[crazyroscoe]

The dome light wont turn off in the middle position when the doors are all closed
the light didn't work at all checked the bulb it was ok
then when I started unscrewing the light and it came on so I figured it was a bad ground
could the switch be bad

 

[DavidPeab]

It could be the switch on the dome light itself or one of the button type switches on the door frames that indicate if a door is opened or closed. Perhaps the car "thinks" a door is still opened. My 2000 has a small diagram in the outline shape of a car in the middle of the instrument panel. When a door is opened it is indicated by a red line corresponding with the door that is opened. If your year has that feature, close all of the doors and see if diagram shows one of them opened. If so, that will let you know it is a door switch and which door it is.

 

[plain OM]

ditto on checking if the "door open" warning light is on when all the doors appear to be properly closed.

Also, have you tried moving the switch to the other two positions (always "off" and always "on") and then back to the middle to see if that makes a difference?

. . .then when I started unscrewing the light and it came on . .

The dome light assembly on my 07 uses a "festoon" type of bulb that's held in place by two spring metal contacts on both ends. The usual way to remove the bulb is to turn it slightly and pull down. Not sure, therefore, what was being unscrewed. Were you taking down the dome light assembly?

There are a number of cases here where the bulb stopped working and then started again when it was moved. The problem seems to be that the internal connection between the filament and the metal contacts at the ends loosen, causing the bulb to not work. When the bulb is moved, the contact is re-established. If this is the case with your's, it's more than likely the bulb will stop working again. Probably best to replace it when you resolve the current problem.

Here's another thread with exactly the same initial symptom: http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/80-electrical-electronics/38764-dome-light-wont-turn-off.html

 

[crazyroscoe]

the bulb is fine because its lights up it wont go off when the switch is in the middle position
checked all the door buttons and the door open indicator doesn't show any doors open.
there are two screws that hold the light to the ceiling which are the ground if i'm not mistaken. The light didn't work at all when i got the car two days ago when i started unscrewing it the light flashed on so i figured it was just a ground problem. By the way this is not my first subby got an 02 sitting in the driveway with 296k on it and still running

 

[DavidPeab]

Sounds like it's time to break out the multimeter and check the switch in the light.

 

[plain OM]

the bulb is fine because its lights up it wont go off when the switch is in the middle position

Does the light go out when the switch is moved to the Off position?

Removing the two screws will allow the ceiling light assembly to drop down. There's a three pin connector between the assembly and the ceiling wiring harness. (I don't think the screws provide a ground for the light because that would negate the role of the BIU; however, it's possible that a wire was crimped by a screw during assembly, and is grounded when it should not be.

At the connector, pin 1 should be a black wire. This goes to ground.

Pin 2 (center pin) should have a brown wire. This goes to the Body Integrated Unit, which grounds the light when a door is opened, and turns the light off when all doors are closed (when the switch is in the "door" position).

The last pin, #3, should have a blue wire with a red stripe. This is an always-on 12 V (when the battery is connected).

Let us know what you find.