- This topic has 9 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated February 7, 2008 at 3:32 pm by
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I haven’t done that, but have thought about it today. My pressure-activated switch closes when the brake pedal is pushed, and the lights light if I cross the two wires that attach to the switch. But if I attached the two wires to the switch and push the brake pedal, the lights do not light. Go figure. Are you having the same problem?
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Hi Bud,
The travel type switch is pretty easy to install and is much better than the pressure type switch. It can be adjusted so that as soon as you lightly brush the pedal, the brake lights come on, letting the guy behind you know you are thinking about stopping. The pressure type needs a certain amount of pressure to activate it, and by that time you have started to stop and the brake lights still haven’t come on. I think the travel type is much safer to use.
Jose 🙂
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The car sat for 15 years. I tried to clean the switch but it is still not functioning. If I have to change it anyway, I would just as soon make an improvement. I have talked to other folks who tell me that if their cars are not driven for a while, they have to put really heavy pressure on the brake before the lights come on. Not a good thing on a small car sharing the road with monster trucks and SUVs.
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I’ve installed a switch on my car that is activated at the pedal. I believe it is an early chevy, 60-65 with two wires. I made a bracket that mounts to horiztal surface behind the pedal. I believe inside that box is a wet area for drainage from the vents so when I mounted the bracket I used some silicon to seal it. The wiring harness to the left of the pedals has the brake light wires in it. I think it is a green & purple striped wire for the brake light and you need a green 12v. I left the stock switch and added the mechanical. So if one doesn’t work the other one will. I also added a third brake light below my bumper. From behind you can see it but when its parked people don’t notice it. My father’s car was rear ended, one of my greatest fears.
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Thanks for the info. I guess a Chevy part in a car with a Ford engine isn’t a real crime, except maybe in the Carolinas. The creativity of the Sunbeam crowd has always been amazing. I had also thought about a third brake light. The plan is to install a roll bar at some point and mount a light in the bar or hung under it. The old small round side marker lights on a late sixties Mopar would be ideal.
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Well, I got a replacement mechanical switch from Watson’s, I believe it was. Then changed my mind and got a replacement hydraulic switch from Sunbeam Specialties. It installed great; the old one was full of brake fluid sludge and looked just awful. Everything is fine now. And if the new hydraulic switch doesn’t last, I’ve got the Watson’s switch. Thanks for advice.
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I finally bit the bullet (After yet another hydraulic switch failure) and installed a Chevy switch. $8 and about an hour fabricating a bracket and running some wires.
Next in line for getting the attention of the cell phone nitwits behind me, brighter bulbs. I looked at an auto parts store the other day but could not find dual filament LEDs. Any suggestions for a source?
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quote pdq67:I finally bit the bullet (After yet another hydraulic switch failure) and installed a Chevy switch. $8 and about an hour fabricating a bracket and running some wires.
Next in line for getting the attention of the cell phone nitwits behind me, brighter bulbs. I looked at an auto parts store the other day but could not find dual filament LEDs. Any suggestions for a source?
I got some from Digi-Key (www.digikey.com). Handling is free if you order more than $30 worth of stuff, and shipping is something like $6. We use DigiKey at work for our day-to-day parts orders – they do next day delivery, so long as your order is in before 6PM central time.
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For a third brake light there is an article in the August, 2006 issue of the newsletter, written by Paul Almjeld.
He shows a light mounted on a hard top as well as a different type light mounted on the rear deck just behind the soft top cover but before the trunk.
He purchased a 16 LED unit from J.C. Whitney for about $14 for the deck, and a 12 volt LED unit from Advance Auto for about $10.
He also used the bullet type connectors to make the hard top removable with the light attached. The unit on the deck looks like it could also be removed while showing the car.
No need to reinvent the wheel this time.
Fred Baum
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