2006 X5 M54 138K with RED Brake Light---SOLVED (LF Sensor)

[cn90]

- The "arrows": the message is "Check Side Lights", which I have had for 7 yrs.
Side bulbs are good, I never bothered with this "Check Side Lights" non-sense.

- I watched some youtube video: Key in Position II and sit there for > 30 sec, the RED light seemed to go away. Very strange bc the REAR pad sensor was not worn.

- Will update this thread from time to time...

[Effduration]

Originally Posted by cn90

- The "arrows": the message is "Check Side Lights", which I have had for 7 yrs.
Side bulbs are good, I never bothered with this "Check Side Lights" non-sense.

....

You're not a newbie here, but I am going to ask the obvious anyway.
Are your angel eye bulbs working?

[X5chemist]

Cool to know about the " > <" meaning there's a message. I've seen it before and wondered if a message or error was present.

[cn90]

LOL, maybe my angel bulbs are out, idk. I personally do not pay much attention to "cosmetic stuff".
I am too busy with work etc. so I only focus on "important" stuff..

[Effduration]

Originally Posted by cn90

LOL, maybe my angel bulbs are out, idk. I personally pay much attention to "cosmetic stuff".
I am too busy with work etc. so I only focus on "important" stuff..

Fair enough..

But the angel eye bulbs are relatively cheap and take about 60 seconds each to replace and could make that message go away, possibly revealing other messages.

[andrewwynn]

Originally Posted by cn90

- The "arrows": the message is "Check Side Lights", which I have had for 7 yrs.

- I watched some youtube video: Key in Position II and sit there for > 30 sec, the RED light seemed to go away. Very strange bc the REAR pad sensor was not worn.

- Will update this thread from time to time...

If the sensor was ever either worn or unplugged (including a connection or broken wire) it sets the condition. It stays set until the >30 sec. reset is performed. Same for both front and rear axle.

When I was waiting for parts and tired of the warning light (better system on low cluster, didn't light up BRAKE it has an independent light), I twisted the wires of the sensor together and reset

[wpoll]

Originally Posted by cn90

- The "arrows": the message is "Check Side Lights", which I have had for 7 yrs.
Side bulbs are good, I never bothered with this "Check Side Lights" non-sense.

...

As has been mentioned, "side lights" aren't on the sides - they are the "angel eyes" or halo lamps.

Here in NZ, these aren't "cosmetic" - they are the "park" lights. I figure the US lighting is set-up differently.

[cn90]

- All along, I did not remove LF wheel to check (being lazy lol) bc I could see through the wheel that the OUTER brake pad was healthy at 6 mm...

- Once I removed the wheel (on jack stand for safety), it was obvious that the LF sensor was beginning to be ground off. If you have a pair of right-angle pliers, just gently grab at the spring ends and pull the sensor out w/o damaging it.

- The INNER brake pad was 3mm.

- For now, I removed the sensor and tie it out of the way while waiting for parts.

- Now, the FRONT will get new rotors, pads, and sensor lol...

- I miss the Japanese car ways of using audible warning, no wear sensor lol...

- Problem solved.


---

[wpoll]

Good to hear you found the issue.

I'm guessing if you cycle through the messages on the dash, there will be the "Check Brake Linings" message in there.

I figure this is the #1 reason to fix issues that pop up CC messages - cosmetic warnings, like "Washer Fluid Low" can hide serious warnings - like "Check Oil Level"...

[cn90]

Lesson learned: since the Brake Caliper Piston is on the inside, there is more wear on the inner pad vs outer pad. So once the OUTER pad is 6 mm, the INNER pad is about 3 mm.

In theory (if you are short of budget), you can unplug the sensor (or short both wires to turn the dash light off) and keep driving until the OUTER pad is ~ 4 mm and the INNER pad is 1-2 mm, Then replace it then.

Throwing away brake pads with 6 mm is a waste of natural resources imo...
With 6mm, you can get another 20K-30K miles. The INNER pad is the problem bc it wears more than OUTER pad...