|
|
Post by bristol406 on Aug 5, 2020 20:27:00 GMT
My boot light is not working even with ignition on. The bulb is okay; can someone tell me where the switch is please, I can't find it.
Mike
|
|
|
|
Post by lagain on Aug 5, 2020 20:53:52 GMT
When these cars were new the garage apprentice was often sent to find the boot light switch on a P5/b.
He never could !
There is mercury in the base of the bulb holder that should drop when the lid is opened and the light come on. Try thumping the inside of the boot lid by the bulb and see if it comes on.
|
|
|
|
Post by stirlingmg on Aug 5, 2020 21:39:59 GMT
My switch works beautifully but sadly the top part of the bulb holder is missing so it won’t errrrrr hold a bulb
|
|
|
|
Post by Phil Nottingham on Aug 6, 2020 5:02:53 GMT
The bootlight is connected to the number plate light so only comes on with that. The switch contacts tarnish from contact with the Mercury inside the actual boot light holder. It can be dismantled and cleaned but Mercury is highly toxic.
|
|
|
|
Post by 3litrekiwi on Aug 6, 2020 6:42:50 GMT
I know this isn't really a solution but some time before I owned my car the mercury switch must have failed and the owner simply replaced it with a bulb holder. This means that when the lights are on the light in the boot is on all the time but it is only a few watts and as I don't drive much at night it isn't a high priority to change.
My long term solution that may be quite some way off is to mount a magnet and reed switch on the boot hinge and make the light independent of the others as the few times that it would have been handy have been when the other lights were off.
|
|
|
|
Post by johnwp5bcoupe on Aug 6, 2020 8:16:03 GMT
I know this isn't really a solution but some time before I owned my car the mercury switch must have failed and the owner simply replaced it with a bulb holder. This means that when the lights are on the light in the boot is on all the time but it is only a few watts and as I don't drive much at night it isn't a high priority to change. My long term solution that may be quite some way off is to mount a magnet and reed switch on the boot hinge and make the light independent of the others as the few times that it would have been handy have been when the other lights were off. You can get a rolling ball tilt switch which does the same job as the Mercury switch, they can be very small I built one into the original holder but you can hide it somewhere on the boot. |
|
|
|
Post by lagain on Aug 6, 2020 20:26:16 GMT
Mine actually stoped working a few years ago, so I bought an LED pad from ebay that I hid up in front of the rear boot panel, with a constant live feed. I constructed a switch to work on earthing with the body and fitted it near the rear hinge. When I go on holiday and arrive in the dark and open the boot it looks like the Blackpool illuminations !
|
|
|
|
Post by bristol406 on Aug 6, 2020 20:30:09 GMT
Thanks guys. Fascinating. No wonder I couldn't find it, I was looking for a press switch like the one under the bonnet. I will take a look at the bulb holder tomorrow. It does seem like the contacts may have corroded.
|
|
