Pressing Brake Turns off Clock/Dims Navi

[King Tut]

Originally Posted by Foobar

Yeah, I've seen stuff like that too, but in this case, I've had these lights in place for months and the issue just started happening this week. The bulb is definitely dead. Does it sound right that a dead bulb would cause grounding or other wiring issues?

If in the proccess of dying it got too much current or something melted such as some contacts then it is possible. What did the dead bulb look like inside?

[Foobar]

Originally Posted by King Tut

If in the proccess of dying it got too much current or something melted such as some contacts then it is possible. What did the dead bulb look like inside?

The filament looks intact. I don't see any abnormalities anywhere but connecting it to voltage shows that it's dead.

Perhaps a short inside the plastic base that I can't see from outside?

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 4

[King Tut]

That would be my guess. I would be worried about the design of the wiring that is feeding it as it may just happen again in the future.

[Simok]

Sorry for bringing up an old post. I am having a similar issue. I installed the phastek 4th brake light kit using the tap connectors supplied. It has been installed for years. I havent noticed any issue the whole time. I recently realized it wasnt working.

Assuming a burnt out bulb I bought a new sylvania silverstar bulb which is what the kit came with. Still didnt work. I purchased a harness that connects to the brake light that has wires coming off to connect to the 4th brake light instead of taping into the stock wiring. I removed the old connectors verified only insulation on wires were damaged and shrink sleeved over the exposed portions and reinstalled with the new harness. Light worked again.

I then noticed that when I hit the brake it dims the clock and turns the aftermarket head unit backlight on. This seems to correct if the headlights are turned on. I removed the wires from the new harness and it fixed the problem. I then removed the bulb and this also corrected the problem. I tried the second bulb in the package and even the old bulb and had the same issue with them all. Is there a special bulb to use to correct this issue? Or am I stuck living with it or not having a 4th brake light?

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by Simok

Is there a special bulb to use to correct this issue? Or am I stuck living with it or not having a 4th brake light?

I'll guess that the incandescent bulb load takes the whole system over the top. Try using an LED bulb instead.