Brake light issue need help fast

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70-duster

70-duster

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Alright, well here's what I got. It a 75 dart and I have taillights, turn signals, hazards, dome light and I have hot power on both sides of the brake switch. I'm thinking the reason I don't have brake lights is because of a bad turn signal cam. Give me your opinions. I was trying to get this thing ready for a local cruise tonight.
 
Check the wires from the column to the rear of the car under the drivers side carpet.
If you have signals, you should have brakelights.

Other than that it may be the cam (not sure) but I guess it could get mangled or worn and not have continuity when in the center position.
 
Do you have power to the white wire going INTO the switch with the brake pedal pushed? Check the switch connector first to make sure everything is good there.
 
Turn signal cam will affect the brake lights, but it usually messes with one of the other operations too.
 
I had a bad turn signal cam once, only one brake light worked, but that signal light worked. And everything else worked like it should. I put a new cam in and cleaned the contacts and it worked like it should.
 
Check grounds, and lamp sockets, are sockets clean? Mine get finicky about once a year, act like they are shorting out, and I need to grease them.
 
White wire has power. Had a finicky socket on the left but I already swapped it out. I m at a loss here. Grounds to the rear are good too.
 
nm9stheham said:
Do you have power to the white wire going INTO the switch with the brake pedal pushed? Check the switch connector first to make sure everything is good there.
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THIS

Access the TS switch connector coming out of the column. Check the brake light switch power feeding INTO the column, on both sides of that connector I believe it's white

Also the hazard switch in the column. This is a high failure deal, and could be the cause. Way WAY back in the early 70's before Al Gore invented the internet, I temporarily fixed three Mopars for friends by making a simple change to the wiring at the switch. This is right at the TS switch so you have to pull the wheel. I forget..........been that many years........disable the hazard switch (cut it off) and probably move the brake switch wire to another terminal

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When mine weren't working well, it was a bad connection at the brake socket itself. I found this out AFTER I changed out the entire wiring system in the car. Even with new light bulb sockets and new wiring, the tail lights still weren't working right. Started wiggling the sockets and sure enough that was it. I sanded the tail light housings to get good contacts on clean metal but haven't been able to check them again since. But that's where my problem lied.
 
I checked the white wire on both sides of the cam plug and there is no power. I ordered a new turn signal cam to see if that will help. Today I am going to take the kick panel off and mess with te plug end there as well. If that works I'll just keep the cam for my other a body.
 
70-duster said:
I checked the white wire on both sides of the cam plug and there is no power.
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???? If you have no power on the white wire at the turn signal switch harness connector then it is NOT THE turn signal switch

The white is your power coming FROM the brake light switch

But you said earlier that you DO have power on the white????
 
^^^ Yes....confusing...first there is power and now there is not.

The power will be on it (the wihte wire) with the brake pedal depressed; it goes to the white wire when the brake light switch is triggered. I suggest you re-check power on the white wire to be sure so we can all be on the same page. If there is no power on the white wire when the brake pedal is depressed, then your brake light switch is not working.

At the brake light switch, there shuold be power to the pink wire all the time and out of the whtie wite when the switch is activated by depressing the brake pedal. If no power at the pink wire, then it comes from a fuse in the fuse panel, and drops power to the emergency flasher on its way to the brake light switch.
 
Well I figured the worst and found the best. I ended up taking the kick panel off and unplugging the harness. I found that a small bug made a nest in that white wire spot. So I blew it out and voila, I now have brake lights. I should have known it was something stupid. Thanks for all your input.
 
70-duster said:
Well I figured the worst and found the best. I ended up taking the kick panel off and unplugging the harness. I found that a small bug made a nest in that white wire spot. So I blew it out and voila, I now have brake lights. I should have known it was something stupid. Thanks for all your input.
Click to expand...

You gotta be kidding. Well at least it was an easy fix.

I can see the tech advice in the future, Did you blow the bugs out of the wiring? lmao
 
Bad Sport said:
You gotta be kidding. Well at least it was an easy fix.

I can see the tech advice in the future, Did you blow the bugs out of the wiring? lmao
Click to expand...

That's awesome. Now my next question is, does a turn signal cam for a 73 also work in a 70?
 
To the best of my knowledge and memory, the white wire begins at brake lamp switch and ends at the signal switch. If there is a white wire behind the left kick panel it isn't on the brake light circuit.
I suppose a vehicle with separate bulbs for brake, park, and turn would have separate ( 4 count ) wires. Doesn't matter so long as you do have brake lights now.
Happy moparing
 
redfish said:
to the best of my knowledge and memory, the white wire begins at brake lamp switch and ends at the signal switch. If there is a white wire behind the left kick panel it isn't on the brake light circuit.
Click to expand...

^^yup^^
 
Not sure if was white wire, I was reading white wire and I typed that. It was obviously in the wire that was for the brake lights I'm sure. Either way, it worked. Now I just have to buy a new battery cause I killed mine with all this testing. Haha. That's how it goes.
 
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