Flaminia GT dash functions

[thecarnut]

I am new to a 1962 Flaminia GT coupe and not all the dash switches are working. I would like to find out what they are supposed to do.

I was going to post a photo of my dash but haven’t figured out how to upload it on this forum.

1. I located the headlight switch but have not figured out what activates the high beam. Perhaps it is the lever located to the left of the ignition switch.
2. There is a push button on the tip of the turn signal lever. What is the function of this button?
3. What is the function of the switch located just to the right of the tachometer?
4. I believe the switch to the right of the headlight switch is to control the instrument light intensity, although in my car the intensity does not change when this switch is rotated.

[Randy]

Hi!

Hope you don’t have my old car!  I miss it.

I hope somebody already answered this for you by telephone.  But if not . . . the high beam is activated by that little button on the end of the turn signal lever.  It activates a big relay box under the hood toward the front of the engine bay on the passenger’s side.  If you have the headlight switch pulled out to the first stop, that little button switches between parking lights only and low beams, or dipped beam as the Brits say.  If, after pulling it to the first stop, you rotate the headlight switch to the right and then pull it again you will reach the position for high beams, or main beam as the Brits say.  The little button on the end of the turn signal lever will switch between low beam and high beam.  This quirky headlight switch was pretty common across the Lancia range in the 1960s.

The lever located to the left of the ignition switch is a spring-loaded switch to flash your headlights.

The switch to the right of the tachometer is the windshield wiper switch.

The switches to the right of the ignition switch starting closest to the ignition switch should be:  (1) headlights, (2) instrument lights, (3) interior lights and (4) fan.  Be aware that sometimes people can mistakenly shuffle them around during the long life of the car.

Yes, the instrument lights switch has a reostat in it.  It is a little quirky.  Rotated full left the instrument illumination will be off.  If you turn it just a little bit to the right the instrument illumination comes on at full intensity.  As you continue to rotate the switch to the right the illumination dims down to nothing or damn near nothing.

Hope this helps.

[thecarnut]

Thank you very much!!  The high beams nor the flash of the headlights so it is probably a problem within the “headlight changeover relay” (black box) in the engine compartment. Unfortunately, the service manual makes no mention of this relay and how it is supposed to work.

This is my Flaminia: https://thecarnut.com/1962-lancia-flaminia-gt/

 

[Randy]

That’s a lovely car.  Interesting paint job.  Is the dash paint older?  If so, that’s the car’s original color.  The Touring Flams were often given very sober–very Lancia–colors.  My convertible was resprayed in white by its previous owner but the dash tells me it was metallic gray.  You’ve had Flams before, according to your link, so you know that their brake systems can be an issue.  Top up that fluid reservoir to the MAX line and watch it for change.

Before you doubt the headlight relay first make sure the wires are all going where they should and are decently attached.  Regarding the service manual, make sure you have the supplementary manual for the later cars including the 3C models.  You will want Sketch 754I, the wiring diagram for your car.  If you can photograph and expand it, you will have a much easier time following it.  I thought I had a spare NOS relay of that type but it isn’t where I remember keeping it.  I must have given it away to somebody since my two cars are earlier ones that don’t use it.

[thecarnut]

I removed the relay cover and sprayed some WD-40 and manually exercised the relays. High beams are now working. The flashing lever is still not working but I am not sure that uses this relay box.

Is the 3C supplemental available for download?

My car was originally all white, the grey top and dash were done later. I really like that two tone look.

[Randy]

I expect that there is a pdf version of the “Lancia Flaminia 813.10-11 and 3C Shop Manual.”  Unfortunately I don’t know if the American Lancia Club has anything like that on offer.  You can obtain a CD with the manual from viva-lancia.com.  This is a European website which I suspect you will find very helpful.  Here is the page which describes the CDs available for the Flaminia: https://viva-lancia.com/specials/cd/flaminia-cd.php

On eBay I find some good looking reprints of the basic Flaminia shop manual but it looks like they do not have enough pages to include the “Lancia Flaminia 813.10-11 and 3C Shop Manual.”  The two manuals combined (basic shop manual plus the supplement for your later car) amount to about 375 pages.

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