guys...any idea? (door/interior light problem)

36885 Views 32 Replies 20 Participants Last post by tomboy66, Mar 24, 2017

yacob

Discussion Starter · Feb 27, 2010

why when i open only the sliding door(driver side)the interior lights don't work,couple of weeks ago when i open the door the lights were like on and off,but as thursday they stop working..thanks again guys..maybe a fuse? any ideas are appreciated

EDIT: added descriptive words to title for ease of identification
BY: topspy/Mod-Squad

1 - 20 of 33 Posts

Family Buggy

· #2 · Feb 27, 2010

Re: guys...any idea?

Have you checked the main switch in the center of the dash? It has 3 settings: all on, all off and door operated. I know a couple of times for us that switch has been bumped.

EDIT: Ooops...just noticed you said "only the driver's side sliding door". Hmmm...not sure then. There must be some kind of switch on that door that's acting up.

tcp

· #3 · Feb 27, 2010

Re: guys...any idea?

There are some electrical contacts on the ends of the doors. Make sure they are clean, not corroded and making good contact with the body side contacts.

yacob said:
why when i open only the sliding door(driver side)the interior lights don't work,couple of weeks ago when i open the door the lights were like on and off,but as thursday they stop working..thanks again guys..maybe a fuse? any ideas are appreciated

yacob

Discussion Starter · #4 · Feb 27, 2010

Re: guys...any idea?

could you please be more specific(where are they located )or more info,thanks

wiswind

· #5 · Feb 27, 2010

Re: guys...any idea?

Left (driver side) slidding door contacts on my 2003, non-powered door.
1st picture is the contacts on the door pillar, 2nd picture is on the door.

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robo5

· #6 · Feb 27, 2010

Re: guys...any idea?

yacob said:
could you please be more specific(where are they located )or more info,thanks

What year is the sienna? Yes the 1998-2002 has the electrical contacts(not sure if that controls the interior light?). 2004-2010 have a switch that is located on the body at the back of the sliding door.

brian_bp

· #7 · Feb 27, 2010

Re: guys...any idea?

robo5 said:
Yes the 1998-2002 has the electrical contacts(not sure if that controls the interior light?). 2004-2010 have a switch that is located on the body at the back of the sliding door.

... and (in the 2004-2010 second generation) the electrical connections between the body and door are made with cabling at the bottom of the door, instead of those exposed contacts.

I agree that (regardless of the year) if the lights work as expected in response the passenger-side sliding door, but not the driver-side sliding door, then it is likely the switch (or perhaps contact if 2003 or earlier) at that door.

yacob

Discussion Starter · #8 · Feb 28, 2010

Re: guys...any idea?

well,mine is 2004 is the non powered sliding door,can you point me where in the back is the switch?thanks

robo5

· #9 · Mar 2, 2010

Here is a pic of the sliding door switch. With the sliding door opened all the way. There is a black rubber cover over the switch itself. Note the bolt is also the ground for that circuit. If it is loose the light will not work properly. Sometimes you can wiggle the switch contact to get it to work.

Sorry for the dirty van. It think it was my job to do it this week

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brian_bp

· #10 · Mar 2, 2010

robo5 said:
Here is a pic of the sliding door switch...

... on the passenger side, so it looks like a mirror image of the malfunctioning driver's side. That switch is in the body at the back of the opening; the rear part of the door pushes inward against the switch as it finishes closing.

robo5

· #11 · Mar 2, 2010

brian_bp said:
robo5 said:

Here is a pic of the sliding door switch...

Click to expand...

... on the passenger side, so it looks like a mirror image of the malfunctioning driver's side. That switch is in the body at the back of the opening; the rear part of the door pushes inward against the switch as it finishes closing.

