2004 Accent Rear lights stay on after turning motor off and eventually drain the battery. This has occurred on my son's car and also my son-in-law's car
Is it just the Rear Window Light that stays on, or is the Rear Window Light and the brake lights located at the back/bumper of the car? If it is BOTH the Rear Window Light AND the brake lights at the rear of the car, then you likely have a faulty brake switch located at the brake pedal inside the car cabin. When the brake pedal is in the normal position, ie - you are not depressing the brake pedal, the arm of the brake pedal leading to the pedal with your foot pushes upon... this arm is applying constant pressure to the switch - with keeps your brake lights OFF. When you apply pressure to the brake pedal, it moves the brake arm away from the switch, which activates the circuit, and your brake lights turn on. If this switch is broken, your brake circuit thinks the brake pedal and arm are being pushed away from the switch, and your brake lights turn on. As you are aware, having the light on constantly can wear down your battery AND the heat from this constant light bulb of the brake light in the rear window can deform the shape of the red reflector in this rear window light housing. If, however, it is only the rear window light that stays on - then it is probably a loose or bad connection where this light plugs into the rest of the circuit in the trunk near the back seat. If this is the case, follow the wires from the rear window light assembly to the point where they plug into the rest of the circuit (inside the trunk) and unplug this wire set, clean the terminal ends, and plug them back together. ***WAIT, WAIT!!*** because you of the risk of touching the terminal ends together and blowing the circuit, if you also plan to clean the hot side, please remove the NEGATIVE battery terminal while cleaning (DO NOT USE WATER, just a wire brush or steel wool). After you are done cleaning and have the terminals reconnected, reconnect the negative battery terminal (you will also have to reset your radio stations and radio clock).
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