MNSportsman

iTrader: (1)

Late last week, I noticed one morning that my puddle lights, cargo light and trailer assist light all stayed on after I shut the truck off and locked it. I watched them for a awhile and noticed they would flash on/off, stay on for a bit, shutoff, back on, etc. This continued to happen every time I shut the truck off, fortunately it never fully drained my battery.

I pulled the DTC (B14A7 Puddle/Cargo Switch Input with description "circuit short to ground") which was being registered in the BCM. I tried clearing it but it kept coming back within minutes. I also noticed that my bed light switch was not working (bed lights would not turn on.)
@Livnitup was kind enough to share with me the diagnostic on this DTC from the workshop manual which called for a Pinpoint Test J. Unfortunately it was outside of my skill so I brought it to the dealer.

Long story short short it turned out to be an open circuit on the bed light switch itself. The put a new switch in and that seems to have taken care of it. Sounds like maybe some moisture may have got in there. I'm at 38k so it ended up costing me $167 which I actually thought was pretty reasonable all things considered.

This was my first issue I've had with this truck (had it for just over 2 years now) and I'm hoping it's an isolated incident. Having these types of issues was what scared me a bit from leaving Toyota but again hopefully it's not a start of a pattern to come. Wanted to share this in case anyone else runs into a similar issue down the road. ​​​​​​​

Leeder

MNSportsman

iTrader: (1)

Interesting. Are you getting the same DTC?

Leeder

Ryan B

iTrader: (1)

I’ve seen this a few times lately where the switch develops an intermittent fault and causes the lights to randomly turn on and off.

Can you post the part number for the switch? I’m going to pick one up to keep in the glove box.

aswormboy

I was having this same problem. The bed lights and cargo lights would turn on by themselves. Then they would start to dim like they were shutting off and then come back on. It seemed worse after rain and then when they stopped turning on by themselves the button in the bed would not work for a while. I just had it in to the local dealer and they replaced the switch and some wire related to it. It seems to have resolved the issue.

MNSportsman

iTrader: (1)

Hey Ryan - The p/n on the paperwork is: 1L2Z-14018-AC

Looks like you can get a little cheaper online

MNSportsman

iTrader: (1)

Interesting, thanks for letting me know. I wonder if there was a bad batch of switches or if moisture is getting in there shorting something out. I may pop the switch out and see if there is any opportunity to add some dielectric. Would like to avoid this issue in the future. At least we know where to look first if it does happen again.

cthusker

Don't you just love the way car stealers RAPE customers on parts. Tasca sells that switch for 25 bucks while showing a list price of 39 bucks. Stands to reason Tasca isn't losing money selling the part at 25 bucks so that dealer charging 54 bucks is really gouging IMO. Freaken dealer marks it up even more then list price which is ridicilous.

At least the vehicle was fixed but just saying check your parts price as I found at my dealership their parts prices are usually negotiable..............

RowBTrice

I've had the issues where the truck bed lights were flashing on/off all night a couple times. Took it to the dealership both times, which they had the truck all day both times. Neither time could they diagnose or fix the issue. I asked them about the bed light switch saying I'd found multiple cases online where that was the issue and the fix, asked them to replace it (under warranty), and they wouldn't do it unless their machines led them to it. So after wasting a couple trips to the dealership, I said where is your parts department, I'm just going to buy the part and replace it myself. Bought the part (it was part # SW7733) and only $20. Next time I catch the lights flashing I'll try to replace it.

Has anyone here actually replaced the switch themselves? Is it difficult? I've read on other forums that you should be able to pop the old switch out with a flathead screwdriver, unplug it, plug it into the new switch, and pop that back into place. I'm hoping it is indeed that simple, but welcome any feedback if anyone has done this before or has seen a video online before.