My "parking brake on" light is staying on and the regular brake light is on as well. It dings every 5-10 seconds. It also dings when i accelerate from a complete stop. Anyone else heard of such a thing?? Oh and my parking brake is not on. I dont even think its connected up. But its not on regardless.

 

This sounds like a recent post that I misunderstood. Is the handle floppy, just falls back down if you lift it?
The brake needs to be released. Pull up hard while pushing the button in and the brake will release. This is explained in the owners manual.

 

It sounds like you have not released your parking brake fully, the light stays on till you do and you are driving with some of the brakes on....So it's difficult I know, but you need to push in the button and pull very hard up on the handle and release as you bring it down....and it should turn off, I rarely use mine due to the same, it requires some sort of adjustment.

 

THE BRAKE WARNING LIGHT CAN COME ON IF THE MASTER CYLINDER IS NOT FULL! The parking brake consists of small drum brake shoes inside the rear rotors. As stated, lift up FULLY on the parking brake handle push the release button and return it to the floor. Is this a recent development or did you just buy this car?

 

Im not 100% sure if my parking brake is even connected. I have pulled it up and released it though. This has happened previously usually lasting for a week or two then going off on its own. Very annoying. I have a feeling its yet another electrical problem/mystery. Thanks for all the responses.

 

Ive had the car for several years. About 5 or 6 years. Jags definitely have minds of their own. Love the car but cant afford troubleshooting it. Thats why this forum is a great tool.

 

If your Parking Brake is definitely NOT on then the Handbrake Switch (see item 3) on the brake handle assembly is possibly faulty or disconnected.



If the switch is OK, it could be the harness connection to the switch.

Can you pass an inspection in California without a functioning Parking Brake?

Graham

 

I don't think they care unless there is a puff of smoke from the exhaust.

 

There is NO inspection in California except for a SMOG test every 2 years. The only time a mechanical inspection is done is when you re register a previously salvaged car. They check brakes, lights and SMOG it as well. You still have a Salvage title but in the States eyes it safe to operate! Have you ever had the parking brake shoes adjusted? Will they hold the car in position in drive on a level driveway?

 

I may be able to shed some light on this. I had they same problem and what happened to me was that the rotating pieces containing the return spring has rusted or frozen in one position. I had to put it on a rack and disassemble the entire mechanism, lube it real good and put it back together again. It helps if you actually use your emergency brake now and then. Many people never use their emergency brake so the dang thing rusts in place.

 

I don't even think its connected up. But its not on regardless.


Is the reason you don't think it is connected because the lever feels loose and floppy ?? In which case, it **IS** connected - just not released. As already said in previous posts - pull up on the handbrake lever as hard as possible. Press the button on the top and while still pressing the button, lower the lever back to the floor again.
The reason Jaguar made it this difficult is so that you don't have to sort-of climb over the handbrake lever to get into the driver's seat and the use of the XJS floor pan would have made it more expensive to move the lever to the centre, which is what would have been the best option.
The lever will ALWAYS be on the floor. If there's some resistance, it's working OK. If it feels loose, odds are that it's "on" and needs to be released.
All in the handbook.

 

I am alarmed to read that several members of the forum don't regularly use their parking brakes. Bad habit! Just allowing the car to be held still by the parking pawl in the gearbox is a good (and well known) way to have to have your tranny rebuilt. Or, at least, so said a panel of Land Rover mechanics at an off-road driving clinic. Applies to all cars with automatic trannies, not just Land Rovers.

 

That would be about 99.999% of drivers.

 

Not only are you supposed to use the parking brake but there's a particular sequence you're supposed to follow. Put gearbox in Neutral, set parking brake, take foot off service brake, then--and only then--put gearbox in Park.

 

If I park on the flat, I don't use the parkbrake. If I park on an incline, I do use it.

Graham

 

+1 on all my vehicles.

 

Hello,

From your description you can safely say that the micro switch is either faulty or knocked off its mount.

I would be very surprised if the is a short caused by an insulation breakdown.

Get a multi meter and test the switch using the continuity setting.

I have the same issue except mine dose not tell me I have left the hand break on.


On the to do list. :-)

 

When storing a vehicle for a long time I was told that the parking brake should be fully released as the return springs can fatigue and other parts rust in place. Perhaps this is what happened here and the cable mechanism no longer fully returns thus engaging the micro switch.

 

Surely, this is the only truly inadequate feature of this car. With both of the XKRs i have owned the brake is so incompetent I can hardly tell if it is on, when I am driving, or off, when parked.

 

A correctly adjusted Parking Brake is very efficient. Problems arise from:

1. lack of use
2. stretched cables
3. worn or incorrectly adjusted brake shoes



An adjuster for the shoes (see item 1) is used to compensate for wear.



There's adjusters on the equaliser rod (item 6) and on on both cables from the equaliser to the rear wheels (items 7 & 8) to take up any stretch.

Graham