Help! Daytime Running Lights stay on even after ignition is off

[Jedi Rex]

My daytime running lights won't turn off even when the car is off and the key is pulled out of the ignition! I yanked the fuse out to temporarily fix the problem, but this just won't cut it as a long-term solution. My car's still under warranty, so I could take it in to the dealer, but I'd rather avoid them if I can (they're jerks) and they'll be closed by the time I could get there today, and won't reopen until Monday anyways. So if anybody has any ideas, it sure would help.

Things that may or may not be related: I did take the car in for both a car wash and a tire rotation today. My neighbor (who also noticed that the lights were on, god bless him!) thinks it may have something to do with the car getting wet recently (the car wash). And I was also thinking that the tire rotation could have had something to do with it, because the lights usually go off when the parking brake is engaged, but they're not anymore. So I was wondering if they accidentally disconnected something, or forgot to hook something back up.

I'm about to go digging through the service manuals to see if I can find anything, but any ideas from anybody who's experienced this before would be greatly appreciated.

And forgive me if this has been posted before - I did run about a dozen searches looking for it, and couldn't find anything.

[GV27]

Are the headlights on, or just the parking lights? Parking lights: the car wash guys tuned on the switch on top of the steering column.

[Jedi Rex]

Well, I'm a complete moron... Thanks, GV27, but I just got back in from turning them off. Problem is solved. I had simply *completely* forgotten about the stupid parking light switch on the steering column. One of the two places I took the car to today, the guy must've just flipped the switch on accident.

So everybody completely ignore this thread, as I go off and hide my face in shame for being a total idiot.

[SpeedShift]

lol

[RLsChMiDt]

...it's happened to TOO many people, don't worry you're not the only one!

p.s.: for the record, i've never done it myself

[Th3Franz]

I'll probably end up doing it and then I'll remember reading this thread.

[Jedi Rex]

Thanks for not beating me up too bad over it, guys.

[GV27]

No sweat, that's probably happened to 90% of us! The other 10% either did it in a previous 'roo or read a thread like this one before they had a chance!

I actually called the dealer to schedule it in to have it fixed.

Service Guy: Did you take it to a car wash today?

Me: Yeah, how did you know?

LOL. Duh!

When they wipe off the steering column they inevariably flip the switch.

C

[suderex]

Thank *gaud* I thought to check the boards before I went down to the dealer tomorrow and looked like a complete idiot.

After the wiper fluid incident they already think I've never owned a car before....don't ask.....

Praise the Internet
Matt

[mrblue48]

I'm luck enough to be in the 10% that read about that switch in a thread like this before I had the chance to make the mistake myself. Very common.

[NJSubieTech]

You think youre bad. As a dealership tech, I had at least one or two people a week come in with the same problem, because sales people never explain to them what the switch does.

Well when i had the car for about.... oh two months, I left the damn thing on and spent about 4 hours tracing wires (because i had just done some wiring under my dash for the alarm) before i realized it was that damn switch.....