mystery power draw !!!!

[turbo john FL]

I have a pretty good draw on my battery coming off of rhe fuse that powers dome lights , electric door locks , etc I had my stero tied onto this but so far have disconnected the complete stero system , disconnected door locks ,its pulling about milla amps I think that's right the milliamps part : ) but this is draining my battery within a week . wondering if anything else that might be on this circuit that could be draing my battery down also disconnected power to power antenna

any suggestions would be greatl y appreciated as I have spent days trying to chase this gremlin and as a reference with the fuse for dome light in place total draw is about 23 milliamps doors closed so that's without the dome lights being on . just to get an idea the dome lights by themselves pull 11 milliamps so this draw I have is more power then what the interior lights pull thanks for any ideas !!

 

[Turn the boost up]

Have you looked at wiring schematic for the circuit that is being powered by that fuse ? It will help you identify all the loads on that circuit so you don't miss any potential parasitic draws.

 

[Phoneguy]

This will help you. Turbo Regal Service Manual, free download

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9ez_bnD1u9CdGlELWxRWmpZcVk/edit?usp=sharing

Bryan

 

[bpman1234]

i know you said that you disconnected the system did you have a cap also and disconnected it too . ihad a cap on mine and if i leave it pasrked for like a week it would drain the battery because the cap kept coming on and off with the car just sitting there.just another thing to look at .

 

[Mark E.]

I have a pretty good draw on my battery coming off of rhe fuse that powers dome lights , electric door locks , etc I had my stero tied onto this but so far have disconnected the complete stero system , disconnected door locks ,its pulling about milla amps I think that's right the milliamps part : ) but this is draining my battery within a week . wondering if anything else that might be on this circuit that could be draing my battery down also disconnected power to power antenna

any suggestions would be greatl y appreciated as I have spent days trying to chase this gremlin and as a reference with the fuse for dome light in place total draw is about 23 milliamps doors closed so that's without the dome lights being on . just to get an idea the dome lights by themselves pull 11 milliamps so this draw I have is more power then what the interior lights pull thanks for any ideas !!

Are you CERTAIN of those readings? 23 ma is ok. Typically I have heard under 100 is ok, but most cars I check are around what yours is. A regular lamp is more like 1 amp than 11 ma.

Good Luck, Mark

 

[dennisL]

I agree with Mark, if you're still using the stock lamps and have a hard top, the current draw from the dome and courtesy lights is 2.24 amps so don't be too concerned.

Besides the dome and courtesy lights, the CIG-CLK fuse powers the cigarette lighter, glove box light, and radio "standby". It also powers other things but I would check these three first if you want to find the "milliamp goblin".

-Dennis

 

[achalmersman]

What kind of testing are you doing? Inductive amp clamp, or multimeter in series. Depending on what your setup is for ranging if your seeing 0.11 amps that's 110 mA. Figure out for sure if there really is an unacceptable draw. How old is the battery? Do you have access to a load tester? If not a local parts store will usually check your battery with a conductance tester. Is still prefer a carbon pile load tester while monitoring battery voltage. Both testing methods are useful though

 

[turbo john FL]

thanks everyone for all help !! I am using inline mulimeter now with doors closed so no draw on courtesy lights I am showing just under I amp draw is that about right ?? just if the car sits for a bit battery has been falling off in a week week and a half

 

[achalmersman]

What exactly does the meter say? Also, do you have any idea as to the condition of the battery?

 

[EVIL]

That was my next question.

Have the battery tested.

An autozone or any show will hook up a tester and tell you what’s going on.

E

 

[Mark E.]

thanks everyone for all help !! I am using inline mulimeter now with doors closed so no draw on courtesy lights I am showing just under I amp draw is that about right ?? just if the car sits for a bit battery has been falling off in a week week and a half

1 amp is too much. Rule of thumb is 100 ma (0.1a) but usually around 20 ma. If you have a 1 amp draw that is a problem.

I assume you are removing a battery cable and connecting your amp meter one side on the cable, the other on the post.

 

[turbo john FL]

yes that is correct putting the amp meter on one side of battery then to battery post . so far I have disconnectd almost everything I can find that runs on that circuit with the dome lights , electric door locks , all stereo equip

 

[Mark E.]

Did you ever figure this one out?