Brake lights, rear turning signal lights, hazards do not work?

Tiny
SUPERNINTENDO500
  • MEMBER
  • 2004 MERCURY MONTEREY
  • V6
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 95,000 MILES
I recently got this vehicle listed above from a used dealership. The trunk door does not open. The brake lights, rear turning lights and hazard lights do not work. What do I do? Is the trunk door not being able to open may have something to do with the ground wiring causing those rear signal lights to not work? The actual lights in the back do work but the lights do not "signal" when you press on the break or when turning on the turning signals. I also want to mention that there are turning signal lights on both side mirrors but the one on the right passenger side does not work. Adding onto that, the CD player does this awful clicking type noise. I really hope it's not the PCM:(
Monday, March 10th, 2025 AT 5:50 PM

8 Replies

Tiny
KEN L
  • MASTER CERTIFIED MECHANIC
  • 50,251 POSTS
I don't think the PCM will cause this, please start a new thread for the CD player issue. First, I would check all fuses with the key on, this guide can help:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-check-a-car-fuse

Here are the fuse locations to help, if the fuses are good, I see that these systems are controlled by the SJB which go out. You should be able to tell if there is no power to some of the fuses. Check out the images (below). Please let us know what happens.
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Tuesday, March 11th, 2025 AT 1:28 PM
Tiny
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  • 5 POSTS
Thanks for your reply, Ken! Well, I was able to get a mobile mechanic out here today, he got the trunk open, the latch was completely ripped out and we tested the lock mechanism and could hear the "lock" noise on the hatch door so I guess that must be okay, right? We got access to the brake lights and those were completely burnt out (rear bulbs seemed fine). He's going to come back tomorrow to put those in, going to put the latch in too. I'll update you to see if this actually works and fixes the problem. From the fuses we seen, they all appear to look new! My question to you now is if those break lights being replaced fix it, does that fix the turn signals on it too or is that something else?
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Tuesday, March 11th, 2025 AT 2:30 PM
Tiny
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Also in regard to the SJB, do you suggest replacing that just to be safe?
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Tuesday, March 11th, 2025 AT 2:33 PM
Tiny
KEN L
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No, I would not jump to the SJB just yet, so are you saying anything works not but the brake lights? Let me know what happens after replacing the bulbs.
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Wednesday, March 12th, 2025 AT 10:10 AM
Tiny
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The sockets were bad Ken, the problem is fixed!
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Thursday, March 13th, 2025 AT 10:34 AM
Tiny
KEN L
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Nice work, were the sockets melted or corroded?
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Friday, March 14th, 2025 AT 8:15 AM
Tiny
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They were black and the bulbs were old and worn too!
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Friday, March 14th, 2025 AT 8:54 AM
Tiny
KEN L
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They must have been shorted internally, thanks for letting us know.
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Saturday, March 15th, 2025 AT 9:45 AM

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