Brake lights work but tail lights do not....need some help
 

There wasn't an electrical section so I'm just posting here so I can get some help. I have a 2012 base that I bought in May, just last week got a lot of body work done (front lip, vented fenders, side skirts, and rear bumper). I was told the rear tail lights had to come off to remove the bumper. Ever since getting the car back, the tail lights do not work when the head lights are on, but the brake lights work fine if I push the brake.

It can't be a blown/dying bulb, the car is almost new. The mechanic said he didn't mess with any wires at all, just unplugged the connection to the tail lights then re plugged it back in. Doesn't look like any wires are cut either.

What could the problem be?

I would definitely start with the bulb. I got my 2012 and a week later my bulb went out. I had Nissan replace it.

2 things come to mind.

1. Bulb (There are 2 elements in the bulb itself I believe for our bulbs. One for consent lumination when headlights on and one used for breaking). One could be burnt

2. Plugged incorrectly even though the mechanic stated he plugged it in right.

I would start with the bulb. Sounds like the bulb.

If neither of the tail lights ever come on, then I suspect a blown fuse (see the user manual and/or FSM). Or a bad connection. Or a cut wire. I'd check them in that order.

Try removing your tail lights and reconnect/re-seat them.

I am electrically challenged with cars unfortunately. If I take it to the nissan dealserhip they should easily be able to tell me what the problem is right?

For a fee perhaps. Somebody mentioned a fuse maybe that.

Yea I would start with the tail lamp fuse, that one may be under the hood. Pull it and see the center flows together to the dges, if appears to be seperated its blown replace it. You should be covered under the 1 yr/12k warranty that covers everything, unless your guy did something that he is not owning up to and the dealer see's that if you have to take it in.

Good luck. I did some custom wiring in the hatch and the car threw a complete fit. I think the bodyshop guys screwed it up

Yeah if none of the lights in the back are working I would guess it's a fuse. I blew this fuse not too long ago. It is the 10amp fuse under the hood labeled DTRL, (day time running lights). Take a look at this thread:
Fuse box location
there are pics that show you exactly how to take the fuse box out of our cars and check that fuse. You should be able to check that single fuse even if you are electrically inclined like you stated.

The problem I had was exactly like you said... The rear lights would not come on when the headlights are on, but would still work with the brake lights. Just check the fuse and then :happydance:!

The taillights are LEDs so it won't be a bulb like normal cars, most likely a fuse :tup: they probably didn't disconnect the battery while working on it and that can always lead to problems ie. blown fuse!

GL

where can i get a replacement for the fuse? what is it that I have buy exactly if it is a blown fuse?

Gah I'm thinking this is what it is...I don't think they disconnected the battery and unplugged the lights in the back. probably a blown fuse from the sounds of it.

I was about to say... What is up with all the people saying bulb... Coulda sworn our cars had LED's =P

Yep we have LEDs back there, so is the Z side marker :tup:

There are spare fuses in the box and some in the fuse box under the drivers side dash, you don't need to buy anything

There are extra fuses provided for you in the cover of the fuse box, they will be labeled as such. Just make sure you use the same amp fuse for whichever fuse is blown.

ah you guys are awesome..thanks a bunch to everyone who replied. I will be taking a look at the fuse box tomorrow and seeing if it is a blown fuse or not

:tup: hope that you can easily fix the issue

While wiring up my EVO-R LED Rear Fog Light, I happened to ground a wire that popped this fuse. When I hit the brake, the lights lit up, but not with my daytime lights. I prolly spent 2 hours checking the footwell fuse box and the 1 under the hood. Could not find the right fuse. Then decided to investigate further in the underhood fuse area. There are actually 2 fuse boxes in there. 1 is clipped onto the passenger side bulkhead vertically. Once you get it loose and remove the cover, the fuse you need will be in there. If memory serves me right it is a 10 amp fuse. (Red in Color I think, not Maroon which is 7.5 amps if I remember correctly) Swap that out and you'll be fine.

You can get fuses at any car store, this is what you want:

http://www.allbatterysalesandservice...mg/Lmin010.jpg

http://avalanche.tessco.com/producti...250/394551.jpg

If you see the little strip inside is clean and unbroken, the fuse isn't popped. If it looks charred inside and the connection is broken, the fuse is blown and needs replacement.

