Headliner lights not receiving power

Butane

Member
Car
2015 Q50 2010 G37 2014 QX70
Name
Jer
So far from what I can tell all other lights are working.
The Front Vanity Lights, Dome lights, and back seat lights do not work.

Fuses are all good, TICM seems to be fine but Ill change it just in case, Im thinking that a plug somewhere is not connected or a faulty wire in the BCM. Before I rip the whole dash out again anyone have suggestions?
 
This is what I got to try to day;

1. I see that My Dome lights do not work but the Sunroof control button does work so I know that the dome is receiving power.
2. I checked the voltage at the bulbs connectors for the Dome and it was reading .24 volts but the enclosure said 12v 8w so I believe that it was not receiving sufficient power.
3. I started reading the voltage at the harness that connects to the headliner from the vehicle and each pin was giving me different volts from 1-9 I believe.
4. I checked continuity between the other lights on the headliner and no connection seems to be broken.
5. I checked continuity between some of the pins for the connector on the TICM (Total illumination control module) and it had continuity on one of the cables and high readings on the others so I believe thats good.
6. I checked continuity between the TICM and ground and it seemed to be fine as well.
7. I Checked continuity between the BCM and TICM and that was fine as well.
8. I could not find continuity between the pins from the harness connector thats supposed to plug into the headliner and the TICM, The BCM, and Both Grounds. So it receives some sort of power when the vehicle is on but then cant pinpoint what its connected to when the vehicle is off.
This tells me that its either not connected/missing a connector somewhere or the Ground is bad, or there is a fault somewhere, or maybe even something is not plugged in to the correct connector.
 
Im a bit confused by the service manual because I was under the impression that the BCM is what is located in the passenger side footwell and looks like a module box. In the service manual they are referring to behind the odometer there is a module being the BCM.
Screenshot 2025-04-03 222121.png
 
Research;
Interior room lamp control system,
-Front room/map lamp, personal lamp 2nd row and cargo lamp are controlled by the interior room lamp timer
control function of the BCM when the lamp switch is in the DOOR position.
-Interior room lamps and outside handle lamp are illuminated by welcome light function of Intelligent Key system.
-If an interior lamp is left ON and does not turn OFF even when the doors are closed, the BCM turns off power
to the interior lamps automatically to save the battery 15 minutes
- BCM has functions for INT Lamp, Battery Saver,
-
 
So I just realized that the manuals on Nicoclub has the 2014 qx70 with the 2014 qx60 manual. The 2015 manual sayus qx70 not sure if a error or if the models in 2014 were very similar but will be also looking at the 2015 manual as well.
 
So I have come to the conclusion that if you go to NicoClub and get the Service Manuals for 2014 qx70 you will only receive manuals for the 2014 QX60 so beware of that and just choose the 2015 Manuals.
 
Okay so problem is solved officially!

Basically there was a lot of different routes that I could take and I knew deep inside that the obvious answer was most likely the cause however I like to be thorough and therefore I full sent the diagnostics.

I read through the diagram so you dont have to and basically figured out that R2 is a Harness/Wire that id connected to Ground bolt M11 that is behind the dash on the drivers side. R2 is what travels up the pillar and towards the Headliner where there is a Female end connector and the headliners male end connects into it. I ran continuity between all of that and the dome as well as various grounds and to the BCM, TICM, and Grounds in that area. R2 traveling back behind the dash has 2 connectors it splits off into, R7 and R1. R1 I believe supplies the sunroof power and stays on the left hand side of the dash and then goes to the ground bolt there. R7 is what travels the length of the dash towards the BCM and splits off to do its thing around the passenger area behind the dash/glovebox.

SO after doing some perusing, like most vehicles the BCM is in charge of 12v power to most accessories etc and it is in control of the sleep standby functions for lights where they turn on as a courtesy when you open doors etc and the vehicle is not on. The BCM deals with this usually by completing the ground circuit so outside of these parameters the ground is left open. I mention this because when you are testing continuity with BCM or things that may lead to BCM you will see resistance numbers but no beep from your multimeter. This is because it is traveling through a transistor or other scenario where the circuit is broken. SO in Certain model NISSANS and a growing amount of INFINITIs there is this thing called the TICM. Total Illumination Control Module, you'll see other abbreviations for it etc but mainly thats what it is and its in charge of more complicated processes involving the interior lighting of the car. The TICM however does receive its power directly from a wire harness coming from the battery and the BCM is solely there for other logic. Long story short its another complicated part that can fail in a already complicated system, and as we are all reading here it does fail lol. It took me a long time to pinpoint the failure because again I was worried about a missing connection or obscure chewed wire since I did a lot of work to the vehicle and its history BUT that was not the case.

