kia spectra brake light problems

[hezball]

my 05 spectra is having problems with my brake light not working right...anyone have any problems and shed some light for me?it comes on but it dim if lights are on its normal but press the brakes and it doesnt work at all.replaced the bulb and still cant figure this out!please help!

[pulsar86]

It sounds as though there is a problem with the earthing of the brake lights. It might be difficult to trace yourself because of the way the earth wires lead back into the harness makes it hard to find where the main earth to body connection for the rear lights is. But an auto electrician should be able to help you out.

[Pacosworld]

Originally Posted by hezball

my 05 spectra is having problems with my brake light not working right...anyone have any problems and shed some light for me?it comes on but it dim if lights are on its normal but press the brakes and it doesnt work at all.replaced the bulb and still cant figure this out!please help!

Are you using the correct bulbs? I know with some models you have to use the specific bulb or you run into problems. 2357 are the correct bulbs for brake lights. Check this out and good luck.

[jjmartinb]

My daughter bought a used '05 Spectra EX. The master contact switch mounted on the brake pedal pivot rack was loose, causing the brake lights to flicker when moving or stay on when stopped. It also caused her cruise control to kick off when driving.

The switch sticks through a hole in the pivot rack and contacts the shaft on the pedal. It is held in place by two opposing nuts, screwed on the shaft of the switch to hold it in place. Check to see if these are tight. Switch is hard to get at, but you can reach it by sliding in the door under the steering wheel. If the switch is loose, tighten the nut on the inside of the pivot rack. DON'T take it out. It's a bear to get back in!

[BarnesTO]

Ugh, I wish I had read this earlier....I just took mine out and figured the lights came on when the button is pushed IN....turns out it's the opposite, lol.

I fought with it for a bit trying to put it back in, but it's a total PITA, it's super hot outside, and I'm at work, so I'll try again when I'm at home....thinking about even pulling the bottom of the dash off so I have some room to work. Any other suggestions?

[BarnesTO]

It takes a third hand....I got my wife to come out and press down the brake pedal with her hand, which gave me room to slip that nut on....right now it's just on hand tight because I only have one 17mm wrench. Tomorrow at work, I'll borrow another 17mm from the tool chest and tighten them down at the same time. This is one of those things that was so perplexing to me, but in the end, became totally obvious because the thing was SO loose; I just had to figure out what I was looking at.