Update on battery drain.

[John H.]

I posted a question on battery drain a few months ago. One was solved with a better battery as many suggested. Seems like the shut down time for the computers exceeded the battery capacity. Car now can sit with no further problems. The other one, a '01 3/4 Chevy truck, is still having a problem with battery drain. A blade disconnect works well for now. I did some research and found that I may have not let the car sit long enough with a shunt in place for all the systems to close and therefor hindered my search. I was also told to pull one fuse at a time AND NOT REPLACE IT until I found the troubled component.

[Paul J.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

I posted a question on battery drain a few months ago. One was solved with a better battery as many suggested. Seems like the shut down time for the computers exceeded the battery capacity. Car now can sit with no further problems. The other one, a '01 3/4 Chevy truck, is still having a problem with battery drain. A blade disconnect works well for now. I did some research and found that I may have not let the car sit long enough with a shunt in place for all the systems to close and therefor hindered my search. I was also told to pull one fuse at a time AND NOT REPLACE IT until I found the troubled component.

That's good old fashioned shadetree troubleshooting. It can give you the circuit where the problem is. Unfortunately, you will still have to trace the circuit to find the issue. Don't forget the basics, that most battery drain issues are caused by voltage regulators and shorts. If you have'nt done this already, you might want to Google "2001 Chevy truck battery drain" and go into the forums that come up. It might point you in the right direction.

Paul

[John H.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

Thanks Paul. The drain is 8 watts. Just about what a small bulb uses. Truck is very basic so I do not have a lot of addons to deal with.

[Clem Z.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

Thanks Paul. The drain is 8 watts. Just about what a small bulb uses. Truck is very basic so I do not have a lot of addons to deal with.

open the glove box and feel the bulb right away. if it is already hot you have found your problem. on my 88 silverado i had to add a piece of rubber tubing to the plunger as it was too short to get the light to go out

[John H.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

Clem, lights were checked first because of 8 watt draw.

[Wayne W.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

How did you determine the 8 watt draw? Should be expressed in amps. Most vehicles with computers and modern electronics pull a small amperage when off, but that should be fairly small 50-100 ma. If it is much more than that, you should go looking.

[John H.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

Amp meter had a .7 amp draw.

[Joe M.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

Had a battery drain on a 2001 chev and it was the body control module. I could pull the fuse from the offending circuit after shutting the car down and it would restart fine. Got a BCM from GM direct but the dealer had to burn the chip.

[Wayne W.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

Thats way too much for sure. 700 ma will kill a new battery in just a few days.

I would look at circuits with major items that stay on when the key is off. First and foremost would be the alternator itself.

[Paul J.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

Thats way too much for sure. 700 ma will kill a new battery in just a few days.

I would look at circuits with major items that stay on when the key is off. First and foremost would be the alternator itself.

John, in case you might not know, the voltage regulator is in the alternator. As I previously posted, this is always one of the first things to check. I don't know how many times I've had battery issues and this was the problem.

Paul

[Alan D.]

Re: Update on battery drain.

Paul is correct. Remove the altenator and have it checked at an auto supply store.