door lights

[mebeached]

the door lights do not work and the dome light either. Bulbs are good ! checked all the fuses on the drivers side kick panel.

I looked for a switch to test but can't find the old push button type.

Does anyone have any clues?

[Burg Boxster]

Do they work when you rotate dome light lens to on?

There are 3 positions for dome light:

- On
- On w/ door... fade out upon close
- Off

First make sure it's not in the off position.

Good luck

[mebeached]

Originally Posted by Burg Boxster

Do they work when you rotate dome light lens to on?

There are 3 positions for dome light:

- On
- On w/ door... fade out upon close
- Off

First make sure it's not in the off position.

Good luck

the light does not work in either 3 positions. i JUST BOUGHT THIS 1997 986 Boxster
and trying to go through everything i find that is not right one owner 76 ,000 miles.
Nice car but let things go.

The books that came with the car and the Bentley service book do not show a fuse for the dome and door lights. I KNOW THAT THERE MUST BE ONE.
I FOUND THE PLUGS FOR THE SWITCHES BUT DID NOT SEE ANYTHING IN THE HOLES! the doors have the lights and bulbs in them.could these have dropped out by someone?

[JBauer]

Originally Posted by mebeached

the light does not work in either 3 positions.

Well technically it works in one of the 3 positions

[particlewave]

There is no fuse.

With the ignition on, does the dome light turn on in one of the 3 positions? Do the power mirrors work?
Pull the dome light to verify that it's connected, but it sounds like you have an immobilizer issue.
The dome light and door lights get a constant 12V+ from the immobilizer "consumer switched off" circuit (also powers the power mirrors, which is why I asked if they work). When the dome light is switched to the "on" position, it gets a solid chassis ground. In the "on with door open" position, it gets a switched ground from the immobilizer "inside light" circuit.

You can use this information to test the connector at the dome light, but since it has a constant ground in the "on" position and you aren't getting any light in that position, it would seem that the "consumer switched off" circuit in the immobilizer is not providing the constant 12V+. Check the mirrors.



Your caps button seems to be sticking...

[mebeached]

i have looked for the switch in the door jam but there is nothing under the rubber plugs in the doors any other places to look for a switch . i have no interior light and no door inside lights.

[particlewave]

There is no switch in the door jamb. The lights are controlled by micro switches inside the mechanical door latch mechanism.

Test the dome light, per my advice. If you do that, you can be helped. If not, then no one knows what's going on and can't help.

[mebeached]

I have the mirrors working could it be still the Immobilizer ?

[911monty]

Originally Posted by mebeached

i have looked for the switch in the door jam but there is nothing under the rubber plugs in the doors any other places to look for a switch . i have no interior light and no door inside lights.

There is no plunger switch like most cars. I think the microswitchs in the door handles activate the consumer switched power in the immobilizer, which switches the interior lights on/off, hence Particles reference to immobilizer problems.

Never mind...... he's already on it!

[mebeached]

thanks there is no power to the dome light . Guess i will pull out the door latch. Had to do the same on hood and trunk.

[911monty]

Originally Posted by mebeached

thanks there is no power to the dome light . Guess i will pull out the door latch. Had to do the same on hood and trunk.

Before you disassemble doors, Have you tried the door handles on the passenger side to see if the lights come on? It would be unusual for the switches to fail simultaneously on both doors. If the passenger side doesn't work then wiring or immobilizer are more likely?

edit: I see you say there is no power to the dome light. If that is TRUE then the door switches are not the immediate problem. Re read Particles instruction regarding the light.

[mebeached]

thank you i did try the passenger side just now no light . i hope that does not mean a trip to the dealer. I have not taken a car back to a dealer in 60 yrs. I GUESS I WILL NEED TO TAKE DOOR PANELS OFF AND LOOK FOR BAD WIRE OR GROUND.

[particlewave]

On a '97, when the drivers door is closed, the hood release latch is locked.
Try this:
With the drivers door closed, is the hood release latch locked, or can you pull it?
Same thing with the door open...

This will tell you if the drivers door latch "door open/closed" micro switch is working.

[mebeached]

yes the hood is locked with the door closed .

[particlewave]

Ok. Now you need to determine which side of the circuit is not working.

Pull the dome light and disconnect the connector.
Test 1:
Attach the negative test lead of a voltmeter to the connector pin associated with the brown wire and connect the voltmeter positive lead to a constant 12V+ (at the positive post of the battery).
Does the meter read at least 12VDC? If not, you have a bad ground. If yes, move on to test 2.

Test 2:
Withe the positive lead of the voltmeter still attached to the positive battery post, attach the negative lead of the voltmeter to the connector pin associated with the brown wire with yellow stripe. Close, then open either door. Does the voltmeter read at least 12VDC? If not, the immobilizer is not recognizing that the door is open. Either way, move on to test 3.

Test 3:
Attach the negative lead of the voltmeter to a good ground (best to use the negative battery post). Attach the voltmeter positive test lead to the connector pin associated with the red wire with black stripe. Close, then open either door. Does the voltmeter read at least 12VDC? If not, then there is either something wrong with the immobilizer (consumer switched output) or you have bad wiring.

Report back with the test results and we can go from there.

[mebeached]

Particlewave , i have finished the test you sent and made it through first two steps. I did not get anything on the third step no voltage at all.

Thanks for your help . Do you have any other thinks to try?

[particlewave]

Excellent. I'll get some more tests written up for you to track it down to the source of the problem.

Just to confirm, you did get good power on test 2 with the voltmeter positive test lead on the battery positive and the negative lead on the brown/yellow wire?

[mebeached]

Originally Posted by particlewave

Excellent. I'll get some more tests written up for you to track it down to the source of the problem.

Just to confirm, you did get good power on test 2 with the voltmeter positive test lead on the battery positive and the negative lead on the brown/yellow wire?

yes that is right!

You are the MAN !

[mebeached]

Originally Posted by particlewave

Excellent. I'll get some more tests written up for you to track it down to the source of the problem.

Just to confirm, you did get good power on test 2 with the voltmeter positive test lead on the battery positive and the negative lead on the brown/yellow wire?

LOOKING FORWARD TO THE SOURCE PROBLEM !

Thank you for your input it is better than the Bentley Book.

[particlewave]

No problem.

What you really need to do at this point is remove the 4 drivers side seat rail bolts and get to the immobilizer (these bolts are male star heads, but you can remove them with a standard socket - I don't recall which size fits, just make sure it is not a loose fit). The catch is that you need to keep the battery connected for testing, so you don't want to disconnect the seat electrical harness.
If you remove the bolts and fold the seat back forward, you can raise the front of the seat and prop it up with a board so you can get to the immobilizer without taking the seat all the way out (if you disconnect the seat harness with the battery connected, it will trip the airbag light).

Once you have access to the immobilizer, you'll need to find the red/black wire and repeat test 3 to determine if the immobilizer is outputting 12V+ on that line. That line is the "consumer switched off" circuit which provides power to devices that need it with ignition off, like the interior lights.
Once the ignition is shut off and the door has either been closed for a few minutes or the car is locked, that circuit is switched off to prevent battery drain, which is why I said to close and open the door before checking the voltmeter (this reactivates the circuit and turns the 12V+ back on).