Technical High level brake strip ELECTRICS...

[bigredtone]

Hi all,

Newbie needs a bit of help with his Brava high level brake light.

Bit of background - failed the MOT on it as had 4 of 10 bulbs working - needs to be half of all bulbs working.

As it turns out had I disconnected the break light altogethor it would have passed - but given it was wired up, but not functioning it is a fail and needs to be rectified before I can pass.

I bought some 1w bulbs. given that the strip uses 3w they, obviously, didnt work.

so I went to a scrap yard and picked up a pristine looking strip off a car looking in good nick.

When I plugged it in it didnt work. I tried my old one too - that didnt work either (anymore). I wonder if I have knackered the electrics some how. maybe blown the fuse.

I opened up the fuse box under the steering wheel and was amazed by how complex it was - like a space ship to me - I've not long graduated to a Brava from a series of Vespas - which i mainly fixed with mekano and gaffer tape.

Any ideas?

I suppose i need to test either the electric going in to the strip, or the light strip itself. Any suggestions?

I am stuck! MOT runs out on 27th and I need to take the car on holiday on friday.

1999 1.6 Brava 100SX

Much appreciated

 

[bpetersb]

Just a quick thought, you do know the power to the third brake light comes through the spring contacts on the boot lid. If the lid is open it will not work.

 

[bigredtone]

I could kiss you!

I spent 20 mins in the rain today - clambered ontop of two cars - getting filthy getting that strip today. I couldnt believe it when it didnt work. I nearly cried.

but it is all better now.

I did wonder why there were leads leading from the boot connector but I couldnt put 2 and 2 togethor.

 

[bigredtone]

Right. so the new strip only has 4 lights working too. and I've lost the original strip so cant plunder the bulbs from there.

I bought the below bulbs off ebay - is it just as simple as popping them in? I havent used these funny capless bulbs before - is there any great trick to it? do you spay out the wires so they go down the side of the case as you press the bulb in?

 

[bigredtone]

oh. turns out I can't post links till I have 5 posts.

 

[bigredtone]

any help much appreciated... here comes the link...

 

[bigredtone]

these are the bulbs I got - look right?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140306983079&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#shId

 

[scrobert]

I thought the 3rd brake light had led bulbs? so if the contacts are broken they'd need to be repaired or the whole strip replaced.

You can just buy a red blank boot strip on ebay but im havin trouble finding it at the moment.

 

[scrobert]

https://www.fiatforum.com/bravo-brava/206017-broke-my-3rd-brake-light.html

Read that thread the last person to post has said its not leds and has said what type you need. so abit confusing maybe some cars had leds..

 

[bigredtone]

re: LED's - lots of people seem to have LEDs but mine is definitely bulbs. perhaps later models have leds.

Re: previous thread - Yeah I read that thread - says the bulbs are hard to come by so suggest replacing with LEDs. I think have I found the bulbs just dont know how to fit them. Also would like a bit of reassurance that they are the right bulbs - look right to me but hard to be sure...

 

[bpetersb]

I could kiss you!

I spent 20 mins in the rain today - clambered ontop of two cars - getting filthy getting that strip today. I couldnt believe it when it didnt work. I nearly cried.

but it is all better now.

I did wonder why there were leads leading from the boot connector but I couldnt put 2 and 2 togethor.

If you are female, attractive and under 40 my address is .........

The last post in the link sent to you was mine, I swapped the bulbs for led's. The strip is set up so that the wires on the bulbs are splayed out then the back is pushed on making contact with the wires on two parallel copper strips which join the connector, you cannot fit new bulbs without taking it apart and I doubt you would get it back together and working as taking it apart necessitates some 'plastic surgery' and the plastic tends to bend.
As I said in the other post I took it all apart then fixed the led's in the holes with clear silicone (by the way you need 5mm led's). I then soldered all the led's together using thin wire up to the end of the unit where the original connector was. I removed the copper strips from the backing plate almost to the connector, soldered the ends of the two wires on to the ends of the copper strips I had left near the connector and put it all back together. Good luck

 

[scrobert]

Had a look in the manual for you it just says replace any of the ten bulbs, they are the glass ones. it says 12v 3w on a picture.

Just take the bulbs out an go to your local car shop or halfords whichever or even fiat.

have you looked in your car handbook? they tell you which bulbs are what sizes in there anyway.

Ive looked in a porters manual and haynes manual. Nothing about the bulbs. just thy all come out in 1 go.

And after i read the above post you are just better off buying a strip second hand known working or new unless you want to go through all that trouble

 

[bpetersb]

Me again!
Just had a look at Haynes manual, it says 'Note. It is not possible to remove the bulbs individually'. The correct replacement would be the expensive Fiat part with all the bulbs. Pisses me off when they do that sort of thing, it would have been just as easy to make the fitting with removable capless bulbs.

 

[scrobert]

Me again!
Just had a look at Haynes manual, it says 'Note. It is not possible to remove the bulbs individually'. The correct replacement would be the expensive Fiat part with all the bulbs. Pisses me off when they do that sort of thing, it would have been just as easy to make the fitting with removable capless bulbs.

well they are about 10 years old so they've had a good life. Assuming they havent been replaced before.

Here is a cheaper option... disabling it altogther

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Fiat-Brava-Ta...s_SM?hash=item41487494f1&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

 

[bigredtone]

Cheers All!

The bulbs pop out easy enough, I suppose they just wont go back in properly. I will have a go cos I've bought the bulbs (assuming they fit).

re: bulbs - halfords and my local car specialist (shirely autos who are brilliant) dont have 3w bulbs and couldnt even order them. couldnt find anything about the bulbs in the hand book.

Re: not making them possible to replace - what a ball ache.

re: disbaling the light altogethor - definitely the best way to go!!!
I didnt think it would fail the MOT on this or else I would have. now it has failed the garage say it needs to be rectified.

if it had been disconnected they could have put n/a against it on the list but given that it was connected and has failed they have to confirm it has been fixed.

I did try and test the replacement strip at the scrap yard but i didnt know the boot had to be shut and couldnt get it to work at all and assumed it was my electrics.

what a game.

back to scrap yards I suppose. ugh.

 

[scrobert]

doesnt seem fair, tell them youve just had a bump an the boot has just been replaced but the light isn't connected! :devil:

But give the bolts a clean so it looks like youve actually taken the boot off haha.

Goodluck anyway