Brake light in the dash...

[KRNguyW/aSOLARA]

Just wondering if you guys have this problem too... While im driving, at RANDOM times when im not even pressing the brakes, the brake light in the dash comes on. And yes, the e-brake is down all the way... Sooner or later it goes away. And sometimes comes back. Any ideas? Thanks.

[SpeedSTARs]

Just wondering if you guys have this problem too... While im driving, at RANDOM times when im not even pressing the brakes, the brake light in the dash comes on. And yes, the e-brake is down all the way... Sooner or later it goes away. And sometimes comes back. Any ideas? Thanks.

You might want to check the brake fluid... It might be low.

-G

[Ford_Fixorrepairdaily]

had the same thing happen. the brake fluid was just low so check that out.

[KRNguyW/aSOLARA]

thanks, i'll check it first thing tmrw.

[RichD978]

yeah brake fluid is low

[xsolara33x]

make sure you check your brakes also, your fluid might be low cuz your brake pads are wearing down, when you brake pads are low it uses more brake fluid... correct me if im wrong guys...
raphael

[RichD978]

^^ Si Senor u are mucho correcto. Mui Bienos

[SpeedSTARs]

make sure you check your brakes also, your fluid might be low cuz your brake pads are wearing down, when you brake pads are low it uses more brake fluid... correct me if im wrong guys...
raphael

Right on the money Bro. Another reason this type of thing happens is due to the the fluid being low is due to the heavy braking. Heavy braking burns up the brake fluid due to the heat and cooling the fluid endures. It is more so if the car is used for endurance racing. As the fluid ages, the fluid losses it properties continue this cycle of cooling the braking system (Basiclly water gets into the fuild which contaminates the liquid-watered down stuff). In general, it is best to have the system bled around 60,000 miles. Unless you are running a DOT5 or higher grade of brake fluid, the intervals are longer. As always, happy to help my fellow Solara brothers and sisters.

-G

[1st Gen Sol]

^^ Si Senor u are mucho correcto. Mui Bienos

^^^^ No Habla Espanol........lol

I had that problem before......check the brake fluid along with what "xsolara33x" said.

[Anthony]

Hey everybody,

I experienced the same issue as described by KRNguyW/aSOLARA. I checked the brake fluid level and it was indeed low. The light went away after I added some more brake fluid, but it came back after a few weeks. My front brakes are relatively new, but my back brakes are not. Anyway, I took the car in to the dealer and paid for a brake inspection just to make sure that everything was OK (I travel really far to work everyday on the freeway, so I don't want to risk anything). They told me that the brakes are fine (couldn't find any leaks or issues) and simply topped off the brake fluid. It's been a few weeks now and the light is coming back on. Obviously I'm going to add more brake fluid, but is this normal? As I indicated earlier, most of my driving is on the freeway and I rarely brake really hard. Any suggestions or feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Anthony
2002 Solara SLE

[StockSolara]

That is quite off maybe you have a leak some where. . . just cause the dealer says something doesn't mean it's true so just double check yourself after using your brakes for any places that might seem to have a leak

[SpeedSTARs]

That is quite off maybe you have a leak some where. . . just cause the dealer says something doesn't mean it's true so just double check yourself after using your brakes for any places that might seem to have a leak

I agree with StockSolara... You should have this checked out by a trusty mechanic. There might be a leak in the braking system. I had the same problem for awhile. I was refilling the brake booster reservior every two months or so. This all stoped when I swapped out the brake lines with the Goodridge stainless steel lines.... Most definely have those lines checked out. Godspeed Bro.

[RichD978]

I would go to midias or meinike, they are real good on brakes.

[Anthony]

Update: I went back to the dealership and told them that my brake fluid level keeps dropping even after adding more fluid. They checked my brakes again and told me that I needed new brake pads and rotors in the rear (even though they told me the brakes were fine a few weeks earlier when I paid them for a brake inspection). Anyway, the brakes were worn, so I figured after the replacement, the fluid problem would go away. Well, it hasn't. I checked for leaks myself and I can't see any place that might be leaking. I have no problem replacing the brake lines as SpeedSTARs mentioned above, but how do I know that they need to be replaced? I have about 102,000 km (~63,380 miles) on my car right now.

Anthony
2002 Solara SLE

[Hefty]

Right on the money Bro. Another reason this type of thing happens is due to the the fluid being low is due to the heavy braking. Heavy braking burns up the brake fluid due to the heat and cooling the fluid endures. It is more so if the car is used for endurance racing. As the fluid ages, the fluid losses it properties continue this cycle of cooling the braking system (Basiclly water gets into the fuild which contaminates the liquid-watered down stuff). In general, it is best to have the system bled around 60,000 miles. Unless you are running a DOT5 or higher grade of brake fluid, the intervals are longer. As always, happy to help my fellow Solara brothers and sisters.

-G

A stock braking systems isn't going to produce the kind of temps that will cause a noticible loss of fluid from boil off even under heavy braking. The level in the reservoir will go down because of material being ablated from the pads, Loss of rotor thickness, air in the system somewhere, or a leak in the system.

Brake fluid doesn't need to go through repeat thermal cycles to absorb water content. It is just a natural absorption of water vapor from the outside air. Older fluid will contain more water and therefore will lose its compressibility properties which can contribute to a mushy pedal feel and introduce corrosion of your brake system. Please, DO NOT put anything other the prescribed DOT3 brake fluid in your car. Putting the wrong rating fluid in your car can result in brake failure. The performance gain is going to be negligible on stock braking system anyways so it is not worth it. Primarily race car drivers go up to high DOT rated fluids to prevent boil off or brake fluid fires under extreme braking scenarios. But I am talking about calipers that have 5 pistons and enormous drilled rotors to produce those kinds of energies.