Llamacide

My '01 XJ has an intermitant electrical issue in the rear hatch. When the gate is closed, the power door lock does not work on the hatch. If the gate is fully open, then the latch mechanism will engage/ disingage correctly. This leads me to believe there is a problem with the wiring near the 'pivot', likely in the rubber boot of the rear hatch.
My problems:
One- I don't have a wiring diagram so can anyone tell me which colors in the bundle of wires are for the hatch lock?
Two- I am not experienced with repairing wires or searching out their problems, does anyone have any advice or or experience with this particular problem?

Thx
Tony

Llamacide

BUMP!

scavengerj

There is a splice (S306) in the harness that goes to a connector (C326). The wires go into pins 1 & 2 of this connector. This connector then plugs into another connector (C311) via pins 1 & 2. This connector then plugs into yet another connector, (C310). Pins 4 & 5 from this connector then go to connections A & B respectively of the liftgate motor.
The wire colors are - Pin 1 of C326 is orange/black
Pin 2 of C326 is pink/black

Pin 4 of C310 is orange/black (goes to connection A on motor)
Pin 5 of C310 is pink/black (goes to connection B on motor)

CodyPuffs

When I hit the unlock switch everything unlocks but the lift gate locks but when I hit the lock switch everything locks but the liftgate unlocks please show me what wires to switch and where and what to do!

wizardpc

CodyPuffs

The rear liftgate wires are switched for the rear liftgate lock mechanism from the guy that had it before my friend and was wondering where to look and what wires to switch so I can fix this problem

CodyPuffs

Where is the liftgate wires that lock and unlock because when I lock my 96 xj the liftgate unlocks but when I unlock the xj the liftgate locks please help

BillyBoy

Use a key and lock or unlock it. Then try. The alarm might just be sending a signal to engage the mechanism?

Parker Scholz

I'm very late but maybe it will help someone else who is searching for answers. I had the same problem (3rd brake light not working, liftgate not locking) and my harness was a mess because previous owner tried to fix it it with wire nuts and electrical tape. What you need to do to guarantee a solid fix is remove the entire harness. I dont have pictures but hopefully it makes sense.

Step 1: Remove liftgate plastic. Two torx holding handle and some phillips around the edge. Then just pop out the clips and it should come right out. Set that aside.

Step 2: Remove the top trim on the jeep side that is right next to the weatherseal. Also remove the spare tire and all of the trim on that side. Organize your screws and set all the trim aside so you aren't bumping into it the whole time.

Step 3. Unplug the harness running up to the liftgate from the harness going to the front of the jeep. I believe it is two connectors and then you have a ground off to the side that is 10mm i think.

Step 4: Unscrew the big connector from the top of the liftgate and pull it out. Those two are 8mm i believe. Disconnect all 3 connectors on the back side and move the big connector out of the way a little bit.

Step 5: Start pulling the harness out of the liftgate. The boot (if you have one i didnt) is going to be a pain and is probably going to be attached to the wires directly on either side. There will also be a 2 pin connector hanging out above the boot inside of the liftgate that connects to the harness. Fish it out and unplug it. I think it is for the third brake light but i could be wrong.

Step 6: Once you fish the harness out of all the holes it will be hanging out in the interior of the jeep. Now you can pull it up the side and out of where the spare tire goes. Pull the harness way from the clips up top ( i think 3 of them) and it should be free. Next start tugging on the harness from the top while pushing from the bottom. Try pulling it out as straight as you can and keep the foam insulation from catching on the sides of the hole.

Step 7: Once you have it out congratulate yourself. Then go to the hardware store and get some 16g wire and maybe some 14g for the two bigger wires in the harness. Also get lots of shrink tubing. You can try to fix the wires but it will probably last longer if you just solder in new ones.

Step 8: Give yourself a nice working space and heat up your soldering gun. What i did was first measure out my lengths of wire and cut them and stripped both ends. Then i cut out the bad wires from each side leaving about 2 inches. Make sure you give yourself enough wire to work with on the connectors. Strip the ends of all the wires you just cut and get to soldering.

Step 9: Do one wire at a time and take your time. I recommend putting your shrink tubing on the wires before hand so you don't forget about it. Now solder each wire on and make sure they are matching on each side. I believe there are 14 wires and each one will have two solder points so keep that in mind while buying your shrink tubing. I started at the harness and soldered all connections and then soldered the connector side. Once you have it all nice and pretty double check to make sure you connected the right wires and slide the shrink tubes over and shink em! I suggest using a heat gun instead of lighter it will go much faster.

Step 10: Tape it all up. This will hurt your hands. Tape up the wires for each harness separately nice and tight so they are protected and organized and then tape them all as a whole and leave about 4-6 inches untaped on the connector side so you have flexibility.

Step 11: Go back to your jeep and plug the wires in at the top and bottom (dont forget the grounds) and test them. Make sure the brake light is working and your lock. Also test your rear wiper and your defrost and make sure the license plate light works. If everything works congratulate yourself.

Step 12: Now for the fun part. Getting it back in. Disconnect the harness from the connectors from when you tested it and begin putting it in the way it came out. Put the end going to the bottom in through the top and start pushing it down and keep an eye on the foam insulation again. This might take a while but just have finesse and patience. When its down reconnect all the connections and move to the top. Fish the ends of the wire through one at a time for each hole they wont fit all together and dont forget about the two pin that sits inside. Once you get them all through the two holes and the boot (if you're keeping it) and you've made sure the two pin is connected you can then connect the other 3 connectors to the big connector. Do that and screw that connector back in.

Step 12: Test everything once more and put all the trim back in place and you should be good to go. If you did away with the boot silicone both holes to prevent your new wires from being damaged and to prevent water from getting in when it rains.


This took me about 3 hours start to finish. It's alot to write out and it may sound confusing but it's honestly pretty easy. Much easier than trying to fix it while it's in the jeep.