# brake lights not working



## eldergolfer21 (Sep 5, 2010)

my BRAKE and LIGHT warning lights are on. all my head lights, brights, and fog lights work. brake fluid level is fine. before i go out and buy the tail light sensor that costs $65 i want to make sure that is the problem. Third brake light is the only one that works.


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## Faja (Aug 31, 2009)

eldergolfer21 said:


> my BRAKE and LIGHT warning lights are on. all my head lights, brights, and fog lights work. brake fluid level is fine. before i go out and buy the tail light sensor that costs $65 i want to make sure that is the problem. Third brake light is the only one that works.


Did you check the brake bulbs in the taillights to see if they were blown?


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## eldergolfer21 (Sep 5, 2010)

well i doubt that all of them could be blown. i know thats dumb to say but... let me get this straight. when i dont have my lights on shouldn't all three brake lights work? when i have my lights on my red "brake" lights are on. i guess what i could ask is what are the tail lights supposed to look like when lights are on/off and brake is depressed. do they just get brighter?


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## Faja (Aug 31, 2009)

eldergolfer21 said:


> well i doubt that all of them could be blown. i know thats dumb to say but... let me get this straight. when i dont have my lights on shouldn't all three brake lights work? when i have my lights on my red "brake" lights are on. i guess what i could ask is what are the tail lights supposed to look like when lights are on/off and brake is depressed. do they just get brighter?


yes, I think you're mixing up the regular taillights with the brake lights. They should get brighter when you hit the brake pedal. It could be a dual filament bulb or a separate bulb - I don't really know which you have but I would check them just in case. Also I noticed that you have another post about your guage lights, did you get that working? I know with some aftermarket radios, it can blow the dimmer switch so you have no dash lights if it's not hooked up properly.


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## eldergolfer21 (Sep 5, 2010)

okay, so i will take out the tail light assembly and check the brake light bulbs to see what is wrong. im guessing that if the tail lights at least work then it probably isnt the sensor. i will probably find out in a little bit when i got out to disassemble my tail lights, but is it in series or parallel(should that matter)?

so, about the instrument cluster. i was looking at getting a new pod altogether. would that make a difference or is it how its wired up? because if the previous owners blew something it would be the pod itself and not how it is wired.

thank you for your help so far


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## Faja (Aug 31, 2009)

eldergolfer21 said:


> so, about the instrument cluster. i was looking at getting a new pod altogether. would that make a difference or is it how its wired up? because if the previous owners blew something it would be the pod itself and not how it is wired.
> 
> thank you for your help so far


It's hard to say with the cluster because I don't know what work was done and how the radio is wired up so putting a new one in could end up blowing also as we don't know why the first one failed. I would disconnect the radio and then check the instrument panel and dimmer switch for power. My initial guess is that it's just the dimmer switch but again I'm only guessing!!! By the way, I assume you checked your fuses under your dash???


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## eldergolfer21 (Sep 5, 2010)

ok, i will see what i can do about the pod itself cause everything else works fine on it. 

what fuse would it be? clearance illumination? that is really the only one i checked. i guess it wouldn't hurt to check all of them though for the myriad amount of other problems i have


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## reddevilZ (Nov 16, 2010)

Its definetly the tailight sensor. I had the exact problem, they are know to go. Its a green retangular box on the drivers side tailight assembly.


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## matt's Z (Mar 6, 2011)

I'm having issues with my reverse lights lighting up. Not sure which fuse covers that since the cover panel is missing by my feet. Can anybody help me out?

This may sound dumb but I'm not sure what's up with my headlights either. When I turn on switch to 2nd position, only the 2 round outer lights light up. If I activate high beams, then the rectangle lights come on. Any advice?

By the way, I have a 1990 300ZX na


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## noelcurt52 (Sep 6, 2011)

Is there a tail light sensor on a 1996 Altima, because I have no taillights, but it seems that everything in the system is working. The bulbs are good, I have rear taillights, but the brake light element in the bulb does not light. I get a reaction on my voltmeter when I press down on the brake pedal, and I have continuity from the switch to the rear light clusters.


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