Quote Originally Posted by Eggman View Post
If I understand correctly, ETACS monitors the brake lights. If the lamp burn out, its an error that needs to be addressed.

I recall other posts of owners replacing their incandescent lamps with LEDs and it causes problems like this. In benwerks case, the problem seems to happen with incandescent and LED lamps. Maybe there is something else related causing this? I would inspect the lamp socket carefully for corrosion or other signs of damage. Also, it would be helpful to know if there have been any changes to the wiring back there, such as a backup camera (I've done this) connected to reverse lights or a trailer harness. Other than that, it's worth taking another look at the bank of connectors behind the left-front kick panel for signs of corrosion. Fummins has noted that sometimes it's hard to see water damage, but it has caused him lots of similar headaches and it is often where he goes first for troubleshooting & diagnosis.
i inspected the wiring harness pretty thoroughly and it was very clean. i even looked into all the ports with a flashlight and it was all shiny metal. im thinking about putting dielectric grease into the plugs and on the backs. i havent made any changes to the wiring in the car. no backup camera or anything. my thoughts are that if the etacs detects a failed brakelight it puts you into safe mode and that sylvania 1157's are not canbus ready. it might be the connection to the brakelights is the problem though so new bulbs might be a temporary solution.