GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

Has anyone had this problem - It seems when it get cold at night.....say below 30.....the brake lights come on in the car. You have to go out and pump the brakes for this to stop. Took it to the dealer once, they looked and said no problem.

welcome to genvibe!as always, your dealer is a retard, it is the pontiac way. good luck getting them to fix the prob

I don't remember anyone having the brake lights come on during cold nights, but there was an issue about having daytime running lights come on during a cold night.http://forums.genvibe.com/zerothread?id=2686Some folks had a hard time convincing the dealer that the problem was real.It could be that the brake light switch is adjusted with almost no tolerance. Maybe the normal rest position of the brake pedal is a hair away from turning the brake lights on, and when it is cold and unused for a while, the pedal drops just that hair's width, and the lights come on. Pumping the brakes may make the pedal sit a little higher. Next time you see the brake lights on when they shouldn't be, try lifting the brake pedal instead of pumping it. If the lights go out, then it could very well be the position of the brake light switch. I do not know how adjustable the switch position is, but if that's the problem, we'll figure out a way to adjust it.

Thanks for your advice. My vibe is going to the shop tomorrow but I was hoping to find a solution and give it to the dealership as I do not want to be taking my car into the shop everyday. The service manager is to have one of the techs take it home so that it will hopefully happen in his driveway.

If the dealer fixes it, please find out and let us know what they did.Welcome to genvibe! How long have you had it, and what color/model/options is it? Other than the haunted lonely brake lights, how do you like it?

Will do...mine is a 2004 fusion orange, moon & tune, side airbags, factory alarm, power package.The driver side window was scratched and the molding was dented...The dealership finally agreed to fix them after I yelled and screamed. Love the vibe...not fond of the dealership.

Doesn't look like it was mentioned, but was there any chance that any of the front lights (headlamps, fog lamps, parking lights) were illuminated as well?

quote:The service manager is to have one of the techs take it home so that it will hopefully happen in his driveway. personally I would not want the service techs that i have met to take my car.....no way no how.

Nope just the brake lights....and they are bright (like when you push the pedal)

i would stop having lsd for breakfast, that should clear it right up

I looked in the service manual and the brake light switch that turns the tail lights on full when you step on the brake pedal is designed to be adjustable. If the problem is that it is not adjusted properly, it should be relatively easy for the dealer to fix. If lifting the pedal makes the lights go out, until you can get it fixed you might consider finding a way to keep the pedal lifted when you park it at night so that the lights don't come on and drain the battery.

Document ID# 814693 on the dealers service information explains the switch adjustment.It looks simple,unplug the switch,loosen a locknut,screw the switch in until it contacts the pedal stopper,back it off a turn,tighten the nut and plug it back in.But there is also an adjustment for brake pedal height.That procedure requires a special tool that I haven't seen in my 10+ years at the dealer...

could your house be haunted? who you gonna call..... on a more serious note, i had something similar happen to me with the power locks. i would unlock the doors from inside the house with the remote and by the time i get to the garage the doors would lock by themselves. one time i was standing in the garage and i heard the doors locked by themselves. kinda spooky....but found out it's how the vibe works and my house was not possessed

Quote, originally posted by ken » i would unlock the doors from inside the house with the remote and by the time i get to the garage the doors would lock by themselves. one time i was standing in the garage and i heard the doors locked by themselves. kinda spooky....but found out it's how the vibe works Yup, standard feature. I would guess that it's like that in case you accidentally unlock the doors. Wouldn't want to leave the doors unlocked, especially in some neighbourhoods!

Does somebody know how long it takes for the locking back itself thing?Just wondering!

According to the remote keyless entry section of the owners manualQuote »UNLOCK: Press this button once to unlock the driver’sdoor. The turn signal lights will flash twice and theinterior lamps will come on to confirm that the door hasunlocked. If the UNLOCK button is pressed againwithin three seconds, all remaining doors will unlock.The interior lamps will stay on for 15 seconds or until theignition is turned on. If the UNLOCK button is pressedand no door is opened, the doors will lock automaticallyafter 30 seconds.So, 30 seconds

Dealer said that it is a faulty stop light...they are having one overnighted and will install tomorrow (hopefully). I miss my vibe. If it happens again, I will let you know. Thanks for all you help.

That's weird. Can't see how pumping the brakes would make it go out if it was a faulty stop light, but at least they agreed there was a problem this time. Can you double check and make sure they say it was a bad stop light (and not a bad stop light switch?)You said you had to yell and scream to get them to address the window and molding problems also. Next time you have to take it in, just skip the preliminaries and go straight into the yelling part.