Brake light only engages under HARD braking

[tsc]

81 gs650e. Just got the bike last week. Only safety issue I have found is that the brake light only engages under very hard pressure from the front or rear brake. Anyone have a fix?

[Billy Ricks]

81 gs650e. Just got the bike last week. Only safety issue I have found is that the brake light only engages under very hard pressure from the front or rear brake. Anyone have a fix?

The rear brake switch is adjustable. It has a threaded section with a plastic nut on it. Screw the nut further down the threads until just slight pressure activates the light. The front switch is a bit testier. If you look up under the brake lever you will see a pair of wires going into the brake switch. You can loosen the two screws and try adjusting it. If that doesn't work a hydraulic brake switch is the easiest fix up front. Usually under $20 on Ebay.

[tsc]

Thanks ! I'll try that after work tomorrow and see if it fixes it.

[Steve]

If, for some reason, the rear brake switch can not be moved enough to adjust it, you can improvise by using needle-nose pliers to make a Z-bend in the wire from the pedal to the switch. That will take up some of the slack and make the lights come on sooner. If you bend it too far, you can straighten it out some to correct it.


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[bwringer]

The parts in the front brake switch are easy to lose and often corrode. Fortunately, you can get new switch guts:

Third item down on this page:

http://www.crc2onlinecatalog.com/brake_light_switches.htm

http://www.crc2onlinecatalog.com