Brake light switch

[tjackmil]

Hello all,

 

I have an '89 8- valve with automatic trans - I am in need of the brake light switch and the parking brake ratchet - are these standard Chrysler parts?  BTW, my braking system has been changed over to the LeBaron system per Hemi's article on Allpar.  Don't believe that that should change the parts that I am after.  (Reason - brake lights won't go off, can't adjust switch so lights will go off;  parking brake warning light stays on unless I lift the foot pedal with my foot)

 

Tom

[Degerb]

Hi Tjackmil

I had the exact same  problem  on my '90 16V TC,  you likely have 2 or 3 areas of concern.... 1) Your brake cable pawls on your rear disc calipers could be corroded not allowing the cables to re-tract 2) your brake cable going thru the floor under your EB foot pedal could be corroded, again not allowing cable movement 3) your EB is out of adjustment! Its unlikely your EB switch is bad as your Warning light is lit. It is possible your foot brake assy could be the culprit In any case you should extinguish your warning light because of the bulb overheating the receptacle. Under the car on the drivers side locate the PB cable and physcally pull the cable rearward with  vice grips until your light goes out. My problem was the brake caliper pawls were frozen. being unable to sufficiently free them I had to replace both rear calipers! Good luck degerb

[tjackmil]

Degerb,

 

Thanks for the input - I will have my mechanic check your possible problem points on Monday, but he did tell me that the "return spring" on the parking brake was broken.  I don't really see any of this in my service manual, and I have not crawled under the dash to look, so I am depending on his input.  His shop is the one that converted my brakes, however, the mechanic that did the work was involved in a serious accident several months ago, and has not returned to work yet.

 

Tom

[Degerb]

I believe Hemi had a broken spring problem he was able to repair himself a few years back. Perhaps he'll weigh in on this topic! I not sure a broken spring would keep your brake warning light  

on! Let us know what you find!

Degerb

[marty14]

4463983 is the brake lamp switch striker

 

unique to the TC

 

I have this if your need it

[tjackmil]

Marty,

 

My mechanic only mentioned the switch - I'll ask him tomorrow if he needs the striker also.  Thanks

 

Tom

[marty14]

4373145 is the switch 

 

used 1987-89 on various models 

 

have those NOS if you need one

[tjackmil]

Marty,

Thanks for the switch number - my mechanic got one but it wasn't the right one. This should be a big help.

Tom

[Reaper1]

The "Parking Brake" light problem sounds like the pedal assembly is sticking. The grease used becomes sticky after 30 years and prevents good operation. I suggest spraying a bit of WD40 (or similar) on the pivot points and work the pedal a number of times. It should free up and work correctly after that. The light is activated by nothing more than a copper tine making contact with the parking brake pedal pawl gear.

 

The brake light switch down by the pedal activates the rear lights on the car. If you swapped over to vacuum assisted brakes it's possible that the brake light switch bracket is different from the TC Teves pedal. You might be able to get away with tweaking the bracket so the switch works if it is different. The switch itself screws in and out of the bracket IIRC.

 

HTH...

[tjackmil]

Finally got my car back – Degerb, you were right on with the parking brake problem: my right rear caliper was hanging up.  They lubed it heavily, and I will keep driving it hoping that the caliper will loosen up, if not, then I guess I will need to replace both rears.  As for the brake lights staying on – it turns out that the fixture that holds the brake light switch failed, allowing the switch to move back into the holder so that the striker plate could not make contact.  My mechanic reused the old switch and made up a “spacer” which keeps the switch in the proper position, so now the brake lights work as they are supposed to.  (Sorry about ending that sentence with a preposition!)  Thank  you everyone for your help and suggestions.  Tom

[Hemi Dude]

“They lubed it heavily, and I will keep driving it hoping that the caliper will loosen up, if not, then I guess I will need to replace both rears.”

After reading through all the attempts to help, your mechanic found the problems. It is nearly impossible to diagnose when something unorthodoxed has been done during the conversion.

As for the ‘retainer’ for the stop lamp switch, it was probably damaged by the “mechanic” that made the conversion. Rather than adjusting the stop lamp switch by loosening the mounting bracket retaining screw, he likely just tried forcing the switch in the retainer because the retaining screw is more difficult to reach after the conversion is completed.

Finding rear calipers may be more difficult, though marty14 may still have some.

 

Hemi... btw; Be sure your ‘mechanic ‘ understands the proper adjustment sequence when he replaces the rear calipers!  If not, you won’t be happy.

[tjackmil]

Hemi,

 

Thanks for the advice - I am retaining this whole thread for future reference.  I also have the rear caliper adjustment sequence filed and usually let my mechanic have any and all pertinent info I have available.

 

Again - Thanks

 

Tom