My Camry isn’t always turning off the headlights when I turn off the ignition. It killed the battery the other day. Why aren’t the headlights going off when I turn off the key?
What Vehicle? 1994 Toyota Camry
What’s the trim package level? LE
Did the buzzer go off to alarm you the day the headlights were left on? No
Diagnosis by phone: My first guess was that there was something shorting out in the headlight system.
Final diagnosis: When I got the car the first thing I wanted to do is to try to re-create the issue. I turned the car on and turned the headlights on and made sure that the drivers door was closed. I turned the key off and opened the drivers door to check the headlights and they were off. Well, it looks like it’s working. I then re-read the owners manual to verify what it is supposed to do. If the headlights are on and the car is running once you turn off the car and open the driver’s door the headlights are supposed to turn off. OK, so it was doing exactly what it is supposed to do. Now the fun part.
- Turn on the headlights and leave the switch on the stalk in the Headlights On position for this whole test.
- Close the door
- Turn the key to ‘ON’ (or start it).
- Turn the key to ‘Lock”.
- Open the drivers Door.
- Check that the headlights are off.
- Repeat #2-6 until #6 fails (lights are still on).
Once I finally got the lights to stay on I started to test the system. The first thing I checked was the Courtesy Light Door Switch. Once I wiggled this the buzzer came on to let me know that my keys were still in the ignition and concurrently the headlights turned off.
The interesting thing about this switch is that it sends input to quite a few systems in a modern vehicle. Here’s a list (not extensive) of some of the systems it signals.
- Automated headlights (signals the system to turn them off when the key is in the off position and the door is open)
- Key buzzer (you left your key in the ignition)
- Light buzzer (the headlights are still on)
- Courtesy light (turns on the courtesy lights – ignition, dome, door, under dash, running boards, etc.)
- Door ajar warning light (light in the combination meter)
- Security system input (someone’s trying to break in)
- Power lock input (Key’s in the ignition, door is open, push the door locks to lock the doors and it overrides the command to lock the vehicle so you can’t lock your keys in your car)
Solution: Replace the Courtesy Light Door Switch (~$25 from Toyota).