Can anyone tell me whether the brake pad wear indicator on the instrument cluster is activated by making a circuit or breaking a circuit when the pads are low.

What I'm trying to work out is if I replace my pads without a sensor in them, will the light show on the dash????

TIA

well, surely thats an easy one? If you diddnt need a sensor they wouldnt have one ?

So if you want the warning light to work, use pads with sensor. If you dont want it to work, use those without.

No, it's a perfectly sensible question. As I understand it, all pads with a sensor rely on a "U" - shaped wire embedded in the pad which is broken when the pad wears down to the top of the "U". So if you fit pads without a sensor, the car's system will think the circuit has been broken and light up the indicator.

Yes pads without a sensor will light the light. You can short the connector (about 4 inches further up the loom) out with a loop of wire to turn it off again.

Thanks Gents,

The last pads I changed that had a sensor in had a single wire with a plastic end that when the pads wore down, would wear the plastic off and ground to the disc.

Obviously things have moved on since then.

Good grief, never thought of that. So it could be either breaking a circuit or making a circuit . I hereby withdraw my previous post. Someone must know which applies to an Octavia...