dome light/courtesy lights

Hello,

It sounds like the pin switch on the drivers side is bad. Can you remove it to see if the problem continues? Here is the wiring diagrams so you can see how the system works.

Check out the diagrams (Below). Please let us know what happens.

[quote:b9ccb11659="bluelightnin6"]could be sticky door ajar switch, try lubricating door latches with WD 40..[/quote:b9ccb11659]

I should have been a bit more precise.. The courtesy/dome light almost NEVER turns off when you close the doors. The dome light override switch has no effect and the door switches check good. I have to leave the #3 fuse out all the time. A few times the light would go off and then, sometime in the middle of the night, they would just come on. That is why I pulled the fuse.
I was having issues with the AC flap controls, which I corrected, and decided to tackle the dome light issue while I was working on the AC venting flaps.
Thanks for the advise.
Norm

if door ajar switches tested good then the dome switch itself on instrument panel may be bad, or it could possibly be the wiring but that is the hardest to check out and replace so its best to test the switch first

I had this problem and had to replace the pin switch. Cost $12.00

Why does my cargo lamp turn off when my dome lights are on and it will turn on when they turn off on a 1997 silverado ext cab

Hello,

It sounds like the headlight dimmer switch is bad, here is a wiring diagrams so you can see how the system works. Check out the diagrams (Below). Please let us know what you find. We are interested to see what it is.

when the temperature drops below 35 degrees or so my dome/courtesy lights come on automatically. this usually happens in the middle of the night and the draw triggers my alarm to go off. if you push the "dome override" button it will turn them off and when the temp warms above 40 degrees or so you can deactivate the dome override and the courtesy lights will not be on but as soon as the temp drops, they come back on and you have to "override" them. I suspected the headlight switch because I've heard it click and the dome lights go off when it warms and also the deactivation on the switch turns them off. the original switch got to where the interior lights wouldn't even come on anymore so I replaced the switch. dome lights worked intermittently so I returned that switch and the new one worked fine (as normal) for a few days then it started the coming on in the middle of the night.. as did the next one. this brand was aftermarket and inexpensive compared to the AC-Delco replacement, I've ordered one of those and it's on it's way. could there be a courtesy light relay that is bad and it's causing these headlight switches to "burn out" or go bad, just cheap replacement parts so far, or another problem? for 10 years my Daytime Running Lamps have not stepped down or stepped up like they did when they were new, the DRL's are the same brightness as the regular headlights, and I think originally they stepped down to 60% on DRL's. any of this related, two problems? thanks.

for the drl have it scnned for codes it may be a module problem. and have it scanned for dome light as well it may be the module is doing this see pic. a pro will have to scan for both.

The interior lights do not come on when open up the door or by the light switch.

Hello,

There is a courtesy light fuse #3 that needs to be checked. Here is a guide to help you test the fuse and the fuse location with the dome light wiring diagrams so you can see how the system works:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-check-a-car-fuse

Check out the diagrams (below). Please let us know what you find.

Cheers, Ken

Thank you. I will be definitely be checking that out this weekend. Again thanks

Please let us know.

I went to a drive in movie and hooked a speaker up to my dash speaker and accidentally touched a wire to my tool box in my bed and seen a little spark but did not blow a fuse,now floor lights and dome light wont go off unless I pull fuse,whats bad about that is my radio is part of that fuse.does anyone know what to do?

disconnect the radio and see if lights stay on and will go off, it may be a rdio problem haveburnt something up in it as the lights and radio use same fuse for memory on radio.

Electrical problem
1994 Chevy Silverado V8 Four Wheel Drive Automatic

1994 chevy 3500 HD

my interior lights and parking do not work.

head lights and turn signals and brake lights do work, and all the guages work. the cig lighter works as does the heater and after market radio. i removed the factory amp and radio and used a wire adapter kit to install a am/fm/cd player. i do not remember if the lights worked before the radio swap or not. i replaced the switches 3 times and the fuses are all good

Did you use a testlite on the park lamps fuse. You shouldn't need to pull the fuse. There should be a bare spot over each leg. If voltage on each leg, the fuse is good and there is voltage. Even if the fuse is good, no voltage and the circuit is dead. Did you check for voltage and ground at tail lamp socket? The brown wire from headlamp switch is voltage for tail lamps.

When transporting this truck across country, I needed to have wiring installed for a u-haul trailer. This is when the problems began. First it was the fuse that controlled the radio, then the a/c then the radio again, then the a/c again. Replaced fuses over and over and finally no more blown fuses. Now when you open the door, there are no interior lights or ding sounds (checked bulbs, replaced all fuses twice, all green per tester). The cold a/c also shuts off when I put it on HI. The gauge for the temperature is also broken. It barely moves at all no matter the driving conditions. I think the thermostat is working, but the gauge isn't. How do I fix this?

If this all started right after you had the trailer wiring installed then I would start with checking into that wiring (do not go back to the same place ok). Some mechanics seem to think that they need to cut and splice to wire for a trailer and with your truck this is not true. You go to a local parts store and buy a plug in simple wiring adapter harness and just plug in connect the grould (white wire) and thats it done. So look at what was done and if it was a cut and splice install then have it fixed and done right first.

I checked the wiring, it was all clamped up and the black wire was stripped and exposed. How is correcting that wiring going to fix the whole short?

If it was touching other stuff then it might don't know for sure as I dont have the vehicle in my hands. Did they do a splice and cut on the install of the trailer connector or did they but in a plug in simple set up? like this one. This is the one that should fit your truck with out cutting anything.

