Brake lights permanently on.

tagscuderia

tagscuderia

Member
Disclaimer: I have searched the forum but I'm whacked... just seeking confirmation.

Up at 5AM today to climb Cadair Idris and having walked for 7 hours was greeted by a flat battery! Middle of nowhere and no mobile reception. Fortuitously a good Samaritan gave me a jump start. Never has an FSi firing up sounded so good!
Anyway, the culprit is/are the brake lights, all 3 are on permanently, both ignition on/off. Fault must have occurred sometime en route albeit no warning lights.
I'm presuming that it's the brake switch (?). Can this be tested? I'll replace it but I gather that it can be "adjusted" to get it working again as a stop gap -- feel vulnerable in a car that would most likely be written off if rear-ended!
There's plenty on here for changing it, just checking that that's most likely to be part at fault.
Cheers guys.
 
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Thanks for replying and the link (I had read that, very handy diagram in post #5). I tried Audi but they wanted me to come in to pay for the part before ordering it -- not sure why a part with known durability issues is "special order." And then it would be a week! Audi is a 30 mile round trip so I tried a VW dealer instead with success (thanks John L):
part number is 1C0 945 511A and is £11.69. It's a 4-pin connecter. They had 2 in stock which was handy.
I'd make VW your 1st port of call if you need a new brake switch, Audi's a joke in this scenario.
Thanks again, cheers.
 
tagscuderia said:
Thanks for replying and the link (I had read that, very handy diagram in post #5). I tried Audi but they wanted me to come in to pay for the part before ordering it -- not sure why a part with known durability issues is "special order." And then it would be a week! Audi is a 30 mile round trip so I tried a VW dealer instead with success (thanks John L):
part number is 1C0 945 511A and is £11.69. It's a 4-pin connecter. They had 2 in stock which was handy.
I'd make VW your 1st port of call if you need a new brake switch, Audi's a joke in this scenario.
Thanks again, cheers.
Click to expand...

that's also a part number for a lupo....just out of interests sake I managed to repair the one on my lupo by depressing and allowing to flick up a few times and this seem to sort it for 6 months...not sure if it was a permanent solution as the lupo was written off when an electrical wholesaler van tested our rear crumple zone.....but it might get you out of a difficult situation if you are away from home
 
Seems to fit quite a few cars across the VAG range actually, no wonder they don't want to recall it as in the USA.
Read about other people doing similar for a stop-gap solution, certainly worth trying if it happens out and about -- especially given that no tools are necessary!
I know that as a forum we're very much against BlueChip Spares but... they do have a photo that helped me out considerably; wasn't expecting the switch to be over the clutch pedal, had me foxed until I prised off the air duct.
http://www.bluechipspares.co.uk/img/p/747-3086-large.jpg
 
Damn, haven't been able to collect the new brake switch yet but disconnected the old one and connected the battery back up. All seemed well but I've just noticed that the lights for the registration plate (only noticed the rear, didn't check the front) are now on permanently! Why would that be? Do I have a bigger issue... wiring to the tailgate perhaps? Any knowledge or help for troubleshooting would be greatly appreciated, thanks.
Edit: they might have been on before, I don't know, only noticed it now because it's dark. All other rear lights work as expected.
 
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because either the switch for the headlights is removed, or possibly because the brakelight switch is out. If it's a problem, open the driver's door and boot. lock the car again and disconnect the battery. Drop the boot lid and lock the driver's door - you can get back in from the driver door to reconnect in the morning.

- Bret
 
Try removing fuse 32. This is a 10A fuse that is for the glove box light and the number plate lights according to the sticker on my fuse cover.
It appears to be the top fuse third row in from the right hand side (on my LHD 1.2Tdi at least...)
Taking out this fuse should just disable the number plate light and the glove box light.

Could the various issues be a sign of an earth problem somewhere? I have seen lots of weird things happing with tail lights, indicators and so on as a result of a bad earth....

John
 
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@Bret, got a little hysterical finding one thing after another, couldn't think of a logical reason for the plate lights to be on, thank you kindly for your reply. I did exactly that regards locking the car previously, hadn't used the manual boot release until today -- the A2 has so many nice little touches, my favourite being the C-pillar seat belt holder.
@John, 2nd time I'll thank you in this thread! Good tip on the fuse, hadn't thought of that. I know that tailgates can be susceptible to wiring issues so that's what I'll be checking once the new brake switch is in.
Cheers everyone for the help.
 
Just to conclude the thread I can report that everything is now fixed. It was of course the brake light switch that was faulty and the registration plate lights went back to normal once the headlight switch was connected (thanks Bret for the reassurance).
I bought part W1C0 945 511 AR DW from my local VW dealer, they were amused that Audi had to "special order" the part. It cost £11.63.
Thanks for everyone's help, an easy repair that anyone can undertake and save a few bob whilst they're at it.
Tom.
 
Hi All, Its my turn to replace the switch now and dismantle the underside of the dash.

Problems are
1) Radio interference on the stereo, and the car losing the ability to search for stations
2) DIS is going mad, from time to time, the brake light warning would pop up but the bulbs are all working.
3) Flickering on and off of the rear brake lights even though the brakes are pressed.

So, thanks for the Part Number I have ordered it at my local Audi stealers... sent them into a bit of a flap and they said 'there are none in stock in Europe'... hahahah they have gone to check and will come back to me (jokers).

As its getting colder, if anyone could quickly write me an idiots guide, ie, 1) remove tray, 2) remove trim 3) locate/replace switch on brake pedal 4) re-assemble.... that would be great. I read the post, just wanted to know if there is a certain sequence I should tackle the job in as I normally undo everything then try to figure out how to get the part on.

Kind regards,
Lamby.
 
There is an alternative part number which can be ordered next day and works too,
you will have to search on here for it though.
 
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