Stupid door Switch!! $3 Fix!!!

[steve6]

Okay, my problem seems to be related to the front passenger door. The door catch assembly seems to be working fine. However, my door ajar switch stays lit, interior lights stay on and the door can not be locked. Am I looking for the same switch that was replaced in this thread? I would take it to a mechanic but I don't really trust the dealership or the popular vw repair shop.

Most likely yes, you list 97/98 jetta, maybe if you have a mkiv now update that? The early mkiv had solder issues in the door mechanisms as well.

There could be broken wires in the door as well or other issue, something to keep in mind.

 

[Ravyn]

Most likely yes, you list 97/98 jetta, maybe if you have a mkiv now update that? The early mkiv had solder issues in the door mechanisms as well.

There could be broken wires in the door as well or other issue, something to keep in mind.

Actually, the 98 TDI is okay, I am having a problem with my 06 Jetta TDI. I should have been more specific. It is just frustrating, the last time it happened I was able to fiddle with the door latching mechanism and it started behaving, it's having none of that now. Door shuts properly from all appearances, but will not lock.

 

[BobnOH]

Actually, the 98 TDI is okay, I am having a problem with my 06 Jetta TDI. I should have been more specific. It is just frustrating, the last time it happened I was able to fiddle with the door latching mechanism and it started behaving, it's having none of that now. Door shuts properly from all appearances, but will not lock.

Have you tried hitting unlock on the fob a couple times, then hit lock?

 

[Ravyn]

Tried that, Bob, no dice.

 

[steve6]

The 06's are known for having broken wires in the door jams... is it a wagon, golf, or jetta? golf's and wagons were still mkiv, jetta was mkv

 

[bbarbulo]

bringing this back. not sure if this is even relevant still (is for me)

but since some of us don't have access to radio shack and sometimes supply seems spotty, mcmaster-carr (mcmaster.com) has an option for us. for those in the know, mcmaster is an industrial supply place, they have everything. and your local industrial supply place can also place an order for you if you are not the type to do online orders.

7658K19 is the catalog number for the SPDT like the radio shack one.

7658K17 is the normally open one if you wanna be exact about it like the OEM switch SPST.

 

[shoebear]

bringing this back. not sure if this is even relevant still (is for me)

but since some of us don't have access to radio shack and sometimes supply seems spotty, mcmaster-carr (mcmaster.com) has an option for us. for those in the know, mcmaster is an industrial supply place, they have everything. and your local industrial supply place can also place an order for you if you are not the type to do online orders.

7658K19 is the catalog number for the SPDT like the radio shack one.

7658K17 is the normally open one if you wanna be exact about it like the OEM switch SPST.

Bear in mind that the lock module is on the "dirty" side of the door. The big problem with the Radio Shack switches is that they are not sealed. This means they'll work great for a while until water/grit gets inside of them, and then they'll quit again. If you want the fix to last, 1) use sealed switches, and 2) use a lever switch instead of just a button/plunger one. #1 keeps the weather out, and #2 corrects the original design flaw in the lock module that caused the factory switches to fail in the first place.

I can't tell from the McMaster Carr catalog whether those switches are sealed or not. Since it doesn't say, I would assume they are not. However, both 7658K19 and 7658K17 are plunger switches, not lever.

Everyone has their opinion, and there are several specific ways to solve the problem that honor both recommendations above. You can see mine in posts #705 (my summary of the thread to that point, plus specific switches I recommend) and #709 (documentation with photos of how I fixed my lock module).

 

[bbarbulo]

^^ 14 or 15 years so far on the radio shack switch. outlasted the OEM one about 7x so far. my dad's the original owner, I can look at the date stamps on my photos, but the car was pretty new, so my guess is about 2002 or 2003 when I first put the radio shack switch in for him.

 

[turbocharged798]

Mine failed in no time which I think I mentioned in this thread. Cost me a lot of work to redo the switch. Switch was all corroded when I took it apart.

 

[shoebear]

^^ 14 or 15 years so far on the radio shack switch. outlasted the OEM one about 7x so far. my dad's the original owner, I can look at the date stamps on my photos, but the car was pretty new, so my guess is about 2002 or 2003 when I first put the radio shack switch in for him.

