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I'm not entirely sure what the door relay is--do you remember the full name/location on this one? I get that the door lock timer is disconnected, I just don't remember a door relay off the top of my head. As level9 said, it sounds like the switched ground for the dome light is grounded somewhere it isn't supposed to be. Worst case, it's a random rub-through somewhere in the harness, but before we assume the worst, let's see if we can get a better idea for where--if it's in the harness at all. Is the rear dome light also stuck on (with its switch in the auto position)? The front and rear dome light have a diode between them, so if the rear hatch is open, both come on, but if only the side doors are open, only the front dome comes on. Sounds like you've already taken the rear hatch switch out of the equation, and I'm assuming you taped up the spade terminal to where it's not grounding out on a bracket or something. If the switch is not the problem, and the rear dome is still on, that suggests a fault in the cargo area side of the circuit--and there ain't much else to it. Either the dome light itself is somehow shorting switched ground to constant ground, the switch wire is busted where it flexes between the hatch and the body, or the wire is cut/rubbed through/chewed through and grounding elsewhere along its run. If the rear dome light works properly (and comes on when it's set to auto and the switch wire is grounded), then you can rule out the circuit from the diode back. Does yours have the front footwell lights, and are those staying on, too? Those are on the same circuit as the front dome light, but they are not controlled by its switch. If turning off the front dome light turns those off too, that suggests the front dome light is somehow bridging switched to constant ground. Unplug the dome light and see if the footwell lights go out. If it's not the cargo area circuit, and the footwell lights work as expected (or you don't have footwell lights), I would set the front dome to auto, and then unplug the few things that are on that circuit one at a time until the light goes out. I know you've replaced the door switches already, but I would still start there. IIRC they ground to the body, so you don't have to unplug them, just take the screws out and let them hang. Check what you can see of their wiring while you're at it, make sure it's not cracked or chewed. Those door dingers are probably a long shot, given they're working, but they're not too hard to get to, so unplug those too and see if that gets it. The stock keyless entry/alarm system also ties into the dome light circuit, so if that's still in there, try unplugging that too (it's the square box under the driver's seat--not the roundy one, that's the ABS). If that doesn't do it, I'd try unplugging the cluster as well. I should note that I have not heard of any of the above components causing this problem, or dying due to a battery arc (did the guy seriously try to remove the alt with the battery still hooked up?). They're just all I can think of that's on the dome light circuit. If all of that stuff is unplugged, and the light is still on, then, yeah, you've got some wiring to chase. Let me know if you end up there and I'll have a poke at the EL section, see if I missed something, or if there's an easy disconnect somewhere else in the circuit so you can narrow down the search area a bit more.

Now that you mention back-seat passengers, I do vaguely remember hearing something scrape on a "shortcut" I took, followed by my friend in the back complaining that he'd hit the headliner. Collapsed springs may explain a few things about this truck. Speaking of hitting heads on things, I installed the new struts today, and I'm loving the difference. The bottom corner is up by 7 3/8", and I can walk under the hatch without hitting my head on anything. I am well clear of that damn corner, which is worth the cost on its own. I only clear the plastic trim by an inch or two, but if I get another 2-3" from fixing the suspension, that'll be plenty. The only problem I've run into is that the ends on the struts have a little less range of motion than the old ones, and I guess the angles are a little funny on the upper ball stud mounts, because the top joints ran out of travel before the bottoms were in position. I was able push them the rest of the way without obviously bending anything, but, yeah, that ain't right. I'll go in later and see if I can file a little clearance into them. If that doesn't work, the ends are just screwed onto the struts, so they should be easy to swap out. Maybe the plastic ends have more range of motion. That would make sense--I ordered the metal ends thinking they couldn't go wrong, so of course they'd be the one thing that did. I used SE244P110S10-W (x2) from liftsupportsdepot.com. Side note, that rear hatch is a heavy bastard.

I think I've found a winner! They're 1.3" taller than the ones I've got now, which doesn't sound like much until you factor in the leverage. If my math is correct, that should bring the bottom of the hatch up another 7.8", plus whatever I get from fixing the suspension. When all's said and done I might be able to walk under this thing with a hat on. That's probably a weird thing to be excited about, but here we are. I've ordered a set and will post the part number if they work as well as I hope they will.

Also had the engine torn down to change out the thermostats, gaskets on the rear water pipe, knock sensor, rebuild the fuel injectors, PCV, valve cover gaskets, etc. If you're going to rebuild them, get a kit with o-rings, pintle caps, and filters. Also get a filter removal tool; I was unable to remove a filter without one. Carb and choke cleaner with one of those pulse controllers off Amazon worked well to clean them, but it was a little on the messy side. And while not a Pathfinder, I tore down my Frontier on Sunday and got it to the body and paint shop. Time to bring it back to life! These pics are of the "good" side. The hood, roof, and passenger bedside are really bad. Paint shop will also do a spray-in bedliner (had a drop-in). Should have it back in a month, then will put new windshields, lenses, and rear bumper on. Btw, driving it without windshields is a blast. Driving without mirrors...not so much.