Rear window wiring woes

[TrueNorthist]

Hiya folks. I have a 91 T4R that I am re-awakening after a 3 year layup. The second night after installing the battery my wife noticed that the left front turn light came on and stayed on, even though the truck was off. After extensive troubleshooting (3 days worth) I discovered a badly corroded harness connector in the C pillar above the left rear wheel well. (Stupid place to put a connector, but I digress) The wheel well had corroded to the point that road spray was coating the connector and several of the pins were no longer making contact which over time lead to the light issue. I have been soldering in jumper wires for the bad contacts but the pins continue to corrode so I am going to solder all of them.

The problem is that at some point the rear window stopped raising regardless of the switch used. It will go down but not up if I use the tail-gate switch, nothing at all using the rocker on the shift console. I have tested the regulator and it works fine in both directions when disconnected and supplied with 12v. Connect it and it only goes down, not up using only the rear door key switch. The console rocker switch has been failing for some time so I want to eliminate it until I find a good used one which may take months or even years, if ever. Can I simply remove the console rocker and lock-out switches (the lock out is also suspect) and use the rear key switch only, or do I need to use jumper wires at the deleted switch plugs? Also, does anyone know where the rear door closed sensors/switches are? Are they up near the latches in the rear door on each side? There is wiring going to something up there on both sides but do not see any kind of contact points, triggers nor mounting screws. Are they magnetic sensors?

Thanks for any suggestions. :hatsoff:

 

[yotafreak]

rear window problems

hey true northist, I have the same problem. I have a 91 4runner V6 3.0 5 speed manual, automatic locking hubs. My problem is the opposite. Mine works from the rocker switch in the console both up and down and from the key on the gate it will only work closing it, but not opening it. I have tried several things like replacing the switch and rewiring from the relay to the switch, but still no luck. I am afraid if I bypass the relay I will fry the motor. I want it fixed but not sure what to do next. I am not sure how to test the relay. It just sucks because I have to put the key in the ON position in order to have the window go down and its a real pain in the ass.

 

[willyt4r]

12 volt gut 4runner wiring kit

here is the solution:
4 RUNNER REAR WINDOW KIT

 

[TrueNorthist]

That's a good option if I give up trying to fix it but I'm nowhere near that point yet. But I will save the link.

Cheers.

And Yotafreak if I come up with a solution I will let you know. I should be able to fix it once I get it figgered. Stay tuned.

 

[TrueNorthist]

Yotafreak, I have discovered that the rear wiper position switch can be a problem. I "fixed" mine temporarily and I can now run the window up and down with the key switch. I still cannot operate the window from the console but I am making progress.

You will find this page very useful. Scroll around for the section that describes your situation exactly.

More to come as I find it. The biggest hurdle was finding out that the door is energised constantly and uses ground switches to complete the circuit.

 

[TrueNorthist]

After jumping the connector above the left rear wheel-well (19 wires) the console switch still refused to work, so I tracked down and cleaned/resurfaced every single ground and seperated and cleaned all the connectors and switches that I could find on the entire truck. Most were corroded or had a little scab on the contacts that was breaking the circuit. I now have working dome lights in the middle and rear for the first time in 5 years. I also attached a ground strap between the rear door and the chassis and installed a new DPDT rocker switch in the console. (Jobber switch from an electronics supplier) The window stutters when the engine is running but at least it moves. It runs smooth when the engine is off so I figure there is an issue with the alternator or something... What is most infuriating is that Toyota made all the wiring so tight that there is nothing to work with! I have had to splice in wire all over the place. grrrrrr.

I'll troubleshoot the stutter later. I need to do something other than Toyota wiring for a while or I might go stark raving sane.:wacko:

 

[yotafreak]

hey true northist, you mentioned the rear wiper switch. What did you do to temporarily make it work. Did you disconnect it , bypass it , or replace it.
Maybe i should also look at the wiring diagram. I would imagine the relay couldn't be bad because it does everything except roll down. Thanx for all the info.

 

[TrueNorthist]

I was referring to the write-up at that link. He has 2 sections on wiper related issues that I thought you might find interesting. And yes, the wiring dia is very useful indeed. I rigged up a set of jumpers for running the window from the rear key switch connector and it went both ways which means the switch is knackered. I found another relay box and key switch at a wrecker down the road ($20 for both!) and will be installing them tomorrow, but everything is working as it is now. It just stutters when the engine is running.

I am thinking it was several grounding issues that was the problem with mine,. Like I said, I cleaned up every connector and ground on the truck and added a strap for the gate just in case. I ran continuity tests on everything too just to be sure the connections were good. It's a maze of wires but once you get the hang of it things move along without much fuss. I am already working on a replacement relay set-up of my own.

When you replaced the rear switch did you test at the connector before assembling? At the plug you should have one ground and two hots in a row. Just jump the hots to ground and it should raise or lower the window. Be careful running the window with the gate down! (You will need to trip the latches on both sides to defeat the lockout)