Handbrake Warning Light

[Phil S]

Hi All
my warning light is on all the time...my fault as l have replaced the bulb.
it appears from the wiring diagram that the bulb is on when the switch earth's the supply.
as the switch is now sitting on my toolbox it's not that.
anybody had a similar problem with a trapped wire?
don't want to have to strip half the dash and loom.
perhaps l should remove the lamp..but would rather fix the problem.
thanks in advance
Phil

[tjk]

Hi.the brake warning light is also operated by the handbrake on switch. so check this as well.

[StagJonno]

Hi.the brake warning light is also operated by the handbrake on switch. so check this as well.

Also, there are wiring differences between Mk1 and Mk2.

Jonno

[sujitroy]

I have a Mk1 and I recall there is a handbrake on light in the round light cluster.

Fed. '71

[Andes]

Hi Phil, can you confirm if this is your handbrake light or brake failure light?

[StagJonno]

On Mk2 cars, the standard wiring for Handbrake (warning cluster) and Dual Brake (dashboard RHS) lamps puts them effectively wired in parallel - they both come on together,.

Jonno

[Phil S]

it's my "handbrake on" light, and it's on and all by it's self..
Phil

[StagJonno]

Well, can you please be a bit more helpful if you want us to remotely help to diagnose your problem.

For starters, is yours a Mk1 or Mk 2 or an inbetweener? If in doubt, giving the first 3 or 4 digits of your Commission Number might help.
Under what circumstances does your Dual Brake (dashboard right) come on (seeing that in your first post, "it's on all the time" and at #7, you say the H'brake light is on on its own??).

Confused.com

[KOY 23]

Well, can you please be a bit more helpful if you want us to remotely help to diagnose your problem.

For starters, is yours a Mk1 or Mk 2 or an inbetweener? If in doubt, giving the first 3 or 4 digits of your Commission Number might help.
Under what circumstances does your Dual Brake (dashboard right) come on (seeing that in your first post, "it's on all the time" and at #7, you say the H'brake light is on on its own??).

Confused.com

The OP has only mentioned the handbrake light. On my Mk2 the handbrake and dual brake lights are totally independent, not as your post #6.
Looks like a trapped wire as OP originally said, or remains of a bodger.

[StagJonno]

The OP has only mentioned the handbrake light. On my Mk2 the handbrake and dual brake lights are totally independent, not as your post #6.
Looks like a trapped wire as OP originally said, or remains of a bodger.

In which case, yours does not have standard Mk2 (from LD20001) wiring. Does your Dual Brake warning light ever come on (ie a bulb-test function)?

[marshman]

Agree with Jonno here.

MK1 Handbrake warning light (in the warning light cluster) is only connected to the switch by the handbrake which earths the circuit. So seems likely that IF IT IS A MK1 the wire from the cluster to the switch is trapped and earthed somewhere OR there is a problem in the cluster itself as the OP said he had changed the bulb.

MK2 The handbrake warning light and the brake fail warning light should be wired in parallel (according to the diagrams I have seen) and as far as I can see from the diagram (my car is a MK1 so can't check/verify) both the handbrake warning light AND the Dual Brake warning light should illuminate when either the handbrake is on or the brake shuttle switch is activated.

I suspect many people may have removed the Black/Purple link wire to isolate the two circuits (which could be the case with KOY23's car), this does however remove the "bulb" check on the Brake warning light. On the MK1 the Brake Warning light is in series with the oil pressure warning light . When the oil pressure is low then both lights are on (as is the case with the engine stopped and ign on - thus providing a bulb check feature), if the brakes "fail" then only the Brake warning light is on. This assumes of course that the original setup has not been changed and the original spec bulbs are still in place. Mess around with the bulb voltages or wattages or change them for LEDs and all bets are off.

Roger

[DJT]

We’ve had this discussion about handbrake and PDWA warning lights before. I’ve done some testing on mine and they are NOT connected. I don’t use my handbrake when the car is parked in my garage or on my (level) drive as I leave it in Park. The PDWA warning light comes on dimly (test) when I turn on the ignition and goes out when the car starts. This doesn’t change whether or not the handbrake, and HB warning light, are on. The HB warning light comes on if the handbrake is applied, whether or not the engine is running (as long as the ignition is on). If the PDWA warning light is activated it does not switch on the HB warning light.

My car is a very late LD20001 series car built in November 1973, and the wiring in these areas has not been molested. It works in the same manner as my old Mk1, which was built in November 1971.