Reverse switch

[darthValiant]

Hi All,

I've had a small hiatus from the forums while my poor '89 se pathy 4x4 MT sat lonely waiting for me to have time to get it ready for maryland state safety inspection.

 

Now I have gotten it pretty well ready except for one thing: my reverse lights.

 

I went through and traced all the wiring in the reverse light circuit and there are no breaks.

verified the bulbs are working by grabbing the connector in the engine bay

(passenger side near the interlock relay) and jumping the relevant pins with a paperclip (whoo lights!)

 

I checked the switch and it was not working installed on the truck, so I pulled it (see below for the easy way to do this)

 

Verified that the switch was bad

 

Installed the new verified good switch (standard brand, part number to follow later when I find the box)

plugged everything in, FAILED

 

checked the switch: not working installed on the vehicle

 

pulled the switch again, verified it was still functional

 

I noticed that the switch I pulled had no o-ring on it (the new switch had one)

 

Grabbed a piece of aluminum baling wire and made a hook, nothing came out of the socket

 

reinstalled the new switch with no o-ring

 

checked switch: nothing, no continuity

 

Any thoughts before I pull my shifter and check the linkage?

 

btw, I can't get it registered in MD without correctly working backup lights.

 

Thanks for any input,

Rick

DarthValiant

 

ps here is the tool I made to pull the reverse switch:

 

 

grind a 1/8"-1/4" slot along one flat side of a 19mm or 3/4" deep socket, clean it up with a file or emory cloth so it doesn't cut the wires and maybe grind the socket a bit shorter on the open side

 

.__________________________

.|. . . . ____________________|

.|____|

...|o|

______

| . 19 . |

| . __ . |

| . | | . |

| . | | . |

| . | | . |

| . | | . |

 

(I used a 3/4" deep 3/8 drive socket from pep boys

and cut the slot with a 4" angle grinder and cleaned it

up with emory cloth.

It was a bit too long and I had to set the socket on

the switch then put on the wrench, break it free, then

disconnect the wrench, back it off with the socket then

pull the socket and do the last bit by hand. If you build

one of these, try to find a socket with external hex on the base

ie, not a smooth cylinder. so you can use an open ended wrench

to do your turning OR get a slimline 3/8" drive ratchet.)

 

also, a putty knife does great for disengaging your ratchet from a socket when you can't hold the socket still

 

this has been the ascii tool minute from your friendly neighborhood "tech neck"

[unccpathfinder]

my 87 has never had its R sensor to work constantly. The guy told me when he got it from nissan they replaced it several tiems and after teh warranty he never screwed with it. I know in NC the reverse lights are not a part of the safety inspection which made me happy b/c I was going to have to rig something up for the inspection if it was but that sucks for your case in MD.

 

The only suggestion I can make is this...the wiring may visually look good... take a relay and do a simulation mock-up (relay with some bulbs laying under the truck using hot power from the battery and the switch to control the relay while its installed on the tranny...if that works then its the wiring in the truck and I would just "rig" it to work by wiring a new relay and just clip, cap and stow all the wires and splice in the new wiring so that the R lights work.

 

I guess an easier way would be to probe along the wire route at all connectors (so you dont pierce the insulation) with a multi meter to try and find where the dead spot is.

 

 

nice write up on the tool...I like you woudl rather go and get a cheap socket from pepboys and make what i need instead of spending the high dollar on it. I have made several tools including pretty much the same thing but I used it on the O2 sensors. my most popular one was the spindle locknut tool from a (i think 3/4 ton truck)

 

I saw this a couple of threads down i donno if it'll help at all (http://www.nissanpathfinders.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=13370)

 

Nice looking dog does it have boarder collie in it?

Edited November 14, 2008 by unccpathfinder

[MY1PATH]

I'm wondering if the new swtich is as long as the old one? and if maybe the contact point in the tranny also wore down enough to where it doesn't reach the switch or a combination of both.

Nice tool btw My reverse lights seem to only work consistantly once the tranny is warm (assuming worn parts not reacing far enoug when cold) so I'll be making one of those tools too on day.

[darthValiant]

UNCC:

yeah, I am not one to spend money on something I can make myself, especially a one-function tool. (It doesn't help that I never seem to be doing this stuff during normal tool dealer hours)

 

I actually did probe each connector with my multimeter, and was able to isolate just the switch itself. All the other wiring has continuity. So I am thinking mechanical problems have reared their ugly heads.

 

Also, I posted that post you linked, heheheh. I spent about an hour on my back with a flashlight and schematics before I figured out I was being dense and looking at the wrong set of switches.

