Jumped in the car last night, looked on the dash and the brake light was on however, the e-brake wasnt. Pulled the lever and then slowly let it back down, still on.... pulled it again and quickly released it, still on. Ive had this car for about a week and only had the e-brake on twice. once when i was jacking up the car, and the other... well.. i was having fun on a completely iced over parking lot....

Could the switch have gone bad? if so, where is it so i can test/replace it. Or does the break light mean other things than just the e-brake?


93 Civic LX



edit: To clarify, I'm talking about the light that says "BRAKE" on the instrument panel

 

The light is also connected to a switch that detects brake fluid level. So check the brake fluid. If you have enough, unplug the switch wires from the master cylinder reservoir and see if the light goes out, because sometimes the switch goes bad. Also on some models it is connected to a switch that detects hydraulic pressure problems, but those problems are very rare.

 

well, that was odd.... it was the fluid level.... it was dang near empty.... thats weird because just toped it off day before yesterday, and it wasnt even that low (1/2 to 1 inch below max) but my brakes work fine as far as i can tell... will check all the break lines tomorrow. thanx

 

checked every brake line i could find while i had someone stomping on the brake peddle while the car was running... couldnt find any leaks at all... so i have no clue....

although, are you supposed to be able to hear the diaphragm in the brake booster when someone is pumping the brakes?

 

Did you take all the wheels off(including the drums in the back) & see if you have any leaks there?

P.S: Please don't press the brakes while the drums are off..I made that mistake & my wheel cylinder popped off spraying brake fluid everywhere.

 

no, didnt pull the wheels off, but the car was parked on concrete for about 3 hours after that and when i moved it, there were no wet spots and the fluid level didnt go down

 

brake light came back on today... but i think i found the leak..... looked like its leaking between the Master cylinder and the brake booster... Is there a seal there that could have gone bad? or does it leaking from there meed something worse, cus ive NEVER seen a car leak from there.

 

That happens a lot, the cure is to replace the master cylinder. If fluid gets inside the booster it will ruin the booster too but I think models 1992 and later have an extra seal to prevent that.

 

ok, thanks... Im asumming since the brakes are still working fine that the booster is ok? also, how hard is it to change the master cylinder?

 

Hey Hey....I got the same exact problem..Brake fluid is leaking between the Booster & the Cylinder but no brake light is on tho(it leaks very slow)
I plan on changing out my Master cylinder this weekend. I ordered my from RockAuto for about $31(re-manufactured) BUT...didn't come with the seal that's needed.

If you're gonna get a Master cylinder from anywhere but HONDA then you're not gonna get the seal with it.

So....Here's a link of the seal you need if you get it from somewhere else:
http://www.hondapartsnow.com/genuine...5-SE0-003.html

And here's a pic(well...drawing) it...it's #4:
http://www.hondapartsnow.com/Page_Pr...Master%20Power