Interior light whackiness, box Town Car.

[Piece-it pete]

Please excuse my ignorance of posting etiquette, I've got another thread going about my timing chain/stumbling issue and am uncertain if I should have 2 threads going at once.

Also excuse me using the word etiquette. Let me get back into the proper mood - 'Shut up and bring me my beer woman!' Ahhh that's better

Anyway, interior lights. Dr Frankenstein has been playing with them but must've used a defective brain.

Ever since I bought the car they haven't worked perfectly. They are fine when I first get in, but after driving it a while they wouldn't work when I got out. They did work anytime I used the switch. I didn't care about it, quirk of an old car.

Now they've taken a sinister turn. After the car has been driven a while, upon parking, they will come on when they should be off and vise versa. No problems when cold.

Seemingly random. They will literally come on in the middle of the night and leave me stranded the next morning.

When the car is trying to start with the drained battery I hear a clicking behind the glovebox. Looking at the schmatics, there's a brain behind there for the unified delayed lights/keyless entry system.

Could this be it, or is there a common issue I should look at first? I've been pulling the fuse at night ....

Pete

[1987cp]

First step might be to locate the ee-lek-tronic doodad that makes them stay on for a minute or two after you get out, and bypass it. I actually never bothered to find out just what it is or where it lives - of my 4 Panthers, only the '79 had that feature, and it still worked fine when the car was hauled off for scrap.

[1990LTD]

Unplug the door jamb switched one at a time

[gadget73]

the illuminated entry thing is part of the keyless entry module. It does indeed live up next to the glovebox. I'd have to agree on unplugging that first just to see if they stop coming on randomly. The other thing is, the module itself may not be the fault. That thing kicks the lights on whenever one of the keyless entry module buttons are pushed, or when the door handle is lifted. If one of those things is shorting and causing the module to think it ought to be turning the lights on, replacing the keyless box won't fix anything. On the other hand if you don't use the keyless and don't care about the illuminated entry thing, you can pull the pin for the interior lights out of that plug. Can't really delete the module entirely or the power locks won't work.

as for not working when you open the door, that sounds like a door switch. Probably the driver's side one. None of the other ones ever seem to wear out.

[86VickyLX]

Had an 84 Crown Vic with illuminated entry do that. The lights would stay on unless you put the key in the ignition and turned it. However they didn't come on by themselves as you are mentioning, but I'd be willing to bet that it has something to do with that module...

[1987cp]

"Illuminated entry", that must be the package I'm thinking of - no keyless goofiness on that car. Had the funky lighted keyholes (though I don't remember them ever working), and lifting the door handle whilst locked would turn on the interior lights.

[Piece-it pete]

Thanks guys.

I'll try unplugging the door jamb switch, and then the brain. It better not be one of the inputs! I haven't gotten around to fixing the power locks yet anyway.

Perhaps I get to tell the junkyard, I need a brain My luck they'd agree

Pete

[Piece-it pete]

Jamb switches seem OK, now it's brains, brains for my master.

Pete

[Piece-it pete]

Picked up a NOS brain off Epay. I figure it's not a waste regardless.

Pete

[1990LTD]

Picked up a NOS brain off Epay. I figure it's not a waste regardless.

Pete

Can't hurt.

[Piece-it pete]

Yeah, if'n I ever get so sick of this thing I attack it with a jackhammer I reckon it'll be a really good parts car

Pete

[Kestas]

Been there. The symptoms describe my experience to a tee. The relay contacts in the IEM oxidize from use. I fixed mine by opening the relay and filing a new surface on the contact pads - a no cost fix.

[Piece-it pete]

Thanks! When I've got the old one out I'll take a look at it.

Pete

[Piece-it pete]

The NOS one doesn't work. The seller is making good though.

I've got the old one apart and will clean it shortly.

In the meantime an acquantence gave me this info:

E9DB14B001AB is the engineering number for that part.

The part was $1200 but no longer available.

It can be found on:

Continental 1982-91
Town Car 82-89
Taurus/Sable 86-91
Mark 82-91
Cougar/T-Bird 82-92

Use info at your own risk

Pete

[Piece-it pete]

Done! Many thanks to Kestas. Once you open the box and pull the boards out the (very high quality looking) relays are exposed. Cleaned the contacts and wala'! It appears to be working fine.

Pete