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Posted by: kwiz911 Dec 18 2015, 08:08 PM

ok so im new to Hyundai's. I just bought a used 2000 Elantra. not sure which model it is as the title doesn't say. its a manual if that
helps. anyways, when I turn on the headlights, the brake lights are always on. and on top of that, if I get in the car with nothing on,
and hit the brake pedal, the instrument cluster lights come on as well as the brake lights. (I understand that the brake lights coming
on when you hit the brakes means they are working as advertised) So I did a little digging and al the fuses are good. during trouble-
shooting, I took the ETACS fuse out and again hit the brake pedal. this time the instrument cluster didn't illuminate and the brake
lights worked as advertised. so at this time, I thought maybe I had it figured out but was wrong. even with the ETACS fuse out, when
I turned the headlights on, the brake lights still stay on. and the instrument cluster comes on when I turned the headlights on as
advertised even with the ETACS fuse out. I tried looking up a wiring diagram to see if I could make some gains, but I couldn't find a
clear wiring schematic on the enternet. please help

Posted by: bhorste Dec 19 2015, 01:31 PM

First, welcome to the Club!

Second, when you turn on your headlights, the tail lights should light up at a lower level than if you were on the brakes. Is your center brake light coming on when you turn on the headlights? Are the lights noticeably brighter when you hit the brakes than if you just have the lights on? A little more info will help us.

Posted by: roydjt Dec 19 2015, 03:01 PM

When I do that, I risk getting arrested!

Dumb question: did you check that the brake light bulbs are the correct kind? You should have 2357 bulbs with two filaments. If you had single filament bulbs in there with bases that made contact to both points, both filaments would light when the headlights were on, and there might be other effects on the rest of the lighting system and any related systems. For example, I'm not sure what causes your gauge lights to come on, but if that's tied in to the headlight (and tail light) circuit, it could cause them to come on as well.

-Roy

Posted by: kwiz911 Dec 20 2015, 03:58 PM

sorry I wasn't more descriptive on my first question. the lights are definitely the brake lights and not the taillights. although the center brake lights in the back window doesn't come on at all. when you hit the brake, the get the tiniest most miniscule bit brighter. I mean it's almost unnoticeable. I haven't checked the brake light bulbs yet. but I definitely will. thanks y'all. any extra help will be great
ok so I looked at the bulbs and both filaments are on when you hit the brakes. I tried looking up a wiring schematic but was unable to find one that would help. I talked to guy at the parts house and he said that brake/tail/head lights all go through the multifunction switch on the steering column. he said that it could possibly be shorting out it the switch. he said that both the brake lights and tail
lights share the same ground so its most likely not the ground since they both come on at the same time. just wondering if it would be sensible to go ahead and replace the multi function switch hon the steering column.

Posted by: roydjt Dec 21 2015, 01:01 AM

When I say "brake light" vs "tail light" in regards to the rear lights, the dual filament bulbs perform both purposes. When the headlights are on, one filament is illuminated. When you step on the brakes, the other filament is illuminated. As for your third brake light, that's an LED cluster, so a change in resistance of the system (like a short across the other circuit) would cause them to illuminate much more dimly. Your bulbs should have two contacts on the base, like the photo below. The contacts may be round or oval shaped.


-Roy

Posted by: slowgls Dec 21 2015, 07:27 PM

I'm almost thinking it the brake switch.

Posted by: J2Elantra Dec 22 2015, 02:31 PM

Idk about his 2000, but mine looks like a single bulb.


I would definitely check out the brake light switch mounted on the brake pedal.