Dome light fix Options

[black92_tsi_awd]

Ok, this broken dome light is driving me crazy.

The dome light does not turn on when you open the doors, floor and iginition lights both turn on though. Map lights do not work.

I pulled the dome light and there's no voltage at the plug in the headliner with the doors open. I imagine one should have power all the time for the map lights, the other should be powered when the door is opened. The dome light did work when hooked directly to a 12v battery. All fuses are good.

What else should I look at? Is there a relay I'm missing?
Where does the dome wire go? I took down the a pillar trim and couldn't find any wiring. I'll run new wiring if I knew where it went, I rather not take down the headliner if I don't have too!

[JMoushon]

Look at the door jamb, locate the dome light switch. Separate the trim right by the door jamb. Remove the switch from the housing in the body. Some have 2 prong harness connectors, others are hardwired. If it is hardwired, leave a 5-6" pigtail on the switch and cut it. If you look at how the switch operates, you will notice that when the plunger is depressed, the switch is "open" with no current being carried through the separated contacts, and when the door is opened, the plunger comes out, making contact at the brass terminals, completing or "closing" the circuit, and the dome light comes on. Your problem is 90% likely to be stemming from poor or no contact when the plunger is out or extended. Take emery cloth and clean the area of contact, you may even need a small file to clean up the shape of the area to ensure good contact. When you are finished, measure resisatnce of the switch, it should be minimal. Reinstall with good connections and it should work well for quite awhile. Sounds long-winded, but it reall is a 10 minute job. Good luck!