keepingitclean

Hey guys I have a problem

In the morning when i drive, my hand brake light is always on. But after about ten mintues, it turns off by itself. At first i thought it was me forgettting to release the brake, but its not the case. Help me out here
Thanks

Mike

pgatour1

I have the same problem, what is it?

Chopsie

P. 287 of 2001 manual. If the brake indicator light comes on without the E brake on, it indicates a problem with the cars brake system. In most cases, the problem is a low fluid level in the brake fluid resivoir. Press lightly on the brake pedal to see if it feels normal. Check fluid level. If the fluid level is low, take the car to your dealer ( ) and have the brake systrem inpected for leaks or worn brake pads.
However, If the brake pedal does not feel notmal, you should take immediate action. Because of the brake system's dual-circuit design, a problem in one part of the system will still give you braking at two wheels. Essetially brake padeal will go down much farther, and you will have to press harder.

keepingitclean

thanks so much

Chopsie

Welcome, let us know how it turns out

Dan

My 2001 had the same problem. Turned out to be a defective sensor on the brake fluid res. cap.

keepingitclean

i went to the mechanic today. It turned out that my rear brake pads were worn causing a drop in pressure. At least thats what my mechanic said. After 98 bucks and an hour of waiting, the light no longer stays on. Thank for the help guys

ueberholen

A drop in pressure? ??? That is a new one ,in reality it sounds to me like what he was trying to say is that your rear pads were low inturn allowing a lower fluid level in the brake master cylinder fluid reservoir causing the sensor that is in there to turn on the warning lamp .
For those of you who have the light on but your pads and fluid level are fine ,do not panic there is a service bulletin for this issue .The float for the sensor needs to be replaced as some of them actually sink in brake fluid after a few years exposure .

Jens

Chopsie

Glad you got it fixed . Also, an interesting find, on the mechanics part.

Excellent ....Don't mean to but, is this our Jens from PAA that has been MIA for quite some time ?

ueberholen

The pressure to apply the brakes would remain the same and in theory anyway the pedal should always be at the same level regardless of pad wear (that is why it is called "self adjusting" ) .The pedal will fall over time but it is caused by the uneven wear of the rotors .This unevenness pushes the pads away from the rotor surface so in the initial brake application the pedal will appear to fall further before actual braking is accomplished due to the fact that brake master cylinder must first bridge the gap between the pad surface and the rotor surface before actual pressure is applied to rotor itself .This condition is the same as pedal vibraition except that it has not progressed to the point where the vibration is evident in the pedal and to the driver of the car .This by the way is pretty much normal on all disc brake equipped cars .

And yes it is me chopper ,not MIA really just very very busy with the rest of life as we all are

Jens

keepingitclean

ueberholen youre right...my bad. That was what he said but i didnt know how to repeat the same thing again.