Avant 'cargo compartment' light

[Dippy]

The interior light at the back of my S4 avant won't come on automatically anymore. I haven't investigated on the car but I checked the Bentley manual about a switch and got a bit lost.

Can anyone save me some time and suggest where I start looking for a fault?

[Carps]

Since there is no visible switch, I guess it works the same way as the doors. There should be a small micro-switch in the latch mechanism. I just had one of my doors ones fixed, which by Audi required replacing the whole latch (warranty). If your lucky, I suspect you could probably repair the faulty switch or simply replace the switch on its' own and thus save quite a lot of money.

Out of interest, do you pressure wash your car ? Common thing to fail thanks to ingress of water. I managed to shag my boot lock/alarm sensor on my MkIV Golf by pressure washing too enthusiastically [img]images/graemlins/stupid.gif[/img]

[Paul-RS]

not familiar with the car but i would start looking in this order...

Bulb .... blown? is ther power there? seated correctly on holder, or dirty contacts?
Fuse .. if no power then check fuse
Switch.. if power, then look into the switch on bootlid etc.


also some estate cars, you can switch rear cargo light permantly on, off or auto, much like the front headlining lights, is this the case with the Avant? if so

has switch been moved from auto?

[Paul-RS]

and like carps... my passenger door lights didnt work ... or alarm feature for that matter, from new. Audi had to fit a new door lock and switch mechanism..

[Dippy]

Thanks.

The bulb works fine - there is a 3-position switch: Auto, off and always on. The bulb comes on in the always on position. So yes I expect there to be a switch problem, but it's still a question of where to start looking.

The S3 is a hatchback isn't it? When does the light come on - as soon as the door is unlatched or after it is raised a little bit?

[Dippy]

Carps,
Yes I do pressure wash my car.
Same question to you - does the light come on straight away or only after the door is raised a bit.

And yes, since I have no warranty I will certainly want to fix this myself.

[Paul-RS]

cant say i have ever taken notice !

I will go find out.

[Paul-RS]

right. been and checked. (S3)

with aid of folding down the seats, i popped the boot by the remote.

lights come on.

so i would say your fault lies in the boot lock or catch mechanism, where ever they have put the switch.

[Carps]

S4 - the light comes on as soon as you pop the boot by remote or touching the catch on the boot itself. You don't have to actually open it at all.

I have had a scour of the Bentley manual and can't find anything to help. I'd phone your local dealer service department to confirm how it wokrs - then order the parts from VAG-Parts

[FatBoy]

Might be a daft question, but have you checked to make sure the light switch in the roof lining hasn't been set to the "off" position ?
Just a thought [img]images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Ooops....just read the reast of the thread. Lightswitch already coverd [img]images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

Paul

[Jon]

strange you should mention this as my RS4 has started doing this as well. and yes I have checked the switch!

[Golich]

This happened on my 98 S4 Avant.

Does your lights still flash when you lock/alarm the car?

If not, then the boot lid latch isn't making it onto the second latch rather it's only hitting the initial safety catch. This happened on my S4 where the actual pin in the floor of the boot had moved back such that the door latch couldn't make it to the second catch.

If not the light activation is in the latch mech.

Good luck

[Dippy]

Thanks for the info everyone. Yes my lights still flash with the central locking alarm.

It's clear to me that I need to look at the catch itself. I'll investigate first before buying a new part 'cos it's most likely to be a connector dropped off or the contacts need to be cleaned.

I just need to get the enthusiasm to do the job in the cold weather! Maybe one day over Christmas when I've had enough of the kids!

[Dippy]

Hi guys, I need some more help. I have just tried getting access to both sides of the locking mechanism and have realised that it's not a simple job. Before I go further I need to know which part to access.

Is it the catch mechanism in the tailgate door, or in the floor (i.e. behind the rear bumper) that I need to access?

I noticed that the one in the floor has a large black metal shield around the u-bolt which moves on a hinge. Whilst this could be just to shield this area, it seems sensible to put the switch there. But I couldn't get the trim up: I removed the two screws but the centre of the trim wouldn't budge. It feels like there must be another couple of screws, but if so they must be hidden below the rippled aluminium protector strip which sits on top of the trim, and I couldn't see how to move it.

I also had a quick look in the tailgate door. I couldn't remove the trim easily, but I did remove the inside handle so that I could see part of the latch mechanism. Unfortunately if the switch is in there I have to remove the rest of the trim.

Anyway, I need to know which part of the trim I must remove. So could someone with a B5 A4/S4 Avant try the following:
1) Open the tailgate so that the interior light comes on.
2) Push down that black metal shield around the u-bolt in the floor. Does the light go off?
3) If not, please could you try the same with the catch in the tailgate door - i.e. use a screwdriver to make it lock again - does this make the light go out?

TIA, Dave

[PaulR]

All this attention to detail has made me realise that the interior light in the Avant luggage area operates independantly of the courtesy lighs in the passenger compartment.

Secondly, the light in my luggage area operates intermittently - ie it works after the car's run, but not when cold (and cold does not necessarily mean freezing.) It's raining now and not working, so I cannot answer your questions regading the latch or locking mechanism.

I also noticed that (having opened the rear door without unlocking the passenger doors by using the release button on the remote control) when closing the rear door the indicator flash to signify alarm reactivation did not occur. This does flash when locking and unlocking the car normally, and also when the luggage light is working. (There may have been confusion in an earlier answer.)

So I also wait to see what further replies come in, and where the solution lies. Otherwise I'll post again after I've been out, and hopefully repeated the little test with the light working!

...Paul.