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My daughter's 2019 GT dome lights quit working

BEERCHAMP

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Guys, I drive and detail cars, but when it come to electronics or mechanics, I pass.
Is this just a fuse problem? Has anyone else have the same issue?
The two lights over the dash will not work, even when you tap on them.
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Cobra Jet

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Were they working previously?

Car purchased new or used? If used, folks turn off the interior overheard using Forscan...
 
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BEERCHAMP

BEERCHAMP

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Were they working previously?

Car purchased new or used? If used, folks turn off the interior overheard using Forscan...
She bought it new, ran out of warranty 2 months ago.
 

MAGS1

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She bought it new, ran out of warranty 2 months ago.
I’d start with checking the fuse. Probably the easiest fix if it’s the problem. It should be noted which fuse it is in the owners manual. If both are not working I wouldn’t think it’s a bulb issue, usually one goes before the other.
 

ORRadtech

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Check the glove box light, the center console light and the trunk light. They are all on the same circuit and controlled by the body control module.
My trunk light currently has a short in the wiring (that I haven't been able to find yet) and, if plugged in, will disable all of the above lights including the dome lights.
Edit: I should note that the dome lights do work for me when opening the doors regardless of the trunk light being plugged in.
 

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Grimmer

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My first 'mod' was to replace all interior light and trunk bulbs with Diode Dynamics LEDs - much brighter and they offer options for color tone. I opted for the crisper daylight/cool white.

Which is technically irrelevant to your question, but thought I would throw it out there if you are going to be replacing bulbs at some point...

Perhaps they are being disabled by the battery management system? I don't know if the cabin lights are part of that scheme (I could try to look it up in the service manual when I get home), but I do recall certain non-essential electrical systems get progressively nixed as the BMS thinks the battery is getting weak.

For example, my console cigarette lighter continues to charge my cellphone after the retained accessory power turns off but only when the battery has been freshly conditioned. However, within days the BMS will start shutting it down with the RAP. Usually once I hear the engine start cycle to get sluggish, I will recondition the battery again (with PulseTech charger/maintainer/desulfator). Note that I have a dashcam permanently wired to the electrical system that uses power when parked, which daily 'deeper than normal' drain puts an elevated strain on the battery over time and the parasitic drain undoubtedly puts the BMS on 'yellow alert'.

It is important to charge the battery at the correct points (don't charge at the battery posts) so that the BMS can read the influx of power or it will think the battery is weaker than it really is. However, there are several threads about how to reset the BMS (I believe you have to leave it locked and untouched for at least 8 hours, or something to that effect).

One other thing I recall reading about in the service manual... Some of the solid state 'relays' within the body management module (and probably others), will "safety trip" in an overdraw situation. They will self-reset, but it keeps track of how many times they have tripped and reset. After a certain count (I think several hundred) they are permanently disabled requiring replacement of the module (after repair of the offending circuit, of course).
 
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KingKona

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So, she gets in the car, pushes the buttons, and nothing happens?

I'd be willing to bet there is nothing wrong with the lights, she just turned them off and forgot she did it.
 
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Grimmer

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Check the glove box light, the center console light and the trunk light. They are all on the same circuit and controlled by the body control module.
My trunk light currently has a short in the wiring (that I haven't been able to find yet) and, if plugged in, will disable all of the above lights including the dome lights.
Edit: I should note that the dome lights do work for me when opening the doors regardless of the trunk light being plugged in.
When you say "plugged in" are you referring to the trunk bulb itself? Or are you unplugging the harness connector upstream?

I mention it because if there is a short in the wiring, the presence of a bulb should be irrelevant since the current will run through the upstream short in the wiring with or without the bulb being plugged in. Perhaps a partial short is increasing the load just enough such that it is not a problem without the additional load of the bulb. But I estimate that to be an extremely small probability since the bulb wouldn't be adding that much relative extra load, hence the short would have to account for a quite a bit of load on the circuit without being a direct short.

You might want to double check that the correct wattage bulb is being used in the trunk. Or perhaps handling the wiring / socket when plugging in or unplugging the bulb is affecting the short. Check the socket too, perhaps there is a wire strand 'hair' from the connector crimp that is touching something it shouldn't when the connector is handled or when a bulb is present). We had an intermittent short in a covered cargo trailer which turned out to be caused by one of the interior wall panel fasteners having grazed the wiring during manufacture of the trailer and when the trailer jostled just right it was enough of a short to ground to blow the truck's fuse.
 
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ORRadtech

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Yes, I mean when the bulb is plugged into the harness. It's a factory LED and is a sealed unit. I do not believe it is the bulb because I can hook a separate led bulb up and get the same problem. I'm assuming it's the harness in the trunk or deck lid but haven't had a chance to really tear into it yet. I probably won't until the spring.
I only posted to advise that the OP's problem could be somewhere else entirely since those lights are controlled by the BCM and a problem on a completely different light can cause all of them to go out.
 
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BEERCHAMP

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I just texted my daughter to see if the glove box and trunk light works?
 

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Take a bulb out and use a test light to see if there is power, or a new bulb. I doubt they are both burned but it is possible. Also test light can check your fuses
 

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I've got 5$ says she just shut them off herself and doesn't remember how to turn them back on.

Well OP??? Update??
 

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I've got 5$ says she just shut them off herself and doesn't remember how to turn them back on.

Well OP??? Update??
There is no switch to permanently keep the dome lights off.
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If you haven't already done it, check the bulbs. I was an electrician for 17 years and you have no idea how many time I showed up at someone's house because all their lights in one room went out at "once". I'd always ask ahead of time if they checked the bulbs to try and save them some money and they always swore it can't be the bulbs because one minute they all worked and the next minute they didn't. Almost everytime i would go light by light and put new bulbs in and magically, they would come back on. Too often people don't realize one bulb or even two when they go out until it's so dark they have to take notice. Start with the obvious bulbs and fuses.
 

KingKona

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There is no switch to permanently keep the dome lights off.
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LOL!!!!

I'll double check when it's dark outside. I coulda' sworn you can shut the dome lights off when the car doors are open, and then they're off until you turn them back on.
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