About a week ago, I found that my third brake light (LEDs in the middle) had gone out and that the dashboard "light out" indicator was on. Knowing this to be a common problem, I ordered a new light thinking it would be a simple fix.
After the light arrived earlier today, I removed the old light and attached the new one. Unfortunately, it hasn't solved the problem – I still have no third brake light and the dash indicator is still on
. I next tried a multimeter to check the voltage going to the brake light when the pedal is depressed. With the brake pedal pressed down and the other brake lights working, I still get no noticeable voltage to the third brake light (my multimeter is set to 20v DC).
I was thinking that I could possibly test the third brake light outside of the car to see if it is even working correctly. I'm not sure how to go about doing this, does anyone have some advice on the topic? How could I test my third brake light and what sort of power source could I use?
Alternatively, maybe there is some way I could check if the power line / ground for the third brake light is broken somewhere? I know these cables run through the rubber connection at the edge of the trunk, could that be a possible failure point?
Has anyone else had this or similar problems with the third brake light? Any ideas what to try next? I welcome any and all advice (I'm definitely no electrical guru like some of you)