# passengerside brake & third brake light out - cause? (2000 Altima)



## caleb (Oct 25, 2004)

What would cause 2 out of 3 brake lights to be out?

More details:
2000 Altima with about 45,000 gentle miles.
Passenger side brake light and third brake light are out. 
I checked the brake light fuse and it is fine (removing it causes driver side light to go out, new fuse has same issue as old fuse, and so I assume the old fuse is fine). 
I checked the passenger side bulbs against the driver side bulbs and they look the same (they have all of their filaments and aren't gray/black). So I assume it's not a blown blub.
I couldn't figure out how to take apart the third brake light. I looked in the trunk, but it appears access is via the back seat. I poked around a little but nothing seemed to come off easily. So I can't tell you about the third brake light blubs. However I think they are LEDs, and LEDs should last "forever", so I would be surprised if they were out.

I'm hoping it's the brake switch as it's covered under warranty, but could it be a short? And if so, how do I find that!

Anyway as you can tell I'm not super car savvy so I thought I'd ask you guys for some help. 
Thank you for any help/advice/how to knowledge you can offer,
Caleb


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## ultimatuc (May 1, 2004)

I'm not sure if the rear brake lights are wired in series. but if they are, I'd suggest checking for a short: after the working brake light and before the third light.

I'm too lazy to find a schematic..... find one, and maybe I could be of more help.


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## caleb (Oct 25, 2004)

*SOLVED*



ultimatuc said:


> I'm not sure if the rear brake lights are wired in series. but if they are, I'd suggest checking for a short: after the working brake light and before the third light.
> 
> I'm too lazy to find a schematic..... find one, and maybe I could be of more help.


I wasn't able to find a schematic, but I did find out how to remove the light bulb from the high-mounted (third) brake light. You push it hard towards the back and lift up the front.
Anyway the bulb was out...replaced it (though it calls for 921 I used a 922 since I couldn't find a 921 anywhere). It all works.

So my assumption - if the high-mounted brake light and the passenger side brake lights are out then it is an indication that the high-mounted brake light is blown (burnt-out).
The reason I assume is that as stated above they are wired in series.

Thanks for the post and I hope this helps others in the future. :thumbup: 

Cheers,
Caleb


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