Brake Light Fuse Suddenly Blows

[grandpajoe]

It sems as though I have suddenly developed a short circuit. For no apparent reason, my brake ligh fuse blew and I have replace it twice and the replacements immediately blow as well. There has been no damage of any sort and there have been no modifications whatsoever.

Any ideas?

1992 Lexus LS400, 192,000 wonderful quad-cam miles, Phoenix, Arizona.

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[SteveLS400]

It sems as though I have suddenly developed a short circuit. For no apparent reason, my brake ligh fuse blew and I have replace it twice and the replacements immediately blow as well. There has been no damage of any sort and there have been no modifications whatsoever.

Any ideas?

1992 Lexus LS400, 192,000 wonderful quad-cam miles, Phoenix, Arizona.

Email me

You obviously have a short of some sort. I would start by checking the wiring and the bulb holders to see if there is any damage/corrosion and inspect each bulb. Assumming that nothing is obvious, and with all the brake lights disconnected, try each one. This will either find the faulty unit or enable you to discount the lights/bulbs themselves. If that is the case then it is likely to be a fault with the brake pedal switch.

The following 2 tutorials may prove helpful. The first relates to accessing the high level brake light http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/lighting/upperstoplight.html and the second relates to wiring issues in the boot (trunk to you) http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/lighting/bulbout.html

Please let us know how you get on.

[Mybikesacx500]

Steve has pretty much covered it. Does the new fuse blow the second you put it in, or when you press the brake pedal?

[grandpajoe]

Steve - the new fuse seems to blow again when I press the brake pedal.

[Mybikesacx500]

Try the easy option first, it could just be a shorting out bulb, try taking the brakelight bulbs out and see if the fuse still blows.

If that isn't it. your going to need a multimeter, or an auto electrical guy