 

The dog is Tommy, and we got him at the local SPCA shelter at about 1.5 years old with no provenance. He is fairly border-collie-esque but much shorter and stockier and with those side mounted Yoda ears. The closest we can gather is that he is either full-blooded-but-badly-bred border collie, or some kind of border/corgi mix or potentially even corgie/pitbull (but that is stretching it.)

 

We just call him a "Borderline Collie."

 

MYPATH1:

 

I think you may be right, I was asking my fiance, and she remembers the truck having backup lights working when I got it and parked it, but noticed them being out later on. So a worn linkage could be a definite culprit. I think the switches were the same length, but I will now have to double check. Hopefully even if the linkage is worn, a judicious layer or three of jb weld to the switch actuator tip will fix that. Otherwise guess I get to try and either talk my way into getting a pass on that issue or just wait the month and a half until I can tag it historic.

 

 

Thanks for the input,

Rick

DarthValiant

Edited November 15, 2008 by darthValiant

[unccpathfinder]

haha my bad...i didnt even look to see who started that other post...hmm how stiff is that switch? can you have it out of the tranny and engage it to see if the lights work? if not you could use a piece of wire and "short" the 2 wires to act like a switch and if that works then yea some how the switch is not engaging in the tranny.

 

 

 

 

 

Yea I want to get a smooth coat border collie. I pretty much raised this one (http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v351/206/56/36619102/n36619102_35118394_8943.jpg) but since the ex had it b4 I moved out here to CA its "her" dog so I don't get to see it or do anything with her which is sad b/c she trains/works better/harder for me so as soon as I get to some stable living quarters I want to try to adopt one (i really want this one http://www.bordercolliesinneed.org/border_...s/charlie.html)

 

Sorry to thread jack

[RedPath88]

ps here is the tool I made to pull the reverse switch:

grind a 1/8"-1/4" slot along one flat side of a 19mm or 3/4" deep socket, clean it up with a file or emory cloth so it doesn't cut the wires and maybe grind the socket a bit shorter on the open side

 

.__________________________

.|. . . . ____________________|

.|____|

...|o|

______

| . 19 . |

| . __ . |

| . | | . |

| . | | . |

| . | | . |

| . | | . |

 

(I used a 3/4" deep 3/8 drive socket from pep boys

and cut the slot with a 4" angle grinder and cleaned it

up with emory cloth.

 

Did pretty much the same thing to change mine a while back....

 

[MY1PATH]

if not you could use a piece of wire and "short" the 2 wires to act like a switch

he already did that, with a paper clip.

 

Hopefully even if the linkage is worn, a judicious layer or three of jb weld to the switch actuator tip will fix that.

make sure the surface is sanded w/ 100-120 grit and cleaned really well. don't want the JB coming off in the tranny.

[silverlion]

MY quick fix for Texas inspection, I rigged up a little toggle switch. When I put the old Ford in gear, I used my other hand to flip the switch. The inspection dude was none the wiser. If they have their own tech in your pathy, I suppose that will not work. I haven't had an issue like this in Oregon though. Hope you get it fixed. Nothing like torturing a pathy by making it just sit there. Poor thing just wants to play. Damn inspections.

[darthValiant]

Yeah, here in MD they have a tech do a full inspection down to the last drop, hehehe.

 

Otherwise I'd have rigged em to a switch.

 

I am half tempted to not worry with the internals and hide a little momentary toggle

on an arm under theshifter boot, sneaky bastard that I am. hmmm might just work, time to break out the bailing wire and heatshrink tubing...

 

If I jb weld, I'll either drill a VERY small hole horizontally through the actuator, or put a deep ridge or knurl on it before I lay on the jb. loose bits inside a tranny is NOT something I am gonna want to deal with wih no inside workspace for my automotive projects

 

Thanks again for all the good input folks!

 

 

And when it comes to dogs, thread jack away. I plan to open a doggie daycare when I retire. Mostly cause I've never met a dog I didn't like and can't say the same thing about people. (present company excluded, pathys tend to draw some of the least crappy people out there... )

[unccpathfinder]

heh...yea i was thinking if you could bend up a bracket so that you could have a pressure swithc where the stick would press it when in R to pass (b/c they dont need to know how its working just that it works if its only for the test)

 

worst comes to worst and the truck is pristine everywhere else for the inspection an extra $20 may work...or if they let you in the bay...you could put a pressure switch on the front and rear bumper and you could watch when they go to put it in reverse and hit the button...

