2006 Jetta tdi brake lights stay on

spendinit

Member
Joined
Nov 28, 2004
Location
Evergreen Park Il.
TDI
2015 4 DR Golf TDI SEL
Hi everyone.. My first post..( go ez on me if i'm in the wrong area for this).. I came home late the other nite from work and my garage was glowing RED.. Looked like the devil was in there..(he.he).. As it turned out the wifes brake lights on her jetta were on.. I reached in and hit the brake pedal and they turned off..So this past saturday she parks the car in the garage about 3 in the afternoon.. and doesnt use it again untill 3pm Sunday afternoon..Guess What??????? Yep.. battery is dead..So I plug in the ole charger in and as soon as it gets some juice.. BRAKE LIGHTS are on..lol.. So I take the car in to the local VW dealer..and they give me a rental and say they cant duplicate the brake lights staying on yet.. And until they do they wont replace the switch..($15.00 dollar part).. So I take the rental and wait ..and finally the next dayI call them and they say they still havent been able to get the brake lights to stay on.. I said hey.. the wife always locks the car with the key fob.. try that ,maybe the lights stay on instead of blinking once and going off.. BINGO!!! Ding , ding ., ding!! They call me back and say thanks for diagnosing my cars problem and they have to order a " comfort module" to fix the problem.. Could this be the start of a recall???? Stay tuned!!!
 

aj164

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 11, 2005
Location
CS, TX
TDI
'06 Jetta DSG pkg2
I don't know -- it sounds to me like a sticking relay (mechanical or solid-state). This could happen to any electronics. Manuf. can prevent most of these errors by thorough testing before they sell the part, but sometimes they slip through. I think you just got a bad module, but I wouldn't conclude that everyone's module is prone to failure just yet.
 

compu_85

Gadget Guy
Joined
Sep 29, 2003
Location
La Conner, WA
TDI
... None :S
The rear lights on your cars are all controlled by the central convenience module (computer). You know that even though the parking lights and brake lights are in the same lens, there is just one single filament bulb in there! The CCM controls the voltage going to the bulb, so it's dimmer when acting as a parking light.

-J
 

vandep32

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 5, 2011
Location
honolulu
TDI
2006 Jetta
I am having the same problems in my car. My brake lights wont go out at all. I have woke up to a dead battery a few times now. Can anyone tell me where the headlamp control module is located in a 2006 jetta?? I am going to try and fix the brake switch( 5 bucks online) first. but i really think it the same problem as this guy is having! do you remember how much it cost you to repair at a shop? The part is 250 bucks so i would much rather do it myself and save the labor of a shop.

Any insight guys??
 

MyAvocation

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 9, 2004
Location
Hoffman Estates, IL
TDI
2017 Passat SEL TSI
+1 on brake switch. Classic symptom.
It's not a simple R&R... as an example, leave the plunger fully-extended during the install and twist the lock into place AFTER pedal gap is set. Probably best to search in the A4 forum for the actual procedure.
 

mattegel

Member
Joined
Sep 7, 2004
Location
Rockford IL
My brake lights were staying on and if I stabbed the brake pedal quickly I could get them to go out while the engine was off. So it lead me to believe it was a vacuum issue. So I went to the junk yard and tried to get a brake booster but didn't have the tool to get the booster shaft off the back of the pedal. So I just took the master cylinder because it started to rain really hard. Put in the used master cylinder and it didn't fix it. Pulled the master cylinder back out and inspected the plunger that pushes the master cylinder. I found that to be loose and could be pulled out and set into a position that made it stick out further which would cause it to make the brake lights come on. I twisted the plunger until it was as far back as it would go which it felt like it had a cog or gear behind it that the plunger needed to be placed in the right spot to make sure it was as far back as it could go and then bent the three small tin silver tabs that is supposed to hold it in place and put it back together and it works fine now.



Root Cause:
Three silver tin flimsy tabs that hold the plunger back behind the master cylinder bend out and allow the plunger to move out further then it should where it gets hung up and sticks out far enough to cause the brake lights to come on.

Resolution:
#1. Replaced brake booster
#2. Adjust the plunger on the brake booster behind the master cylinder by twisting it until you feel it go back as far as it can go (Probably only need to adjust it a 1/4 turn at most). Bend the three silver tabs back to hold it in place. Done.
 
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