Interior Lights

[chrisedge]

Hi. Wife has 02 rav for some years. Now don't laugh but she has just noticed that when the doors are opened the int. lights do not come on & she thinks never have done. I read somewhere that in the fuse box is a false white one that might have something to do with it. Ideas any one? Thanks

[anchorman]

There are 3 positions for the switch - off, on and door. It is set to door right?

[Big Kev]

So.......is the passenger......door-left....?

[pmb]

The front one doesn't when you open the door.

[Big Kev]

The front one doesn't when you open the door.

.......which is the daftest thing ever on wife's car........she sits up front to drive it, but the central/rear light cluster thing comes on........?

[IanXT4]

Assuming the switch is on and the fuse is OK check both the bulbs, ideally with a meter. I have had both bulbs blow in the past and at least one filament looked ok visually.

The only spares that I have found in Halfords and local Motor factors are slightly larger than the OEM ones and fit quite tightly.

[chrisedge]

Thanks for replies but you've missed the point. ALL lights come on manually & full strength. NONE come on on opening doors. I cannot help but feel that this is a fault centrally & would like to have ideas as where to look.

[bothwell_buyer]

Never really bothered to look, but I don't think the interior lights come on when I open nummer 2s doors.

The interior light certainly disnae come on when I open nummer 1s doors cos the interior lights were ripped out along with most of the other weighty embellishments inside the car. I suppose I've been driving these cars for almost 20 years and have got used to where things are.... handbrake lever, gearstick, steering wheel etc. Although on nummer 1, I can now take the steering wheel with me.

[Hoovie]

Thanks for replies but you've missed the point. ALL lights come on manually & full strength. NONE come on on opening doors. I cannot help but feel that this is a fault centrally & would like to have ideas as where to look.

Don't assume it is a central fault necessarily. I don't know for sure, but the door switches are likely to be quite exposed to the elements inside the pillar?

I know it is not a RAV4, but I have a VW T4 of a similar vintage to your RAV and I had exactly the same issue - PLUS ... the lights-on buzzer didn't work either (these are usually operated by the door switch).

On my T4, I took out the switches and cleaned up the slight corrosion with one of the brushes you get with a Dremel (you could use a bit of abrasive paper or even an nail emery board) and voila! lights working on both door openings again and headlight buzzer working.

This may have helped, or may be be irrelevant to the RAV, but thought I'd throw it in as a consideration ;)

[pmb]

Do they come on when you unlock the central locking? The back 2 do on mine. Also if I open a rear door with the car unlocked the back 2 do again.