"Door Open" light problem

[Mike415]

It just started showing up even though all the doors are completely closed. It wont go away if I depress that button on the right front door which is the problem door I think. But as I drive and make turns it goes away then comes back on and flickers and stuff. Do you think the problem is some wires, the button, or the frame or what?

 

[kat]

Not sure if this is relevant, but what year is it?

Mine is the opposite, it will selectively turn on when it wants to. Sometimes I open the door or back door and it won't turn on so i'm stuck in the dark.

 

[trd_style]

Are you talking about the dome light or the light for the 4th gen steps light? I never had any problems with my dome light just the fact that it's not bright enough. -_- I have a 3rd gen T4R.

 

[Mike415]

1997, its the red light on the dash that shows when a doors open, NOT the top light.

 

[alotawatts]

Have you tried pulling the door switch ? Clean the pin/spring wires and ground.

 

[broncosi]

Are you talking about the dome light or the light for the 4th gen steps light?

cough cough this is 3rd gen section cough cough

1997, its the red light on the dash that shows when a doors open, NOT the top light.

check your back hatch make sure that is closed tight, i had that issue a while back i didnt know which door was open and it turned out it was the back hatch and stopping and going made the light go on and off. Also since your dome light isnt wired to your back hatch it wouldnt come on(like your situation) when the back hatch is open.

 

[Mike415]

WOW!, that was it. I wonder why the light went off when I was pulling in on the door sometimes and when I slammed it closed in the parking lot. Thanks a lot though Broncosi and everyone

 

[broncosi]

WOW! Thanks a lot though Broncosi and everyone

glad to help, thats what were here for :

 

[DC2LA]

i'm having the same problem. when all 4 doors are closed the light will flicker on and off like a gas-empty-guage. where is the rear door hatch sensor? i can't find it. how do i "clean" it? plz help.

 

[allyall]

Pesky Door Ajar light

Thanks for all the updates. I had a similar problem and just got the fix. My door ajar light would come on randomly while truck was parked, setting off the alarm. I haven't been able to lock it for over two years. It also flickered while driving. My issue turned out to be the wire to the rear hatch. I took apart and cleaned all four door jamb switches with a screwdriver and electrical contact cleaner. Light still flickered. Then I took the rear hatch latch off (three bolts). I cut the wire cover length wise, then clipped the red wire. Bingo. door ajar light has not come on since. (granted, this is a permanent fix and won't be "warned" if rear hatch isn't shut completely, but at least I can lock my truck again).

 

[FD7683]

I've been fighting this problem for almost a year. Today I was able to pull off all 4 door sensors and clean them which got them all working 100% and I did check it by multimeter and the cabin light turning on/off.

When I opened the hatch, the cabin light did not turn on indicating an issue with the hatch door. I have it narrowed down to either be the hatch wiring harness which I already know I have frayed wires or could be the entire latch mechanism. I hope i'm not missing something here with this issue.

 

[rwoolverton]

I fixed it. It was the rear door latch. A few years ago my rear door starting not closing tight no matter how hard or soft I slammed it. Played with the post thinking moving it foward would tighten up the door. Not much adjustment if any there. At that time I didn't have a door open light staying on. That came later. When it did I was able to play around with different closing techniques to extinguish the light. Then no matter what I did no bueno. After reading all the posts decided it's got to be the latch. I took the rear door panels off to get a better look. Removed the three bolts holding the latch on. Saw the wire coming from the latch. It's actually two wires in a sheath. It terminates as a plug which facilitates the easy removal of the latch. Unplugging turns off the light. Don't have to cut any wires. This is one solution. I then inspected the latch. The piece that engages the post in the latch housing can be manually closed and then manually opened by pulling on the cable. I was able to turn the light off and on by doing this simulating a door closed and door open condition. So why isn't the light going out normally? The latch part in the housing that pivots approximately 90 degrees was pivoting less than the full amount causing the door not to fully close, yes close and lock but not tightly. And the door ajar sensor in the housing was only partially activated. The latch can not be taken apart and reassembled unfortunately. Two rivet like bolts hold everything together. Upon closer inspection I saw the problem. The latch part that pivots on the left rivet was originally coated in plastic. That plastic coating, due to corrosion and years of exposure, had come loose. While most of the plastic was missing there were bits and pieces present that were preventing the pivot latch from fully pivoting 90 degrees. I removed as much of the plastic as possible, sprayed the inside of the housing with wd40 and reassembled everything. No more light and a nice tight fit when the door is closed. A new latch will cost you $130 if this doesn't free up the latch. Long story short. Don't have to take the panels off. Just open the door and dig out the little pieces of plastic in the latch, if any, spray wd40 in the latch. If you are good don't even have to remove the three latch mounting bolts. Oh and don't over tighten the bolts. I did and snapped one.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

 

[rwoolverton]

I've been fighting this problem for almost a year. Today I was able to pull off all 4 door sensors and clean them which got them all working 100% and I did check it by multimeter and the cabin light turning on/off.

