Got a situation with my 05 GT, the electronic parking brake is going crazy, the PARK is flashing and BRAKE is lit up on. I used a VAG scan tool and it code...( 00473 electronic parking brake control module-540) reads. Does anyone have this same problem and where is the square module located? Thanks Mike

 

Had the same problem twice on my 2008 GT . Big yellow P in a circle with a diagonal line down through it , together with a loud alarm beep .

Apparently the motors casings are made of plastic and prone to failure due to ingress of dirt and water.

One of mine has been renewed at a cost of £431 ( 572 $ ) including labour.

The technician who fixed mine told me I would be better off using the P facility on the transmission as opposed to the parking brake .

Afraid I can't help with the fault codes etc .

 

The park brake console switch is notorious for going bad. It has a bizarre "rocker" contact switch setup and the spring rockers begin to fail to make contact (at all 4 points).

00473 is a comm failure to/from the switch, but the switch is usually the bad guy. If you need to reset it, try exercising the park brake switch several times (on/off), car running you in it, door closed. This will often get the light to extinguish.

00473 - Control Module for Elect. Park/Hand Brake (J540): No Signal/Communication

Possible Causes

• Wiring/Connector(s) from/to Control Module for Elect. Park/Hand Brake (J540) faulty
• Fault(s) stored in Control Module for Elect. Park/Hand Brake (J540)

I've disassembled my switch, cleaned it with CRC QD electronic cleaner. Has been good ever since.

 

Yeah , i try that, i told the center console out and the switch makes contact cause every time i pull it up the light blinks, and when i push it down, it also blinks. the dash has the P with the line across it as center info center and the PARK and Brake light are lighted up. the computer thinks im driving with the parking brake on cause when its in D it sound a very loud audible noise.
Mike

 

I had the same problem and it turned out to be the switch. The shaft inside the rocker fell out when I was messing around in there for an upgrade to a high res touchscreen/nav/android on an 06 model.

Pricy item at the dealer but not bad for a Bentley part. (~$240 as I recall)

 

Was the engine running when you tried turning the switch on/off? I found a quirk that when the engine is off (key either off or on) the brake switch stays red either in the on or off position. Once I started the engine, only then would the red light on the switch illuminate in the on position and extinguish in the off position.

Try it with the engine running, door closed. Also, try it same way with the addition of putting your foot on the brake.

 

I would check the switch and rear parking brake motors as others have stated, but if it turns out to be the module, this is where it is, located behind the battery control module.

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