B-K

I have a 2004 6-speed. I had TSW Trackstar 5 wheels installed. After returning home, I notices that the hub centering rings had not been installed, so I removed the wheels, installed the rings, and torqued the lug nuts. After starting the car and using the brakes, the ABS and DCS lights illuminated on the dash, and the brake lights would not light. I found the STOP fuse was blown, and replaced it. Same result as above (STOP fuse blown again, with all of the other symptoms). I then removed the hub centering rings from the rear wheels and replaced the fuse. Problem solved. My question is, why did installation of the hub centering rings on the rear wheels blow the STOP fuse?

Update 8/17/2012 - Problem not solved by removal of hub centering rings, since it happened again. I then noticed that the problem re-occured when starting the car after opening/closing the trunk.

Solution: Repair/replace wire harness for the trunk lid brake light.

Explanation: The wires were broken in the harness sleeve near the left trunk hinge. Opening/closing the trunk shorted the broken wires, blowing the fuse, which disabled the ABS, DSC, cruise control and brake lights. The hub centering ring installation was coincidental, as noted in the below response. A simple method to confirm the problem is to unplug the harness in the trunk behind the left trunk liner and replace the fuse. If the problem does not occur again, repair or replace the harness. Another is to remove the harness boot from the trunk lid and give a slight tug on the wires. Mine were completely broken so they came out very easily. You may also use an ohm meter to check for a short at the harness connection point in the trunk, but this method may not find an intermittent problem. I suggest opening/closing the trunk some to recreate the conditions if using an ohm meter.

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

It didn't, it was just a strange coincidence.

B-K

Thanks for eliminating that red herring. It was the often cited broken wire harness for the trunk lid brake light.