e46 brake pad warning light

[torqueofthedevil]

How many miles can you safely drive when this light comes on (yellow light) before you risk damaging the pads?

Cheers

[E30M3SE]

torqueofthedevil said:

How many miles can you safely drive when this light comes on (yellow light) before you risk damaging the padsdiscs?


Cheers

EFA.

Depends what sort of driving style, but probably 500ish.

value service at the main dealer, great value using genuine parts.

Edited by E30M3SE on Sunday 14th March 10:45

[torqueofthedevil]

right - just taken my car in to get the pads done -to a national tyres - and then have had a look and both the pads and disks are fine, the sensors have not been worn through. so can anyone tell me how to reset the brake light?

i have read a few on other forums but they all seem a bit unlikey:

1. put key in position 2 and leave for 45 seconds
2. put key in position 2 and leave for 45 seconds with drivers door open
3. put key in position 2 and press the cruise control reume button????


any help would be appreciated!!!!

[torqueofthedevil]

right - just taken my car in to get the pads done -to a national tyres - and then have had a look and both the pads and disks are fine, the sensors have not been worn through. so can anyone tell me how to reset the brake light?

i have read a few on other forums but they all seem a bit unlikey:

1. put key in position 2 and leave for 45 seconds
2. put key in position 2 and leave for 45 seconds with drivers door open
3. put key in position 2 and press the cruise control reume button????


any help would be appreciated!!!!

[Mroad]

The pad warning is a simple circuit that lights the warning light when the wire bridge of the "sensor" wears through onto the disc. There is no reset, if the circuit is intact the light will stay out. If there's a break or high resistance anywhere in the circuit the light comes on. If the sensors are OK then check the wiring. If the wiring looks intact then try unplugging the sensors and checking the connectors for a loose fit or corrosion. If you bridge the two pins on the car side of the sensor plug with a wire (effectively completing the circuit by bypassing the sensor) and the light goes out it indicates a faulty sensor or wiring to the sensor so you need to replace the sensor.
There are only two sensors, on diagonally opposite corners and simple enough to check.

Personally I never trust any pad warning circuit. Check the pads and discs manually on a regular basis.

[TheEnd]

The reset trick was something to do with having the drivers door open last time i looking into it

[torqueofthedevil]

TheEnd said:

The reset trick was something to do with having the drivers door open last time i looking into it

i tried that as i also read about the door open thing. The mechanics said they checked the sensors and they looked ok. Will take it to an indy soon - at least i know that the pads and disks are ok for the time being.

[Vee]

torqueofthedevil said:

TheEnd said:

The reset trick was something to do with having the drivers door open last time i looking into it

i tried that as i also read about the door open thing. The mechanics said they checked the sensors and they looked ok. Will take it to an indy soon - at least i know that the pads and disks are ok for the time being.

The pad light doesn't just come on, it's triggered by the sensor being worn through.
Until you change the sensor you won't be able to reset it.
It's come on at BMW specified pad thickness - there is probably a fair bit of wear left. I think I've gone another 1,000 miles on my old car (rear pads warning was on).

[torqueofthedevil]

Vee said:

torqueofthedevil said:

TheEnd said:

The reset trick was something to do with having the drivers door open last time i looking into it

i tried that as i also read about the door open thing. The mechanics said they checked the sensors and they looked ok. Will take it to an indy soon - at least i know that the pads and disks are ok for the time being.

The pad light doesn't just come on, it's triggered by the sensor being worn through.
Until you change the sensor you won't be able to reset it.
It's come on at BMW specified pad thickness - there is probably a fair bit of wear left. I think I've gone another 1,000 miles on my old car (rear pads warning was on).

I know what you are saying, i know how the sensor works with the closed system sensor being worn down, breaking the circuit and activating the sensor - this would also happen if any of the wires to the sensors were broken. However, they have been checked by a mechanic who says everything is fine. He may have missed something, but I definately wouldnt put it past the system to just have got an electrical bug, the car does a few other strange things electrically sometimes (radio not turning on, volume suddenly jumping up etc) that i could imagine this just being something like that, and if i could reset the light it wouldnt come back on.

There is some sort of delay because a lot of people report the light staying on once they have changed everything, then after "resetting it" or after a few days it turns off. So how would that happen if the light can ONLY be brought on by a worn sensor?????

[obscene]

torqueofthedevil said:

right - just taken my car in to get the pads done -to a national tyres - and then have had a look and both the pads and disks are fine, the sensors have not been worn through. so can anyone tell me how to reset the brake light?

i have read a few on other forums but they all seem a bit unlikey:

1. put key in position 2 and leave for 45 seconds
2. put key in position 2 and leave for 45 seconds with drivers door open
3. put key in position 2 and press the cruise control reume button????


any help would be appreciated!!!!

All those are BS as stated. The top one however will reset the throttle on the fly by wire making it more sensitive to your driving. After a while it will adjust to how you drive.