NBS third brake light

[ScottyBoy]

So this evening as my wife was driving my truck I noticed that the the high mounted 3rd brake light is not working at all. But the two brake lights in the tails are working just fine.
I didn't get a chance to look at it yet. Is there a light bulb in there or is it LEDs? The way it lit up I thought it was LEDs. If it is LEDs, I need to find out if the light is definitely bad or if I have a wiring problem.

 

[Rivieraracing]

It is an LED light, and before you go replacing it, be sure to check and see if your Cruise control works. If it doesn't work, go through ALL your fuses because I had a fuse out some years ago that knocked out the 3rd brake light and my cruise control. Can't remember which fuse it was but it was in the fuse box in the truck by the drivers door and the fuse didn't say anything about the 3rd brake light or CC!

 

[rippinitup]

if your wiring is fine and your going to purchase a new light. heres the cheapest i found. had it on for about 6 months. works great

http://www.amazon.com/Dorman-Soluti...QB14/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1326163579&sr=8-1

 

[ScottyBoy]

Thanks Chris! Didn't know if there was a fuse just for the upper light. I will check into that tomorrow when I get off work. I have a badass testlight. It's a PowerProbe III. I was planning on pulling that out to confirm whether or not the wire was getting power when the pedal was pressed. If it isnt, I can press a button on the tester to apply 12volts to the light. If it lights up, then I know for sure its a wiring or fuse problem. If I am getting power, and the light still doesn't light up when I try and power it with the test probe, then I know for sure the light is bad.

 

[Rivieraracing]

That probe sounds awesome, I'm searching for one online as we speak!! I want!!
As for the fuse, I had the problem after I had a brake controller installed at our chevy dealership and shortly after that I noticed that the brake light wasn't working as well as the CC. It took the chevy tech 45 minutes of checking everything else including all the fuses labeled for the brake light to finally find a different fuse not referenced to the light blown!! So if in doubt, check all your fuses!! He was soo pissed when he found it because he looked like a fool because I was standing next to him the whole time!! lol

 

[ScottyBoy]

Check out these videos. This thing is worth its weight in gold. I paid about $150 shipped for the one I have. I have a kit with a bunch of attachments, I think its called a master kit.

[YT]94npWntQY2g[/YT]

[YT]kD6u0G7L4l0[/YT]

 

[Rivieraracing]

That's so incredibly sweet!! I have a few multimeters and even have a portable DC power supply but nothing with both combined!! I found one on Ebay and have it on my watch list so I don't forget to look for one when I run into some spare money in the future!! Thanks for sharing the info and good luck with your light problem!! If you are ever in a crunch and don't have your power probe handy, you can always take a 9V battery to test if your 3rd brake light works!!

 

[ScottyBoy]

Ok. So I used my cruise control on the way to work this morning, and it works fine. So I dunno if that's good news or bad news. I will have to investigate more when I get home this evening. At least narrow it down to whether its bad wiring or a bad light.

 

[Rivieraracing]

Well, that's weird!! Hopefully it's just a bad fuse and not a bad light!! With your power probe, you should be able to make quick work on figuring that out!

 

[LuSe4]

Just FYI, I had to replace my third brake light because it went out. I bought aftermarket on EBAY for around $40.

 

[ScottyBoy]

I did in fact check everything the other day. I do have power to that plug when the brakes are applied. So I applied power directly to the light with my power probe, and it did not light up. I tried it again after I plugged the light back up. The two tail lights lit up, but not the roof light. So that confirms it, the brake light is toast.

 

[chauncey0337]

Are you going to try to fix it or just get a new one?

 

[Rivieraracing]

You should do something custom with it!!

 

[chauncey0337]

You should do something custom with it!!

What I was thinking.

 

[06xl]

I was told by the dealer that the 3rd brake light on the NBS have there own brake switch I don't know how true that is but if it is that can be the cause

 

[Rivieraracing]

I was told by the dealer that the 3rd brake light on the NBS have there own brake switch I don't know how true that is but if it is that can be the cause

But he is getting power to the brake light when the brakes are applied, so even if there was a separate switch, that wouldn't be the problem in this situation!

 

[Tahoewhat]

Uh.. you guys think WAAAYYY to technical w/ your volt probes and stuff and fuses.

Scott- Your light is out. No need to test, change, worry, stress, volt test, etc.. Its gone, they all go out very easily. I changed mine twice before my new setup. lol. You and Chris are crazy.

So if you want one i have one, but its got vht on it, i can get it off if you want. But i have no use for it anymore..

Let me know... and that volt meter is pretty cool though, my mechanic had one i used the other day, neg and pos. was very cool. ( lol, i know im contradicting)

---- Oh, just remembered, its not a stock 3rd, its a clear putco led brake light. lol, think i have a stock one as well. Going to check

 

[Rivieraracing]

Don't be afraid of the voltmeter Mike, embrace it!!

---------- Post added at 08:03 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:02 PM ----------

And Scott, you are the LED king on here, mod that crap!! lol

 

[Tahoewhat]

thats kind of what i was thinking, mod it, but not sure what you would do w/ it as its not very big. Put leds that say " STOP " lmao

 

[ScottyBoy]

I thought about modding it or even just trying to repair it. But the damn thing looks like its melted shut on the seams. No glue, the plastics actually are melted together. So either they used a machine to heat them just on the edges to fuse it together, or else they applied a glue similar to PVC pipe glue that actually melts the plastic.