Kristen77

This afternoon I noticed my brake lights (and 3rd brake light) were on although the car was off and had been for a few hours. Thinking maybe something was stuck I drove it around the block and hit the brakes a little harder than normal. They were still on. I checked the switch on the pedal (blue & white) and it looked ok. I disconnected it, checked the lights, still on! The spring on the switch seemed to work fine.

Frustrated I disconnected the battery, let it sit for 30 or so mins, and as soon as I reconnected it, lights back on!!

What can this be?? Any insight would be great.
thank you in advance.
-Kristen

Kristen77

This afternoon I noticed my brake lights (and 3rd brake light) were on although the car was off and had been for a few hours. Thinking maybe something was stuck I drove it around the block and hit the brakes a little harder than normal. They were still on. I checked the switch on the pedal (blue & white) and it looked ok. I disconnected it, checked the lights, still on! The spring on the switch seemed to work fine.

Frustrated I disconnected the battery, let it sit for 30 or so mins, and as soon as I reconnected it, lights back on!!

What can this be?? Any insight would be great.
thank you in advance.
-Kristen

kirk35

I would take another look at the brake light switch and make sure it is adjusted properly.

edwin108

It could be the switch itself. Do you have a multimeter? Check for continuity across the two terminals on the brake pedal switch. According to the wiring diagram, there should be continuity only when the pedal is depressed:

Kristen77

Thank you very much for your reply. I think my brother may have a multimeter. I know a good amount when it comes to cars, except for wiring. Maybe he can understand your diagram. thanks again!

JimC

Threads merged. Please don't clutter the forum with multiple threads on the same topic.

Derf00

If the other brake lights are off and it's just the third brake light that remains on, it's an issue with the wiring of the third brake light itself because ALL brake light power is controlled by the brake light switch.

That means if the switch were at fault, ALL the brake lights would be on, not just the third one.

Most likely a short somewhere in the wires of the third brake light.

Open the trunk while the light is on to see if it goes out. If it does, then short is in the wiring that goes around the Trunk Hinge, if the light stays on, take the black cover off the inner trunk lid and inspect the light third brake assembly for any obvious burn signs. Burn signs are indicative of a short. If that doesn't pan out, now you have to trace the wire back to find out where it's getting shorted.