Stupid door Switch!! $3 Fix!!!

[vwsandman]

I have my drivers door all tore apart. I am trying to fix my door switch. The one that tells you if the door is open or not and turns on the interior lights and the door light on the door. I have determined that the little switch that does this is bad since it fell apart when I removed the lock assembly! Does any one know where I can get a replacement switch from? I hate to replace the whole assembly when just the little switch is bad. I figure Cherry electric must make a switch like this one. Someone must have found the part number/vendor for this little switch. It will be a piece of cake to fix just this switch.

Ok, we can fix this door switch for $3 USD! You need to go to Radio Shack and purchase Part number #275-016A. This is a Submini Lever Switch. It has NO and NC contacts. Now here is what you need to do.
1) Tear the door down to the door lock assembly. This is detailed in the Bentley.
2) Remove the door lock assembly from the door carrier assembly you just removed. You will need to drill out a rivit to do this as detailed in Bentley.
3) Once you have the door lock assembly out, you will see the switch in question. It is the one that has a red and blue wire going to it. Mine was ruined as outlined above.
4) You will need a dremel tool to slot out the holes that hold the switch in place to the new switch fits in.
4) Observe the posistion and how the old switch works.Then remove the old switch. It is held in place by two plastic plugs that are melted to hold the switch. Pry it out with a small flat bladed screwdriver and clip the wires at the switch. Then slot out the holes for the new switch with your dremel. You will be able to see what you need to slot by comparing the two switches.
5) Take the new switch and remove the lever by slowly twisting it out with a pliers. You don't need it, just the main body of the switch.
6) You will need two tiny screws and nuts, which I had laying around, otherwise you can get them at the hardware store. Attatch the new switch and solder the red and blur wires to the switch. One to the Common and one to the NO (normally open). Plug the electrical plug back in and test the operation of the switch.
7) Button it all back up and rejoice in the money you saved!

I also lubed the new switch with electrical grease and hopefully it will last for awhile. Now that it is all modified, I can slug a new one in if it fails again in the future. (hopefully I wont have to!)

I know these instructions are very basic, but if you have the ability to get all of this apart, you can change out this switch.

 

[vwsandman]

TTT /images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[VelvetFoot]

Very nice!!!!

 

[JetPuf]

Sounds wonderful, now I have two reasons to goto Radio Shack, Evry mod, and this. My passanger door has the same problem you have and looks like I'll be able to get it fixed... GOOD WORK!

 

[MaxThrust]

Excellent write-up, and great detective work. As the above poster, my passenger door has become somewhat stupid. Next time I have time and no money, I can run to RS, grab that switch and fix my passenger door.

YMMV

Mike /images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[NYTDI]

Nice Work!

This should be sticky-ed or archived in a few places for easy reference.

 

[vwsandman]

Thanks, Sorry no pics, I had every intention of posting some, but when I looked at all my pics they were too blurry to use. I sure wasn't going to tear into the door again to take more. Sorry.

 

[tadc]

Favorite Thread - Click!

Thanks, another project to add to my list...

 

[BratscheMan]

Ivan,

I'm not having your specific problem, but for at least a couple of months my NB has "lost its voice" /images/graemlins/shocked.gif. When I shut off the engine while leaving the key in the ignition I no longer get the warning noises when I open the driver's door...even when the headlights are still on. I haven't drained the battery on account of leaving them on...yet. /images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif

Since you seem to be the Christopher Columbus of VW door panels /images/graemlins/wink.gif I thought you might be the one to ask: Are there additional switches located there, or does the part you describe govern those features as well? Let me know once you have a chance to recover from your latest voyage. /images/graemlins/crazy.gif /images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[tadc]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm not having your specific problem, but for at least a couple of months my NB has "lost its voice" /images/graemlins/shocked.gif. When I shut off the engine while leaving the key in the ignition I no longer get the warning noises when I open the driver's door...even when the headlights are still on. I haven't drained the battery on account of leaving them on...yet. /images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif

Since you seem to be the Christopher Columbus of VW door panels /images/graemlins/wink.gif I thought you might be the one to ask: Are there additional switches located there, or does the part you describe govern those features as well? Let me know once you have a chance to recover from your latest voyage. /images/graemlins/crazy.gif /images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]
I think your problem is the same switch as he is talking about (tells the car if the door is open).

