Brake Light ISSUE!!! WITH VIDEO! AHH!!

[JCamry94]

Hey guys...

So tonight I was at a JDM auto parts store and was just window shopping until I remembered my left brake light was going dim.

SO! I purchased 4 red lights.

Two for the left and right main brake lights, and two for the back turning signals.

I installed them, cut my pinky very badly opening the boxes, and was graced with a nice red tone in the back!

BUT after I and the my lady spend a nice night driving by the beach a Highway Patrolman decided to stop me in my tracks.

He says, "so.. I can't see any lights behind you at all, looks like when you press the brakes they show up, but that's it."

WHAT THE HECK?? Did I blow a fuse?

When the car is on or off and the headlights, parking lights, or both are turned on, the brake lights are completely off!!!



WHY????

Video: http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=PexbQT0sYaU

[new echo owner]

So you are talking about the tail lights not working, and your brake lights are working. And did you check the fuses? If there is no warning light on the dash, it is probably you light failure sensor causing your problem; otherwise, there would have been a warning light shining right at you when you turn your lights on.

Remove the sensor, open up the case, you might just find the printed circuit board having a small burnt mark on it.

Just a guess from what you have provided. Since you front park lights are working your relay and fuse both should be good, so that left you wiring being the cause. And both the inside and outside tail lights are not working, so it couldn't have been the wiring in the trunk, otherwise the outside one would still be working, and you will have a warning light.

BTW, when you said red lights, what exactly do you mean? The whole light assembly? What did you actually replaced? Since your name is JCamry94, I am guessing that you have a 94' sedan, right?

Did you mixed up the bulbs? According to the circuit diagram at AutoZone.com, the inside lights on the trunk should be park lights and the outside ones are combo lights. Your video showed that all four came on when you pressed your brakes?

N.E.O.

[deezeejoey]

Originally Posted by new echo owner

Your video showed that all four came on when you pressed your brakes?

N.E.O.

I think the 2000+ gen 4's do that.

[John5516]

sounds like you blew a fuse did that the other day, the tail lights would only come on when i pressed the brake when I was installing new license plate bulbs. The fuse is inside to the left of the steering wheel behind that little box that opens up.

[Creeps228]

ythe 2001 2001 gen 4s brskes lights are all the four in the back, it wat it may seem is that the wiring for the bulbs isnt the same here as it is over in japan, im guessing you purchased jdm bulbs, this can be a cause to your problem. also keep in mind the the bulbs should ahve a dual filament in them, one filament is for the parking lights and the other is for the brake light, maybe just maybe the bulbd you bought are only one filament and only turn on when you press the brakes

[Black95Cam]

ahh.. had that happened to me.. found out that there was corrosion in the bulb socket. ended up replacing the whole harness..

[uibalnme]

Switch the bulbs around, maybe you have them in the wrong sockets. I'm not sure if that's even possible, but try it and see if that works.

[new echo owner]

I think the 1157 pins are offset and the 1156 pins are not, and one is a double filament and the other is a single.

N.E.O.

[JCamry94]

Okay, here's the update!

My step dad and I have a voltage reader and there is aroun 11-12 volts running through the bulb sockets... we got new OEM bulbs, they are double filament, and they are 1157, in the correct socket, and are the correct type.

The most likely deal would be a wiring issue as New Echo is saying.

Checked the fuse box, and everything was at is should be, no burnt fuses, no breakage whatsoever.

Like I said I havent mixed the bulbs at all... AND there was no warning light to be found.

Any other suggestions?

[new echo owner]

Check the light failure sensor, there should be a warning light on the dash, unless the sensor itself is bad.

N.E.O.

[JCamry94]

Originally Posted by new echo owner

Check the light failure sensor, there should be a warning light on the dash, unless the sensor itself is bad.

N.E.O.

Where is the light failure sensor and how do i access it?

I've already checked all the fuses and they are good to go.

When we checked the voltage, there is grounding, but not enough power to the tails itself...

what the heck???

[new echo owner]

If I remember correctly, it is snap onto the left rear quarter brace behind the trim inside the trunk. It is probably yellow in color, should say on the case what it is.

N.E.O.

[JCamry94]

Okay, found the case NEO, what do I need to do to check it out?

or how to I find if there's a problem there?

Thanks for all your help btw

[new echo owner]

Open it up and look at the circuit board, see if there is any burnt spot on there.

If you want to verify if that is the cause, jut jump the terminals coming in from the light switch to the the one going out to the lights; the one from the switch maybe a 'green' wire, while the one going to the lights maybe 'light green' wire.

N.E.O.

[JCamry94]

I'm gonna have to check it out tomorrow morning.

But if it IS the cause then what do I have to do? Where do I have to go to get the necessary new equiptment?

Thanks