2013 ST Brake Lights Stay On - A Different Approach.

[stevencovert]

Hi all, creating a new thread as suggested to post my specific take on the ST brake light situation.

My brake light stays on 100% of time when I turn the bike off, or ride down the road. Cruise doesn't work because of this. Have to quickly tap the pedal very fast with my fingers to finally get the stupid thing off

I was about to do the "shaving of the rubber stop", when I noticed something. The bike was COLD, I pushed the brake lever to duplicate the problem. It worked FINE. The lever dropped about 1/4" then I heard the TWO clicks as I should. Pedal moved down about 1/4" before the first click (as it should according to other posts). released the pedal, and the light went off. It worked fine.

Now when the bike is HOT, everything changes!! I can NOT hear the first click at all. Pulling the brake lever UP hard does nothing. It's like the switch is stuck. So it sounds like the switch, but... when it is cold it is fine!

So looking under the bike I see the switches are mounted to a metal plate, behind a rubber cover. That metal plate is like 5mm from the MUFFLER! The metal plate was damn hot. Being an electrical engineer, I immediately reasoned the switch is getting very near muffler temperatures. Also, being an engineer I wanted to reproduce the situation. I let the bike sit overnite to cool, and sure enough the switch worked FINE again, 100% of the time. two clicks on depressing the pedal. Started it, let it get to operating temperature (not moving, so no air flow near that metal plate), and sure enough the brake light came on and stayed on, took a lot of tapping the brake to get it off.

My "fix" step by step:

1. I went to Autozone and got a "Muffler Bandage Kit" - a roll of white fiberglass with something impregnated in it (I assume from the feel) and a bottle of hardener.
2. Tossed out the hardener.
3. Unrolled the "cloth"
4. Folded about 4" length over, and continued to fold over entire length to make a "pad"
5. In the center of that metal plate there is a conical fastener (I think it is plastic), using this as a pressure point, I inserted a large screwdriver into the
   "pad" at one of the folds and wedged the pad between the plate and the muffler. It went in fairly easy.

Went for a short ride to get to operating temperature, then let it idle for a few minutes to be sure everything was hot. Brake lights worked fine! Shut the bike off to listen, and the two clicks could be clearly heard the same as when cold. So far so good. I get them staying stuck on about 1 in 15 times or so, assuming I need to replace the overheated switch at some point - BUT a single tap of the pedal turns them off every time. Whereas before I had to quickly tap the pedal with my fingers for a while to vibrate the switch to flip to off.

If you are having this problem - brake lights stay on after you shut the bike off, try the test above. See if the brakes appear to work decently when cold (even just most of the time - switch might be a little rough from heat), and you can hear the TWO clicks; with the first roughly 1/4" down. If the first click goes away (brake lights stuck on) when the bike is HOT, it might be a heat problem. As for the shaving of the rubber block, maybe that solves a different problem other than heat. I can see that this probably would be needed when the first click does not happen, but ONLY when the bike is COLD, or the first click (lights come on) happen when you barely touch the pedal.

Looking at the switch (what little I could see from my viewpoint), it looks like a Cherry switch with a lever actuator. Definitely not rated for the temperature 1/2" away from a hot muffler (or catalytic converter - didn't look it up).

Any ways, that is my experience with the 2013 ST brake lights staying on problem. Hopefully it will stay solved.


Steve

[quadfather]

thanks for the info. the dealer has made 4 attempts to fix my st-s . the last time they even replaced the switch. it's like you described, mostly occurs when it's hot. it even killed the battery once when I parked it for a few days a didn't notice it was on. I just wished BRP would own up to all the issues these bikes have. all I ever hear from the dealer is that it's the first time they have heard of this problem. but it's seems many st owners have this problem.

[stevencovert]

thanks for the info. the dealer has made 4 attempts to fix my st-s . the last time they even replaced the switch. it's like you described, mostly occurs when it's hot. it even killed the battery once when I parked it for a few days a didn't notice it was on. I just wished BRP would own up to all the issues these bikes have. all I ever hear from the dealer is that it's the first time they have heard of this problem. but it's seems many st owners have this problem.

Sorry to hear the dealer can't fix! My ST also had the battery go dead a couple times, driving me crazy! Mine is still working fine so far with the "insulation" wedged behind the switches mounting plate. Stinks like crazy, whatever that muffler bandage stuff is made of reeks, hoping it eventually burns off. If you can get under the bike, it is a quick fix!

[sdb]

I have recently purchased a 2015 STL for myself and a 2013 STL for my wife. The 2013 suffers from the well documented brake light issue. The 2015 does not. Which begs the question...what changed after 2013 with the STL's brake light switch/sensor set-up ? If it's a different switch/sensor, would it be possible to retrofit the 2013 with a 2014 or 2015 switch/sensor ?

[sting1373]

I have recently purchased a 2015 STL for myself and a 2013 STL for my wife. The 2013 suffers from the well documented brake light issue. The 2015 does not. Which begs the question...what changed after 2013 with the STL's brake light switch/sensor set-up ? If it's a different switch/sensor, would it be possible to retrofit the 2013 with a 2014 or 2015 switch/sensor ?

They moved where it was located after the 2013 model so it wouldn't get dirty or clogged up from sticking.

Sent from my SM-N920P using Tapatalk

[sdb]

Having tried three different approaches to fix the issue (all unsuccessful), the BRP dealer finally relocated the brake switch (with a bracket), presumably to the new 2014/15 location further forward on the lower chassis. Brake light no longer stays on.

[JKMSPYDER]

Steve, if your Spyder is still under warranty, ask your dealer if they will relocate the bracket and switch farther away from the muffler.