Good evening,
I am having a situation I can't wrap my head around...
The boot lights are basically not functioning... except if I pull and reinstall the fuse (F13 in the under seat fuse box)!
If I pull and reinstall the fuse, the lights come on. When I close the boot, let it sit for a couple minutes, and then reopen the boot, the lights won't come on. I have to physically remove and reinstall the fuse.
I have put a new fuse in, same results.
Any idea?
Thanks in advance!

 

Do the boot lights turn off as soon as the hatch closes or do they time out like the cabin lights?

 

I haven't been able to reproduce the pattern yet (the lights wouldn't even come on when removing/reinstalling the fuse) so I'll give it another try today or tomorrow.

 

Maybe closing the boot discharges the capacitor for the bulbs? And when you pull/install the fuse, it charges the cap back up. When you reopen the boot, did you unlock/open the driver's door? I wonder if that might activate the boot lights.

Come to think of it I haven't really noticed how/when my vantage boot lights illuminate.

 

So I have been doing more testing, checked the fuses, replaced the relay 4 in the boot fuse box... No luck.
What I've noticed though, when I simulate the closing/opening of the trunk, is that the tailgate lamp tries to come on but shuts down immediately, as if there was a power surge and it would just go into safe mode.
This got me beat, I don't know what/where to check anymore.
Any idea what I could/should investigate further? Any help is appreciated.
Thank you!

 

Quick things to check:
What's the resistance across the fuse? Using another fuse fix the issue?
What's the resistance across the boot light? (is it more than 1 light that doesn't work?)
What's the resistance to ground from the vehicle harness connector for one of the light's ground pin?

 

Behind the passenger rear headrest, there is a bolt in between the center black bracket. If that is not tightened fully the boot lights will flicker. Maybe check that is tight &/or give it a light sand to make sure there is a good connection.

 

Sorry to revive that old thread, but I did more digging this morning.
I do have the 12V all the way down to the tailgate LED (the easiest one to access), but it won't turn on.
However, when I touch the pin on the LED with a fuse tester, the tester turns on (as expected) AND the tailgate LED turns on, along with all LED in the boot.
Any idea what could cause that behavior?
I did check the RH ground header inside the boot.
Thanks in advance!