BRAKE light when hand brake is off - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

Darchrow · 12-10-2008, 02:29 AM

the BRAKE light has been coming and going lately, and it seems to go away for good after 15 minutes or so of driving. (it comes back again if i start my car later after several hours of it being parked)

manual says it might be brake fluid, which (not sure if i looked at it correctly), seems to be at normal levels in the reservoir under the hood.

was wondering if anyone knew what the problem might be before i take the car in to the dealership.

so, yea, the light just comes and goes whenever it feels like it.

***ASG14*** · 12-10-2008, 02:34 AM

Try putting a little more fluid in anyway. Same thing happened on my car. I was 100% sure the fluid was fine, but added more, and it went off.

xeron · 12-10-2008, 02:58 AM

Ditto.

I had this problem a few years ago, I assumed it was my parking brake (I had actually ran some wiring through that general area... so I figured while my hand was down there I accidentally moved a sensor or something). It turns out my ACTUAL brakes were messed up and I had to go get them fixed (They were sqweeky and I never heard them since my windows were always closed and the radio was up loud.

mandyfig · 12-10-2008, 11:22 AM

Had the same issue with my CRV, turns out the fluid strainer was the culprit, would not allow the float to go up, hence adding fluid helped. Cleaning the strainer was a solution, too. Donot know if our car has the strainer, too.

***prnc_chrmng*** · 12-10-2008, 08:54 PM

check your brake pads.

Darchrow · 12-10-2008, 08:59 PM

thanks for the input, guys.

is it ok to mix different brands of brake fluid?

ToRn · 12-10-2008, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by P A U L

thanks for the input, guys.

is it ok to mix different brands of brake fluid?

yes.

lenjack · 12-11-2008, 07:42 PM

add brake fluid. If it's dot 3, I wouldn't add anything but dot 3.

nukem678 · 12-12-2008, 06:53 PM

I had the exact same problem. It just needed some fluid. Thats it. Mainly turn on during turns. Brake fluid wears out with time. If its not clear, id take a turkey baster,, remove the old fluid and replace it.

Darchrow · 12-12-2008, 09:16 PM

k, problem solved (i hope, i havn't driven enough to actually make sure that the light won't come back)

i noticed when i took the cap off the brake fluid reservoir--the fluid was topped off. which confused me. but this time when i checked again, i had already bought dot3 fluid and opened it, so i tried to pour a very small amount in just to completely top it off, and what do you know, the reservoir 'drank' the fluid! so i kept pouring fluid in as much as it would take it in until it wouldnt and i nearly spilled.

so the light hasn't returned for the 20 miles i've driven the car today, but this isn't enough to confirm cuz i've had it not turn on for such distances.

i was kinda freaking out because the reservoir tank isn't labeled "brake fluid" except the words "USE ONLY DOT3" somethingsomething on the cap. so i assumed it was brake fluid, hoping nothing else in the car uses dot3 something..

last time i assumed something, my car kinda blew up. i thought all battery terminals had the + on the left side, one night i tried to jump my car using my mom's car, and her damn battery's terminal has the + on the right side and the color's weren't readily discernable. so i just hooked up the clamps and my car freaking honks crazy, lights flash, clamp turns cherry red, sparks fly. not cool. luckily, when i took the car to the shop, the only thing that needed fixing was a main bus fuse.

anyway, thanks people for saving me a trip to the thieves over at toyota's garage.

Mike Gerber · 12-13-2008, 02:15 PM

Glad your problem appears to be solved. Many times if you just look at the brake fluid level (yes, DOT 3 is brake fluid) from the side of the resevoir, it may look full when it is not actually full. Old and dirty brake fluid can actually stain the sides of the resevoir and make it appear to look full, especially if just looking at it from the outside without removing the cap. That said, I wouldn't go too much over the full line. There has to be a proper way of venting air out of the resevoir and pressures within the resevoir can change if there is too much fluid and not enough air; that's why there is a max line. Also, if the fluid level goes down again shortly, I would check the entire hydraulic system for a leak. A leak in the hydraulic system can be very serious.

Mike