[Roadsters] No brake lights

[Ronnie Day]

> Tim.
>
> The rear harness is grounded to the frame and the plugs and wires all look good. I have tried two different brake pedal switches (one was new and both tested good) and neither has worked. All fuses are good. (but my horn no longer works as well)
>
> Help!!!

First, if you haven't printed one of the color wiring diagrams for
your year and model available on 311s.org, I'd suggest you do so.
They're in PDF format and scale up very well. I've got several 11 x 17
and a couple blown up to around 4 ft. x 6 ft, all laminated. The 11 x
17 size was only a couple of bucks including lamination. The larger
sizes aren't cheap, but worth it, IMO. I just tape it on a wall and
it's easy to identify and trace circuits.

You should be able to jump the two wires normally attached to the
brake light switch. If your brake lights still don't come on something
other than the switch is the problem. If you use a wire with alligator
clips on it to do the jumping, be sure the wire's at least as heavy as
the wires you're tying together. 14 gauge should be fine for testing
most circuits.

It's a good idea to have a digital volt/ohm meter in your tool kit.
You can you use it to not only check voltages, but continuity as well
to determine if switches are working. I also bought a test lead kit
that includes a variety of clips, clamps and probes so you can do
hands free tests. A 12 volt test light (looks like an ice pick with a
wire attached) is great for quick checks, too.

You can do spot voltage checks along a circuit with either device, but
it's better to start at one end of a circuit or the other and work
toward the other end.

HTH,
Ron