When I opened the hatch, the cabin light did not turn on indicating an issue with the hatch door. I have it narrowed down to either be the hatch wiring harness which I already know I have frayed wires or could be the entire latch mechanism. I hope i'm not missing something here with this issue.

I fixed it. It was the rear door latch. A few years ago my rear door starting not closing tight no matter how hard or soft I slammed it. Played with the post thinking moving it foward would tighten up the door. Not much adjustment if any there. At that time I didn't have a door open light staying on. That came later. When it did I was able to play around with different closing techniques to extinguish the light. Then no matter what I did no bueno. After reading all the posts decided it's got to be the latch. I took the rear door panels off to get a better look. This is a PITA. Can skip. See end of post. Removed the three bolts holding the latch on. Saw the wire coming from the latch. It's actually two wires in a sheath. It terminates as a plug which facilitates the easy removal of the latch. Unplugging turns off the light. Don't have to cut any wires. This is one solution. I then inspected the latch. The piece that engages the post in the latch housing can be manually closed and then manually opened by pulling on the cable. I was able to turn the light off and on by doing this simulating a door closed and door open condition. So why isn't the light going out normally? The latch part in the housing that pivots approximately 90 degrees was pivoting less than the full amount causing the door not to fully close, yes close and lock but not tightly. And the door ajar sensor in the housing was only partially activated. The latch can not be taken apart and reassembled unfortunately. Two rivet like bolts hold everything together. Upon closer inspection I saw the problem. The latch part that pivots on the left rivet was originally coated in plastic. That plastic coating, due to corrosion and years of exposure, had come loose. While most of the plastic was missing there were bits and pieces present that were preventing the pivot latch from fully pivoting 90 degrees. I removed as much of the plastic as possible, sprayed the inside of the housing with wd40 and reassembled everything. No more light and a nice tight fit when the door is closed. A new latch will cost you $130 if this doesn't free up the latch. Long story short. Don't have to take the panels off. Just open the door and dig out the little pieces of plastic in the latch, if any, spray wd40 in the latch. If you are good don't even have to remove the three latch mounting bolts. Oh and don't over tighten the bolts. I did and snapped one.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

 

[FD7683]

I fixed it. It was the rear door latch. A few years ago my rear door starting not closing tight no matter how hard or soft I slammed it. Played with the post thinking moving it foward would tighten up the door. Not much adjustment if any there. At that time I didn't have a door open light staying on. That came later. When it did I was able to play around with different closing techniques to extinguish the light. Then no matter what I did no bueno. After reading all the posts decided it's got to be the latch. I took the rear door panels off to get a better look. Removed the three bolts holding the latch on. Saw the wire coming from the latch. It's actually two wires in a sheath. It terminates as a plug which facilitates the easy removal of the latch. Unplugging turns off the light. Don't have to cut any wires. This is one solution. I then inspected the latch. The piece that engages the post in the latch housing can be manually closed and then manually opened by pulling on the cable. I was able to turn the light off and on by doing this simulating a door closed and door open condition. So why isn't the light going out normally? The latch part in the housing that pivots approximately 90 degrees was pivoting less than the full amount causing the door not to fully close, yes close and lock but not tightly. And the door ajar sensor in the housing was only partially activated. The latch can not be taken apart and reassembled unfortunately. Two rivet like bolts hold everything together. Upon closer inspection I saw the problem. The latch part that pivots on the left rivet was originally coated in plastic. That plastic coating, due to corrosion and years of exposure, had come loose. While most of the plastic was missing there were bits and pieces present that were preventing the pivot latch from fully pivoting 90 degrees. I removed as much of the plastic as possible, sprayed the inside of the housing with wd40 and reassembled everything. No more light and a nice tight fit when the door is closed. A new latch will cost you $130 if this doesn't free up the latch. Long story short. Don't have to take the panels off. Just open the door and dig out the little pieces of plastic in the latch, if any, spray wd40 in the latch. If you are good don't even have to remove the three latch mounting bolts. Oh and don't over tighten the bolts. I did and snapped one.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

Hey man thanks for the update! My problem is finally linked to the rear latch as well because I have cleaned all 4 door sensors and repaired all cracked wires from the hatch wiring harness and the light is still on. On further inspection of the rear latch it seems like some kind of plastic in there is broken so in the future I will be replacing the latch with a new assembly and finally program my new key fob.