'99 V70 Auto, FWD, Base - Ignition switch oxidation

Post by **E Showell** » 25 Jul 2014, 11:22

My wife's V70 recently developed some odd symptoms -- directionals did not function, although the emergency flashers (same bulbs) were fine. The dash illumination did not work and the headlights would not illuminate.

Robert (rspi on the board) rightly suggested that the electrical portion of the ignition switch could be the culprit.

When I removed the ignition switch for replacement, I noticed what appeared to be brownish oxidation on a few of the electrical connector pins. I took a cellphone photo. It appears below thanks to Matt's technical prowess. Not a great photo, but note the heavy oxidation on three of the switch contacts. For the terminally curious, the part has numbers molded in to the plastic next to each pin. The heavily oxidized pins were #15, #301 and the right-hand most pin of the pair labelled either #"15I" -- that's 15 capital i, or #"151." Difficult to tell exactly what the third one is designated, but I am banking on an alphanumeric combination. I have no idea what any of those numbers correspond to in a wiring schematic, but I'll take a wild guess -- directionals, headlights, and dash illumination.

I replaced the same part on my '98 V70 a few days before. When I removed that one, I noticed similar oxidation -- although much heavier -- but on one pin only. I cleaned up the switch from the '98 and used it as the replacement on the '99 figuring that the oxidation was the only reason the switch on the '99 was acting up. I'm holding onto the '99 switch and will clean it up as a spare.

I suspect that cleaning the oxidation off the switch will restore normal function so anyone who is considering swapping out a misbehaving switch (electrical portion only) for a brand new part might want to try cleaning the contacts on the existing switch first. That might save you a few bucks.

Finally, when I removed the bottom steering wheel cover on the '99, the plastic mounts that the screws go through to hold the cover to the steering column crumbled. I have formed plugs of JB Weld epoxy to make new mounts and will drill them for the screws once it sets. No problem with the mounts on the '98.

Post by **cn90** » 25 Jul 2014, 12:13

Yeah,

People have done that on BMW E39 forum, cleaning out the contacts.
The ghetto way is to remove the ign switch but don't take it apart.
Just give it a few blasts of PB Blaster etc.
Let it dry and that is it.

Post by **E Showell** » 25 Jul 2014, 12:48

I'd be happier with the extra 15 sec. it takes on the Volvos to take the switch apart and actually clean the individual contacts. As you can see from the photo, some of the contacts appear oxidized, others seem fine.

Post by **abscate** » 26 Jul 2014, 19:09

I noted the same discoloration on my 1999 when I did the switch last year. I think I took pix to compare? I did wonder if they would clean up and restore switch function.

Nice sleuthing eshowell.....and I note again for cross reference this solved your elusive idle "dip" problem .

Post by **jreed** » 27 Jul 2014, 06:29

I recently removed a couple of ignition switches from junked cars and opened them up for inspection and cleaning. I took a few photos along the way of opening up, cleaning, and putting it back together.

: Mark the alignment of the cases before disassembly; 1 Clocking marks.jpg (176.09 KiB) Viewed 895 times

: Note the orientation tab on the side; 2 Orientation tab on side.jpg (184.33 KiB) Viewed 895 times

I used a small screwdriver to pry up the metal tabs:

: Pry out the tabs on the case; 3 Pry out metal tabs.jpg (178.43 KiB) Viewed 895 times

: Switch interior overview; 4 Inside of switch.jpg (180.74 KiB) Viewed 895 times

I applied a little fresh white lithium grease to the detents:

: Detents in the case for the ball to snap in; 5 Recesses for ball.jpg (234.28 KiB) Viewed 895 times

I used a little CRC 2-26 electrical contact cleaner on the switch contacts (as well as the exterior pins):

: Close up of a contact surface with contact cleaner still on it; 5 Contact close up.jpg (165.49 KiB) Viewed 895 times

I wiped off the contact with a lint free cloth:

: Contact surface after cleaning; 6 Cleaned contact surface.jpg (149.75 KiB) Viewed 895 times

After aligning the cases and putting them together, I tested twisting the switch with a screwdriver to make sure the motion was smooth:

: Cases reassembled; 7 Reassembled - Testing turning.jpg (146.1 KiB) Viewed 895 times

Stake the metal tabs back into place with a nailset:

: Staking the metal tabs back into place to lock cases together; 8 Staking metal back in place.jpg (186.51 KiB) Viewed 895 times

This switch should be good to go, but I must admit I haven't tested it out yet because the original switch in my '97 hasn't shown any signs of failure yet.

Post by **Jack Rock** » 27 Jul 2014, 07:27

I recently replaced my ignition switch for a different reason and I too noted the discolouration of those three pins and since the connector fell apart on me

the reason was clear. There are no connections to those pins. The other pins have electrical connector sleeves on them, those three are open to the air. I was glad they were discoloured because I had no other way to tell where the wires went in the connector holes. Anyway, nothing to be concerned about I'm sure.