Rapid Turn Signal Blinker (2X speed)

[lupend88]

My Model 3 (vin 17xxx) had it's daytime headlight out on the drivers side. I brought it to Tesla and they replaced with a brand new one within 24 hours.

This morning I wake up and noticed my left turn signal (which is the same headlight as the one they just replaced) is now blinking almost twice as fast as my right turn signal. Even the flashing arrow graphic on the inside of the car is animating twice as fast now.

Has anyone else experienced this? Obviously I am going to bring it back to Tesla but just wanted to get a feel if this has happened to other Model 3 owners. Thanks!

 

[barjohn]

Not on my 3, but usually, this means a bulb is out so it is easy to check, turn it on and check front and back turn signal lights to see if they are all working or not.

 

[PoitNarf]

Yeah, bulb is probably not working or the wiring harness is loose. They probably didn't plug in something all of the way when they replaced it.

 

[Pkmmte]

Congrats on your performance blinkers!

Have you confirmed that it's actually blinking faster and not just making the sound faster?

 

[Ejl80]

Your blinker fluid might be low...

 

[lupend88]

Have you confirmed that it's actually blinking faster and not just making the sound faster?

Yes I have a video of them blinking twice as fast, you can check it out below.

Not on my 3, but usually, this means a bulb is out so it is easy to check, turn it on and check front and back turn signal lights to see if they are all working or not.

Yeah, bulb is probably not working or the wiring harness is loose. They probably didn't plug in something all of the way when they replaced it.

I just took this video, it shows the blinker is turning on, but just blinking twice as fast. This includes the front blinker, back blinker, and side blinker. At first I thought it was the headlight but now that all three are blinking 2x, I'm confused.

 

[lupend88]

Anyone have ideas? I'm calling Tesla when they open in an hour and would like to hear if someone else has experience this. Has nobody else experienced this on their Model 3?

 

[flashflooder]

It's telling you something is not right in that circuit. Could be a loose harness, something plugged in backwards, etc.

 

[PoitNarf]

In most cars the resistance of the turn indicator circuit dictates the speed of the blinking. This is why with most cars when you have a turn indicator bulb go out the blinking speed will double because 1/2 of the resistance is gone. I would suspect some similar issue here but since it’s an entirely different wiring situation in the Model 3 who knows...

 

[lupend88]

It's telling you something is not right in that circuit. Could be a loose harness, something plugged in backwards, etc.

In most cars the resistance of the turn indicator circuit dictates the speed of the blinking. This is why with most cars when you have a turn indicator bulb go out the blinking speed will double because 1/2 of the resistance is gone. I would suspect some similar issue here but since it’s an entirely different wiring situation in the Model 3 who knows...

Thank you both very much! This is exactly the type of information I would like to relay to Tesla. Hopefully they can fix this before I take my road trip from Portland to San Jose on Friday.

 

[T-Will]

It's in angry blinker mode.

 

[lupend88]

Update- they are taking a look at my car this afternoon. Hopefully it should be a quick fix.

 

[lupend88]

Final update- they gave it a firmware update and that fixed it immediately

 

[Mishakim]

In most cars the resistance of the turn indicator circuit dictates the speed of the blinking. This is why with most cars when you have a turn indicator bulb go out the blinking speed will double because 1/2 of the resistance is gone. I would suspect some similar issue here but since it’s an entirely different wiring situation in the Model 3 who knows...

Probably case of duplicating the passive failure indicator in software, since people know what it means. Just like the electronic "blinking" noise mimics the sound of a relay clicking

 

[cdeleo]

Final update- they gave it a firmware update and that fixed it immediately

I'm having the same issue after replacing my headlight. When you say firmware update did they indicate what firmware they were updating?

Or if anyone else knows how to fix this issue without having to take it in to tesla?

 

[iamnid]

I had an issue over the weekend - blinkers weren't working at all... Hazards didn't work either. Hard reset fixed the issue

 

[cdeleo]

I had an issue over the weekend - blinkers weren't working at all... Hazards didn't work either. Hard reset fixed the issue

Thanks for the suggestion unfortunately hard reset didn't help.

Now I'm getting a message saying software update required contact tesla service

 

[cdeleo]

Just FYI for anyone in a similar situation, the message went away and the light started flashing at a normal speed ate an over the air update to 2020.12.5

 

[Uncle Paul]

Anyone else simply amazed at how many things Tesla can fix with a software update?

 

[dominiksken]

I had the same problem with my M3 LR, found this thread, ran 2 updates but with no effect.

Eventually I found the cause of the "angry blinkers". It happens when the towbar is installed but when there's nothing connected to the power connection of the tow bar. (when I connect the power plug of my Thule bike rack to the towbar, the blinkers return to "normal" speed).