Intermittent stop and handbrake lights

[ivan bogo]

Hi all,

I am having a strange issue where when going around fast-ish bends the STOP and Handbrake warnings start flickering.
It seems to be happening only when driving through a bend and going above 50mph.

Does that ring any bells before I get to check the fault codes?

 

[JamesBryan]

Brake fluid low.

 

[ivan bogo]

Thanks but already checked and level is good

 

[JamesBryan]

Brake pads low or a dodgey sensor then.

 

[MRBILLYUK]

Like @JamesBryan says it's usually caused by low brake fluid. It can happen if your brake pads are very worn.

 

[ivan bogo]

Thanks chaps.

Brake pads and discs are brand new liquid level is good.

Dodgy sensor sounds the most plausible ... but, let me give more details as most likely its relevant.

It all started with me being stubborn and stupid .....
I had this whining noise from the rear ns bearing but was thinking there are still a couple of miles left before it dies. Well, that was a bad idea, as the bearing got worse very quickly.
I got the car limping to my mechanic but, by then there was a bit of damage to the rear hub.
The hub spindle needed replacing, and in the process of removing the hub they broke the abs sensor.

Now, because of the virus we could not source an OEM abs sensor quickly and decided to put new rear disks (with the bearings) and pads and get the car back on the road without the abs sensor.
So I was driving the car without the abs sensor (ABS, ESP, and SERV yellow lights on) for a while. And this intermittent STOP, BRAKE red lights thingy was already happening, even without the abs sensor. It was rare, but I am positive it was happening.

Eventually I ordered this one: https://www.buycarparts.co.uk/maxgear/15312751

When I installed it, the yellow lights went off, but I am still occasionally seeing the red light flickering (always in a fast bend, always above 50mph).

Anyway, I will arrange to get the car scanned and see what the diagnostics have to say.

 

[ivan bogo]

Aaand hard to admit but you were right guys ... it was the brake fluid level 🤦‍♂️ .
Even though it looked fine to me, out of desperation I decided to top it up and haven't had the warning lights on since. In my defence its quite dark behind the engine so probably could not see the min/max marks correctly.

 

[MRBILLYUK]

Aaand hard to admit but you were right guys ... it was the brake fluid level 🤦‍♂️ .
Even though it looked fine to me, out of desperation I decided to top it up and haven't had the warning lights on since. In my defence its quite dark behind the engine so probably could not see the min/max marks correctly.

It doesn't take much of a drop in the level to get the warning light, that's why you see it happen if the brake pads are worn down really low.
Glad you got it sorted

 

[VenomUK]

Can anyone help me then?

Recently done a track day and never had this before but a couple of laps in I start to get ABS, Handbrake, Service light come on. Sometimes along with the STOP light too but that didn't happen often. I checked the level and in fact added a dribble and replaced the cap and it overflowed. Is it possible to have too much in the system?

Anyway, the issue didn't go away when I went back out. Recently changed the front discs and the pads are good all around the car.

So I'm drawing a blank here as to what else it could be unless a sensor. I used a generic OBD and no faults found.

It seems to happen under heavy braking but under normal conditions like driving all the way home, it didn't do it once until I stood on the brakes to see if I could get them to do it again. No ABS wants to kick in nor does it feel as though I've lost any braking performance?

Apart from it being a sensor but without it throwing a code up I don't know which sensor to check first or if at all that's the problem?

 

[JamesBryan]

Can anyone help me then?

Recently done a track day and never had this before but a couple of laps in I start to get ABS, Handbrake, Service light come on. Sometimes along with the STOP light too but that didn't happen often. I checked the level and in fact added a dribble and replaced the cap and it overflowed. Is it possible to have too much in the system?

Anyway, the issue didn't go away when I went back out. Recently changed the front discs and the pads are good all around the car.

So I'm drawing a blank here as to what else it could be unless a sensor. I used a generic OBD and no faults found.

It seems to happen under heavy braking but under normal conditions like driving all the way home, it didn't do it once until I stood on the brakes to see if I could get them to do it again. No ABS wants to kick in nor does it feel as though I've lost any braking performance?

Apart from it being a sensor but without it throwing a code up I don't know which sensor to check first or if at all that's the problem?

Only thing I can think of is to try a brake reservoir cap off another Clio.

 

[VenomUK]

Only thing I can think of is to try a brake reservoir cap off another Clio.

Is it possible to over fill or not so much and issue. I like that. I’ll get a spare and see what happens.

I’ll also check the ABS rings over the weekend just to be sure

 

[JamesBryan]

Is it possible to over fill or not so much and issue. I like that. I’ll get a spare and see what happens.

I’ll also check the ABS rings over the weekend just to be sure

Not really possible, the cap isn't fully sealed so some fluid would just overflow out. Like you would see on track when your cap is wet with fluid.

 

[VenomUK]

Not really possible, the cap isn't fully sealed so some fluid would just overflow out. Like you would see on track when your cap is wet with fluid.

It did look wet on the top where the lettering is on the outside of the cap

 

[JamesBryan]

It did look wet on the top where the lettering is on the outside of the cap

Always are, especially with track use.

 

[VenomUK]

Always are, especially with track use.

I'll still look at getting a new cap just as a back up if it happens again on track and I can't see anything wrong with the rings. Next would point to a sensor but in all fairness I plan on running a cup MC and removing ABS altogether