Pathfinder R50 (2001) interior light not working when driver side doors opened

[mrmagicbg]

I have a second hand Pathfinder R50 (2001) XE where I have this weird problem with the interior light. It will come on when passenger side (RH) front and back doors are opened but will not come one when I open the front or the rear driver side doors (LH). Door switches are OK - tested. Also it is confirmed by the fact that the indicator for open door lights up on the dashboard when I open one of the doors and it also beeps at me when I leave the headlights on or the key in the ignition so door switches are out of the picture for me.

There was a discussion online where some Gentlemen suggested the smart entrance control unit could be bad so I bought second and unit and replaced it but I still have the same issue. I inspected both units for bad/burned solder joints, bad components, etc. and all looks fine.

Now chances are either I bought second hand smart entrance control unit with the same problem or it is something else ...

Any of yo Gents came across such issue in the past?

Attached are some pictures of the smart entrance control unit my vehicle model uses (I took it apart for tests)​

[4xq]

I have not heard of that problem before.

First, service manuals for 2001.5 Pathys (early 2001's had the 3.3 engine) are here: http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/Pathfinder/ ... athfinder/

Since you say your vehicle is "petrol", I am guessing you may live somewhere in the neighborhood of some 'roos. Those FSM's are US / Canadian vehicles - your mileage may vary a little. Can't be sure the wiring diagrams are exactly correct, but they will be close.

Didn't see much looking at the entry module wiring, so I went and looked at the Lamp wiring. Seems the rear luggage area lamp is not a simple 12v lamp with a ground, it is wired into the door switch circuit which supplies ground, and there is a diode between it and the door switches, which I suspect is the problem. See page EL 92 and 93.

Diodes are supposed to let the volts go one way, but when they fail they often pass electricity in both directions. They are usually the cause of an alternator charge light that stays on after the vehicle is turned off - electricity flows backwards thru the circuit.

Anyway, it looks like if you switch the cargo area lamp off or pull the bulb, you will stop juice from going thru the circuit, and this will fix your problem. It could result in different symptoms however, as there is no diagram of the internal entry module circuits - have to do some guessing there.

I do not know where that diode is - it is a separate part in the wring diagram.

Anyway, see if that helps out!

[mrmagicbg]

Hi

Thanks for the prompt response - there is a difference in the Smart Entrance Control Unit indeed as the model I have was build for the German marker hence it is a bit simplified (for whatever reason) but interior light wiring is the same.

I think the diode (at least in my case) resides on the PCB of the Smart Entrance Contort Unit - I have checked all components there and they are all fine. However what you suggested got me to get under the dashboard and examine the wiring again and pealed off some more insulation tape on the main bundle of cables going to the Smart Entrance Control Unit (like 1 or 2 more inches) and I found that some IDIOT had altered the wiring (like 2-3 inches back from the connector) and then masked it very well with insulation tape - it looked as if it was coming out of the factory

What else pointed me to start checking the wiring again was that after I decided to re-do the tests I did in the past I noticed something very peculiar ... when I open the driver side doors I get the open door indication on the dashboard lit (but no interior light) but when I open the passenger side doors I do get the interior light and guess what no indication on the dashboard that the doors are opened. To me this indicated someone did something very wrong to the wiring - perhaps the old Smart Entrance Control Unit was indeed shot and someone tried to work around the problem by re-wiring the interior light ... obviously he didn't know what he was doing

Anyway - I will pull all the wiring out and re-wire everything as it's supposed to be (will follow colors and schematics), will do it on a weekend as it seems it might take few hours

[fueler]

Wow - I guess I don't feel so bad about one of my switches being stuck closed (its been like that for years) !

[4xq]

If you have the chance, turn the rear cargo light off and see what changes - just kind of curious a to what that does!