Diagnosing a brake light problem

[cgyleather]

Howdy!

I have a 94 Explorer that has an issue with the brake lights: They don't come on when I brake!

Otherwise, the rear lights work fine (signalling/hazards/tail-lights). I checked the fuse, which looked alright, as well as the connection on the brake light switch, which looked alright, and I'm wondering now if I might need to replace the entire rear lights anyway, even if they are otherwise working fine?

Are there any ways that will let me diagnose where the problem is?

Thanks!

 

[something9000]

well if the bulbs work fine with everything but braking then the brake petal switch is bad even though the connection looks good.

 

[Mudboy]

grab a test l;ight and view the wiring diagram stickied at the top of the page and start seeing where you get power up to. Chances are it's the switch mentioned above but a test light can be had for under $5.00 at the parts store and is a very helpful freind.

 

[cgyleather]

Yep, it was the brake light switch. I took the leap of faith and invested $12 in a new one; I have brake lights again ;-)