Internal lights wont go off, light on dash says door is ajar (all doors are securely closed). Does anything else run off the same fuse as the one that runs the internal lights??? Dont want my battery to die!!! Please help, thanks in advance!!!

Internal lights wont go off, light on dash says door is ajar (all doors are securely closed). Does anything else run off the same fuse as the one that runs the internal lights??? Dont want my battery to die!!! Please help, thanks in advance!!!


Please do a search on the Windstar forum for dome light. There are lots of good posts about this.

Your lights will shut off after about 40 mts. I believe other items do use the same fuse.

Regards

Dan

Sometimes the electrical connection on the side door can become dirty enough to cause it not to make good contact and indicate to the system the door is still open, and thus leave the interior light on as well. Get a good pencil eraser and see if you can clean those contacts up. Cheap fix if this is the issue. I had that happen on two Windstars now.

Those contacts have nothing to do with the dome lights--they are for the speakers and the door locks on the sliding doors. The dome lights are controlled by the door and hatch switches. Shoot each with WD40 to see if they free up.

i had the same problem turned out to be the back hatch latches needed a spray of wd-40

Those contacts have nothing to do with the dome lights--they are for the speakers and the door locks on the sliding doors. The dome lights are controlled by the door and hatch switches. Shoot each with WD40 to see if they free up.

frostie is right on. In fact if you want to know where the door close (or door ajar) switches are for the sliding doors they are on the rear door jamb and they are pushbutton switches. Of course the problems are normally due to the hatch switches.

Lots of info here..........keep searching)

frostie is right on. In fact if you want to know where the door close (or door ajar) switches are for the sliding doors they are on the rear door jamb and they are pushbutton switches. Of course the problems are normally due to the hatch switches.

Lots of info here..........keep searching)

DRW

What conects the switch in the latch in the sliding door to the the body if it's not the contacts?

Dan

Just the general body wiring (ie. same way the power gets to the back lights, etc).

Just the general body wiring (ie. same way the power gets to the back lights, etc).

How are they routed? The door moves out and slides back. I haven't seen any wires.

I misread your question when I answered. We are talking about 2 separate things here.

You are correct. The finger contacts on the sliding door do control the latches (locks) on the sliding door. They also feed the speakers in the sliding doors.

But this thread started by asking about the door ajar and interior lights. WX5TVS suggested cleaning the finger contacts. My point was that the fingers have nothing to do with the interior lights. The plungers that control them are wired through the body wiring, not the fingers.

DRW

What conects the switch in the latch in the sliding door to the the body if it's not the contacts?

Dan

Dan,

Not sure if I understand what you are asking but the door ajar switch for the for the sliding doors is a simple plunger type momentary contact push button switch. The actual wiring to the switch and the switch itself is mounted on the vehicle side. The sliding door simply pushes the pushbutton upon closing.

As an experiment I used electrical tape and covered all 4 of my spring loaded plunger type contact switches (the ones most think are the door ajar ones) and the door ajar worked normally but the speakers and door locks did not. In fact if you think about it these switches make contact prior to the door closing and would not really make sense to be the door ajar feedback.

I've located the sliding door switches but where are the back hatch switches?
Thanks,
Jeff

The hatch switches are integral to the hatch latch. There is one on each side. To access them you need to remove the interior hatch trim. (10 minute job).

But this thread started by asking about the door ajar and interior lights. WX5TVS suggested cleaning the finger contacts. My point was that the fingers have nothing to do with the interior lights. The plungers that control them are wired through the body wiring, not the fingers.

I do stand corrected, and he is right. I was thinking about another vehicle I had for a short time that had the problem with the door contacts.

The hatch switches are integral to the hatch latch. There is one on each side. To access them you need to remove the interior hatch trim. (10 minute job).
Not sure how to do this - do you just 'pop' out the four plastic widgets with a scewdriver? (two on the left and two on the right). Then after unscrewing the handle - will the bottom panel just slide out. Look slike nothing is holdong this in place.

The hatch switches are integral to the hatch latch. There is one on each side. To access them you need to remove the interior hatch trim. (10 minute job).
Not sure how to do this - do you just 'pop' out the four plastic widgets on either side of the rear window with a scewdriver? (two on the left and two on the right). Then after unscrewing the handle - will the bottom panel just slide out? Look slike nothing is holding the trim in place.

Not sure how to do this - do you just 'pop' out the four plastic widgets on either side of the rear window with a scewdriver? (two on the left and two on the right). Then after unscrewing the handle - will the bottom panel just slide out? Look slike nothing is holding the trim in place.

I will look at my hatch. I removed it this past summer. I can't remember how but I know it was simple and relatively obvious.

I hope you had fix the problem by this time, but if not try what I did, on the side door pillar there are four contacts try with a piece of wire to wire jump the two bottom connectors that will kill the chime and lights, but one thing there going to be bypassed all the time, that worked for me like a charm.
Good luck...

I hope you had fix the problem by this time, but if not try what I did, on the side door pillar there are four contacts try with a piece of wire to wire jump the two bottom connectors that will kill the chime and lights, but one thing there going to be bypassed all the time, that worked for me like a charm.
Good luck...

If your are refering to the sliding doors then the 4 contacts are: 2 for the speaker in the door and 2 for the door lock. These have nothing to do with the door ajar light. the door ajar switch is at the back door jamb and is a simple pushbutton. In fact if you really think about it the spring loaded contacts you have mentioned contact well before the door is closed and thus would only be capable of detecting a door that is open by about an inch or more if they were the door ajar contacts.

Those contacts have nothing to do with the dome lights--they are for the speakers and the door locks on the sliding doors. The dome lights are controlled by the door and hatch switches. Shoot each with WD40 to see if they free up.

This info is wrong for the sliding door sensor at least when it involves a 98 windstar. You will not find any plunger for the sliding door at the back door jamb. The sensor DOES pass through the 4 pins ( 2 bottom ones to be exact ). I had the problem with my 98 and just posted TESTING proceedure as well as a SOLUTION if WD-40 doesn't work. You can review this info here.

http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=3977963#post3977963