Talk Morgan Forums Morgan Sports Cars Maintenance & Servicing Brake and reversing light failure

I have just noticed my brake lights and reversing lights are not working on my 2009 4/4 sport, bulbs ok, fuse ok, i see there are 2 swithches on the brake pedal , any idea why there are two? and where can i find the reversing switch
Thanks

Had exactly the same on my +4 last week, after much searching turned out to be a connector had come adrift from switch on brake pedal. Real fiddle to get it back on!

I have checked the connections , all seems ok

Have you substituted the fuse? Number 20 according to the diagram, but not necessarily the right one!

Dave, i have just found a blown fuse in "number1" or could be "20" its a15 amp , i have an omex ecu which has been fitted on top of the fuse cover so i can' t read the diagram. Ihave changed the fuse but it blows as soon as the ignition is switched on, do the brake lights and reversing lights both run off the same fuse, any advice as to where to start looking for a problem. I HATE ELECTRICS !!!!!!!!!!

According to the circuit diagram, brake lights and reversing light are on the same fuse. If the fuse blows as soon as you switch the ignition on, providing you're not in reverse gear, the fault is not with the reversing lamps, unless the live feed to the gearbox switch has chafed. Have you done anything recently to the car? Messed with the dash for example? You might need an auto electrician, because it will need a systematic investigation. A circuit tester or test bulb will be essential if you try it yourself, but only tackle it if you know what you're doing.

Tracing electrical problems can be a right mare. Here's what I would do, based on the information you have given:

1. Hypothesis: the fact that the fuse blows as soon as you switch on the ignition suggests an earth fault in one of the circuits. The brake light switch is down in the footwell, vulnerable to all sorts of problems from wayward boots. The reversing light switch is down by the gearbox, tucked out of harm's way. Ergo - suspect the brake light switch more than the reversing light.

2. Inspect the brake light switch and its wiring carefully. If it was my Mog, I'd be looking for signs of contamination from muddy feet, but that's because I'm a peasant and live in a hovel with dirt track driveways. If you're lucky, you'll spot something amiss immediately.

3. If there's nothing obvious, then I'd disconnect the wires from the brake light switch, make sure they can't short out, and try the fuse again: if it doesn't blow this time, the fault is in the switch.

4. If the brake light switch checks out, then I'd turn my attention to the reversing switch - and to be honest at this point I'd whizz it down to my local garage which still has 'proper' mechanics rather than "vehicle technicians" and get them to pop it up onto a ramp so I could have a proper look at it underneath. You can do far more in 5 minutes looking at a car on a lift than ever you can grovelling around on your back with a car on stands.

Of course, if you already have a lift, then no worries. But I suspect the brake light switch.

Thanks for the help, looks like a frustrating day in the garage tomorrow,. I did have the dash out over winter to replace a faulty fan switch, is there anything behind there that can affect the lights? Also could you point me in the right direction of where i can find the reversing switch. There are two swithches on the brake, i am guessing the brake light switch is the one on the right, there is power to the left hand one

The chances are it's chafing somewhere so you may (possibly) have trapped a wire when you refitted the dash.

In addition to Tim's advice - if you have a fine probe, or can modify a fuse - first determine which side of the fuse is power in/live (ignition on) - using a test bulb or multi meter. Then with the fuse out - put a test bulb, or multi meter to the other side (non-live)of the fuse.

So 12v into test bulb into non-live side of fuse. The earth short which is causing the problem will light the bulb. As long as the bulb stays lit, you have a short. When the bulb goes out - you've found the short. After checking the brake lamp switch, pay attention to where the wires pass through bodywork - the most likely point of a short.

Also remove the brake lamp bulbs and check for corrosion in the lamp units.

I didn't realise you'd had the dash out. Dave's right, that's almost certainly where the problem lies, theres a wire somewhere that's shorting to earth. Problems alway some as a result of change in a system.