Interior lights wont turn off! HEEELP!
Seasoned Member
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 342
Likes: 0
From: crawfordsville, In
Year: 1996
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0
When you took the fuse you you tookthe easy way put. Not te answer. It's still got issues and will most likely lead to another issue which could cause a battery drain eventually. Not good!! You need to pull your gauge cluster and then pull your headlight switch out so it's accesable. Then unplug it and see if they go out. If the lights are dimming after the doors are shut then it sounds like a bad switch or ground problem. Need to hunt this down before it cause more issues. Pulling a fuse is NOT the answer!
Seasoned Member
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 494
Likes: 3
From: Maine
Year: 1991 Laredo
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0L H.O.
k with out knowing more about your jeep and assuming you do not have keyless entry, alarm, etc etc. The way the headlight switches work I doubt that that is it. I will tell you what I did on my 98, this happened to me just a short little while ago. Here is what I did. I opened all four doors and the hatch, un bolted the door switches from the jams and then disconnected them one at a time. If your lights go out then you have found your problem. If they do not go out then move on to next step. The door hatch swtich is located in the tail gate you will have to remove the plastic (pretty easy) to get to it, with all other switches removed then unplug it. If the lights are still on then my suggestion would be its in the rear quarter panel behind the tail light (this is where mine was on my 98 cherokee). Remove the passenger side plastic from inside the trunk area and the wiring harness runs down the pillar and then goes through a hole in the body. This is where my wiring harness was cut. Apparently this is common on a lot of cherokees.
CF Veteran
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 1,471
Likes: 3
From: Knoxville, TN
Year: 1998
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0 inline 6 (o yea!)
Again I have a 98, from your picture you have the older style. My guess is they are the same so it shouldn't matter but just prefacing my comment. The hatch sensor is located in the mechanism inside the hatch. If you pull the interior plastic off the back hatch you should see two maybe three harnesses running into the door. One is for the back window wiper (pretty obvious) and one should be for an electric lock. The third runs straight into the mechanism and should have a clip on it to unplug. The problem with the interior lights is that they get power by grounding. They have power but the door switches act as a switch to ground. The problem with this is if there is a short to ground anywhere in the entire system then all the lights come on because they are all on the same circuit.
Newbie
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
Model: Cherokee
k with out knowing more about your jeep and assuming you do not have keyless entry, alarm, etc etc. The way the headlight switches work I doubt that that is it. I will tell you what I did on my 98, this happened to me just a short little while ago. Here is what I did. I opened all four doors and the hatch, un bolted the door switches from the jams and then disconnected them one at a time. If your lights go out then you have found your problem. If they do not go out then move on to next step. The door hatch swtich is located in the tail gate you will have to remove the plastic (pretty easy) to get to it, with all other switches removed then unplug it. If the lights are still on then my suggestion would be its in the rear quarter panel behind the tail light (this is where mine was on my 98 cherokee). Remove the passenger side plastic from inside the trunk area and the wiring harness runs down the pillar and then goes through a hole in the body. This is where my wiring harness was cut. Apparently this is common on a lot of cherokees.
I have the exact same problem on a 99 cherokee sport. Lights dim but do not go out. I figured it was a short and what you describe sounds like the culprit. I will report back after I inspect the harness.
Thanks again.
Newbie
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 2
Likes: 0
Model: Cherokee
Hi,
Well no luck. I unplugged all the switches. I also unpluged the rear hatch harness. I did learn that all switches dim the lights except drivers side rear door. Not sure what that means if anything. I pulled all the bulbs so I had gauges again.
Well no luck. I unplugged all the switches. I also unpluged the rear hatch harness. I did learn that all switches dim the lights except drivers side rear door. Not sure what that means if anything. I pulled all the bulbs so I had gauges again.
CF Veteran
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 1,471
Likes: 3
From: Knoxville, TN
Year: 1998
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0 inline 6 (o yea!)
did you take the inside rear kick panel out and check that wiring harness i mentioned?
Newbie
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 10
Likes: 0
Model: Cherokee
stupid interior lights won't cut off
I got a 98 cherokee too, and the lights still won't go off. I'm still searching for an answer. I have checked all the door switches and fuses. i'm going to try tracing the wiring harness, but i know nothing much about the electrical components. if any one has any other ideas or possible solutions let me know. I'm also about to change out my alternator since it isn't putting out enough. Unfortunately, I have been unhooking my battery every time I get out of my truck to the amusement of my husband. I'm about ready to junk em both..LOL. ok, just the jeep. So hit me up if you got any advice. thanks
Newbie
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 10
Likes: 0
Model: Cherokee
interior lights
still no real cure for me..i took down the console on the headliner to check the wiring for the interior lights and found a burnt wire. i disconnected it and thought i was ok..but it didn't work out completly. now it's the cargo light and the other lights down below the dash that are still on. and just recently the damn power locks randomly go off and on by themselves. I fear that i have major electrical issues. I pulled the main fuse in the engine compartment( this kills the lights but killed my turn signals as well.) I just found out that my alternator is going bad when i popped over to autozone. I think the best advice is to follow the wiring diagrahm with a multimeter and to see where the short is. I just have not had the chance to do so. I'm a busy girl. I'm no expert mechanic, but i know the basics. Electronics are not my favorite thing. I hope this helps. If anyone has any advice..let me know.
Junior Member
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 51
Likes: 0
Model: Cherokee
interior lights won't turn off! HEEELP!
I don't know if GM and MOPAR are similar in their electrical engineering, but on previous GMC pickups, everytime a turn signal fuse would burn out, the interior light would come on and stay on. This happened on my friend's truck also. Apparently, a back feed situation. Who knows, you may have a similar circumstance. Check all of your fuses. It's worth a shot anyway. Very inexpensive, if that's what it is. If not, you're not out anything. Hope it works.
Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 876
Likes: 0
From: Rhode Island
Year: 1994
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0
find out if you had or have an aftermarket alarm... this happend to me before (not in my jeep) and i had all types of electrical problems due to the alarm, i ended up just unpluging the light fuse