Hope this helps

it seems the wires were cut and clipped to an adapter. Poorly I might add. I'll send a picture as soon as I take one

Ok great and what you might want to consider is removing there mess and buying the plug in simple one just like the one I sent a pic of and redo it right then you will have peace of mind that is right. When I say it is plug in simple I mean you unplug the tail light harnes plug this in the middle and put the ground or white wire to good spot on the frame or bumper area and thats it.

will this fix the short?

Unfortunatly you won't know till you do it. If the problem started right after the instulation of it then you would think it should.

I have a 1992 1500 series 4x4 v8 Chev Silverado with approx. 150000 miles on it.
The problem is, just recently the interior(dome& two floor) lights came on by themselves while I was driving. Since then, they wont shut off. The only way I can shut them off is by removing the courtsey fuse from the fuse box.
I've replaced the two door jam switches but, still have the same problem.
The interior lights will flicker from time to time and sometimes shut off briefly while driving but, stay on for the most part. My aftermarket radio/cd player runs off the same fuse as the lights but works fine even though the lights flicker or shut off briefly. I've had the radio/cd player in the truck for 5 years so, I don't think that's the problem.
The interior light dimmer switch seems to be working correctly. It allows me to either turn off the dash lights completely or put them to their brightest.
All other electrical works fine and I haven't had any electrical problems up until this time.
Any tips on how to possibly solve this problem would be appreciated.
Thanks

thank you for all your help

Solving this could get a little messy, but we can start with some easy stuff. Your observation about the radio being on the same circuit is valid, but that is the 12 volt supply for both circuits and it feeds the interior lights all the time. The lights are switched on the ground side of the circuit. That way only one wire has to run to each switch, and the other switches' wires are just tabs that are part of their mounting hardware. The exception is when the switch is mounted to a plastic part such as when GM puts them on the side of the dash pad, or when there's multiple circuits being switch by that switch.

The first thing to do is remove and unplug every door switch. There may be one on the side of the dash and another one on the "B" pillar near the door latch's striker. You'll also have to unplug the head light switch. The rheostat for the dash lights and the dome light switch are two totally different parts of the switch. Also, if there is anything that causes a delay in turning off the lights, you'll have to find that too and unplug it.

At this point, if you measure the voltage on any wire that was connected to a door switch, you SHOULD find 12 volts and the lights should be off. If the lights are still on, you're going to find 0 volts indicating that circuit has a short to ground somewhere. This is where it can get messy by taking a lot of interior panels apart to find the short. Before we get to that point, since the intermittent flickering tells us this isn't a solid grounded connection, consider running around the truck with a rubber hammer. Watch for flickering as you pound in various places.

You are welcome and let me know how it turns out if we need to go deeper then I will see what I can do ok. Thanks for your support too.

Thanks for the info did all that and still lights won't come off any other suggestions

Next, remove the dome light assemblies. Some designs have socket terminals that can touch the body if they aren't positioned correctly, particularly those that use the tube light bulbs that have a round cap on each end. These assemblies often get their ground circuit through the mounting screws.

This is where it gets messy. An orange wire feeds the 12 volts to most of the lights. They have white wires that get grounded by any of the switches to turn all of them on. Those white wires run to every light socket and to every switch. If any of those wires has rubbed through the insulation and is touching the body, all the lights on that circuit will turn on. If you can't find a clue as to the location of the short by wiggling and tugging on the wires, you have to start cutting them apart. Later you'll have to splice all those cuts back together.

Think of having a leak in an underground lawn sprinkler system. There's no way to tell where the leak is. All you know is water is flowing through the main pipe. To isolate the branch with the leak you would have to block each circuit until the leak stopped. That means turning off various valves to the individual branches. Cutting a wire is like closing a valve. The only problem is soldering and sealing all those cuts takes a lot more time then turning a valve.

Th Thanks will try again I did notice that on the dome light there is a white wire that touches the truck body I should disconnect. And see if all the lights turn off

Yup. The white wires go to ground through the switches, not directly.

nothing seems to work i give up

I have courtesy lights that came from the factory, and when I open the door, the dome courtesy light comes on, but the floor lights do not. The bulbs are fine, so what else could I do to fix this?

If the overhead lights come on and the floor ones don't, there has to be an open in the wiring. Basically, a wire is disconnected or broken. Trace the wiring back from the lights themselves to see if you can find a problem. Also, use a test light to see if there is presently power to the light socket. You may even have a ground issue, so make sure the test like has a good ground.

I have a 1995 Chevy K1500 with a 350. My interior lights do not come on when a door is open. If I turn the dimmer dial then I can manually turn on my dome and floor lights. My truck does have a "Dome light off" button, I have made sure that this is not engaged. Any suggestions.

there should be a small push in door switch close to the hinges, so when you open up the door the switch comes out. make sure the switch isn't stuck inward.

I have the same problem, what if that doesn't work?

That will work, here is the wring diagram for you so you can get the problem fixed.

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-use-a-test-light-circuit-tester

Please run this test and get back to us so we can continue helping you.

Best, Ken

I have a 1994 1500 series 4x4 v8 Chev Silverado with approx. 150000 miles on it.
The problem is, just recently the interior(dome& two floor) lights came on by themselves while I was driving. Since then, they wont shut off. The only way I can shut them off is by removing the courtsey fuse from the fuse box.
I've replaced the two door jam switches but, still have the same problem.
The interior lights will flicker from time to time and sometimes shut off briefly while driving but, stay on for the most part. My aftermarket radio/cd player runs off the same fuse as the lights but works fine even though the lights flicker or shut off briefly. I've had the radio/cd player in the truck for 5 years so, I don't think that's the problem.
The interior light dimmer switch seems to be working correctly. It allows me to either turn off the dash lights completely or put them to their brightest.
All other electrical works fine and I haven't had any electrical problems up until this time.
Any tips on how to possibly solve this problem would be appreciated.
Thanks
Paul