Here is a link to order a set: LP MINI Fuses - Low-Profile MINI® 58V Blade Fuse - Littelfuse :tiphat:

I always keep a pack of replacement ones in the glove box just in case something pops.

Just go to any auto parts store and ask for a "taillight fuse for a 20xx 370Z". If they can't look up the amps and physical size, find another store.

For more info in auto fuses in general, check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuse_%28automotive%29

Now I am very interested to see if it is the fuse.

so i checked all the fuses in the one right by the battery...all of them seemed cleaned and unbroken, but none of them even remotely sounded like they were part of the tail light connection

however there is a big fuse in the fuse box right under the brake fluid labeled "DTRL Relay "...could that be messed up? How do I check that one? I can't seem to get it out.

Doesn't seem like it's a fuse problem though :(
Or I'm just not doing it right

Did you check the second fuse box? There are two.

So there's the relay fuse box right under the brake fluid that I can't seem to get the fuses out (after opening the cover)

Then there's the long vertical fuse box right by the battery, checked all the 10 amp fuses, all were clean and in tact

then there's that other one you have to remove the shroud for by taking out the screw in caps right by the battery and vertical fuse box...I couldn't even get the darn thing open, spent about 20 min, but there were only two relay fuses, one was IPWD or something like that and the other was VVWL or something... both were relays, and since I didn't know how to get to the other relay by the brake fluid I didn't even bother.

Then the fuse box right under the dash/steering wheel on the drivers side didn't seem like there were any tail light fuses so I didn't bother looking at any of them.

Is there something I'm missing here?

That's the fuse box I was referring to, if it is not one in there, then it Should be one in the footwell fuse box. Why Nissan in their great wisdom decided to have so many.. :confused:

the only one that remotely has any connection to the tail light int he footwell fuse box is called Stop Lamp - is that the one??

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/_7...s512/photo.JPG

but I already checked that and that is also clean and in tact...

Looks like I'm gonna have to take it into nissan to find out what's going on
:(

Check fuses #52 and 53 in the IPDM-E/R (next to battery)

Edit: And fuse #59, if you have DTRL

sorry for the noob question, but how do I know what fuse correlates with what number? (ie what fuse is #52?)

and don't all our cars have DTRLs? I saw the relay fuse in the box right next to the brake fluid but couldn't get the fuse out to check it...it's quite large and the fuse puller doesn't work on that lol

Look on the IPDM cover and it will tell you which fuse is what.

More than likely when you had some part replaced or panel, the body shop probably disconnected some wire or ground and either failed to connect it up properly or a wire may not be grounded properly or even pinched or cut.

If all your fuses are good then you need to remove all the connectors to the tail lights and make sure they are all seat fully and locked in, the whole issue is BS because something the body shop did screwed up the wiring.

Note you need to check your fuses with $15 multimeter from sears for continuity, not just by sight as the fuse may have only a hair line break and still look good.

otacon88, I too popped my taillight fuse just today wiring the EVO-R fog light. Rather then eyeballing, go back to the long fuse box by the battery and swap the second fuse down on the right labeled rear or tail. I forget what it says, with any other 10amp fuse. I used the first one labeled clearance to swap it and test. Then again I was able to clearly see it was popped. Might be worth the 2 minutes to confirm it's not the fuse with a quick swap.

So for anyone that was wondering, I went to the dealership yesterday. All the fuses were intact and working properly, looks like it was a blown relay...the one I couldn't get to - go figure. the body shop must have blown it when installing the rear bumper.

Thanks for the update.

Did they give you any indication as to exactly what is meant by "a blown relay"? Was it the coil or the contacts?

I'm not sure the body shop harmed the relay. I haven't looked at the wiring diagram, but I can't think of anything they could do at the rear of the car that would affect the relay coil and the fuse should have protected the contacts if they shorted the wires.

I didn't talk to the mechanic just the person in front, but he said they had to replace the actual relay under hood (i'm assuming the DTRL relay by the brake fluid) and that it must have blown when they were taking off/putting on the rear bumper by grounding it or something.

Typical dealership blaming a bodyshop when there is nothing to ground accidentally by removing the rear bumper,just shows how Fvckin stupid they really are.:shakes head:

:rofl2: :iagree:

in all fairness, my tail lights did stop working after i got my car back from the body shop. the dealership fixed it with no hassle and for free, so i have no qualms with whatever they wanna say. lol

I'm just glad it turned out well for you, where ever the fault may lie.