No Brake lights?

Sat Mar 14, 2009 12:50 pm

Hello,

I have no brake lights. all other lights work fine.

I did blow the number plate fuse when I was checking for a voltage with my multimeter on the number plate light contacts. It was around this time that the brake lights check controller light came on.

I swapped the brake bulbs for the fogs and the bulbs work.

I checked the fuse. it looked OK so swapped it to another position and that was OK.

I took the plugs off the brake pedal and put a wire in the plugs to close the circuit. but still no joy.

I had the check control checker relay thing out and that seemed to be OK in the sense that the lacquer on the cooper coils was intact and there was no sign of corrosion.

The check controller in the roof has for the last 7 years I've had it lit the sidelights and number plate check tell tales. I got a scrappies check controller 5 years ago and it still signalled that the same bulbs are out but aren't.

I vaguely remember seeing that there was some previous main dealer intervention wrgt the check system in the service history.

Can the check system stop the lights from working? Can I just bridge across the check system?

Cheers for any insight.

Sat Mar 14, 2009 1:50 pm

And people ask why the check control was only fitted to E30! Reads to me that you have a sensor issue in the check control as well as a brake light issue.Within the rear light clusters the connections are made with a steel track,I have had to swap two cluster units over the years to correct brake light/reversing light faults,may be worth trying a replacement unit.Strange that both should go off together,though.The check light system works via sensor units that are wired into the harness close to the light units.

Sat Mar 14, 2009 4:19 pm

Side lights on and I'm getting 50mV across GR/R,GY/V, Gr/Y,GR/BL and brown, plugs of the bulb tester unit, turn the side lights off and there is no reading on the voltmeter. presumable this is an induced emf effect?

At one moment I did get the brake lights on. but needless to say I have not been able to replicate that accident.

Sat Mar 14, 2009 5:14 pm

It seems to be a dodgy switch. job done!