Help!...40th coupe with the Poltergeist door......

[Mike M.]

How do I remedy this?
Interior lights and Door Ajar lights come on intermittantly when...
Sitting at idle
Driving along
Turn right into my driveway
Hit a bump
For no reason at all.
The clock strikes exactly 1:33 a. m., when the alarm goes off, about three minutes before all the neighbors lights came on. (also randomly when parked)

Constantly when...
I Crack the P/S window about 1" or more.
the ambient temp is below 55 degrees F.
starting until the engine warms up.
Parked after shut-off.

There are alot of good reasons for the battery cut-off, this is the best.
I now have to use the cut-off every time I shut-off the car or park it.

Anybody looking for an otherwise nice '93?
H. a. N. D.

[Wayne W.]

Re: Help!...40th coupe with the Poltergeist door..

Sounds like a simple switch problem.

[Jack H.]

Adding on...

to Wayne's mention of a potential switch problem, here's a little more info.

The door jam switches are designed to be self-adjusting. They consist of two components: (1) the switch base that's threaded with a hex nut for installing the switch, and (2) the plunger assy of the switch that's captive to the base. The plunger can actually move in/out of the base assy, held in a given position by an interference fit inside the base.

When new, the plunger was all the way forward inside its base. Assy workers connected wires to the plunger's contact terminals and screwed the switch into the door jam. The door was slammed shut and that pushed the plunger through the base to the 'correct' physical location for that specific car, that specific door.

Now, if a switch has been replaced or a door's been off the car or a door's been re-hung/adjusted or there's appreciable 'slop' in the door hinge from wear, the self-adjusting feature of the switch may be incorrectly set. The 'fix' is pretty simple.

You remove the switch from the door jam, disconnect it from the wiring harness, take it to your shop bench and clamp the hex base FIRMLY in a vise. Then GENTLY push the plunger assy fully into the base so the plunger's exterior protrudes out of the base to its maximum extent. You have to be careful here since you're fighting an interference fit--you do NOT want to damage the plunger assy!

Now, reconnect the wiring harness, re-install the switch in the door jam and smartly close the door. The switch will 're-learn' the proper geometry of its 'new home' and your interior lights should turn off solidly...

[Mike M.]

Thanks, Guys! *NM*