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Driver's Door Electrical Connection

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jonaandcaleb

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Is there a side loading issue here? Im old sore and overweight. On the passenger side i noticed as i reconnect i was putting more pressure on the rear side of the connector. Which i guess could flex it all enough that the foward pins are pushing around the female port. Trying to be more careful with the connectors now. I also wish there was a cover for the connector ends unplugged. I live in salty air.
One thing I do is take off the plug that is attached to the kick panel. This way I can hold both harness in my hand and place them together as straight as possible.
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jonaandcaleb

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I currently have this issue. Took the doors off 1 time and am now getting the "Auto Park Disabled" warning and I noticed the radio stayed on the other day. This did not happen immediately when the doors were put back but rather a week later. I noticed yesterday that leaving the drivers door open for a short period I could see the warning light for door open flickering. I will have to take a look at the pins.
Interesting-Most people are reporting that it doesn't work pretty much upon hookup. Strange that it would happen later. Only thing I can think of there is maybe a pin isn't making a good connection or just 'laying' on top of the female connecter and not 'in' the connector. Either way it's likely a bent pin. You should see it when you look in the plug that attached to the kick panel (not the door). It may not be obvious, because even a slightly bent pin will cause issues.

Or go the dishonest route and take it to the dealer and say you haven't taken the doors off.
 

Undecided

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Has the connector changed any on the 2021 model year?
Don't think so. I have a 2021 and facing the same issue today.
Going to need to break the male one off to see it better as bending under there for a good working view is near impossible.

Update:
Fixed thanks to the pictures here! What I thought was "okay" was not. The male connectors can slide off the thing holing to the frame allowing you to look it straight on. Adjusted a few pins both up down and twist : tuh-da working.

Pain in the ass but not such a hard pain it will stop me from taking them off again.
 
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jonaandcaleb

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Don't think so. I have a 2021 and facing the same issue today.
Going to need to break the male one off to see it better as bending under there for a good working view is near impossible.

Update:
Fixed thanks to the pictures here! What I thought was "okay" was not. The male connectors can slide off the thing holing to the frame allowing you to look it straight on. Adjusted a few pins both up down and twist : tuh-da working.

Pain in the ass but not such a hard pain it will stop me from taking them off again.
Super annoying, but I guess it's just one of those things you have to live with. I have been researching new connectors and have found some. I wonder why some of the pins are bigger than the others on the factory harness. And if i need to carry that through on a new one.
 

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How does the male connector slide off the frame...up, down, fore,aft? I want to do it right the first time and not break something else. Any pics would be great!
Don't think so. I have a 2021 and facing the same issue today.
Going to need to break the male one off to see it better as bending under there for a good working view is near impossible.

Update:
Fixed thanks to the pictures here! What I thought was "okay" was not. The male connectors can slide off the thing holing to the frame allowing you to look it straight on. Adjusted a few pins both up down and twist : tuh-da working.

Pain in the ass but not such a hard pain it will stop me from taking them off again.
How does the male connector slide off the frame...up, down, fore,aft? I want to do it right the first time and not break something else. Any pics would be great!
 

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How does the male connector slide off the frame...up, down, fore,aft? I want to do it right the first time and not break something else. Any pics would be great!

How does the male connector slide off the frame...up, down, fore,aft? I want to do it right the first time and not break something else. Any pics would be great!
I can get you pictures tomorrow but I held/pulled the rubber thing up and the male connector slid down off it.
 

trader979

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I can get you pictures tomorrow but I held/pulled the rubber thing up and the male connector slid down off it.
Just to clarify, did you push up on the rubber thing from the bottom with something like a flathead?
 
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jonaandcaleb

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How does the male connector slide off the frame...up, down, fore,aft? I want to do it right the first time and not break something else. Any pics would be great!
Here is a video to explain how the connector works:

Starting at around the 4:54, shows how the connector works.

What I do differently is I take the harness off the kick panel so I can hold both sides of the harness in each hand both when removing and putting it back together. The biggest thing is to not force them back together and just be gentle.
 

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Just to clarify, did you push up on the rubber thing from the bottom with something like a flathead?
Here are some photos. Holding the plug to the frame is some kind of clip that if I pull out will break the "feet" holding it in. This clip has another small clip holding the plug.

What I did is gently pushed the entire thing up towards the steering wheel (almost making it level) to unclip the bottom and slide off of it.
It's very tight so be gentle. I've yet to put it back on the clip and don't think I plan to.

This gives the plug just the slightest bit more wiggle room to let you look at it better.

Jeep Gladiator Driver's Door Electrical Connection tempImageRixBRC


Jeep Gladiator Driver's Door Electrical Connection tempImagekdhVS
 

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trader979

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Here are some photos. Holding the plug to the frame is some kind of clip that if I pull out will break the "feet" holding it in. This clip has another small clip holding the plug.

What I did is gently pushed the entire thing up towards the steering wheel (almost making it level) to unclip the bottom and slide off of it.
It's very tight so be gentle. I've yet to put it back on the clip and don't think I plan to.

This gives the plug just the slightest bit more wiggle room to let you look at it better.

Jeep Gladiator Driver's Door Electrical Connection tempImagekdhVS


Jeep Gladiator Driver's Door Electrical Connection tempImagekdhVS
Wow this is great I appreciate it. One final question. In the first photo your finger is on a tab. Does that need to be bent back first before sliding the male harness up? Thanks again!
 

Undecided

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Wow this is great I appreciate it. One final question. In the first photo your finger is on a tab. Does that need to be bent back first before sliding the male harness up? Thanks again!
yes that is correct. That tab is holding the male plug to it. Pull that away and it should slide right off
 
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berb

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I'll be removing my doors again next week, but before connecting any plugs will apply a thin coat of lubricant to all connectors. Like you guys thats the main reason why I got a Jeep. So I'll be doing a lot of driving without top & doors, hopefully FCA will do a recall on the plugs.
What type of lube will you use, bulb grease?
 

berb

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My Gladiator is currently at the dealership because I had a message stating that the Stop/Start System needed to be serviced. I mentioned the bent pins and if they thought that's what it was I would fix it at home. They said no it was probably the aux battery, they have a lot of problems with that system. Sure enough I get a call and they said my pins were bent. When ever some one comes up with a solution to remake the connector I would be interested. Maybe @oraclelighting can handle this for us. They have made a lot of plug and play things for the Wranglers and JTs. This would be right up their alley. I have no idea how to reach out to them, so if there is someone on this thread that knows how to do that, please do it.
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