Hello all, this is my first post. I own a 03' X-Type 2.5. The low brake fluid message and the red brake light remain on. I just got a call from my mechanic and he stated that all the sensors checked out but the lights remain. Any ideas on how to cure this?

Thanks,

John

 

JohnM, what you will need to do is to first reach up under the dash near the brake pedal. You will notice that there will be a piece that strikes the metal part of the brake pedal. This is the brake switch. On it, you will see a plug (2 wire plug). Disconnect it. Do the brake lights go out? If no, let me know since you have a bigger problem and you have wires that are cross connected. If the brake lights do go out, sounds like your brake switch is either mis-aligned and simply needs to be put back into its proper place or the switch has failed and a new one is needed. You can prove the switch is good by removing the switch from its mount, reconnecting the plug and then using your finger, push the plunger in and out. This should cause the lights to go on and off. If they don't change state, then the switch is bad. If they do, you need to remount the switch and make sure that it is making proper contact with the brake pedal.

P.S. Welcome to the Forums. I think you will find a lot of good information here. There are some characteristics of the car that you need to familiarize yourself with. Don't let the "infamous transfer case" issues scare you. They aren't that big of a deal as long as you are sensible.

 

Thanks for the reply Thermo. I just got the car back from the shop and disconnected the switch. The light remains on. What should be the next step?

Thanks,

John

 

John, first, remove fuse F90 from the fuse box inside the passenger compartment. Are the brake lights still on? If no, then your problem lies with the plug going to the brake switch. If yes, then I need ot know if you have any of the following things:

-Any work been done to the car recently that you know of? Specifically anything with the wiring to include a new stereo, correction of other problems, etc.
-Do you have a trailer plug on the back/front of the car? (Either for towing a trailer or if the car was towed behind another vehicle).
-Are the lights on 100% of the time, even with the key out of the ignition or are they only on during specific times (ie, only with the parking lights, any time the key is in the car and not in the OFF position, etc)?
-Is the car equipped with daytime running lights or do you use the auto light feature?

This should hopefully get us narrowed down to where the problem most likely is located. I know it is a lot of questions, but right now, I am only trying to eliminate potential sources as the possibilities are quite numerous.

 

Thermo, just to clarify, we are talking about the dash sensors. The check brake fluid message and the red brake light. I will check the rest in the am.

Thanks again,

John

 

John, sorry about that. When I read brake lights on, I think the ones in the rear of the car. You are talking about the E-brake light on the instrument cluster. If you look inside the center console, you will find a plug there. You will need to unplug that. If the light remains, then you have a problem in the instrument cluster. If the light goes out, then you have a bad switch on the E-brake.

As for your low brake fluid message, again, if you look on the master cylinder, you will find a sensor near the bottom of the plastic container. This will have the low fluid level sensor. Disconnect the plug. If the light remains, instrument cluster problem. If the light goes out, you have a bad level sensor.

 

Thanks. Removed the switches and the lights remained on. I will look into the cluster.

 

Hi,
Sorry for resurrecting this old thread, but I have similar problems.
Almost. I removed the switch from its mount, and when I press it, the light goes out, so the switch is OK, but somehow the brake pedal doesn't push it enough. Is there a way to adjust the switch's relative position to the pedal?
Thanks!
Jozsi