Mine failed in no time which I think I mentioned in this thread. Cost me a lot of work to redo the switch. Switch was all corroded when I took it apart.

LOL! So the obvious lesson is to do as bbarbulo does: keep your car garaged and never take it out in the rain. Don't take your MK4 mud-bogging with the boys as turbo does.

JUST KIDDING!

A non-sealed switch will work until it gets enough dirt and water in it. But it's anybody's guess when that will happen.

By the way, credit where it's due -- turbo was, I think, the one who thought of using a lever switch to protect the plunger from failing again as factory switches do. Thanks!

 

[bbarbulo]

have you looked at the original switch? it's far from 'sealed' and the insides were clean as the day it was put together. anyways, I have no worries about it; just thought I'd share an alternative for those that can't get the radio shack switch.

as an aside, the mcmaster switches are really nice, there is no 'side load' on the pin to cause it to break since the body that guides the plunger is tight all the way up. So the plunger is supported by the body.

 

[neinspark]

This microswitch works well

Thanks for all the great info on this forum. The door switch on my 03 JW went out maybe 2 years ago and after a few dead ends, this switch has solved the problem
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/PAI...32638425172.html?spm=2114.40010308.4.2.ZpCCLn
graeme86 posted about an aliexpress switch aways back in this thread and I think this is an updated part with the metal lever. Easy install compared to the other things I tried. Good news is because I've had my door apart so many times, now the passenger door ( just went out) will be a breeze.

 

[tickingtimebelt]

Just replaced my driver's side door and now everything works: lights come on when I open the door, I get a chime if I leave the key in the ignition and a chime if the lights are left on.

But now I'm still getting a random alarm when the car is locked. Is this a clear sign that the passenger switch is also bad or could it be something else?

 

[shoebear]

Thanks for all the great info on this forum. The door switch on my 03 JW went out maybe 2 years ago and after a few dead ends, this switch has solved the problem
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/PAI...32638425172.html?spm=2114.40010308.4.2.ZpCCLn
graeme86 posted about an aliexpress switch aways back in this thread and I think this is an updated part with the metal lever. Easy install compared to the other things I tried. Good news is because I've had my door apart so many times, now the passenger door ( just went out) will be a breeze.

I ordered a pair of these within a day or two of neinspark's post, and they arrived today (about 2 weeks later) from China. On first inspection, they look great, and based on neinspark's experience, they should fit properly and work well. I will install mine in my daughter's 2005 Bettle and report back. However, that may be a while, as I'm in the middle of a move.

The switches are sealed, have metal levers (as neinspark mentioned), and appear to be quality direct replacements -- no guesswork on positioning, no gluing, etc. The ones pictured in graeme86's earlier post #697 didn't have the metal levers. However, they have the same part numbers that he posted:

3BD 998 785 - left side
3BD 998 786 - right side

I couldn't find these parts on Impex or Jim Ellis. I wonder if these are real VW part numbers at all.

I'll try to post some detailed photos after a while.

 

[shoebear]

As promised, here are some photos:

 

[turbocharged798]

Those look perfect but I wonder about the quality. Can be hit and miss from china...

 

[shoebear]

Those look perfect but I wonder about the quality. Can be hit and miss from china...

That's one of my concerns as well. However, they appear to be good quality from what I can see at this point. I guess time will tell. They are made by the official VW mfr in China, so I'm sure VAG has set quality standards for them.

 

[SledDawg2]

Can anyone confirm if these are the correct switches for a MK-4 Jetta ?
Specifically I'm talking about a 99.5
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1-P...lgo_pvid=05329df1-7332-470b-a3c1-5b1afb6ba058

Surely someone has the answer...

 

[graeme86]

Passenger lock on my RHD 2-door R32 just went out.

Ordered new lock from VW.

Very pleased to see it is now updated with the metal blade switch to ride on the lock cam.

Old lock for left (passenger) door was 3B2837015L number.

Replacement lock is part number is 6X2837013N

These would be numbers for a RHD 2-door car.

 

[shoebear]

Can anyone confirm if these are the correct switches for a MK-4 Jetta ?
Specifically I'm talking about a 99.5
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1-P...lgo_pvid=05329df1-7332-470b-a3c1-5b1afb6ba058

Surely someone has the answer...

