I think this may be the "closer" motor continuously trying to gain a positive latch--and unable to do so. This could be from a damaged latch switch.
The sliding door has three motors, a slide motor, a release (or unlatch) motor, and a closer (or latching) motor. The open door light and interior lights coming on seem to indicate that the "closed and latched" switch is sometimes open-- allowing the closer motor to continue to operate.
Another possibility is that the dent has changed the geometry of the door mechanism especially the draw of the pull cable. The slide motor has a sensor that pulses when it runs. The door management controller counts the number of pulses of the slide motor sensor to determine when the door is fully closed and then stops the slide motor. At that point, the closer motor operates to latch the door. If the cable geometry has changed, the door controller may be shutting off the slide motor prematurely and the closer motor cannot complete the latch.
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