2006 XKR Victory 'vert. My earlier post incorrectly stated blown fuse.

Upon close inspection, Fuse #6 is ok, not blown. Cannot find any damaged wiring. I should check the stop light relay next, I believe, but I do not have a relay layout in my handbook, and can only find one on the web for 2002 and back. I also read that there is a SLCM (safety lock control module?) under the fuse box that could be the culprit.

Any ideas as to where to start?

Thanks!

 

Mosley, The circuit board and the receptical that holds the brake lights in the trunk is prone to corrosion. I have certainly seen bulbs that won't light because they can't make a good connection. Clean the contact surfaces on bulb and in the bulb holder with a pencil eraser.

I hope that, the simplest solution, works.

If not, heck even if it does, IMO you need to address the poorly designed ground connection for each side. The wire Jag chose for these boards (left/right bulb holders) is too thin. They can overheat, opening the connection. The higher resistance through the wires can cause intermittent problems as well.

You can easily see where a melted open connection took place, look at how the thin black wire connects to the board.

How to fix? Get a length of wire 18 gauge or thicker (thicker = lower gauge #). Rivet, or solder it to the circuit board. If you're going to solder, drill a hole to feed the wire into, it'll hold better. Take some fine sandpaper, polish the metal at the connection point. Use some Flux and a large soldering iron. Connect the other end to any of the bolts right in that area. I crimped an eye connector on the end of my wire to keep it need and make easy to connect.

Obvious, but may help: If you are unsure if an open ground wire is causing this,Test it: just touch a wire to the circuit board, other end to chassis bolt or something, have someone step on brake - lights should light.

John

 

Thanks John! I’ll look at those and post my progress.

 

Second that diagnosis. Mine was the ground connection, first drivers side, then a year later the pass side. Used a separate wire from receptacle to know good grounding point.

 

I finally got around to switching stop light relays; and then had intermittent brake lights.
So I checked photos on this forum, and riveted wires to the ground portion of the brake light "circuit board" and grounded to the body behind the trim panel. I had a lot of fun making all the connections look factory; bullet connectors, shrink tubing, and all. Took a 15 mile test drive and no stop light warnings yet.
Thanks to all!