Brake light on my dash coming on and off

L

los

New member
The brake light on my dash keeps coming on and off.... Stayed on for about 30 min today and then turned off... Then when I hit the brakes it comes on and cuts off when I let off... I havnt had any work done to my marauder and it has 45,000 miles on it... Does anyone know what this is
 
los said:
The brake light on my dash keeps coming on and off.... Stayed on for about 30 min today and then turned off... Then when I hit the brakes it comes on and cuts off when I let off... I havnt had any work done to my marauder and it has 45,000 miles on it... Does anyone know what this is
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Have you checked your brake fluid level?
 
Had this happen to Phoebe...brake fluid was only a little low, but it doesn't take much to trigger the light...topped it off to the MAX fill line and problem solved.
 
Also, with 45K on the clock, wouldn't be a bad idea to do a brake system flush and replace with new fluid.
 
Oh ok .... Thank y'all for responding ..... Im going to check that out once I get back home... Im hoping it's that simple..
 
Don't add fluid!! It's time for new brake pads. Ford carefully sized the reservoirs so the level drops to the point the brake warning light comes on when the pads have worn to the point where they are due for replacement.
 
EMAS said:
Don't add fluid!! It's time for new brake pads. Ford carefully sized the reservoirs so the level drops to the point the brake warning light comes on when the pads have worn to the point where they are due for replacement.
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Not necessarily...
 
Yes necessarily, while it is true that a master cyl that is failing can cause that light to illuminate you will notice increased pedal travel and reduced stopping performance before that occurs. It will also be seen as uneven wear from side to side, IE the LF and RR or RF and LR pads will wear quicker, thanks to the diagonal split braking system. Seen it waaaay to many times. A leak could also be to blame for certain, however that will rapidly progress to a light that is always on and a low brake pedal.

However the OP's listed symptoms are consistent with a pattern I've seen over and over again. Which is the pads are worn to the point that caused the fluid level to drop to the point where it activates the light when stopping or on steep hills.

Recommending the addition of fluid is just irresponsible. The fluid level went down for a reason, so that reason should be investigated. The vast majority of the time it is just due to pads that need replacement, but if it isn't there could be bigger problems later as it progresses.

In normal operation there should be no need to add brake fluid. The cap should never even come off the reservoir. It is one of the many reasons I hate Monkey Lube places. Way to often they add brake fluid as a "courtesy" to their customers when in fact they are doing them a disservice by defeating the low pad warning built into the Ford system. Ford has been doing it that way for a long long time doing away with the tell-tale scrapers and avoiding a pad mounted sensor.
 
EMAS said:
Yes necessarily, while it is true that a master cyl that is failing can cause that light to illuminate you will notice increased pedal travel and reduced stopping performance before that occurs. It will also be seen as uneven wear from side to side, IE the LF and RR or RF and LR pads will wear quicker, thanks to the diagonal split braking system. Seen it waaaay to many times. A leak could also be to blame for certain, however that will rapidly progress to a light that is always on and a low brake pedal.

However the OP's listed symptoms are consistent with a pattern I've seen over and over again. Which is the pads are worn to the point that caused the fluid level to drop to the point where it activates the light when stopping or on steep hills.

Recommending the addition of fluid is just irresponsible. The fluid level went down for a reason, so that reason should be investigated. The vast majority of the time it is just due to pads that need replacement, but if it isn't there could be bigger problems later as it progresses.

In normal operation there should be no need to add brake fluid. The cap should never even come off the reservoir. It is one of the many reasons I hate Monkey Lube places. Way to often they add brake fluid as a "courtesy" to their customers when in fact they are doing them a disservice by defeating the low pad warning built into the Ford system. Ford has been doing it that way for a long long time doing away with the tell-tale scrapers and avoiding a pad mounted sensor.
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Sorry, next time we'll refer all queries exclusively to you, Mr. Answer Man, as your vast knowledge (not to mention time spent on this board) obviously exceeds any that we may have...:rolleyes:
 
Yeah ... Never add brake fluid cause it is irresponsible.

Sorry, not buying your statement EMAS.
 
Looks like I will be getting my brakes checked very soon then! If this ends up being the brakes, how much am I looking at for this car??
 
los said:
Looks like I will be getting my brakes checked very soon then! If this ends up being the brakes, how much am I looking at for this car??
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If it is brakes it depends on what is wrong, how much the labor rate is in your area etc.
 
gdsqdcr said:
Yeah ... Never add brake fluid cause it is irresponsible.

Sorry, not buying your statement EMAS.
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From the owners manual:

Page 204

"4. Check the fluid level in the reservoir. It should be between the MIN and MAX lines. Do not add fluid if the level is in this range.

5. If the fluid is low, add fluid in small amounts, continuously checking the level until it reaches the range between the MIN and MAX lines. Be sure to put the cap back on the reservoir.

The fluid level will drop slowly as the brakes wear, and will rise when the brake components are replaced. Fluid levels below the “MAX” line that do not trigger the brake system warning lamp are within the normal operating range, there is no need to add fluid. If the fluid levels are outside of the normal operating range, the performance of your brake system could be compromised, seek service from your dealer immediately."
 
fastblackmerc said:
From the owners manual:

Page 204

"4. Check the fluid level in the reservoir. It should be between the MIN and MAX lines. Do not add fluid if the level is in this range.

5. If the fluid is low, add fluid in small amounts, continuously checking the level until it reaches the range between the MIN and MAX lines. Be sure to put the cap back on the reservoir.

The fluid level will drop slowly as the brakes wear, and will rise when the brake components are replaced. Fluid levels below the “MAX” line that do not trigger the brake system warning lamp are within the normal operating range, there is no need to add fluid. If the fluid levels are outside of the normal operating range, the performance of your brake system could be compromised, seek service from your dealer immediately."
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fastblackmerc said:
Also found this:

Notice it's from a Ford website...........

http://www.flmowner.com/servlet/ContentServer?cid=1097497473744&pagename=Owner%2FPage%2FArticleDetail&recid=1233241535014&parentheadlineimageid=1233679193749&parentrightrecid=1239636411265
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^^^^^^^ Jim, how COULD you! ^^^^^^^

Posting those replies up is UTTERLY irresponsible... :rolleyes:
 
fastblackmerc said:
From the owners manual:

Page 204

"4. Check the fluid level in the reservoir. It should be between the MIN and MAX lines. Do not add fluid if the level is in this range.

5. If the fluid is low, add fluid in small amounts, continuously checking the level until it reaches the range between the MIN and MAX lines. Be sure to put the cap back on the reservoir.

The fluid level will drop slowly as the brakes wear, and will rise when the brake components are replaced. Fluid levels below the “MAX” line that do not trigger the brake system warning lamp are within the normal operating range, there is no need to add fluid. If the fluid levels are outside of the normal operating range, the performance of your brake system could be compromised, seek service from your dealer immediately."
Click to expand...

I was being sarcastic Trust me I know that you need to add fluid in small amounts. :beer:

This is espicially important if you have boiled out your fluid on a track :D ... What can I say, it was a fun day.
 
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