1998 4Runner. Rear hatch dead. No wiper, no power window, license plate lights, etc..

[tgreathead]

I just bought a 98 SR5 (woo hoo, my first T4R) and the entire hatch is dead. Window, wiper, license plate lights, everything. I'm so disappointed because the rear window is one of my favorite features on the car.

The fuse is good and the hatch unlocks with the rest of the doors. Everything else in the car works perfectly and the rear window button is lit when headlights are on.

I'm trying to check the connection between the hatch & the body but can't find the meeting point. Does anyone know if its on the body side or hatch side? How far in is it?

 

[tgreathead]

I figured it out!!

Check out the explanation here:
http://www.yotatech.com/showthread.php?p=599528

 

[lee]

sweet, good job saving yourself $90!

 

[mike1305]

okay i read about what he did, i'm having the same problem, but i tried to get the panel off but i didnt want to break anything. can someone elaborate on what exactly to do?

 

[tgreathead]

okay i read about what he did, i'm having the same problem, but i tried to get the panel off but i didnt want to break anything. ccam someone elaborate on what exactly to do?

Is the entire hatch dead or just the window?
If just window:
-make sure the window lock button is not on
-make sure the wiper is seated in its 'rest' position
-check the fuse (driver side left kick panel, left column middle, 20 amp fuse, yellow)

If the whole thing is dead:
Lift the hatch open. Remove the little plastic piece by the nylon handle. Use a 10mm socket wrench to undo the screw (remember its orientation for later). The whole hatch panel is held in by clips. Run your fingers along the hatch's bottom edge and pull a little until you find a loose spot. I found one that wasn't as tight as the others and slowly, evenly started to pull. You'll find that once you have one out they all pop out relatively easily. If you can't get the first one going use something flat and wide to pry it off. I didn't pull the entire panel off, I left the top (by the weather stripping for the window) attached. With the panel flapped open you will see the plugs just like in the picture on the Yotatech post linked above. The white one wasn't seated for me and that was all it took. Just squeeze each one and make sure its seated.

Let us know how it goes.

 

[mike1305]

today it works, i'm not sure why it didn't yesterday. popped open back part and everythin was plugged in great. ok, now to get some audio going...

 

[hamster_13]

I have a similar problem with mine. My back window doesn't roll up or down, unless the Control Unit is *just right* in the plug.

But if I leave it plugged in, at some point, the back window rolls itself down and the motor stays on thus killing my battery. I never timed it to see exactly when it rolls itself down. But it has caused me to unplug it completely so I don't have a back window or rear wiper anymore.

Anybody have any ideas?

 

[tgreathead]

I have a similar problem with mine. My back window doesn't roll up or down, unless the Control Unit is *just right* in the plug.

But if I leave it plugged in, at some point, the back window rolls itself down and the motor stays on thus killing my battery. I never timed it to see exactly when it rolls itself down. But it has caused me to unplug it completely so I don't have a back window or rear wiper anymore.

Anybody have any ideas?

Sounds like a short. Anybody with a little more electrical experience have any ideas?

 

[r_xiong]

hi i am having similar issues and i cant get the rear window to work, rear wiper, locks to work from inside the truck. i can use the key to open and close window but that is it and i cant lock truck when its turned off. its like when the truck is off all the electrical stuff is dead too, i cant even lock or unlock all my doors with the key from outside. dont know why so if anyone might now i would love to hear your input. thanks

 

[DshButter]

Similar Issue

Longtime lurker reviving an old thread... read a bunch of threads but can’t seem to narrow down a fix. Electrical is not my strong suit.

Symptoms:

A) Rear window won’t roll down. Before I reseated the plug into the 12v Orange Denso Relay box I would get some sort of clicking sound of something trying to work back there when pressing the center console *window down* button. Once I reseated she went silent. Rear door key doesn’t roll window down but there is a steady electrical whine when you attempt to do so. Stops when you bring the key back to neutral.

B) License Plate lights out. I thought they were out about 10 days ago, but checked them again and they were back on so I told myself it must’ve been the lighting in the garage where I parked. Checked 2 days later and they were dead again.

C) Rear wiper doesn’t work.

D) Power locks DO work from the inside. The master child-proof button isn’t depressed.

I cut open the rubber boot channel between the door and chassis and couldn’t find any breaks. It’s not a fuse because the tail lights all still work and they’re on the same circuit (unless I’m wrong?).

