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High everyone. At the risk of disapproving white privilege stares, we took our coupe for a quick spin the other day. With the exception of a burned out stoplight bulb all went well after 6 months in the garage. Today I pulled the lens of the brake light and replaced the burned out bulb. Still no brake light on that socket. I then replaced the brake switch, and noticed that the 2 wires are always hot, withe the switch hanging down. Engaging the switch does nothing ! Both the new and old switch function in the same way. What am I missing, or has dementia finally set in ?
Peter
Let's assume it the 65 in your profile since you didn't say. The brake light switch cannot cause only one brake light to not work. The fact that you replaced the bulb and now the brake light switch is hot sounds like you installed the wrong bulb or in an incorrect manner, though that probably should cause the fuse to blow. It's probably in the turn signal switch contacts.
Turn the ignition key OFF, put the turn signal lever in the center and step on the brakes. Do both light? If not, wiggle the turn signal switch, does the one not working flash off and on with brakes on? Now release the brake, turn the key on. Turn the turn signal switch to both sides, do both work? Since you also didn't say which side is out, I can't be more specific on wire colors or contact points until you answer those three questions accurately, so be sure If you post back the answers to the exact three questions I asked, I can tell you where your problem is. Also tell me which side brake light lamp you replaced.
I found some time this morning to work on the lights. What stuck in my mind since reading your post, was the fact that I overlooked the obvious. The brake light switch cannot cause only 1 brake light to work. With that in mind I removed the bulb that I had replaced, to find a very corroded contact in the socket. After proper cleaning I re-connected the battery, and all is well again.
Thanks for pointing me in the right direction.
Peter
I found some time this morning to work on the lights. What stuck in my mind since reading your post, was the fact that I overlooked the obvious. The brake light switch cannot cause only 1 brake light to work. With that in mind I removed the bulb that I had replaced, to find a very corroded contact in the socket. After proper cleaning I re-connected the battery, and all is well again.
Thanks for pointing me in the right direction.
Peter
Peter, a couple of handy things to have around the shop for situations like this are some contact cleaner and some Dielectric Grease. Both products (in various brands - these just happen to be my favorites) should be available in any good auto parts store or online.
Contact cleaner is useful for dealing with lite corrosion in electrical contracts and bulb sockets, while the Dielectric grease is useful for insulating electrical connections from the corrosive effects of humidity and moisture. It can also make removing old burned out bulbs and separating electrical connectors a lot easier down the road.
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stoplight circuit issues
