Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Traditional Cars - Indicators & Brake Lamp Switch

I'm still finding that it's far too easy to leave the indicators flashing.
The green repeaters are not really visible in bright light, and the clicking noise is too quiet. So here's a quick fix. First I cut a small triangle of self-adhesive orange lens repair tape and placed it between the repeater lights.......

So now it's more obvious where to look.
Next I used a hole punch to cut two circles of insulating tape, which are stuck on the indicator column in line of sight through the inner hole in the steering wheel spoke.....

This is drivers eye view, so when I can't see both circles in a straight line, I know the indicator stalk is not centred.
It works well.

Next I found time to look at a pedal operated brake lamp switch. In an earlier post I fitted a relay in the original circuit so that the current through the hydraulic switch would be significantly reduced. Now it switches the relay, instead of the lamps directly. This allegedly increases the life of the switch.
If in doubt you should consult an expert when fitting a relay, rather than cause 'a fire'. But simply put, the original lamp wires from the hydraulic switch go to terminals 30 (live feed) and 87 (lamp feed). Terminal 85 goes to earth. Terminal 86 is fed from the hydraulic switch, which also needs a live feed. This can be piggy backed from terminal 30, which has the original live feed. But don't try this unless you are competent with car electrics.

The next step is to fit a pedal operated switch in parallel, so either switch will activate the brake lamps. I pondered whether to use a courtesy light type switch, but in the end have chosen a microswitch from Maplins. It's a 3A/240V, and is OK for this application. First I made up a short loom with piggy backs for the hydraulic switch.


Next I made use of an offcut of stainless steel, which was a part of my original attempt at a spare wheel security clamp which failed miserably...............
This was cut and drilled to take the microswitch. And after a bit of soldering, the finished article looks like this. Amazingly I got the right shape first time.

This picture includes a relay to give scale.

And here's the completed pedal loom.

The final stage is to make up a loom to join these two parts together, which has to pass from the footwell, through the grommet, down the front of the bulkhead, and along the chassis rail under the engine mounting. First challenge is getting the extra wires through this grommet.

With care and patience, it's possible.............

Next picture - the new wire is the one which is straight and diagonal, not yet located properly. Note how untidy the black sealer is.

Next I soldered the ends inside the footwell, and fitted the plug. Then I used a pin chuck to drill two small holes in the floor and fitted the microswitch.



This shows the plug, which locates behind the carpet.


More to follow....>>>>>>

The footwell carpet covers the switch, so it's really neat.


Next I measured and cut the underbonnet end, soldered the ends and fitted the plug. Then threaded the wire through and connected it to the switch loom, securing with cable ties.

This is the hydraulic switch with relay cables and microswitch cables.

And this is looking down - offside. You can see the chassis rail and a hint of the red wires. The plug connector is just to the right.

And this is a reminder of how I mounted the relay. It hangs on a bracket from the cross tube. You can also see the hydraulic swich at the bottom of this shot.


Finally, to smarten the grommet up, I've added a shaped strip of neoprene with a cable tie. Compare this with the earlier photo, it's an improvement.


I've tested this system all the way through, and the microswitch gives an instant response, which means earlier brake lamp activation.

Dave

I am now looking for some sticky backed plastic. Great idea, I am forever leaving the indicators flashing. Your brakelight improvement is outside my territory. Incidently I have just swopped my Sport for a Roadster so I am looking at your previous posts to improve the car.

Thought about getting one of those throttle peddles. How is it compared to the standard lever? was your carpet retro fitted around it Dave?

Frank
As far as I know, it came with the organ pedal from new - the carpet is edged to fit. You can easily retro fit the pedal, although it's tight in that footwell If your carpet has a coloured edge, you may need a trimmer, unless you can live with it just cut out to fit.

That's interesting Lightsphere, didn't you like the Sport or did you just fancy more power?

Yes - that's the question, is the "organ" pedal better in any way than the standard roller pedal? It certainly looks good, but I would be very surprised indeed if the car drove any differently as a result!

Those who have tried both say that the roller ball can be uncomfortable on long journeys????????? The organ pedal has a large slot, which 'slots' over the roller sideways. It's held in place at the bottom with a floor plate and a long single allen bolt. I had this apart when I did the service to oil the allen bolt. I also found that coming off the pedal 'sharpish' caused a metallic rattle since the ball to pedal is metal to metal. So I've added a strip of double sided tape on the contact area, but left the slippy backing plastic in place for the wheel to run on. This mod has removed the slack so it no longer rattles.

I actually started out with the organ pedal, but with my size 12 shoes I found the bare roller worked much better. The shoes kept being snatched by the organ pedal all the time.