Any ideas??

 

[brillo_76]

Lots of times when issues are with the back door its wiring issues were the wires flex. They can break inside the insulation. Mostly they rub the insulation off and break shorting things together.

You stated you cut the boot and didnt see anything wrong.

You check the wires throughly were the wires bend?

That's were would start.

Then verify there isnt any parasitic drain in the tailgate circuits dont have any issues first before digging deeper.

Sent from my SM-J337V using Tapatalk

 

[TheSaturnV]

Not a great idea to cut the chassis to hatch boot, part of its job is to keep water out. Pull the boot out of the chassis side and work it up the wire loom. I'd be surprised if you don't find some breaks there.

My 2000 had 3 broken wires right there where the hatch is flexing over time.

 

[phattyduck]

I want to second the 'don't cut the boot' comment. It is just a couple of screws to remove the interior panel to get access to everything you need to view/fix things.

Replace broken wires and you'll be all good.

-Charlie

 

[brillo_76]

+1 never cut your rubber wire boots.

Sent from my SM-J337V using Tapatalk

 

[Tarp Man]

I have a similar problem with my 99 Limited. I worked the rubber boots off and found multiple broken wires in the loom. Is it possible to replace the whole wiring loom? I can't seem to get anywhere with my local Toyota dealer here in Victoria BC.

 

[Skulking]

I have a similar problem with my 99 Limited. I worked the rubber boots off and found multiple broken wires in the loom. Is it possible to replace the whole wiring loom? I can't seem to get anywhere with my local Toyota dealer here in Victoria BC.

Looking at the wiring diagram for my 2000, it looks like the answer is possibly, but only with a huge amount of work, and the replacement loom isn't available to buy. The wiring for the rear hatch runs uninterrupted from the drivers kick panel through into the tailgate, and the wires in the loom come from multiple connectors located in the kick panel area, so you would need to repin the connectors if you wanted to replace the loom. So while the answer isn't technically no, the answer is effectively no, you can't replace the loom.

 

[phattyduck]

Looking at the wiring diagram for my 2000, it looks like the answer is possibly, but only with a huge amount of work, and the replacement loom isn't available to buy. The wiring for the rear hatch runs uninterrupted from the drivers kick panel through into the tailgate, and the wires in the loom come from multiple connectors located in the kick panel area, so you would need to repin the connectors if you wanted to replace the loom. So while the answer isn't technically no, the answer is effectively no, you can't replace the loom.

No no, the loom has two connectors right in the roof, about 6" forward from the dome light. You can remove it from the hatch and body fairly easily. Finding the right loom is a challenge though and it probably isn't available new anymore.

I had one bad ground wire in mine that I repaired recently. It isn't too hard to pull it out of the body and repair it while it is hanging down from the (open) hatch. I repaired and repainted my license plate surround while I was there too...

-Charlie

 

[Skulking]

No no, the loom has two connectors right in the roof, about 6" forward from the dome light. You can remove it from the hatch and body fairly easily. Finding the right loom is a challenge though and it probably isn't available new anymore.

I had one bad ground wire in mine that I repaired recently. It isn't too hard to pull it out of the body and repair it while it is hanging down from the (open) hatch. I repaired and repainted my license plate surround while I was there too...

-Charlie

Good to know.

 

[Saltydog0332]

Rear wiper issue.

So, on my 01 SR5 nothing on my rear hatch was working. Fixed my broken wires at the flex point and now everything works fine except for 1 thing. if someone can confirm proper operation of the rear wiper I would appreciate it. My rear wiper works when I rotate the switch up to the Intermittent and constant mode. Then rotate 1 more position up and it sprays and wipes. From the off position if I rotate down it sprays but does not wipe. I believe it is suppose to wipe also. can anyone confirm that and if so point me in the right direction as to a possible fix. I believe it may be a relay in the rear hatch control box that is just inside the rear hatch panel. Thanks in advance.

 

[RodrickHeffley]

I actually have a question about this as well, my rear hatch lock seems to be on the fritz, normally I have to hit lock/unlock several times for it to actually 'lock' or 'unlock'.

the sensor that tells if the rear hatch is open (and controls the dome light) doesn't work hardly ever. I bought a new latch and am planning to install that but also wondering if there's anything else I should look for.

Thanks!