 

Yea today sucked b/c the ex is out of town and I went and took down all the light fixtures in a buddies house that they are moving from and the "dog watcher" of maggi was next door and i was so pissed off b/c the ex wouldnt let me watch her b/c the house she is at is a foster of like 4 brittney's so she "has friends to play with" for 2 hrs i sat and watched her jump on the doors and windows to go inside (shes not an outside dog) and the other dogs ignore her over and over...i wanted to walk over and tell her hey but I know the lady watching would have called the cops on me b/c shes a bitch...so i stood behind a brick wall watching her...she saw me (just from about my nose up) and ran over to the chainlength fence and wagged her tail and jumped up and down then started whining so then i felt bad...i miss that dog...i was half tempted to go steal her but i went over to the neighbors tonight and started working his black lab (neglected and in 4 hrs of training between 2 different days I have him doing a sit a lay down and a stay)...I'll get a dog of my own once i've got a steady place to live and she'll be spoiled and well trained

[darthValiant]

That does suck man. Inches away, but can't go and play.

 

And it still amazes me how little people try to understand and work with their dogs. I always get looks of amazement form people when I have their dog sitting in 5 minutes, giving a paw in 6 and heeling in 10 minutes on a leash. They are usually even more amazed when I tell them they can house train a dog in 3 nights (assuming a normal, healthy, reasonably not stupid puppy,) by just watching them CONSTANTLY, never ever yelling (), just whisking them out the door to one specific spot when they get ready to squat, and praising and feeding them treats right after they pee. Works just about every time and three nights with short sleep are worth clean carpets every morning.

 

case in point:

My fiance's older dog (husky/shepherd/lab mix) just peed on our memory foam mattress topper last night

Talk about some work to clean, I had to break out the vinegar and nature's miracle and work FAST. gah

the thing is like a sponge.

I am VERY glad our Collie is completely housetrained (was before we got him even, talk about luck)

 

 

It is funny how I can talk dogs for hours and hours... Heck I bought the pathy so we could camp WITH the dogs easily.

Too bad the collie gets car sick. (though I ALMOST have him trained to puke in a plastic bag on his own, we still have to hold it for him.)

 

(yup, just learned to use the smileys)

 

hey look! I helped threadjack my own thread! well I guess I'll have to start a thread in off topic about dogs shortly.

[unccpathfinder]

It is funny how I can talk dogs for hours and hours... Heck I bought the pathy so we could camp WITH the dogs easily.

Too bad the collie gets car sick. viannen_54.gif (though I ALMOST have him trained to puke in a plastic bag on his own, we still have to hold it for him.)

 

ohh dude thats crazy...Maggi used to get car sick but it really wasnt car sick. I noticed that she would start drooling like crazy amounts of drool in the car as soon as she got in there so I was talking with a lady that was at our dog training class and she was saying that as a puppy she may have had a bad car experience or related it to something bad and just got super anxious. we had to buy the guardian dog car harness b/c she would be in your lap and a $40lb dog in your lap isnt cool on the road. So what I did is started letting her ride on my lap as a passenger in the front seat then i would sit with her in the back seat and she got to the point that she didnt drool anymore and then just from over and over trips it got to the point where she could sit in the back seat and be fine...but she would always puke after about 30 mins and the trainer was saying that she would get so worked up and nervous that it was just the reaction.

 

I know there were a couple of times she honestly got car sick b/c as a passenger my head was starting to spin b/c of the gf's driving and me trying to console the dog in the back seat but the last few times I took her anywhere she would willingly get in the car (ex gf was amazed after coming back from TDY) but the last I heard (about 2 weeks ago) shes not puking in the car anymore but I don't know if they've done any mountain trips lately

 

Collies are really smart and I have a feeling this one is going to be too smart for her own good b/c i saw her scheming a way out of the keepers yard yesterday and I think B4 too long she will be able to get over a 6' fence (i know she can jump clear over 4' as it is right now)

 

 

But yea I can't wait to get one of my own that nobody can take a way from me if things dont work out...I was kinda hoping she would have gotten her requested deployment for a year and then I would have found a way to get the dog and she would have never gotten her back which frustrates me b/c she has a chance of deploying not a big chance but the chance is there and right after we split she requested to be deployed but got denied (thanks to her mexico incident i believe) so its like ok if you get deployed what are you going to do with the dog and I don't approve of who she would leave her with and I dont think its right for the dog if she does get deployed b/c now with me out of the picture Maggi will have lost both of the people she has known since a puppy...I guess thats what happens with people who are selfish and want a companion but don't think of the consequences that lifes paths can bring...I mean yea i'd love to have a dog right now but if I end up moving across the country that would be extremely stressful on the dog especially if I do get to get one from a rescue (who won't let me get one anyways if theres a chance for me to move soon anyways)

 

Alright wow I just rambled a lot...

 

I guess to be half way back on topic...make sure you take some pix of your fix for the switch and post it up...