Lx450 "open Door" Light

[lx450owner]

Just bought a used 1997 LX450....... as a few days ellapsed, I started to notice problems..... while driving, I started seeing the the "door open" light going on and off....... did some searching and found it to be the passanger side back door. Seems that there is a loose wire somewhere which when hitting a pot-hole, turns the door light on and off. Where do i begin to look for the loose wire? I am not sure if I should start within the door or around it somewhere.

Also noticed that the drive side rear door does not is not connected at all to the sensor...... when door is open, the light on the dash does not light up at all. Neither does the interior dome light.

Problem #2 - check engine light sometimes goes on and then turns off at some point. Had my mechanic scan it and found that there maybe a bad "switch" somwhere. Or he claims it may just be loose wiring being that it goes on and off at times.

Well lets start with these problems and then ill post some more later on....

Thank you all in advance for any feedback that you can give me.

[dougjohn]

The "door open" light keeps coming on because it really thinks you have a door open. No kidding...

One of the strikers on the "B" or "C" pillars is loose. The striker is the U-shaped metal hoop that the door latches to. On the LX 450 each striker has 2 screws. One of them is loose. I had the same problem once and only had to tighten one of them a little bit -- problem went away...and I had the problem for MONTHS! Drove me crazy. I was thinking electrical too, but thankfully it was a very easy fix. Check all 4 strikers.

The second issue you described sounds like you have a bad or worn out switch. Could just be sticky. Try removing the rubber cover first and lube it a little (WD40 or something similar). If it's dead, you can always get a new switch.

Check engine light might be touch to pin down unless the light is on. The LX 450 is ODB II compliant. Once the light is on, you can have it scanned. Should be easy to determine the problem. Most Autozone stores will scan for free. I doubt it's a "bad switch" or "loose wiring". The light comes on for a reason. Depending on your mileage, it could be the O2 sensors, EGR valve, or a couple other things.

Hope this helps.