Thank you. ;D.Yes the picture I took was of the passenger side due to the fact that my drivers sliding door does not open when cold. Habit. I don't use my drivers sliding door much in the winter. That will be my spring "fix" thread. ;D

yacob

Discussion Starter · #12 · Mar 9, 2010

i did check and cleaned everything nothing helped so what else can i do? thanks guys :-[

2006SiennaLE

· #13 · Mar 9, 2010

Probably a faulty switch then. I'm quite sure it'll work once you replace the switch.

yacob

Discussion Starter · #14 · Mar 9, 2010

the switch is the one with the black rubber cover?

2006SiennaLE

· #15 · Mar 9, 2010

yacob said:
the switch is the one with the black rubber cover?

Yup.
If you haven't already, try cleaning the part of the door that connects to the U-shaped bolt. It's possible that it's not making contact.
From your description, the problem is definitely local to that door.

Have you tried pressing that switch a few times with your finger?
Also try some WD-40 on it before you replace it. These switches are supposedly tested for lots of pushes but they can fail. My Contour's switch failed after 10 years. Haven't replaced it yet.

toyofan129

· #16 · Jan 28, 2011

Recently I've had similar issue with this black rubber cover switch on the passenger side sliding door of my 2009 LE. Normally, interior lights are supposed to come on when this sliding door is open if the interior light main switch is set to "Door". However sometime, I found interior lights do not come on when I opened this sliding door either manually or by remote control. Moreover, when this happened, I also found the door status indicator on dash board did not come on either. The issue appears to be intermittent. Like rob5 suggested, if you wiggle it a bit, the interior lights and the indicator on dash board can come back on.

You cannot duplicate it easily. I believe the power slide door touch sensor underneath the black rubber cover is the culprit. Since I needed to have the spare tire cable recall done I took it to the dealership hoping they would fix it during the same visit. The good thing is my van is still under warrant. Murphy's law really worked... You guessed it, they could not find any issue because they could not duplicate the issue. I told the service manager I would bring it right back if it happens again.

I just checked the FSM and it states that the resistance of the sensor shall be below 100 ohms when free and be around 1000 ohms when pressed. My diagnosis is sometime the switch could get stuck. Maybe cold temp? The temps were in the range of 35 to 39 when this happend.

I bet they did not check the sensor at all. Next time I won't let them get off easily...

robo5 said:
Here is a pic of the sliding door switch. With the sliding door opened all the way. There is a black rubber cover over the switch itself. Note the bolt is also the ground for that circuit. If it is loose the light will not work properly. Sometimes you can wiggle the switch contact to get it to work.

Sorry for the dirty van. It think it was my job to do it this week

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83redmini

· #17 · Jan 29, 2011

Wow, this is some really good info!

I also have a 2001 4Runner and sometimes the headlights stay on after I get out of the truck. They should go off when I open the drivers door with the key out of the ignition.

Today when I got out of the truck, the lights stayed on.

I went and jiggled that little switch and the lights went off.

Thanks,

Henry

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Lenny M

· #18 · Feb 13, 2011

Does anybody know of an easy way to replace the switch?

Do you have to remove the interior panel?

Or can you get at it from outside?

I will probably wait till spring.

Thanks

rckymtnsienna

· #19 · Nov 3, 2011

I know this thread is a little older, but have any of you found any resolution? My interior lights may or may not come on in my van. Sometimes if they are on they will flicker a bit. I did have them come on twice while I was driving. I'm not sure if my problem is the same as the one mentioned above. I don't even know for sure which door it does it with or if its door related.

skrol

· #20 · Nov 7, 2011

robo5 said:
Here is a pic of the sliding door switch. With the sliding door opened all the way. There is a black rubber cover over the switch itself. Note the bolt is also the ground for that circuit. If it is loose the light will not work properly. Sometimes you can wiggle the switch contact to get it to work.

Sorry for the dirty van. It think it was my job to do it this week

When my van was new the light was not working. I found that this switch had a bad connection to the chases ground due to paint. I sanded some of the paint away under the switch and it has been good ever since.
Stan

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