1989 mk3 supra tail light problem

donbrown92 · 09-27-2010, 04:30 PM

So on my supra when I use the brake, the lights come on but when i take my foot off of the brake no lights come on.
Help? fix?? advice?
Ima car noob.

Sinistral · 09-27-2010, 08:45 PM

"...when I use the brake, the lights come on but when i take my foot off of the brake no lights come on."

Unless you're leaving something out, it sounds like the tail lights are doing exactly what they're supposed to do.

dannydavi · 10-01-2010, 03:06 AM

lol yeah that's a pretty good example of exactly how brake lights work... I on the other hand have the opposite problem and would love a solution! my tail lights when my lights are on are really dim and when i push my brake pedal the tail lights and brake lights don't work at all. The hatch brake light works but not the two below. Also when I push the brake pedal when the car is off I notice my stereo lights lighting up :s... and then to top it all off at the same time these went out my dome lights on the interior don't work. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I have already checked the obvious fuses and replaced all bulbs. Not trying to steal his thread, but perhaps this is what he was getting at...

Busted Knuckles · 10-01-2010, 06:19 AM

Check the grounds. If the ground circuit at the tail lights goes bad, the brake lights will use the double filament to seek ground through the parking lights, powering up the parking light circuit and the dash light circuit.

chopsticks · 10-01-2010, 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannydavi

lol yeah that's a pretty good example of exactly how brake lights work... I on the other hand have the opposite problem and would love a solution! my tail lights when my lights are on are really dim and when i push my brake pedal the tail lights and brake lights don't work at all. The hatch brake light works but not the two below. Also when I push the brake pedal when the car is off I notice my stereo lights lighting up :s... and then to top it all off at the same time these went out my dome lights on the interior don't work. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I have already checked the obvious fuses and replaced all bulbs. Not trying to steal his thread, but perhaps this is what he was getting at...

i had the same problem. If you take off that interior piece that you have to take off to change the bulbs and look under the light bulb retainer there is a little yellow box. That may be bad. I have to pull over when i notice my brake lights arnt working and have to jiggle that box around. mine has a short. But i dont know where to pick a new one up at??

Busted Knuckles · 10-02-2010, 12:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chopsticks

i had the same problem. If you take off that interior piece that you have to take off to change the bulbs and look under the light bulb retainer there is a little yellow box. That may be bad. I have to pull over when i notice my brake lights arnt working and have to jiggle that box around. mine has a short. But i dont know where to pick a new one up at??

Dealer. But, you could open the box yourself and re-solder any broken solders.

dannydavi · 10-02-2010, 05:44 AM

I have already opened up that yellow box and all is good in there. Looks in perfect condition. And as far as the grounds go... where would one find those?

Busted Knuckles · 10-02-2010, 07:27 AM

You need a multimeter, and check for resistance between any of the white with black stripe wires (ground circuit) and a know good ground. You should be getting 'infinite' ohms, meaning no resistance. Zero ohms means a break somewhere, and anything else means a corroded ground connection somewhere causing a resistance.

btwilson86 · 10-02-2010, 07:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Busted Knuckles

You should be getting 'infinite' ohms, meaning no resistance. Zero ohms means a break somewhere, and anything else means a corroded ground connection somewhere causing a resistance.

Close, you actually have it backwards though. 0 ohms means almost no resistance, meaning a good conductive wire. Infinite ohms (often represented with a "1" at the beginning of the display on a digital multimeter) means that the 2 reference points are not connected to each other electrically

chopsticks · 10-02-2010, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannydavi

I have already opened up that yellow box and all is good in there. Looks in perfect condition. And as far as the grounds go... where would one find those?

Well i have already opened it and everything looked fine. A buddy of mine told me that is a common problem with the brake lights.

09-27-2010, 04:30 PM	#1
donbrown92 Stock Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Sacramento Posts: 2	1989 mk3 supra tail light problem So on my supra when I use the brake, the lights come on but when i take my foot off of the brake no lights come on. Help? fix?? advice? Ima car noob.

10-01-2010, 03:06 AM	#3
dannydavi 12psi boost Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Sacramento, Ca Posts: 373	lol yeah that's a pretty good example of exactly how brake lights work... I on the other hand have the opposite problem and would love a solution! my tail lights when my lights are on are really dim and when i push my brake pedal the tail lights and brake lights don't work at all. The hatch brake light works but not the two below. Also when I push the brake pedal when the car is off I notice my stereo lights lighting up :s... and then to top it all off at the same time these went out my dome lights on the interior don't work. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I have already checked the obvious fuses and replaced all bulbs. Not trying to steal his thread, but perhaps this is what he was getting at... __________________ '86.5 Supra - A/T - N/A - JDM Useful Sites: ToyoDIY.com ToyotaPart.com MKIIITSRM

10-02-2010, 05:44 AM	#7
dannydavi 12psi boost Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Sacramento, Ca Posts: 373	I have already opened up that yellow box and all is good in there. Looks in perfect condition. And as far as the grounds go... where would one find those? __________________ '86.5 Supra - A/T - N/A - JDM Useful Sites: ToyoDIY.com ToyotaPart.com MKIIITSRM

10-02-2010, 07:27 AM	#8
Busted Knuckles 12psi boost Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Atlanta Posts: 300	You need a multimeter, and check for resistance between any of the white with black stripe wires (ground circuit) and a know good ground. You should be getting 'infinite' ohms, meaning no resistance. Zero ohms means a break somewhere, and anything else means a corroded ground connection somewhere causing a resistance. Last edited by Busted Knuckles; 10-02-2010 at 07:35 AM.

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09-27-2010, 08:45 PM	#2
Sinistral Intake Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Stone Mountain Posts: 33	"...when I use the brake, the lights come on but when i take my foot off of the brake no lights come on." Unless you're leaving something out, it sounds like the tail lights are doing exactly what they're supposed to do.

10-01-2010, 06:19 AM	#4
Busted Knuckles 12psi boost Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Atlanta Posts: 300	Check the grounds. If the ground circuit at the tail lights goes bad, the brake lights will use the double filament to seek ground through the parking lights, powering up the parking light circuit and the dash light circuit.