2001 Volvo S40 Brake Lights - Possibly a switch problem

RENAWREN

MEMBER
2001 VOLVO S40
4 CYL
2WD
AUTOMATIC
150,000 MILES

Not a fuse or bulb problem as far as I can tell. I am on vacation in Orange Beach, AL and need to try to fix this myself. I fiddled with the brake light switch a little, and the brake lights are kind of acting like they are shorting out. Sometimes they work and sometimes they don't. If I fiddle with the switch I can get the lights to flicker, etc, but can't really tell if the switch is sticking or if it is a bigger problem. I am thinking of buying a brake light switch and installing it myself to see if that works. I know enough to get to the switch but I need to know how to remove the old one and put the new one in. Also would like to know if this is a good idea, or whether I should just have someone look at it. I don't have an ohmeter or any tools really and I am not skilled enough to really isolate the electrical problem outside of hoping it is the switch and knowing it is not a bad bulb or fuse. Can you help!

Thursday, March 25th, 2010 AT 10:00 PM

1 Reply

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
34,331 POSTS

Based on your dandy observation about the lights flickering when you play with the switch, it sounds like a good possibility it's defective. To prove it, you can use a paper clip, (stretched out) to touch the wires together in the connector. There will be two wires for sure. If that's all there are, you can't make a mistake. If your car has cruise control, there will likely be four or more wires. The good news is connecting the wrong wires should not cause a problem. Leave the ignition switch off, and the worst that can happen, if there is a ground wire in the connector, (I've never seen that before), is you'll pop a fuse.

If connecting the wires turns the brake lights on, the switch has a burned or corroded contact and must be replaced. The best I can offer is to look at the new switch to see how to install it. Only Ford switches are really bizarre so I think you'll figure it out. If that doesn't help, I'll delete this reply so others will see you haven't gotten a reply yet. Someone else should be able to tell you how the switch comes out.

Caradiodoc

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Thursday, March 25th, 2010 AT 10:23 PM