brake light on dash

[KingKong8247]

Hey, Ya know the light on the dash that goes on when your parking brake is on well mine wont go off anymore. My parking brake is all the way down so its not on. Sometimes when i go around turns it turns off but then i turn again and it goes back on. Any help would be grateful. Thanks

[DriftMonkey]

this could be bad,  it happened to my brother and he thought it was off cuz the e-brake was down but somehow the brakes locked and he had to drive with them on in order to get home.  wore away almost all of his pads...this could be it but im not sure...

[KingKong8247]

Maybe that could be the reason hopefully not but how could I check to see if this it the problem? Is it just the brake pads that lock up and should i look at them or is thier another thing that locks up for the parking brake? Thanks

[hotdogg]

try checking your brake fluid.  that will also turn the light on.

[Pancor]

Your pads are probably wearign out, so there will be more brake fluid in your calipers, lowering the level in your master cylinder reservoir.  You may have a leak, but I doubt that.   If you do top it up before you replace your pads, be aware that you ill probably have some spillage when you put new ones in.

[gschroeder78]

Believe it or not, this is a pretty common problem. It probably isn't your fluid or brakes but you should check those anyway. On the 300ZX, the tail & brake light bulbs have to be a certain wattage or something to that effect to keep the light from coming on. That circuit checks for resistance. I replaced all my bulbs with nissan bulbs and the problem was fixed. This happened on the Z32 but the 240sx is most likely the same. You should check for shorts on your tail lights as well. I had a ground screw that kept loosening and causing a bad ground. There is also a sensor on your brake master cylinder that could probably use cleaning.

[HippoSleek]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Pancor @ Oct. 07 2002,12:26)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Your pads are probably wearign out, so there will be more brake fluid in your calipers, lowering the level in your master cylinder reservoir. You may have a leak, but I doubt that. If you do top it up before you replace your pads, be aware that you ill probably have some spillage when you put new ones in.</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
Do this. &nbsp;It ain't the light. &nbsp;Too much of a coincidence that when you go around turns (i.e., when the fluid sloshes), the light goes off. &nbsp;So does a gas light. &nbsp;Don't both topping it off - the light came on for a reason -unless you have no pedal pressure (i.e., a leak) - your brakes are worn out.

Change your brakes and check this stuff a little more regularly next time. &nbsp;By the time these lights come on, you may have already damaged your car. &nbsp;Keeping up with this stuff will keep something that takes 30 minutes and costs the price of pads and rotor turning from being a $$$$ job requiring calipers or a rebuild. &nbsp;Check out the FAQ on brakes for DIY info.

BTW: for the guy who locked - he probably seized his calipers by wearing down the pads so much that the piston actually left the sleeve in the caliper and got stuck. &nbsp;That is a caliper rebuild + pads + rotors. &nbsp;OUCH.

[KingKong8247]

It cant be the pads at least in the back which the parking brake controls right? because they were just changed around last march. Ill check the fluid and stuff. Hopefully it wont be a big problem. Thanks


*edit* Sorry i typed brake instead of back at first and just noticed it. Probably confused some people huh?

[HippoSleek]

It *shouldn't* be. &nbsp;

Another thing - when you check your fluid, actually take off the cap and look down in there to make sure that it is actually fluid you see on teh outside and not a grime ring. &nbsp;Mine's got a ring b/c no one thinks of flushing their fluid often enough and even most shops doing brake jobs only bleed as necessary.

[DSC]

One thing to note, you CAN still have plenty of pedal pressure even with a leak. You won't even notice unless you try to brake hard. How do I know? because I lost 2/3 of the fluid in my reservoir in 2 days and the brakes feel almost normal under average brakeing.

<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':D'> I'm always messing something up, now its 9pm...got go fix it b4 work tomorrow, hehe...not to mention clean my left rear wheel and suspension <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/hehe.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':hehe:'>

EDIT: &nbsp;Fixed <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':)'> but damn that brake fluid fucked my rim's clear coat <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/cry.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':cry:'> I may have to look into painting them sometime <img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/thumbs-up.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':thumbsup:'>

[KingKong8247]

Ok I checked my brake fluid and its about half inch above the Low line. &nbsp;Im gonna put some new fluid in tomorrow hopefully it is that and it will fix it. &nbsp;If not then maybe it could be the handbrake sensor, maybe? If i cant figure it out Ill ask my mechanic and if it is broken hopefully it wont cost to much to fix. Thanks for the help.

[MasterOFDrift]

yes my red 240sx has the same probelm except the light is always on and never turns off when turning or whatever...... I think i should check the break fluid. I thought it was jsut the sensor man am i glad i read this post. And damn the mechanics that rebuilt and serviced my breaks &nbsp;<img src="http://www.zilvia.net/f/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/crazy.gif" border="0" valign="absmiddle" alt=':crazy:'>

[HippoSleek]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (KingKong8247 @ Oct. 07 2002,8:29)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Ok I checked my brake fluid and its about half inch above the Low line. Im gonna put some new fluid in tomorrow hopefully it is that and it will fix it. If not then maybe it could be the handbrake sensor, maybe? If i cant figure it out Ill ask my mechanic and if it is broken hopefully it wont cost to much to fix. Thanks for the help.</td></tr></table><span id='postcolor'>
Keep in mind that brakes are a closed hydraulic system. &nbsp;You don't burn fluid and you shouldn't be leaking it. &nbsp;If your fluid is low, there is likely another problem such as worn pads or a leak. &nbsp;Neither of these is good for future driving.

[KingKong8247]

Hey, The problem was the brake fluid. I filled it up and now the light is off so it wasnt any brakes sticking. I guess its an early warning. Thanks for the help everyone probbably would have never figured it out. Thanks