Interior light wiring

[Trailpug]

300tdi defender just trying to refit my interior light i have the two purple and black going into one connector going to the live and the black going to the negative and the earth all wired up to the roof, if you switch the light to on it works, open the door and it blows the fuse why???

 

[jamesmartin]

must have a short on wire from switch in door pillar

 

[dogsbody]

Come on James, if the door switch wire was shorted to earth you couldn't switch the light off regardless whether the door was open or closed.
The wire from the door switch must be connected to the live without going through the bulb. Re-check the connections inside the lamp.

 

[jamesmartin]

Come on James, if the door switch wire was shorted to earth you couldn't switch the light off regardless whether the door was open or closed.
The wire from the door switch must be connected to the live without going through the bulb. Re-check the connections inside the lamp.

hehe ,im not thinking really at the moment yours sounds more feesable

 

[Trailpug]

the wires from the two doors are joined together into one connection block could this be a problem?

 

[dogsbody]

the wires from the two doors are joined together into one connection block could this be a problem?

No.
You should have one wire supplying 12 volt to the light to one side of the bulb. From the other side of the bulb it should go through the switch to earth to allow you to switch it on manually
AND
wires to whatever doors are linked to it.

 

[Trailpug]

thank you will recheck the wiring in the morning getting a bit hacked of holding a Maglite in me teeth.
I have a LED bulb in would that have to much pull for the fuse?

 

[dogsbody]

I have a LED bulb in would that have to much pull for the fuse?

Quite the opposite. They pull nothing compared to a standard bulb. I've got 32 & 40 LED flat plates in all my interior lights and have added boot lights, footwell lights and strips of LEDs under the side steps all on the standard circuit.

What you are going to find is that the wire to the door is somehow connected to the live side of the light fitting. When you say you've got a connection block that is not standard so somebody has been in there playing.

 

[Trailpug]

Last owner cut all the roof liner out and lighting out i have had to put it all back together just got the liners recovered and have had to re do the wires myself from the A pillar so the wiring is the best i could knock up with my limited knowledge! I suppose the easy check will be to split the block in to two and tape them apart so there can be no chance of the live and negative touching?

 

[dogsbody]

Do you own a voltmeter? Or a spare 12 volt BULB (not LED) and a couple of lengths of wire?

 

[Trailpug]

yep bulb and wire

 

[dogsbody]

Right separate all the wires at the interior light.
Connect one piece of wire to a good earth point somewhere on the car, anywhere where the metal is bare and the wire will stay without you having to hold onto it. Connect that to one contact on the bulb.
From the other contact on the bulb run another piece of wire. Touch this wire to each of the wires at the light. When you touch ONE of them your bulb should light. That is your 12 volt supply.
If the bulb lights when touching any other wire then that also somehow has a supply - that is wrong and you'll have to investigate.

If the bulb only lights when in contact with one wire then wrap your test wire around this so that the bulb stays lit. Then disconnect the other test wire from your temporary earth point and, with the doors open, touch it to the wires that you believe are connected to the door switches. The bulb should light each time. As a double check try this again with the doors shut and, if the bulb doesn't light, you have proved the doors switches work.

Now all that you have to do is make sure, when you re-wire the light, that the live wire ONLY is connected to one side of the bulb and the door switches are connected to the other side.

 

[Trailpug]

Dogsbody thank you very grateful will be printing off and having an interesting lunch break tomorrow will let you know how things go!!

 

[OxonLandy]

Quite the opposite. They pull nothing compared to a standard bulb. I've got 32 & 40 LED flat plates in all my interior lights and have added boot lights, footwell lights and strips of LEDs under the side steps all on the standard circuit.

LEDs under your sidesteps? you must live in Essex

 

[dogsbody]

LEDs under your sidesteps? you must live in Essex

No, got disabled partner and parents, they need all the help that they can get.
















Mind you it is a head turner when you press the remote control in a dark car park.

 

[DEFENDER90-DAZ]

Must look like a UFO

Daz

 

[dogsbody]

Certainly beats the hell out of those stupid puddle lamps under the doors. Even when fitted with LED panels my mother still couldn't see the ground as she was climbing out and I mean climbing. The car's a Rangie and the mother is 5' 2" and shrinking.