Trunk Light...

[Mitch Leland]

Howdy Boys, here's a question for ya... I recently bought a "84" wide body. The battery kept running down, so I bought a new battery, it ran down so by this time I knew something was amiss. Slow learner...

Turns out that the trunk light bulb contact was hitting the underside of the hood and negating the plunger switch. The lens is correct, I've ordered a new light, but have yet to see it from the local Porsche dealer so I don't know if I'm repeating the same problem. The light is too tall for the interior space within the hood frame work.

The light is about 1/8"-3/16" to tall for the recess. Naturally I could make a spacer, but I would like to know why it doesn't fit.

Thanks,

Mitch

P.S. I've now put the Optima battery in my car per the Hughes Tech article, it's very cool...

[Rich Lambert]

Was the white plastic piece installed between the light base and the hood?

I always wondered why they put those on there...maybe now we know.

[ossiblue]

+1 to Rich's reply. Check the Pelican New Parts list for the "Boot Light," and in the drawing it shows the spacer. Let's assume your new part from the dealer includes it, but you never know.

Did you replace the light or did it come that way from the PO?

[Mitch Leland]

Reply to:
Rich Lambert - ossiblue

Thanks for the help, I did get the plastic-nylon gasket, but it's only .010"- .020" thick, no help with the spacing problem.

Mitch

[MattAlpha]

Mitch,
Are you certaint that you have the original hood on your car? I have a late model hood and it has the late model trunk light (yes obvious I know). You may want to try the later model trunk light which has a flat face and takes a much smaller bulb. You can see it in this picture of my hood/trunk.


I can take a close up of it if you would like. When I got my car, the light was never hooked up. The bare wires helped to drain my battery then until I realized that it wasn't hooked up. I hooked it up and most of my battery draining problem went away. Yeah, someone replaced the hood and just cut the wires and pushed them out of sight. Just one of the annoying electrical problems I've dealt with so far.

One thing to try first though is to electrical tape the contact for the hot wire that runs to the light. If your battery draining problem goes away then you absolutely have found the source.

Good luck,
Matt

[KatoKato]

Originally Posted by Mitch Leland

...Turns out that the trunk light bulb contact was hitting the underside of the hood and negating the plunger switch...

I had the same problem a couple of years back. As far as I know when I bought the car the trunk light would go out when I closed it......and then a couple of years later when I was ready for a drive the battery was dead and I eventually traced it back to this issue. As a temporary fix I just didn't install the bulb.

Yesterday I figured out that the light bulb contact was touching the underside of the hood judging by the wear marks in the paint on the hood. I figure that after 20 years the contact wore through the paint and closed the circuit....

Anyhoo .... what I did was put electrical tape over the light bulb contact and on the underside of the hood. I figure now I should have another 20 years before the contact wears it's way through two layers of tape.

Is this a problem with all of our cars that have this light? Or is there a "low profile" light bulb harness that will prevent this eventual contact?

Cheers,
Kato

[Mitch Leland]

Kato,

I believe now that there are different light bases. I know my hood is original because my paint is original. I never got to the bottom of the problem, I modified my light base so now the switch shuts off the power to the light bulb. However I'm not sure I would rely on electrical tape for a fix

[KatoKato]

Originally Posted by Mitch Leland

Kato,

I believe now that there are different light bases. I know my hood is original because my paint is original. I never got to the bottom of the problem, I modified my light base so now the switch shuts off the power to the light bulb. However I'm not sure I would rely on electrical tape for a fix

Perhaps I'll fashion an additional spacer out of rubber and place that in there so there is additional clearance.

[KatoKato]

Originally Posted by KatoKato

Perhaps I'll fashion an additional spacer out of rubber and place that in there so there is additional clearance.

That's exactly what I did yesterday.

I used an old car floor mat which was approx. the same thickness as the spacer. I traced it's outline with a pencil and cut with some very sharp scissors.

It took two of these additional spacers to give the proper clearance but now there is no contact. I tested it by applying some paint to the underside of the hood in the contact area (there was electrical tape there already)

Cheers,
Kato