Where is the interior light circut/relay on 2g

[Corman12345]

I some how fried something while doing some electrical work and now my interior lights don't shut off when you shut the door. The only thing i can do now is just pull the fuse and live with out them. But my datalogger won't work for some reason unless the fuse in in and the lights are on. Does anyone know where the light circut or relay is. (I don't think there is a relay because the lights used to slowly dim to shut off.)
Thanks

 

[GTM]

Originally posted by Corman12345
I some how fried something while doing some electrical work and now my interior lights don't shut off when you shut the door.
...

Just a wild guess, did you turn the dimmer switch to max or to minimum?

Try putting at mid point and close the door.

After that you will need a book. We don't know what you did or didn't do with the wires and or what other circuits may also be involved.

Let us know what you find.

Cheers,
GTM

 

[Corman12345]

the dimmer switch didn't do anything. I got a new manual and looked in it and it says the lights, doorlocks, and power windows are all part of the Etacs ecu. Where the hell do I get one of those?? I have looked and have not found

 

[flinguist]

Originally posted by Corman12345
I some how fried something while doing some electrical work and now my interior lights don't shut off when you shut the door. The only thing i can do now is just pull the fuse and live with out them. But my datalogger won't work for some reason unless the fuse in in and the lights are on. Does anyone know where the light circut or relay is. (I don't think there is a relay because the lights used to slowly dim to shut off.)
Thanks

I had a similar problem. It turned out to be one of the door switches wasn't working, and the light was staying on. Check the switches with a meter, or disconnect them one at a time, and see if the problem goes away. Good luck.

 

[GTM]

Originally posted by flinguist
I had a similar problem. It turned out to be one of the door switches wasn't working, and the light was staying on. Check the switches with a meter, or disconnect them one at a time, and see if the problem goes away. Good luck.

Amazing what you forget when you get old and don't have the car in front of you. That should have been the _first_ thing to have checked. Don't forget to check the rear deck lid too. Usually these switches will just pop out or held in place with 1 screw and the harness wires are long enough to carefully pull through the hole as well. Sometimes a shot of WD-40 will clean them up without having to remove them. Take note of color codes and positions. Some makers have 2 switches in different locations, 1 controls the seat belt warning system and the other controls the lights. If it's the single switch it may have 3-4 wires, 1 being a ground for the lights and the other a pair for the belt system and yet another for the warning system. Do the switch testing/cleaning first THEN look at the book for you can spend hours digesting all that circuit diagram.

Cheers,
GTM

 

[GTM]

Originally posted by Corman12345
the dimmer switch didn't do anything. I got a new manual and looked in it and it says the lights, doorlocks, and power windows are all part of the Etacs ecu. Where the hell do I get one of those?? I have looked and have not found

I'm sorry I can't help with the actual location of the Etacs, ... under the dash? behind the radio?, above/below the radio?, near the fuse box???

Thinking about my previous post and your initial post of "rewiring" makes me think you tied into what you thought was a ground when in fact it was part of the bulb check circuit which uses a floating ground. If you know where you made those connections take them off and see what happens. Sometimes it's hard to see a color trace on what looks to be an all black wire when in fact it's not meant to be used as a ground. Most common occurance is installing an aftermarket radio and may also have a power antenna provision. These can give you nightmares especially if you used a universal plug adapter and the color codes don't match with any diagram your have. Can't tell you how many customers claiming waranty malfunction when in fact they changed the sound system and think you won't notice. You give them the choice of paying shop labor rate and bring the wiring diagram while I study what was supposed to be and what in fact was done or take it to a professional shop where they specialize in knowing how things go together for 200 different radio types.

Cheers,
GTM

 

[Corman12345]

I am sure its not the door switches because i did check them and they are all fine. The etacs ecu is right to the left of the clutch pedal behind the fuse box. When I bought the car all the wiring was F'd up, the door locks didn't work so someone got in there and started putting wires togeather and cutting this and that, then they tried to put the radio in without a harness. I tried my best to put the doorlocks all back togeather and fixed the radio the right way. but there are still hundreds of cut wires everywhere. I have found that if i hook 12V+ to a wire near the radio the lights work but once again don't shut off. When the lights are on, my datalogger will work.

 

[GTM]

Originally posted by Corman12345

...
but there are still hundreds of cut wires everywhere. I have found that if i hook 12V+ to a wire near the radio the lights work but once again don't shut off. When the lights are on, my datalogger will work.

Thanks for the location info, I'll try to remember. I'm not DSM expert but have worked on thousands of cars and studied a lot of wiring diagrams.

Don't know if these questions will help but it may steer you onto something. Do the chimes work? Does the bulb and component tests work. In other words when you turn the key on it performs a series of tests and will indicate (supposedly) if something is wrong. When someone modifies a circuit and can't solve the problem they introduced they may remove the bulb so it's not on all the time.

The fact the data logger is able to work when you attach select wires suggests something else has been cut. You are just going to have to dig through the diagrams, find the wire which you connected and see where it goes and comes from.

Maybe someone else can jump in here with more info but in the final analysis you will have to 1 by 1 repair each circuit. It might make more sense to restore to factory condition and then ADD in what you want. At least that way you will know and understand what the last person did not.

It can be an overwhealming job and it's easy to get confused, so when you discover something write it down in a notebook so you can refer back to that as you move on to another wire or area. If you have Pick a part wrecking yards in your area you could try to get a wiring loom from a like car, won't be easy.

Cheers,
GTM