Break Light-1999 Honda Accord (red light, gasket, brake, ABS) - Honda and Acura -Car forums - City-Data Forum

Spanky25 · 10-09-2012, 06:25 PM

My Dash/break light "sometimes" goes on in the morning. Never when I take it during lunch time or leave from work.

I checked the fluid. I had new front & rear breaks & rotors done about 2 1/2 months ago. Could I need new pads already? I only drive about 200 miles per week.

What can it be?

Thanks!

trbstang · 10-09-2012, 06:41 PM

The BRAKE light will usually come on if the brake fluid is low, or if the parking brake is left on. There are sensors for both located on or around the master cylinder and attached to the parking brake pedal or handle. It could also come on if you park on an incline and the fluid is not level in the reservoir. Other than that, you could have a bad wire somewhere in the circuit. If your pads were bad already, which I seriously doubt, then your brake fluid level would be low due to the fluid being used to press the worn pads when you brake.

Spanky25 · 10-09-2012, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by trbstang

The BRAKE light will usually come on if the brake fluid is low, or if the parking brake is left on. There are sensors for both located on or around the master cylinder and attached to the parking brake pedal or handle. It could also come on if you park on an incline and the fluid is not level in the reservoir. Other than that, you could have a bad wire somewhere in the circuit. If your pads were bad already, which I seriously doubt, then your brake fluid level would be low due to the fluid being used to press the worn pads when you brake.

Thanks! I do park on an incline. However, I been doing that for years!
I just hate to put money into this car since I plan on selling it at the end of the month. I had it for 13+ years with no major problems.

Thanks Again!

trbstang · 10-09-2012, 06:54 PM

Well, if that is the case, maybe add a little fluid to just a bit above the FULL mark on level ground and see if that helps. It might just be enough of an incline to trigger the light and the fluid level may now be lower than it has been in the past.

Good luck!

Thegonagle · 10-10-2012, 02:49 PM

There are two red brake warning lights on most Accords. (Plus a yellow ABS warning light.)

The first red light is your normal warning light that warns when the parking brake is set or the fluid level is getting low. This one says "BRAKE." If this one is on, you could have a leak, or you could need new pads soon. (In your case, you shouldn't need pads anytime soon, so check your fluid level again.)

The second one is supposed to tell you that a brake light bulb has burned out. This one is below the little car pictograph that shows when a door is open. Have a helper hit the brake pedal while you check your brake lights. If any of your bulbs need replacing, do that.

If the bulbs are fine, then look for moisture getting in to the light housing. Moisture and corrosion in the socket can trip the warning circuit falsely. If there are no cracks or holes in the housing, 99% of the time, the culprit is a bad foam-rubber gasket between the light housing and the body. (The housing is held on by 4-5 nuts accessible from inside the trunk.) A new gasket from Honda is about $10-12 IIRC, or, as I've done with some beaters, it can be reinstalled with some silicone caulk "shoring up" the deteriorating gasket.