I have voltage at the connection of the door courtesy switch on the driver side door. I have read most of the build ups and searched the tech sections with no luck in finding any information.
all the research i have done shows that there should not be a voltage reading on the ground wire end of the circuit. the wiring diagram shows a diode on the circuit but i can't find where it is located.
I have pulled the dash and traced the wire to the passenger light controls box but according to the wire diagrams, that circuit is a different breaker.
Does anyone have any suggestions on where to look to fix this.

I should also say I am not a mechanic, I haven't worked on cars since this rig was new, my girlfriend picked this one up several years ago but has to pull battery cable every time it isn't running.

 

Ok, the diode is so that one door switch doesn't illuminate the other door courtesy light. If it weren't there, opening one door would turn on the lights on both doors.

There should be +12VDC on one of the wires on the door switch constantly. The other side should be ground. That way, when the door is opened, and the switch makes, it applies a ground to the lights. Thus, when the switch makes, the current may flow through the lights, illuminating them, through the switch, to ground. When the door is closed, the switch opens, removing the ground from the light, turning it off. The voltage is still there, on one side of the switch, but the ground is removed from the circuit, so no light illumination.

Where the diode is isn't really important, atm. If opening one door only turns on one light, it's good.
BTW: the fuse that supplies voltage to the circuit is the DOME fuse, 7.5 A.

Just curious, why does your GF need to remove the battery terminal if it's parked for a few days? I know my 87 runner will drain the battery if I leave the truck un-run for more than about 10-15 days. Is that what's happening? Just wondering.

Good luck!
Pat☺

 

the door switch is one wire connecting the ground in the circuit, all my knowledge of low voltage DC electronics say that the Amperage remains constant, while the voltage is consumed by the devices in the circuit, the ground wire should show 0 volts between the last device and the ground connection.
The battery has a draw on it when the dome circuit fuse is in and no draw when the fuse is out. this circuit runs the clock, radio memory, and the dome lights. all are disconnected and i still have an 11 volt reading on the ground wire.
Ive never run into this problem before and am dumbfounded.

 

Do your dome / courtesy lights work?

I am trying to picture exactly what you are measuring with your multimeter.

Can you tell us exactly where you are putting your red and black probes? A picture could help too.

Is any part of the dome / courtesy light circuit disconnected?

When devices are ground-side switched, like the dome lights, and the switch is in the open position (turned off), you will have battery voltage all the way up to the side of the switch that is connected to the lights.

 

yes i can turn the dome light and map lights on with the switch on the light, it does not come on when i turn it to door. I had to replace some wire in the roof under the headliner to make that work. the only thing that is not connected is the door switch on the driver door. when i connect it the fuse blows. I did take the passenger switch wire off and checked it, it did have voltage and when i reconected it the light comes back on.
On the battery needing to be disconnected, it will drain the battery in the duration of an 8 hour work day. can't seem to find any other drains in the circuits except the dome circuit.

 

Do you have voltage at the actual metal grounding of the door switch? I had a switch that would get stuck closed, and had a short drain there.