There are 3 switches in the latch mechanism. See this thread:
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showflat.php?C...rev=#Post668340

 

[vwsandman]

Yep, what tadc said...three swithes...it is a whole new world getting to the other two switches... /images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[JetPuf]

interesting yes... 3 switches makes it all that much more complicated... anyone have ideas what those other switches control?

 

[tadc]

probably the key-sense, for when you do the magic "windows-up" and "windows-down" thing.

 

[MaxThrust]

Thank you for taking the time to figure this out and then sharing it with the rest of us. I did this fix today and now my lights come on again when the door is opened. The switch was $2.89 and I spent roughly $40 on peripherals like a set of Triple-Square tools to get the lock carrier off the door. Other than the Triple-Square tools (Lisle {my sister's middle name} from Auto Zone), the most expensive tool was a Carbide carving tip for my Dremel at $13. The job would have been under a couple of hours, except I forgot to get screws to hold the new switch--had to call my wife to come and get me, she needed a break form work anyway--and found that some of the panel holders were missing, probably from the window regulator/clip replacement. /images/graemlins/mad.gif

I will tackle the passenger door tomorrow morning while it's still cool. I now have the procedure down and hopefully all of the little 'extras' I might need to get the job done in short order.

You don't realize how much the interior lights are used until you open your door and they don't work. It is also annoying if you open the door and don't put the key in the ignition right away and the car locks and rearms itself.

One last note; if you tackle this job yourself you might want to read this write-up from Vortex, complete with pictures, on how to take the door apart. It really helped me out and I could run in the house and refer to it as needed.

YMMV

Mike /images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[vwsandman]

Mike,
Glad to have been able to help! What would be really cool is to do some more research and find an exact replacement switch...someday I will have the time...

 

[MaxThrust]

I agree with finding an exact replacement switch. I was down to not very much metal left in that lock carrier by the time I had the switch adjusted properly without hanging the rest of the mechanism. All-in-all, I probably saved about $250 on just one door so the next is basically free, just labor. This comes out to about $100/hr, far more than I make at work--far, far, far more. I suspect this repair will last for another 5 years and is close enough for government work given the amount of money saved....maybe even time too, as I didn't have to park it at a dealer for a day or two while they mucked up my doors trying to repair that switch.

YMMV

Mike /images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[oldpoopie]

Pics would be great!

 

[MaxThrust]

Sadly, I didn't take any, although earlier in this thread I link to a vortex thread that has plenty of pictures of the disassembly. I think our current thread has a pic of the switch in question, it's on the back of the latch assembly and is pretty easy to get out. Getting one to fit back in there is the tough part. I also soldered the wires and used high quality heat-shrink to protect the contacts. So far, so good.

If I do the other door I will try to take a couple of pictures of the lock assembly. Right now, the passenger door is working fine and I am not taking it apart unless it fails again.

YMMV

Mike /images/graemlins/cool.gif

 

[Wingnut]

Ok, so I was going to do this job this past weekend. But I was able to fix the problem without taking anything apart.

I had an extra door latch from my passenger side door that was replaced from my accident last year. I got all the tools ready to tear apart the door, but thought I would check out the spare latch I had first. So while inspecting it, I noticed a buildup of grease & dirt around the switch. So I wondered if that may have been causing the switch to remain stuck in the "door closed" position. So I took out a can of contact cleaner and went to town on the area below the latch where the micro switch is. While squirting the cleaner & working the latch back and forth, my light started flickering. So I closed the door and tried to open it. The light didn't work, but if I kicked the door, bingo, I had lights. SO I kept spraying and working the latch and now I have a fully functional door switch

As a side note, if you look in the first two pictures, you will see the plastic cover over the door latch. It is worn and not seated properly around the latch. This caused the latch to not open fully when the door was opened. It opened enough to allow the door to open, but did not go down enough to close the switch. I used a small scalpel (SP?) knife to cut that plastic cover off the latch so it would not interfere with the full travel of the latch. This also could cause the switch to not become engaged? Maybe try forcing the latch down with a screwdriver to see if it will close the switch that way.

