2008 Corolla Ce Tail And Dash Lights Out - Toyota Corolla, Chevy Prizm (1998-2008)

HI all,

this problem is almost identical to the last post I started but here it goes!

About 6 weeks ago, I noticed my dash lights not working randomly one night... but like 15 minutes later the decided to turn on with no help from me.

Then about a few days later then again did not want to turn on and now hitting the dash board made them go on

I took it to my local toyota dealership and had them do a quick advise and they said it was pack rats because the engine was a little dusty at the time.

I took it to my mechanic and said there was no visual evidence of pack rats anywhere!

I then did not think about it for a awhile , when I get pulled over by the police for driving without any lights, He wrote me a ticket for no lights but I told him this car has automatic lights and indeed my lights were on at the time, no way I could ever turn them off if it was dark outside and the car was switched to the on position.

One of his partners later advised me that my tail lights were not working, and then the cop[ of did the whole DUI test, and of course I hadn't been drinking at the time... was before i had even reached my destination. and that night i did have my car towed home, so did not have to think about it until tomorrow, because of this problem

So i then took it to the other Precision toyota ( the other one in town), to see if they had an anwer to this, well they had some answer, that it was a shorted wire due to improper aftermarket battery installation, Which it was aftermarket, but, the dealership I took it to first said the battery was not under warranty so, of course I went out and got a battery, and my mechanic there installed it And precision toyota said that the fuses, and all all of the switches and relay system is ok. so, I immediately called my mechanic, and told him this and he said this was the most rediculous thing he ever heard. Said that in no way could this be the cause. If it was it would have just blown a fuse rather than the tail and dash lights

Both dealerships are in agreement that the fuses are ok.

but now I took it to my friend's mechanic, Royal Automotive Service, and he tinkered with it for a few hours and came up with, that its the integrated relay control system was the cause of this problem.

So I go back to precision toyota with this new information and a copy of the wiring diagram for my car with the highlighed area of the problem, They still say it is because of the faulty battery instalation, and agree this is the area of the problem. But they said on their initial visit that the relays and the relay system is fine. So now I suspect them of lying to me

So any help is greatly appreciated!

Guest John8

I have a 07 Corolla, the dash lights would go out while driving then come back on again, i took it to an auto electrician and it was the connections in the headlight switch

Guest John8

I have a 07 Corolla, GX hatchback, the dash lights would go out by themselves while driving and then come back on after a few minutes, I took it to an auto electrician and it was the connections in the headlight switch.

Intermittent electrical issues can be nearly impossible to track down in a typical diagnostic time slot. A faulty integration relay could explain a lot of the issues you are seeing, as it is connected to the all the affected circuits. So could an intermittent ground or multiple ground loops. Aftermarket lighting/lamps, car audio/video setups, aftermarket alarm systems, etc. - all could contribute to electrical issues.

If a faulty installation with an aftermarket battery could cause fault with the integration relay - anything is possible. It is very unlikely to be the source of the issue, but also depends on what they found as faulty with the installation. Example, if you had a remote battery installed, or has some wired in parallel for pro-audio competitions, that could cause issues.

Need a bit more information:

Which battery did you go with, and what did the dealership find was improperly installed?

Did you have anything installed on the car that is not stock, including non-electrical mods? Surprising, even non-electrical items, like aftermarket SRI/CAI intakes can cause electrical issues. Have to suspect everything, with intermittent electrical issues.