98 Town Car electrial issue

[Morgan27]

98 Lincoln Town Car-turn signal lights quit working. An investigation showed that the back brake lights and back turn signal lights don't work (high brake light DOES work), the front amber signal lights don't work, hazard emergency lights don't work, the front side illuminating lights (that come on solid when turning) DO work. I don't find any fuses blown. I was told that the bulbs burned out; however, that seems very unlikely -- four at one time?

Any suggestions? Thanks for your help.

[Towncar]

Originally Posted by Morgan27

...
I was told that the bulbs burned out; however, that seems very unlikely -- four at one time?
Any suggestions?
....

WELCOME Morgan27 !!!

Sounds to me like a disfunctional Multifunction Switch (the one that operates the signals, brights, etc) In fact, diagnosis procedures for that exact problem in the Service Manual also point to the MFS as a possible cause.

I normally recommend checking the BOO (brake on/off) Switch first in these cases because it's easier to get at and should be eliminated as a possible cause too.

[Morgan27]

Thanks Steven. I have checked the brake switch which seems to be working ok (the high brake light works fine). I'm having trouble identifying the MFS.

[sreilly77]

Originally Posted by Morgan27

Thanks Steven. I have checked the brake switch which seems to be working ok (the high brake light works fine). I'm having trouble identifying the MFS.

had a very similar problem with my 95 town car. turned out to be a relay. not sure if that is your problem however i would check your relays first.

[Towncar]

Originally Posted by sreilly77

had a very similar problem with my 95 town car. turned out to be a relay. not sure if that is your problem however i would check your relays first.

Hi Sean
You're absolutely correct, I forget now and then to mention those power relays.
Is there any others besides the masters' under the hood?

Morgan,
The MFS (Multifunction Switch) is the Turn Signal assembly in the Steering Column. It acts as a distribution link for all the lights you mentioned.

[sreilly77]

Originally Posted by Towncar

Hi Sean
You're absolutely correct, I forget now and then to mention those power relays.
Is there any others besides the masters' under the hood?

Morgan,
The MFS (Multifunction Switch) is the Turn Signal assembly in the Steering Column. It acts as a distribution link for all the lights you mentioned.

well it depends on some of the new model cars the lights that morgan is mentioning could be a relay but at the same time some of the cars the lights are ran by a mini-fuse. he would have to read the diagram on the relay box and on the mini-fuses to find a blown relay or mini-fuse. my town car it was a relay, i suggest he check those out first. however, since his car is a 98 and a different model, morgan, you should make sure you check both relays and mini-fuses. that is the simplest and cheapest way to start trying to solve your problem.since he mentioned the fuses were in tact, then the brake lights/amber turn signal lights are probably controlled by a relay. the brake lights in the back window and the side-marker lamps are controled by a different relay and module. if it was his brake switch, usually what happens is the hazard lights remain working.

[mcurcio]

Lots of posts on this problem. One was pretty well informed, and gave a lot of info on how to test, and which wires. To the idiot who said "Look at your owner's manual": If you don't have anything useful to add, it IS OK to say NOTHING!

I had a similar problem. The fix is actually pretty easy. The car is almost 20 years old, has 200,000 miles on it. The connector for the lighting portion of the multi-function switch, is on the top of the TILT steering column. Every time you tilt the wheel down, you pull on this connector. The connector has two locking clips that hold it in place. After time, the connector becomes brittle, and the locking clips break off. That seems to be what happened to my friend's car, that she just purchased. The paint is pretty badly oxidized, which tells me the car was left in the sun a lot, which will speed up the aging of the plastic. One thing that might tip you off, is if you raise the wheel, the lights might start to work again. This is how I fixed it:


Remove the battery cable, or you may drain the battery!
Under the steerng column, there are three phillips head screws. Remove these, lower the steering column, and remove the tilt lever, Chiltons says you may need a small wrnech to remove that lever. Remove the lower portion of the steering column cowl. Insert the ignition key, and turn to the running position. Since you have discoonected the battery cable, the car should not turn over. When you look at the bottom of the steering column, under the lock cylinder, you will see a round spot with a smaller circle in the middle. Use a small screwdriver or awl to depress the center spot. You should now be able to pull the lock cylinder out, and remove the top of the steering column cowl. On the very top of the stering column, you will see the connector to the multi-function switch. If the locking clips are broken, as they probably will be, as your car is now 20 years old, you have a problem. Pretty easy to fix. If you look carefully at the connector, you will notice there are two groups of wire, one on each side, with no wires in the middle of the connector. .Here is a better idea than Fords. Pull the cnnector up, and get yourself some slack! Make certain that the steering column is at it's lowest position, and that when you plug the connector in, it is not beeing pulled on.Then using a small drill, maybe 1/8 inch, carefully drill right next to the little nub, that USED to hold the locking clip. Then put a 1" screw into the hole. That should hold it! Now reasemble the steering column. Watch for the "key in ignition sensor contact. The clip that holds that in place is very small. Mine was also broken. I put a little bit of silicone adhesive on it, pressed it back into place, and wrapped two wraps of electrician's tape around it, making sure that the tape was stuck onto itself. I know, this all sounds so tacky! Get a clue! Your car is 20 years old. You are going to need to get creative to keep it running!