bozo

I have a '07 EX Civic Cpe that has developed an issue with the third brake light.
It appears that in the mornings the light works just fine but within a few minutes it stops working. Has anyone else had this problem? Since it works sometimgs I know it's not the bulb nor the wiring. Any suggestions

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

i have seen this on many newer civics. try to have someone press the brakes and then stick your hand back there and jiggle the wires. if it flickers and comes on, it may be a loose wire connection. unfortunately, it will probably require taking off the rear deck lid which is alot of work. is it the LED brake light with the 6 dots? i have the same unit in my '02 civic that i hardwired and its been working every time for many years. so i know the units themselves are not defective. im betting its a bad wiring job at the factory. if its intermittant, it could be a bad ground connection.

bozo

Thanks for the suggestion but that didn't seem to give me any leads on the problem. Any other suggestions?

Mad Dog Tannen

Could be a bad brake sensor/sender or what ever it's called.

CraigW

iTrader: (1)

Not if the other bulbs are working fine, the brake switch controls them all.

I would keep looking for an intermittent connection, move the wires near the light see if you can make it flicker.

Mad Dog Tannen

True

bozo

Tried all the above suggestions buy alas, still the same issue. I have run into something new thought. In the mornings the light works fine but by the time i've driven a few miles it stops working.
Any more suggestions?

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

trust me its the wiring. this is a very common problem. you need to trace the wires back from the led brake light housing all the way until they connect with the stock left or right brake bulb wiring. if there is a splice or plug, you need to check that and be sure its properly connected. more than likely, you will need to rewire them. just strip and solder securely so the wires are making good contact. the led array itself is very simple and uses reliable Snap-Leds by lumiled which are mounted very securely to a small circuit board. its definately not the leds that are failing. its the wiring, or the connector if there is one. actually now that i remember, i do believe there is a plastic connector that the led assembly uses to connect to the oem brake wiring. find that connector, unplug it, and then apply +12v and a ground to the leds (observe proper polarity) using a separate battery. i bet you they will light up everytime. its the connector not making good contact.

04 Honda Civic

iTrader: (2)

Just off topic, say one LED burns out can I replace it or do I need a whole new bulb?

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

these particular leds are stamped to the heat sink using a special tool (solderless technology) and cannot be replaced. you need to buy the whole assembly. but they should last a long time being name brand and all.

bozo

Thanks, let me dig into that wiring harness once more. By the way I don't have the LED's just the regular bulbs.
Thanks again, I'll try again, it just about has to be a wiring issue since the other 2 lights work fine.

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

if you have an 06+ EX coupe, you have to have the led assembly i posted. its the only make and model they come on from the factory. all others have a single filament bulb in the middle (sedans, dx/lx coupes).

bozo

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I have shaken, pulled, tugged and jerked all the wires and connectors I can find in the trunk area, but no luck in finding the problem. I guess it's a trip to the dealer.
BTW, it is indeed an LED assembly, I guess that I never really looked into the lens of the light assembly.
Thanks again for the suggestions.

gearbox

iTrader: (95)

did you find the connector where it plugs to the factory wiring? cause then you can just unplug it and test the unit by itself with a stand-alone 12v battery. it possible the leds have burnt out if you use the brakes alot and for prolonged periods (like several mins at a time in the drive thru) can cause them to get hot and reduce lifespan til they die.

Rudyfish

i just went to youtube and saw a post that helped me remove the rear deck led on my 06 civic coupe. then removed the led assembly and took the red lens off and saw the plastic welds. My Fix. instead of melting the post to try making everything tight i stuffed to small blocks of dense rubber under the chrome plate that holds the leds and the green circut board. when i say small blocks im talking maybe quarter inch square. plug the light in and have someone press the break and knock it around abit to make sure it works. putting everthing back together wasnt that bad. I didnt remove the white plastic tabs along the rear window like they showed on the youtube video and was able to work from the left rear to the right. i used a screwdriver to push the plastic panel that stayed installed, on the right side so i could get the square tab that will be hanging down from the removed panel to line up. all these things are hard to write down but when you get started youll see. be sure to watch the youtube video. it shows just enough to help you remove the break light panel.

ScotN

The third brake light became intermittent on my 2008 Honda Civic after 2 years of ownership. When I removed the part and and then replaced the same part -- without the severe crimping of the wires beneath the speaker bracket -- it solved the problem. The light now works fine.

SeaMan718

Same problem on my daughter's '07 EX Coupe. I removed the rear deck lid to get to the LED brake light bar and re-soldered the connections and it appears to have worked. There isn't much room to get the tip of the iron onto the soldering joint. Will update with any changes.