Here lately, I've had little cash to spare. I got to wondering why none of my original door light switches worked. No clue how long all four have failed to make contact but i had a feeling i knew why. I removed each switch, and easily figured out how they work. They slide and when they stop they make contact. This is what ALL four looked like:
All four had rust on one side, and were clean on the other. The point of contact had rusted beyond much repair. I tried sanding the prong which cleaned it, but the other point of contact was somewhat pitted and rusty as well. I used my dremel tool and a stainless brush bit to clean the surfaces of rust. Oddly, this didn't fix my door switch enough to make the correct contact thus making the lighting work. Knowing these will have to be replaced further down the road for sure, I cut all but a quarter inch off the male connection prong after cleaning it. Used a pair of wire pliers to cut the prong then bend it back and forth and break it off at the cut.
Then i cut the protective sleeve back about an eighth of an inch so when i pushed it all the way on, it touches the plastic part of the switch but the female connector itself makes contact with switch instead of the male prong contacting the switch.
Then re-install the screw. I would recommend using sandpaper and/or a file to get rid of any rust as the screw and switch itself have to ground out to the body. Easy fix that takes less that 10 minutes per switch to do and saves $9.99/switch if you're in a pinch.
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Originally Posted by Hazwan
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