Hi
I have a ‘84 Caravelle and on the dash top left hand side is a brake warning indicator. Nothing ever lights up. Ive had a look and a unit is there, but no wiring loom. Ive also checked the handbrake and there is not visible micro switch. Can anyone tell me if something should be fitted as standard, and as I have nothing there, how to retrofit a brake warning light system. It has been known for me to drive a few miles with the handbrake on!- now correctly adjusted, but would like the warning light
Thanks
There should be a female connector with 3 wires somewhere, this connects to the rear of the brake warning light module. The brake warning light monitors the brake fluid level as well as the handbrake, hence three wires. Really need to have it working.
JeffRoo wrote:Hi
I have a ‘84 Caravelle and on the dash top left hand side is a brake warning indicator. Nothing ever lights up. Ive had a look and a unit is there, but no wiring loom. Ive also checked the handbrake and there is not visible micro switch. Can anyone tell me if something should be fitted as standard, and as I have nothing there, how to retrofit a brake warning light system. It has been known for me to drive a few miles with the handbrake on!- now correctly adjusted, but would like the warning light
Thanks
You have to have it by law! The parking brake switch looks exactly the same as your sliding door light switch and will be on a single brown wire, look for the square hole under the parking brake with a screw hole where it should be. If he switch is missing buy a golf door contact and find fit the earth wire up to the binnacle. The warning light harness is usually a cloudy plastic colour plug with three wires on the left side of the binnacle, it isn’t attached to the instrument harness. If in doubt follow the plug from the top of your brake reservoir and it goes direct to the plug for the warning light (the park brake applied and low fluid warning light are the same light)
In its simplest description the warning light receives a switched live feed from the fuse box and the park brake and low fluid switch create a path to earth so brown wire from park brake and brown wire from earth crown to fluid reservoir to warning light.
i seem to remember that not all t25s have it.
not sure about the "have to have it by law" thing.
i have had at least one that had neither the low fluid warning nor the hand brake switch, and no light on the dash.
but if the light is there, it has to work i suppose
I had a smile at "you have to have it by law" as an absolute statement. I have two vans in at the moment that don't have it. Maybe it's just German law? If so, how ironic.
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ajsimmo wrote:I had a smile at "you have to have it by law" as an absolute statement. I have two vans in at the moment that don't have it. Maybe it's just German law? If so, how ironic.
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It would appear I was a little dramatic in my description. MOT simply states the low level or parking brake light cannot display a fault, I had based it on a previous failure where my warning light had failed to illuminate on an MOT. It would seem, like rear wipers, it’s a case of ‘if it’s there it must work correctly’. I trawled the construction and use of motor vehicles and you are correct that a parking brake warning light is not mandatory upto 1986, it was far too dull reading further.
I am surprised you’ve had vans that had neither. I had an early RHD that had it and a late LHD that had both warning lights.
Thanks for all your help. Have checked both the hand brake and master cylinder and, nope, no switches. Oh well, will probably look a fitting a switch to the hand brake somehow
Interesting thread, and thanks for the info.
I have the opposite issue: my parking brake warning light wont go off ('81 1600CT LHD)
thanks to this, I now know what to check.