I was able to get my hands on two TICM's today and upon plugging the first one in it immediately worked. THE HEADLINER HAS LIGHT!! I was excited until further along in to my drive I decided to press the button for the lights and it did not come on like it did earlier. I was distraught and a little pissed off but I am no stranger to trouble shooting and thus had a new adventure when I got home. My worst fear was that I blew the new TICM and that I was going to not touch the spare until I was sure what was causing it. I then started to remove the new TICM and it made a clicking noise, then It made a few more and it seemed to be based on the orientation of how I was holding it and the position of the connector. When the TICM would click on the lights would work, any subsequent click would turn it off and then on and so on. So took the old TICM and the new one to my lab and tore it apart to see what was going on. There are two black boxes on the pcb board that are relays and those are what would be making the clicking sound when a connection is made. I wasnt sure why it was going haywire but it was a start. I started testing terminals and everything seemed fine so I couldnt think why it was causing the clicking. I was starting to worry that it was something else causing the TICM to mal-perform such as currupted output from the BCM or IPDM. However after a while of trouble shooting I saw that the connector coming from the vehicle to the TICM you can remove the front face panel and expose the pins, I disconnected the car battery and cleaned the slots with a wire brush and saw that the connector enters and exits a lot more smoothly than before but did not solve my problem. I then decided to try something of a last resort and just like that I installed the TICM, throughout the install it was clicking like crazy but once installed it clicked a final time and I tested the lights and wala, everything was working as intended!! Very greatful to be done with this final dilemma lol and share this information with all of you!! again this could have been the first thing I checked but since other lights were working I figured that it could not be the case. All in all if anyone is experiencing a lighting situation the first thing you should do is mess with the TICM and see if that solves it (Obviously after testing bulbs and finding unplugged connectors).
 
Summary for the Masses and future tinkerers;


Symptoms:

  • Dome lights would not turn on, though sunroof controls (on same headliner harness) functioned properly.

  • Voltage at dome light connector showed ~0.24V, not the expected 12V.

  • Audible clicking noise from TICM (Total Interior Control Module) when manipulating the module or its connector. I found this symptom later on as my original TICM was so broken it was quiet.

  • Dome lights would sometimes flicker or turn on when the TICM was moved or shaken.
Troubleshooting Steps:

  1. Verified continuity and voltage across:
    • Dome light connectors

    • R11/R2 harness connections

    • TICM to BCM and ground

    • TICM to battery power
  2. Swapped in TICMs from other vehicles (FX35, another QX70), with same erratic behavior.

  3. Observed that relay click behavior varied depending on TICM orientation and movement.

  4. Removed TICM from casing to inspect PCB and relays:
    • No obvious broken solder joints or burned traces.

    • Two relays observed:
      • Large: P5CN010W1 (F&T)

      • Small: ACTB13A14 (Panasonic)
  5. Discovered that mounting TICM in its factory upside-down position, secured to trim, resolved the issue.
Root Cause (Likely):

  • When unmounted, internal relays or board contacts inside the TICM may lose solid connection due to:
    • Gravity or harness tension

    • Micro-flexing of the PCB

    • Internal relay wear
  • Factory orientation likely maintains reliable contact through physical tension relief and proper alignment.
Fix:

  • Reinstalled TICM in original upside-down orientation, secured to trim as designed.

  • All lights now function consistently.

  • No further clicking or failure after driving and testing.
Pro Tip: If it acts up again, have your passenger deliver a gentle “motivational tap” to the trim where the TICM sits — relay might just need a reminder.
 
Relevant diagrams; theres more but honestly it will just get confusing Screenshot 2025-04-04 145709.png Screenshot 2025-04-04 145759.png
 
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