Hi,

Whilst I was following my Ocatvia (x-reg) 2.0 Elegance in a different car I noticed that none of the break lights were working. Checked the bulbes and the fuse and they seem OK. Next stop break switch I think. Can someone please describe the location of it and let me know if there is an easy way of testing it?

Thanks,

Peter

The switch is on the brake pedal.

Remove the black plastic trim under the dash by the pedals. You can now see the switch, twist it anti-clockwise and pull out, if the lights come on now great, if not pull the center plunger out a little, they should now work.

So unplug the wires, put switch onto a workbench / kitchen worktop* and dismantle FULLY, pack with grease and rebuild it & replace in the car.

10 mins job and they shouldn't fail again.

* if/when SHMBO catches you doing this, I told you not to do it in the kitchen!!

A new switch is only about £6 so I wouldn't think it worth trying to dismantle one and repair it.

Thats exactly what i thought Stu when mine kept sticking, but when the replacement also stuck i greased it up, although i think they have superseded the old one now?

For a max of 5 mins work to strip and grease one up so that it will not stick again is IMO worth while.

There has been a fairly recent revision - you'd like to think they'd have it covered by now but it's a bit like the 1.8T coil pack syndrome.

All done, for now at least. I found it straight away and after I twisted and turned it a little the lights came on. Once I have a spare half hour I will actually take it out for a clean and re-grease.

Thanks everyone!

Leaves my broken lumbar support which I have not tackled yet (see other thread):(

Get a new green one!

My old one was opened up and cleaned but went around 5 months later.

New ones do not operate on a ratchet system any more so are more reliable.

My old (black) one had no ratchet either, just a spring inside IIRC.

The reason they stick is because it is plastic on plastic, so they require a lubricant that wont dry out (so not WD-40 type of spray) or a stronger spring, hence why packing the moving parts with grease works.

There is a handy guide on SEATCupra.net on how to change a brake light switch. See below:

How to - Change Brake Light Switch - SEAT Cupra.net