Those are the correct part numbers, but they are old-style switches. You want the ones with the metal levers on top. Unfortunately, the ones with levers have the same part numbers as the ones without levers. Go figure.

 

[shoebear]

Passenger lock on my RHD 2-door R32 just went out.

Ordered new lock from VW.

Very pleased to see it is now updated with the metal blade switch to ride on the lock cam.

Old lock for left (passenger) door was 3B2837015L number.

Replacement lock is part number is 6X2837013N

These would be numbers for a RHD 2-door car.

Nice photo! That's the only one I know of -- the one posted earlier in this thread was deleted. Thanks for posting it.

 

[2footbraker]

Shoebear, what supplier did you order yours from? I'm searching ebay and see various types (although they probably come from the same factory ).

 

[KrashDH]

I'm actually curious about this as well...

 

[shoebear]

Shoebear, what supplier did you order yours from? I'm searching ebay and see various types (although they probably come from the same factory ).

I got them from alibaba, not eBay. I don't remember the supplier name, sorry -- but look for the part number(s), then look for photos that show the levers, not just the button. Unfortunately, the ones with and without the lever share the same part numbers.

 

[natefoo]

I'm sort of at wit's end trying to figure out what's going on with my door locks. I have the typical symptoms of:

• driver's door will not lock/unlock with key fob buttons or key in lock
• all 3 remaining doors lock/unlock with both buttons and key
• windows roll up/down with key in lock

I pulled my DLM and sure enough, the "is the door open?" microswitch was bad. A friend had a "known good" module out of a Beetle so I swapped that in, and no dice. So I replaced the switch in my original module with the Cherry switch in #705. The alignment of the switch in the module wasn't quite right (the switch was always closed), and there was no moving it since I'd JB Welded it in there... but I bent the lever arm a bit and got it switching. Well, when I swapped that module back in to the car, there was *still* no change to the locking situation. After that I got fed up and decided to live with it, so it's been that way for about a year now.

Fast forward to last week, I was ordering a loaded steering knuckle from aarodriguez and noticed he was selling DLMs on clearance, so I decided to grab one. Swapped it in last night (and in the process, discovered that my switch bending in the old module had apparently undone itself), and now... nothing has improved and now my windows won't go up with the key in the lock (however, they will still go down). In addition, the driver's, but not passenger's side auto-up on the window switch inside the car has stopped working.

Am I looking at a replacement door harness at this point? I am not sure where to go from here.

 

[natefoo]

Well, interestingly, when I got back to the car as I was leaving work... key in the door, windows down, open, key in the ignition, windows up... and the driver's side auto-up worked this time. Unfortunately I forgot to check if windows up using the key in the lock is working, and I park a block away, so I'll check tomorrow, but, maybe I'm back where I started?

 

[natefoo]

Yeah, auto-up works, key-in-lock-up does not.

 

[shoebear]

Hi Nate,

I would check the wiring between the DLM and the door control module (attached to the window motor. In particular, check the pins in the connectors, and also look for wiring cuts/damage. Good luck and let us know what you find!

Another thing you can check is whether the window-up microswitch in the DLM is working properly. I don't have the pinouts for the DLM handy at the moment, but I'm sure you can find them if you look. A simple ohmmeter continuity check should suffice. If possible, I would test this in place, exercising the switch with a key in the door. There could be an alignment issue that caused the switch not to be activated by key, but where you could activate it by hand with the module out.

 

[lapse]

Want to report back that after a few years of running with the magnetic switch, my driver's side DLM finally gave up the ghost. The alarm would fire off in the middle of the night, the windows would be rolled down, doors wouldn't lock, lights wouldn't turn off, etc..

I tore down the door, pulled the DLM out and re-soldered the joints, but some of the poor behaviour persisted. Put in a new DLM from ECS and most of the problems went away. I inspected the wiring going into the door and found some broken wires. The other wires were on the way out, so I bit the bullet and put in a new harness and this gave me back control of my rear hatch.

The window roller also wouldn't roll my rear driver's side window, so re-soldering the connections on the roller and lubing the friction fit pin connections in the roller module fixed the rest of my electrical gremlins.

Good for another 14 years!

 

[crillymi]

Hey tried to open photos but it is using an app.

I signed up but still not able to open photo.

Thanks,

Mike