So I'm certain some of the problems I'm having with my 92 are ground related. I've looked at the fsm and it shows many splices for things like the rear bed and whatever, but I guess my overall question is where are the formal grounds where it ties to the sheet metal. Front left fender is rather vague compared to actually defining the location. Is it in the fender? Is it mounted to a frame rail?

 

its in the fender and at the back of the cylinder head at least on a 90 2.5

 

I sometimes add extra grounds. There needs to be at least one firewall to engine ground, one fender to battery, one engine to battery and on high performance vehicles like police cars, they will add grounds to the hood and trunk lids. With yours being a truck, I make sure you have a good one from the bed to the frame. I like the wire mesh straps but a simple wire with eyelet connections will work.

 

Well I can see the rwal one and whatever its sister is next to it. I can see the battery ground. My problem is current the turn signals dont work (hazards and brake lights do) and I have both the abs and park brake idiot lights on. I swapped and played with the blinker modules to no change.

 

Have you checked the powers and grounds on the turn signal connector? Get a multimeter and put one end on the negative terminal of the battery and the other end on the different pins. You should have around 12V on some (power) and 0V on the other (ground). If you don't have a near zero value, then yes you probably have a ground problem.

Also before starting, check the turn signal fuse to see if it's blown.

 

If the hazards and brake lights work, the ground is good.

But.

Be Absodamnlutely sure they're working!

Turn on the hazards, walk to the back, make sure they're working.

Then turn the parking lights on; make sure now you've got park/bright/park/bright and not on/off for the hazards in the back.

If you have park/bright/park/bright - it's the multi functin switch or the flasher module, or the wiring between the MFS through the flasher to the fuse and the battery. Can't be much else at that point; ALL the wiring from the MFS back is tested good.

So it's time to take a test light, and see if there's voltage going INTO the MFS with the ignition switch on for the flasher.

Check both sides of Fuse 11, the 20A that powers the turn signals and the RWAL (see page 8W-9 in the FSM for the fuse block.)

Check that there's power to the hot side of the turn signal flasher (quick test of the flasher itself - swap with the hazard flasher. They CAN fail open; this will swap the problem and if it swaps, I'd replace both with LED compatible flashers. Oh, wait, that's what I did ... ).

From the flasher socket, check that there's power into the red/white wire going into the steering column connector.

If you still haven't located a problem (i.e., with ignition on, we have power through the flasher into the red/white wire - use an incandescent trouble light if possible here!) then it's your multi function switch failed.

RwP