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my brake lights wont work and i dont know why.

poomero

poomero

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Tigard
my brake lights wont work unless i push the peddle as hard as i can. all my other lights work but not the brake lights. any ideas?
 
I don't the answer to your question but I am sure you will get a faster response in the OEM Tech section.

Good luck,

Also the year and any mods to the brake system and/or electrical would be helpful.

Josh
 
If you have to push the peddle as hard as you can it would seem the bracket for the brake light switch would have to be out of place or bent or something. Did you look under the dash at it? - make sure everything is intact.
 
dunno the year but if it has the small pressure switch on the brake pedal than most likely its either worn out or the white plastic bushing is worn. i just put a tiny spacer under the spring in the switch and havent had a prob since....the switch cant cost much but im a cheap sob :greensmok
 
id bet on the bushing getting worn like mine is and the switch not getting enough throw to engage the contacts....hence the spacer. get under there and look at the spring loaded switch while u push the brakes. you should hear a click. if not then the switch is not engaging properly.
 
Look up under the dash where the pedal connects to the booster. That's where your switch should be. There are nylon bushings in there that could be worn out, but my '88's where ok, so yours probably are too. The switch could have been bumped or the bolt that connects the pedal arm to the booster could have loosened. Wiggle the switch a little with someone watching the taillights. You may need to make a little shim to make it connect earlier.
I just replaced the old junky single-diaphragm booster with a modern dual-dia. I had to make a shim out of a paper clip to get the switch to signal because my grinding wasn't quite right. I know the renix switch is different than the chrysler, but same principle probably applies.

Why would it fail: worn out/loose, broken, knocked out of alignment...

Long story short: wiggle it, shim it/tighten bolt. If no good your sensor may be shot, replace it.
 
My brake lights stopped working today. As soon as a guy pulled up next to me at a light and told me, I went to Sears. They said it's the brake light switch. I'm looking at ordering one from Morris 4x4. I'll take a look tomorrow after work but I'm trying to figure out how hard it is to replace. My house lease doesn't allow working on the car but I doubt my landlady would care about a 5 minute electrical job.

Is there a plug and some screws or is it more involved?
 
winkosmosis said:
My brake lights stopped working today. As soon as a guy pulled up next to me at a light and told me, I went to Sears. They said it's the brake light switch. I'm looking at ordering one from Morris 4x4. I'll take a look tomorrow after work but I'm trying to figure out how hard it is to replace. My house lease doesn't allow working on the car but I doubt my landlady would care about a 5 minute electrical job.

Is there a plug and some screws or is it more involved?
Click to expand...

Plug and a screw or two, usually. Many of them just thread in on their own - and use a locknut to hold them in position. I'm not sure offhand which style the XJ uses - haven't had to deal with one for a few years.

Most leases tend to forbid working on vehicles because they're worried about fluids - there are no fluids involved, so you're good on that. It's certainly less complex than putting in a stereo headunit - and most people have done that before.

The hardest part of the job, usually, is just getting down under the IP to get to the damned thing. I usually pull out the driver's seat to give myself room, but I'm a fairly large guy... Two minutes to pull the seat and two minutes to put it back in - unless it's power.
 
I just replaced my switch this spring, solved this problem for me. The only wrinkle was the old switch had four spades (although only two electrical nodes) and the new one only had two spades. I just used scotchlok's to splice the wires together. I suspect the other set of wires is the cruise-control disable, which I don't use anyway, since CC makes the Jeep continuously accelerate :O
 
Napa sells one that has 6 pins... Will this work for a 1999?

http://www.napaonline.com/Search/Detail.aspx?A=ECHSL796_0160679886&An=599001+101999+50038+2038004

Stoplight Switch Product Line: Echlin Ignition
Part Number:
ECH SL796
Price:
Price
Unit
:
:
17.59
Each

Availability:

Available Now
Features & Benefits
NAPA Echlin Products Meet Or Exceed Original Equipment Specifications. All Products Are Top-Of-The-Line Quality, & 100% Tested & Inspected In An Environment That Is ISO9000 Compliant.
Warranty
Limited 12 Months
Attributes
# Switch Terminals : 6

Material Safety Data Sheet
There is no MSDS for this item
Application Information:
1999 Jeep Cherokee
Per Car Qty: 1
 
Last edited:
winkosmosis said:
Napa sells one that has 6 pins... Will this work for a 1999?

http://www.napaonline.com/Search/Detail.aspx?A=ECHSL796_0160679886&An=599001+101999+50038+2038004

Stoplight Switch Product Line: Echlin Ignition
Part Number:
ECH SL796
Price:
Price
Unit
:
:
17.59
Each

Availability:

Available Now
Features & Benefits
NAPA Echlin Products Meet Or Exceed Original Equipment Specifications. All Products Are Top-Of-The-Line Quality, & 100% Tested & Inspected In An Environment That Is ISO9000 Compliant.
Warranty
Limited 12 Months
Attributes
# Switch Terminals : 6

Material Safety Data Sheet
There is no MSDS for this item
Application Information:
1999 Jeep Cherokee
Per Car Qty: 1
Click to expand...

if you have your jeep close, just look behind the brake pedal arm and see if its the same.

my 89 has a completely different switch, mine is just a 2 wire switch, no cruise control.
 
5-90 said:
Plug and a screw or two, usually. Many of them just thread in on their own - and use a locknut to hold them in position. I'm not sure offhand which style the XJ uses - haven't had to deal with one for a few years.

Most leases tend to forbid working on vehicles because they're worried about fluids - there are no fluids involved, so you're good on that. It's certainly less complex than putting in a stereo headunit - and most people have done that before.

The hardest part of the job, usually, is just getting down under the IP to get to the damned thing. I usually pull out the driver's seat to give myself room, but I'm a fairly large guy... Two minutes to pull the seat and two minutes to put it back in - unless it's power.
Click to expand...
I hate working under the IP and I'm fairly skinny... heck when I pulled the ECU out of a friend's RENIX MJ last weekend he came out of the garage to find me upside down in the driver's seat, head under the dashboard and feet on the ceiling :roflmao: that thing is in a truly annoying location to get at.

As for the brake switch - just splice it, check FSMs and you should find which contacts you need, the ones for the automatic transmission XJs and cruise control XJs have more contacts iirc, I forget if the trans and CC share a contact set or not.
 
winkosmosis said:
I can't even find the damn thing. I skinned my knees the other day so I can't get down low enough to see it :p
Click to expand...

rug_burn_prevention_kit.jpg
 
Are you supposed to remove the panel below the steering column? I've removed that panel before and I remember there just being more electronics behind it. I don't see how you can get to the damn switch with all this crap in the way.

And why do they make it so the default position is pressed in? Wouldn't that just wear out the spring over time? And it makes it harder to install.
 
You can get to the switch if you sit upside down in the drivers seat (uncomfortable after about 20 minutes) or open the door and lie on the floor with your head on the gas pedal and your legs out the door.

It's no fun.
 
Anyone know where in the FSM the brake light switch procedure is? I've checked every section I can think of.. brakes, lamps, speed control systems... Nothing.
 
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