Citroen Xsara Brake Lights

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
View Threaded
Wed 2 Jul 2003 13:15
Citroen Xsara Brake Lights - toik1961
I bought a 52 Xsara from my local main dealer in Feb 03 thinking I would get a more reliable car than my aging Escort, how wrong could I be! The problem is the brake lights keep fusing! It's been in to the main dealer 5 times and they still can't fix it. The last time it spent a whole week in thier workshop with the ECU being replaced, prior to this it was 3 days with various switches being replaced. The fix usually lasts about 2 weeks then guess what ? Yep the 10 amp fuse goes again, the main dealer has suggested I uprate the fuse to 15 amp to stop it blowing! I'm a bit reluctant as the fuse is blowing for some safety reason! Does anyone out there in www. have any experience of this problem with the Xsara or any other Citroen, I can't believe it's limited to little ol me. Any information would be gratefully received as the main dealer is now scratching his bald .

Regards

Colin
Toik1961
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 2 Jul 2003 13:54
Citroen Xsara Brake Lights - Dynamic Dave
This will get moved across to Technical Matters Later today. DD.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 2 Jul 2003 14:06
Citroen Xsara Brake Lights - Dynamic Dave
Citroen suggested a similar thing when the windscreen washer pump/heater blower fuse kept blowing on the firms Berlingo van. We put an ampmeter in place of the fuse and the current being drawn was 10.5 amps. Just enough to blow the 10 amp fuse. Fitted a 15 amp fuse with no further problems. We eventually got hold of the correct handbook, as we had been given an earlier edition, and the fuse rating in the newer book said that a 15 amp fuse should be fitted, not a 10 amp.

I would have thought the first thing the dealer would have done is check how much current the brake lamp circuit is drawing and compare that with how many bulbs it has to illuminate. ie, if two 21 watt bulbs, then the current being drawn should be around 3.5 amps. (42 watts divided by 12 volts = 3.5 amps)
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Wed 2 Jul 2003 15:08
Citroen Xsara Brake Lights - MS
Are the correct wattage bulbs fitted?
Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Looking for a garage you can trust? Honest John's Good Garage Guide has thousands of reader recommended garages, plus how-to guides and tips on servicing.

The Good Garage Guide