Turn Signal Problems: Troubleshooting Guide

Hello everyone,

I'm having a small electrical problem, and I'd like to get your opinions on it.

With the turn signal, there's this "intermediate position" where you only move the lever to the point just before it clicks into place, and it blinks without having to lock the lever. This is especially useful when changing lanes, for example, and I also use it quite a bit in the city.

For about a week now, I've been hearing strange noises when using the right turn signal, which I couldn't quite explain at first, but it's clearly coming from a clicking relay. It has gotten worse, and now it's clear: When I only engage the right turn signal up to the point of resistance, the relay "clicks," but nothing actually turns on, or sometimes it does briefly. Fully engaging the turn signal works fine, as does doing the same with the left turn signal.

It looks like the contacts are corroded or damaged and no longer making proper contact in this position, which prevents the flasher relay from switching correctly and causes it to click rapidly.

Has anyone ever experienced this before? The car is only 13 months old...

The solution is obviously clear: the workshop (thanks to the 2-year warranty, this should be covered under warranty, I think). However, I still find it strange.

And even more than a time-consuming and frustrating exchange, I would prefer another solution, but at least I can't think of one that doesn't involve a huge amount of effort (to remove the switch, you have to disassemble the steering wheel and airbag).

What do you think?

Best regards,

January.

Hello Jan,
Your assumption unfortunately aligns with my experiences (with golf clubs from my mother-in-law and from the company).
Specifically when 'tapped,' the (VAG) turn signal contacts seem to generate particularly beautiful arc discharges, which can render the switches unusable within a short time (eventually, even in the resting position, they may stop working altogether).
I've gotten used to always going all-in.
So far, no problems .

Best regards, Rudi.

Hello everyone,

The switches are not the cause of the contacts burning out; it's the relay. A flyback diode on the relay almost completely prevents the contacts from burning out!

Hi Bertil,
Do you want to express that they do not have built-in free audio devices by default ?
Do you know of any other affected relays (or are they all affected)?

Regards, Rudi (shaking my head).

Hi Bertil,

I agree with Rudi's question... are there any replacement relays that are easy to install?

Or simply solder a diode in parallel with the relay coil, and that's it? Specifically, a diode that conducts in the normal operating direction.

"This is the first time I've encountered this issue – my two Polos (each driven for about 2 years, and each approximately 3 years old when purchased) never had any problems with this, and neither did my parents' older Passat during its 13 years and 220,000 km of use."

But it's probably the case that everything has to become cheaper all the time...

Are there any VAG procedures for this, such as replacing a different relay if the problem occurs repeatedly?

Best regards,

January.

Hi Jan, Rudi,

As far as I remember, there used to be a relay with freewheeling diodes (in the Golf1), but I haven't found any freewheeling diodes in the turn signal relay in my Golf3. It probably costs too much money, and the turn signal switch usually doesn't fail within the warranty period anyway... }

Hi everyone,

After a long time, I'm revisiting this topic... Since last week, my left turn signal switch has been failing more and more often, even when it's supposed to be in the resting position.

Of course, it had to happen now, just when I'm supposed to go on vacation next Monday, which means I'm forced to take it to Seat quickly, because the turn signal is especially important when driving with a trailer.

The part is now on order, and if everything goes well, it should arrive on Thursday or Friday. You know how much I trust this workshop, but since it's still within the warranty period, and I'd rather have them work on the airbag (which requires removing the steering wheel) than do it myself, I have a question for those of you who have disassembled these parts before:

What are some effective ways to make mistakes when evaluating something, and what specific things would you immediately test beyond the obvious aspects like appearance and function? I want to avoid any unpleasant surprises on my vacation trip.

Best regards,

January.

If the relay functions correctly when the lever is engaged but fails to switch properly in 'tip' mode, it suggests an issue with the relay's control signal. Even if the lever doesn't handle a heavy load, there might be insufficient or improperly placed contact grease on its contacts, leading to wear or simply dirt accumulation.

Hi Andi,

See Rudi's answer above... Now the "resting position," which is the fully engaged lever, is also affected. The contacts will be so severely damaged that they won't make contact consistently anymore, and this is actually a strong indication that it will soon stop working altogether.

Probably, bending it back and using contact grease would work for a while, but that would...

a) It can be very expensive due to the airbag and steering wheel.

b) This could lead to the complete failure occurring later, potentially outside of the warranty period, meaning I would likely have to pay for the replacement switch unit (approximately €270). Seat doesn't sell the individual switch; instead, you have to replace the entire unit, which includes the left-hand steering stalk lever.

Therefore, there's no way around going to the workshop; I just want to take a look and minimize any side effects, and most importantly, identify them immediately rather than during a vacation trip.

Best regards,

January.

Hello everyone,

For the sake of completeness:

After replacing the entire left handlebar control unit (which unfortunately isn't available as a separate part), the turn signal now works again as it should. It also feels much tighter and more solid when operating, whereas the old one felt almost a bit flimsy (and that was after only 21 months!).

Otherwise, I will be unavailable for about two and a half weeks... the TDI will be pulling the caravan to Rügen ).

Best regards,

January.

If you still have the old lever, could you open it up for troubleshooting? Maybe you could also take some pictures.

Hi Andi,

"I would have done that if I had received it. However, you supposedly need to send it to Seat as proof that a part was replaced under warranty (and I didn't have to pay anything for the service)."

Best regards,

Jan, who is still there this weekend.

Bertil wrote:

As far as I remember, there used to be a relay with freewheeling diodes (in the Golf 1), but I haven't found any freewheeling diodes in the turn signal relay in my Golf 3. . .

Hi everyone,

I just retrofitted my G3 flasher relay with a freewheeling diode.

But this is just "just in case."
In my relay, one winding end is connected to ground, and the other is onlyconnected to an (output) pin of the pulse IC.
Noise pulses from the relay output are directly shunted to ground via a 100 nF capacitor, and the switching output is connected to another IC pin with a high impedance of 3.3 kΩ.

Therefore, I can hardly believe that induction peaks could break through to the switch contacts from this relay (even without a freewheeling diode).
But just in case I'm wrong, there's now a flyback diode installed – it can't hurt anyway.

The flasher relay in my wife's 6K Ibiza is no longer located in the central electrical unit; instead, it's ticking behind the hazard light switch at the top of the center console .

Does anyone know how to remove this thing without causing any damage?
(I'm already managing to remove the lower outer part of the center console...)

Hi Ulf,

Just a quick note because I'm busy preparing for my vacation (I'll have more updates from me in September).

I'm very interested in the Ibiza issue for well-known reasons. I also struggled to figure out how to remove that sliding compartment on the right side of the control panel. It must be some kind of snap-fit mechanism, but I couldn't understand it. If you make any progress on that, I'd be highly interested to know.

Best regards,

January.

Quote:

The flasher relay in my wife's 6K Ibiza is no longer located in the central electrical unit, but it ticks behind the hazard light switch at the top of the center console . Does anyone know how to remove this thing without causing any damage? (I'm already managing to remove the lower outer part of the center console.)

Okay, here's the final report:

The switches are secured with side spring clips and can be removed by forcefully prying them out, for example, using a flathead screwdriver.

The ingenious : The hazard light switch is also the flasher relay.
It wasn't possible for me to disassemble the device without risking damage, so I couldn't solder in a bypass diode.
A similar effect could, at best, be achieved using an auxiliary circuit with 4 diodes (or a bridge rectifier) connected between the turn signal wires R and L, as well as +Batt and ground .

I suspect that the Golf 4 has the same (faulty) design as the Ibiza 6K. Are there already similar experiences with premature failure of the turn signal lever contacts?