Brake Lights, Hazards, Signals Not Working

Trying to help my mom out here and if anyone has any info, it would be greatly appreciated. She has a 98 Taurus SE and someone today told her that the brake lights were not working. I tried them and nothing. Pulled the fuse and it was not blown. Put it back in and the brake lights worked for a second and then blinked and went out again. The fuse is still good. Tried the hazards and they are not working at all nor are the turn signals. Headlights and tails are working. I don't hear the relay when the flasher button is pushed. Could this be the multifunction switch ? Parts guy told me it wouldn't be a flasher because the haz/signal lights are on a seperate circuit from the brake lights. Thanx again for any info. She needs the car to be working for a trip on Monday.

More than likely either brake light switch or multi function switch.

Thanx for the quick input. Would the multifunction switch or the brake switch, cause the hazards and turn signals to fail as well ? I know my mom rides the brake all the time. She drives with both feet ! I've told her to stop but she just can't. She's been driving too long to change.

The multifunction switch has nothing to do with the brakes, and the brake switch has nothing to do with the turn signals. You'll need to locate a wiring diagram for your car and see what they have in common. One clue that you gave was that the brakes worked for 'a second' and then stopped. Check for bad ground(s) and/or corrosion in the sockets. This includes a corroded fuse socket (fuse will test good but not make contact because of the corrosion).

If you'd like a copy of the 1998 brake/turn/hazard light diagram from the factory service manual, send me a private message with the request and an e-mail address for you that can accept PDF attachments.

-Rod

Would a burned out bulb cause this problem ? Really need some help here. Must have fixed asap ! Thanx guys.

A burned out bulb would not cause this, but a couple of bulbs with worn contacts could cause the symptoms. I would consider that rather unlikely though.

I don't recall if the tail light bulbs in the '98 are bayonet base (like a 1057) or if they are the cartridge style (similar to a 194). If like a 1057, the solder contacts on the base could be worn and not making good contact. Enough momentary contact to initially light, but as the current starts to flow, the resistance may become too high and the joint arcs and opens?

Your best bet would be to find a multimeter or test light, remove the bulbs, and check for power to the bulb contacts for parking, turn signal, and brake lights. For the initial measurements, ground the meter/test light to a good chassis ground. If they check out fine, then verify the bulb socket has a good ground by measuring the resistance from the bulb socket to a good chassis ground. You will probably want a multimeter for this check. If you don't have a meter, then you can use the test light by carefully connecting one side to battery positive and probing the bulb ground in the socket. If you don't have a very bright light, then your bulb socket ground is suspect.

-Rod

Would a burned out bulb cause this problem ?
Not from what you've told us so far. Have someone step on the brake pedal while you check the socket for voltage. Work your way up from there to the pedal. This is where a wiring diagram will help you save time.

Ok, took it in today and got it fixed. It turned out to be the switch under the brake pedal. Not sure why that caused the haz/turn sigs not to work, but it did. 80 bucks and she's back on the road. Thanx for all your input. Preeesheateit

That's interesting. Hopefully this really is the fix, and your post will help another Taurus owner in the future.

Thank you for posting the results.

-Rod

Hey Taurus. 40 years experience on Fords might give me a small edge on this. :)

I'm looking right at the wiring diagram and the b.o.o. switch is not connected to the turn signals so unless someone rewired it differently... :lol:

I've got to agree with what Rod said and hope that this is indeed all it needs. :wink:

I don't doubt your experience, I'm just saying that Ford's not going to make one car different from all the others, and according to the wiring diagram on that car it's not tied in there :)

I have a 98 Taurus wagon. The break lights, blinkers, hazards, cruise control and shifter not coming out of park all stopped working withing 30 days of each other. The break lights and the shifter were because of a broken wire to the break switch. The blinkers, and hazards were fixed by spraying WD40 into the Multifunction switch and wiggling the connectors to it. I'm not sure if the cruise is working yet, I haven't had a chance to drive it yet since getting the multifunction switch to work.

Stefan