How would you fix this? Dome light mess. (1 Viewer)

[DIFF LOCK]

My 19YO son recently bought this 2006 TOYOTA 4Runner SR5 V6 2WD with 180K miles on it.

PO had a shop install a flip down DVD screen with integrated dome lights in place of the original dome light. It was broken and wouldn’t stay shut, so we removed it.

Left behind was this sloppy mess. The cutout appears to have been enlarged and there’s a wire strand that had been hastily spliced into.

My assessment is that the opening is now too large to properly accept an OEM dome light housing. I also felt around in the opening and am not finding the original male plug connector that would power the dome light.

What would you do to fix this? Buying a new headliner is not a route I’m willing to take due to cost vs. benefit.

 

[Brake Weight]

There is a dome light that goes there. We had a flip down put into our 06 GX470 and I removed it years later. But I still had the dome light and I made sure they did not cut the headliner either. You may need to do some junkyard diving and see what you can scrounge up in a similar color that will fill the void. Doesn't have to be Toyota OEM but close enough and big enough to rewire and work.

 

[thatcabledude]

Buy a factory dome light setup and see how it looks. If the hole has been modified so much that ots too large to be covered by the factory light make a trim "garnish" out of some ABS plastic and sandwich it between the headliner and the dome light.

 

[thatcabledude]

Or just cut the ABS to the shape of that imprint that's been left on the headliner so you dont have to see that. Paint the ABS grey to match, wrap in vinyl, etc. Would look decent I think.

 

[Weedhopper]

Yeah. Nobody looks up there anyway.

 

[GJMacK3]

Look for the rear seat control pod from a synthesis equipped Runner. That will easily cover that hole, and it's factory.