Thanks one and all. I know I have some work to do now. A list of possible
electrical/ground faults and or faulty equipment:

   1. cruise control
   2. power locks
   3. windshield washer pump
   4. power mirror switch
   5. fresh air fan

et alia.

The only electrically-operated amenity that does work without fail is the
vanity mirror light. I've tried to put on lipstick from the driver's seat -
no good.  ;]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: joel walker <jwalker17@earthlink.net>
Date: Sep 7, 2006 8:21 PM
Subject: Re:      [VANAGON] Fwd: [VANAGON] algebra-impaired
To: Helmut Blong <helmut.blong@gmail.com>

> Are you saying that all of the interior lights are on the same
> circuit and
> that one faulty switch could be causing the condition? I thought I
> noted
> that the front and rear lights are on different circuits...

not in the GL and Carat models i have. if all the switches are
working,
AND the front driver's seat courtesy light is switch to
door-open-turn-on mode,
then lifting the rear hatch will turn on the lights. opening the
sliding door will
also turn on the lights.
so it seems to me that the overhead lights are all wired together,
sharing a power (red) wire.
the ground are what makes them separate ... you can turn on only the
rear seat overhead by flipping the switch to always-on, but if you
flip it to door-open-turn-on, then it will turn on when any door is
opened.

> I put the seatbelt warning unit back in and it had no effect nor did
> it
> sound a warning, FWIW.

might have done what i did ... ripped the wires loose inside the unit.
:)
i HATED that sound. i've disabled it as soon as i got the bus on every
vanagon i've had. ;)

> With regard to ground straps, is there a good reason that braided
> copper is
> used rather than solid copper, insulated wire?

braided takes more flexing without losing connectivity than solid.
solid doesn't bend well and over time the flexing 'hardens' the copper
and makes it brittle, so it cracks and brakes, and you've lost the
circuit. :(

>but I wonder if corrosion on the
> bare copper straps is of more or less concern than the quality of
> connections to bare metal.

corrosion does NOT help. but what would help more is more ground
straps ... if you have one, add a 2nd or even a third one ... just 12
gauge wire works fine.

> As far as the overhead lights go, a bad ground usually means the
> light will
> not come on in one of the switch positions. The door switches
> interupt the
> ground, thus turning off the lights, so it sounds like those grounds
> have
> been bypassed.

yup. something is amiss with the grounds.

good luck!
joel