Unknown warning light

[V®6]

Hey guys

I've got a warning light that has come on in my dash but I have no idea what it's for. The light looks like a circle with three dots down either side of the circle. It's also an orange light not red, any help is appreciated.

[Tim]

sounds like a brake pad wear sensor?

[The_Hawk]

Is it the one next to the ABS light? shown here:



It is the brake pad wear sensor (I didn't know we actually had one ) referenced in the owners handbook on page 46, if you don't have it, download it here:

http://www.mooshen.com/vwwc/golf/golf_mk3_manual.pdf

[MattyT]

That light is forever on in my car. Faulty wiring!

[VisionaryVr6]

That light is forever on in my car. Faulty wiring!

sameee



10chars.

[VisionaryVr6]

i had my car serviced, they checked all of that, and it was still on after

[The_Hawk]

Re: Unknown warning light

For those that have it on permanently and don't care... You knows it's dead easy to remove the bulb right??

[jazzvr]

For those that have it on permanently and don't care... You knows it's dead easy to remove the bulb right??

Please explain how.....

[The_Hawk]

The cluster is attached by two screws, it then hinges forward form the top and lifts out (two plugs in the back are relatively tight so small hands are a bonus, but I can do it with my large hands

Instructions here:

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=3798520

Pull appropriate bulb from the bottom set.

[MattyT]

I dont want to pull the bulb since I'd like to get it fixed one day.

Come to think of it, it was meant to be fixed when I had my brakes upgraded!!

I know my brakes are fine though. New rotors, new pads, all the callipers are fine and the fluid is brand new ATE racing blue.

[VeeDubs]

phew its only brake pad warning.

[Treza360]

A simplified explanation of how the brake sensors work, is they are a closed circuit system when the brake pads are healthy (i'm going to assume that it's the same in the older cars as well). I don't know the exact specifics.

On the brake pads there is a thin metal strip which you plug in a harness on each end of the strip. Once the brake pads wear down they wear through this strip and and therefore cut the strip and open the circuit thus triggering the warning light (normally closed relay or a signal into a module or cluster).

If you replace the brake pads with after market ones or don't connect up the circuit again, the light will stay on. The easiest way to fix this is to short the two cables together on each pad. Depending on the setup you may need to solder the two together with a bridging wire, or you might be able to make a pluggable wire etc. The most important thing though is to make sure you tuck and secure the cables out of the way so they are not dangling where they can get caught in the wheel/hub/brake assembly.

Not sure whether the newer VWs are using technology this simple or whether they have gone to something more advanced and fancier.

Cheers,
Trent