on the acutal hazard switch (the circle you pull and push) there is a little screw that holds that on remove it.
then there are 3 torx head bolts.. i believe a T-15 you will have to play with your blinkers to access all 3.
There is a metal arm located in the top left corner of that switch under one of the torx heads. its a phillips head
and it connects the 2 switches. remove that.
Under that you will find your ignition switch. Remove that torx bolt turn the ignition and pull the cylinder out.
Now you can pry back the plastic housing to access the switch.
To pull out the handle for the wipers and blinkers u must turn the washers foward to line it up and pull outward on the handle it should come out farly easy.. you may need to play with the handle a bit to line it up.
now this is the tricky part.

As you pull that switch out you will see a plastic peice fall.. it has an arch on the bottom and a weird shape on top. take this peice and put it on the side it will be used with the new switch.. You will notice a rod this rod is for your high beams. that plastic peice lays on top of it and gets sandwiched between the switch and the colom.

the arched part rests on the bar.. I reccomened taking some dieletric grease and lubing the bar and the plastic arch. Not for lubrication but it acts as a glue almost to hold the piece in place to assist assembling.

Then just do everything in reverse... its a really ***** job take your time because its more of a pain when you have to do it a second time.

Watch where you run your wires. try to keep them in the same spot otherwise it may jam your highbeam rod.

(You dont have to put in the dust guard if you dont want to.. its a real pain to get back in)

hopefully i didnt miss anything and this helps..

someone expericanced can do it in a hour.. the first time i did it it took almost 3 hours to get it right.

The pics link was posted earlier, but basically you have to remove the steering wheel, the lock plate under it, then the cam that connects the switch to the stalk. Under the column you remove the underdash cover trim, unplug the switch, remove the two bolts holding the column bracket to the dash, the four bolts holding the column bracket to the column, then remove the plastic sleeve (it just folds onto the wiring). The connector for the turn signal is large and flat, and if you fiddle with it you'll see that it lines up with a flat tunnel through the column. With a combination of pulling the wires and pushing the connector it will slide right out of the column. Assembly is the reverse. No need to mess with the ignition switch lock cylinder.

JazzMan

Thanks everyone! This is very helpful!!

Den