Here are some pictures for reference:

This is the spare door latch that I was going to remove the switch from. The switch is located at the bottom of the latch

Here is a better shot of the plastic cover on the latch interfering with the full travel of the latch:

Here is the back side of the latch. You can see how dirty it was. The gunk was keeping the switch from opening & closing properly:

Here is where I sprayed the contact cleaner. I also used a screwdriver to lock & unlock the latch to get the cleaner working.

Now this is just my experience. I realize that this may not work on all cars as the switch may actually be defective. But it is worth a try to see if yours is also caused by a stuck latch or stuck switch and not a broken switch.

 

[Cincy_Mike]

You kicked your door?

Sorry.. that's a great, useful post, but that line stuck out at me hehe!

 

[Wingnut]

Yep. But the more I sprayed & worked the latch, the softer I had to kick it to get the lights to come on. Now, no kicking is needed

. I just tapped the inside of the door near the bottom so If I made a mark, it would not be noticable from the outside.

 

[DeafBug]

You kicked your door?

Sometimes that is all it needs.

 

[VDubbing]

Thanks Guys my door lights dont come on when the door is open. The car isnt 2 years old yet and the dealer says they will replace the door latch under warranty but i only have 20,000 kilometers left. This and a few other things such as the window switch going bad were begining to make me wonder if i should start thinking about dumping this car for something maintainance free like my wifes accord. Without freds site i doubt anyone would drive a VW!! All of you guys here rock!!!
Thanks and all the best for 2005!!!

 

[LNXGUY]

I was wondering why my lights would only come on if I used my keyfob to unlock the car. And when I got out, I had to take the key out in order for the lights to come on.. Man you guys freaking ROCK!!!!!

 

[DaveGaunt]

This is a timely thread for me. I also appreciated the links to Vortek's Door disassembley instructions, which are very detailed with great pictures.

Thanks for the great work, and sharing with us lesser mortals.

Happy New Year!

 

[VelvetFoot]

Wingnut, I am going to try your fix tomorrow at the PeterV's NH GTG. I have taken a door apart before on a Jetta and it was a broken solder joint. That had manual windows and my Beetle is powered. Plus, I don't think the symptom is as bad. It just thinks it's always closed. Wish me luck.

 

[VelvetFoot]

Wingnut, I never did say that this did the trick for a while back then. Alas it started up again some time back.

I am typing this in the garage with my plastic gloves on - they have not gotten dirty yet! You see I tried a little while ago spraying the heck out of it with contact cleaner, slammed it shut, etc, etc. Nothing! So I bring the laptop out here with the Bentley directions on how to remove the door trim. I do the first step... removing the handle trim, and then I noticed the door light is on!!!!! Go figure. I'm not going to take anything apart if I don't have to, and who knows what problems I could get into (even though I did it before a while ago with a manual window Jetta A4).

Weird huh? I'm not looking a gift horse in the mouth though.

 

[VelvetFoot]

I take it back. It works partially now. The light comes on, but I am able to arm the lock with the driver's side door open. The passenger door doesn't do that, and I don't think the driver side used to either. The light works though.

LOL, what to do now?

 

[VelvetFoot]

Wait a second now it works! I armed it and tried starting it, setting off the alarm and then the alarm went off. When I got that to shut off, it started working like new!

How's that for real-time mechanic-ing?

Perhaps some more spray then... Again, gift horse, blah, blah, blah.

 

[VelvetFoot]

Forget it. I'm not going to post anymore.

It's flakey again. Later.

Well, I'm posting anyway. It seems to be working. We'll see.