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View Full Version : Electrical issue in TW door switch



djnewy
14-06-2010, 08:34 PM
Weird one here,

When I open the front door on the drivers side the little light on the dash comes on but flickers really fast but noticeable. The interior light does not come on either. I close the door and the dash light goes off as it should.

When I open any other door the dash door light comes on solid as it should and so does the interior light. Everything works as it should when I close the door.

Any thoughts???

grelise
14-06-2010, 08:46 PM
Possibly a grounding issue on the drivers side switch.
It's down near the scuff plates and is a black rubber cover on the switch held there by one screw. Unscrew it and check the metal plate and wiring to see if it's not corroding, rusting or just not put on properly.

hako
14-06-2010, 08:50 PM
Mine is exactly the same (TL). Also only on the drivers door. I figure the contacts are a bit dirty creating high resistance in the circuit - the then supplies enough power to the "computer" to alert it that a door is open but does not supply enough power to illuminate the interior light. This is only guesswork as I figure the light on the dash is powered by the ECU/BCM and like all such devices only requires a smidgin of power to work, whereas the inside light needs quite a bit of power to light the bulb. I'll clean the switch and see if I'm right.

FamilyWagon
15-06-2010, 08:18 AM
Yeah common fault. Is a 2 stage switch. One stage does door alert warning and other stage does interior lights.
You can buy a new switch for approx $15 and if the rubber has been torn, you can buy that also (seperate item) for about $5.
Part numbers are:
Switch (Drivers door) MB628452
Rubber cover (Drivers Door) MB628451

hako
15-06-2010, 06:27 PM
Well, looks like it's an easy fix (at least in my case). I removed mine and figured that the way it worked internally was using sliders like variable potentiometers in old radios used to control the volume - when these get scratchy and intermittent you just spray with WD40 to remove the buildup of crap from the sliders. So that's what I did...thoroughly saturated the switch, removed excess WD40 and installed. Good as Gold.

djnewy
15-06-2010, 07:26 PM
Thanks guys,

I took the switch off today and swapped it with the rear. The front works fine now and the rear doesn't so I have isolated the problem.

For only $15 I will order a new one tommorrow.

DJ