seadragon

Hey guys,

I was outside looking at the lights on my truck, you know, new truck, seeing what it looks like from the front, rear, side etc. I had the 4 ways on and I noticed that the license plate lights pulse slightly with the flashing of the tail lights. They dim slightly every time the tail lights flash on bright. I then tried the turn signals. If I have one of the turn signals flashing, say the left one, the right tail light and the license plate lights have a slight pulsing.

All of the front lights are solid and don't do this at all so it's something that is affecting only the rear lights.

Wondering about it, I took it to the dealer and they checked 3 other trucks on the lot and they all did the same thing. They concluded that this is a "normal condition for the vehicle". They also said I was the first one to notice/mention this. I can't help but think that Ford probably didn't design them to do this LOL.

I was behind an '09/'10 Platinum the other day and noticed that truck had the same pulsing going on.

I had a quick peek under the truck and I can see where the lights are grounded to a screw on top of the frame on the driver side near the spare tire. Everything seems tight and looks okay.

Now I'm curious if your trucks do this too or perhaps all F150s? It's not something you'd typically notice though since how often are you behind your own truck at night? Probably nothing to worry about but still, it looks kinda cheap/crappy.

Thanks!

Justi

I feel bad for you bro. You are a victim of something I call "I noticed it and now it will drive me frigin' insane". It's a small thing which hurts nothing that had you not noticed that one odd time you were looking would never have bothered you. Now that you know however it will drive you mad.

Me? I'm not checking mine or I'll come down with the same disease!

seadragon

johnwill

Forget about it and enjoy your great new truck. For crissakes.

mbrooks85

nothing I would worry about... Think about it like this. i roll 2 windows up, they move slower. It's the same idea... current draw. just enjoy the truck!!

seadragon

Well, it looks like this is indeed a "feature" of the F150. I've been behind quite a few at stoplights lately and have observed the same pulsing. Even in the previous generation of F150.

I still don't think its specifically designed to do this and could be a side effect of how they engineered the rear lamp circuit.

Still looks strange though.

Bob_Mac

Roflmao...you guys are hilarious....

Svinc

not 100% sure, but I have a Trailblazer SS that had this same issue... and I am the same way, if something isn't perfect it will drive me insane.

I installed a grounding kit on the TBSS and it fixed the issue. Auto manufacturers notoriously have weak grounds between frame and engine, engine and body, etc.

Some 0 or 00 Gauge wire with ring connectors and you can build your own grounding kit. You will see as soon as you connect it, the sparks that fly from the ground... this tells you it is an inefficient design.

(like I said, no idea if that is the issue here, but it fixed the issue on my TBSS)

seadragon

Thanks for the info Svinc! Yes, these things drive me nuts, especially if there is a simple fix. It just looks crappy and makes it look like the truck has electrical problems.

Definitely sounds like a grounding issue. I even replaced the tail light bulbs with a different brand to rule out the bulbs being the problem. Voltage is leaking from the running light circuit to the turn signal circuit it would seem. I'd be interesting to hear more about these grounding kits. Is it a wire that runs from the back to the front of the truck? Is it a kit that you buy?

Bob_Mac

Theoretically you only need to run it from the battery to the chassis/frame. There is a "How-To" on one of the forums, let me see if I can find and post the link.

Update: It is here on this forum. Give it a shot....