Fixed It!

This will seem relatively trivial to many but I've been meaning to do something about an irritating problem we've had with the car. The indicators have for several weeks worked only intermittently requiring a sharp whack to the dashboard at junctions etc. A temporary solution for the last week has been to stuff a rolled up piece of paper between the little box of tricks that does the indicating and the next one. Yesterday I decided to do something about it. Having looked on eBay, it is possible to purchase a new one, but why spend £20 when I could fix the one we have. I was pretty certain the problem had to be a loose connection inside the relay itself, as it worked perfectly well when the correct pressure was applied.
Removing it was very easy, it simply plugs into a board and has three pins that fit into a socket, similar to a domestic three pin plug. I have all the gear I need at my mate's and removing the cover revealed a simple device that clicks on and off when power is applied. These are commonly referred to as solenoids. It wasn't long before I'd identified the problem. There are three soldered joints and these had worked themselves loose probably through the natural movement of the car over time.

Three dabs of solder on the affected joints and the relay was as good as new and working fine. A simple fix with enormous benefit.