Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working

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Mon 12 Oct 2015 11:06
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - nikko300bhp

Hello,

I have a 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 Diesel TS (the PSA 1.6 diesel engine).

The reverse lights will not turn on when the car is put into reverse. As both of the lights simultaneously siezed to function, I believe it is not a problem with the light bulbs.

What shall I check first, where, and how? I do not have a volt meter to check if switched are working.

Thank you!

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Mon 12 Oct 2015 12:27
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - Railroad.

Locate the reverse light switch on the gearbox. Remove the plug and using a suitable piece of wire temporarily bridge the wires together. Switch on the ignition (but do not start the engine) and check to see if the reverse lights are working. If they are your problem is either the switch or whatever activates it from inside the gearbox. To determine which remove the switch and reconnect the plug. Push the plunger on the switch in and out, and if your reverse lights work the problem lies inside the gearbox. If they don't then replace the switch.

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Mon 12 Oct 2015 15:26
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - skidpan

As both of the lights simultaneously siezed to function, I believe it is not a problem with the light bulbs.

Have you actually checked the bulbs, they can fail simultaneously

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Mon 12 Oct 2015 18:55
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - Engineer Andy

Both reverse lights? Mk1 Mazda 3's only have one (both 4dr saloon and 5dr hatch versions) reverse light (the other on the opposite side is the rear fog light [I just check on my 4dr one and the 5dr picture on HJ's car-by-car]). As such, it could still be the bulb, though the switch activating it via the gear stick could be the fault - this was the case on my previous car (1996 Nissan Micra), but it was an intermittant fault, presumably due a a dodgy contact (it amazing always worked when it was in for its annual service!). For some reason it eventually righted itself.

Edited by Engineer Andy on 12/10/2015 at 18:56

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Mon 12 Oct 2015 21:50
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - nikko300bhp

Sorry about that. I just got the car and have been trying to fix everything wrong with it! Yes it has a single reverse light.

I've tried changing the bulb and the fuse. However it didn't fix the problem, which means it might be something to do with the switch.

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Tue 13 Oct 2015 14:31
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - nikko300bhp

Shall I be looking where the gear shifter is? Because I've read stuff on the net about some wiring with the reverse light being in the engine bay. The information I've found however, is a bit vague so I can't use it to begin working.

As I've been working on the engine for 5 days last week and fixed the low performance/black smoke problems it was suffering (replaced the intake manifold hose after the turbo because it was cracked, replaced the the airbox which was also cracked, and cleaned the EGR). I believe I might have messed something with relevant wiring there. I have not noticed if the reverse light was working prior to starting to work on the engine though.

Does anyone know anything about this?

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Tue 13 Oct 2015 15:07
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - balleballe

I had the same issue with my petrol mazda 3.

It was some sort of switch located within the gearbox - new one was a tenner and 20 quid to fit.

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Mon 19 Oct 2015 09:54
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - nikko300bhp

OK, here is a bit of an update on the issue:

I've tested with a voltmeter this weekend. The bulb is a 12V bulb (same as the rear fog light).

We removed the bulb holder and measured the potential difference across the connector with and without the bulb holder and bulb attached.

0 Volts without reverse engaged and 8 Volts with reverse engaged. The rear fog light, which uses the same bulb type gave 0 Volts and 12 Volts for reverse not engaged and reverse engaged respectively.

I think we can conclude that the switch is working but not enough volts are reaching the bulb. Any ideas why?

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Mon 19 Oct 2015 10:29
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - hardway

Bridge the reverse switch ternminals,

I usually use a small split pin.

Light works?

then faulty reverse lamp switch.

if it still doesn't work then rety your volt meter tests with the jump pin still in,

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Wed 21 Oct 2015 13:50
Mazda 3 - 2005 Mazda 3 1.6 D - Reverse lights not working - MrEckerslikefromRamsbottom

On the 1.4 TDCi engine, which admittedly has many different design features to the 1.6, the reversing light switch is at the front of the gearbox, behind the black plastic cover which guards the two gear-change cables. The switch is slightly higher than the oil level-check plug, so in theory, no oil should be lost when the switch is removed. Perhaps the 1.6 diesel engine is much the same?

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