The turn signals on my car suddenly died today, even though the hazard lights still work which use the same physical light, and I can't get it repaired until Monday. Is there a way to legally drive with turn signals not working? I live in Washington if that matters.
I'm not sure about the legality of your arms but I know for a fact that my father has driven without using turn signals for decades and has yet to be pulled over for it.
According to wikipedia, Washington state does not require vehicles to pass regular safety inspections, but if you were in a state that did, it would not be legal to drive with non-functioning turn signals. You could be issued a citation for "improper equipment" or something along those lines.
Is it just the auto-blinking that is broken? You say the hazard lights work, so I wonder... You may be able to manually blink the light by holding the signal arm up and then pulling it down (or the other way, if you're going left) multiple times while you would normally be signalling. I'm not sure if I'm being very clear, but it's basically manually manipulating the signal arm (turning the signal on and off) while the auto-blinker is broken.
Before you take it to a mechanic, you should check a couple things. First of all, look for any blown fuses. It is pretty easy to spot one that has blown, so if you have any of those, replace it. If that doesn't fix the problem, then it is probably the flasher unit. The round thing on the fuse panel that looks like this is the flasher. They are really cheap and available at any auto parts store. I would definitely check both of those before paying for a mechanics time. They'll probably charge you at $30 to spend 2 minutes installing a $4 part.
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Is this actually legal? I know the turn signals, the only thing I'm concerned about is that if a person is to your right then can't see anything.
Point your hand outwards and rotate your arm in a forward circular motion for a right turn
This is the legal way to operate your car if the signal lights do not work and you are waiting for it to be fixed.
That isn't the proper hand signal for a right turn.
From page 63 of the Washington Driver Guide.
http://www.dol.wa.gov/driverslicense/driverguide.pdf