So i did a full system test on my bat, starter, and alt. yesterday wen i went into work (i work at advance auto). everything was perfect except i have a 9.57 amp drain on the bat wen the cars off. it also has an extremly hard stat in the morning, it takes about 15 second.

I have no idea wats causing this. i pulled the fuses out of my amp and did the test and it only was draining 8. somthing, so ive pretty much ruled that out as an option.

I have 2 intermitant cels also, p0500 and p0600 (speed sensor and the A/T tranny control module). I have already replaced both, so im thinking theres a short in the harness, but im open (and desperate) for opinons

Btw its a 4th gen with 180K if that matters

 

betting on the starter...have you pulled the started and have it bench tested?

 

nope. but if theres alot of drain on the bat thats what im looking toward as the cause.

 

pull the starter and have it bench tested...i changed battery, same story...pulled alternator and bench tested, fine...car finally quit, pulled the starter, that was the problem. it'd have a super slow start up.

OAN do you have an aftermarket system on there?

 

i wouldnt call it aftermarket, i have basic pioner deck, 600 watt amp and sub, and the bose speakers. but i blew out three of them... the leads on the inside of the cone snapped. i already checked the wiring tho and tested the drain with the fuses pulled out of the amp.

but ill deff look into the starter ill have to pull it this weekend.

 

9.5 amps is a pretty big drain, that's about what the headlights pull. I'm surprised that the car even cranks in the morning.

Disconnect the battery lead from the alternator and see what happens. Could have a bad diode in there. Other things - Pull out the fuses for the radiator fans (by the battery, RAD FAN 1 & RAD FAN 2), and take the battery cable off of the starter & unplug the solenoid wire.

 

so i checked the wiring harness and fuses, i still havent pulled the starter, but now the drain is gone, like outta no were. it had a hard start maybe 2 times since my last post, other than that its fine.

 

Your battery and starter are fine. The parasitic drain was discharging your battery and causing a hard start. Google parasitic drain and learn how to track it down.

 

yep parasitic drain. I suppose in theory you could always just pull fuses until the drain goes away and locate it that way, that would be the easiest. However, the multimeter method is what I use

 

You're supposed to do both. A multimeter wont tell you anything without removing the fuses.

 

and don't forget to hold the hood switch down.

 

I am running into this same issue. I used a multimeter and pulled out every fuse. No luck!! I am running around .096 amps or 96 milliamps.

I haven't pulled any relays but may try that next. Once the car starts and is warm it starts easily but COLD it takes a few seconds to start.

Going to buy another battery...UGH !!

 

Your "drain" sounds normal for a car whose alarm hasn't gone into ready mode. Like when the hood or door is open.

Does the cranking speed seem normal? Or is it slower like the battery is discharged?

A cause of hard starting in cold temperatures is a bad ECTS (Engine Coolant Temperature Sensor) that reports a warmer temperature than it actually is, causing too lean of a fuel mixture.

 

Mine has same problem, not really if I DD it but I'm not driving much. Taking it back to the installer Thursday for diagnosis.

He think the car only lasting 1-1.5 weeks is normal though

 

If the car should start after maybe a month without being driven. If it won't start after 3 weeks, there is something wrong.

If you have a mechanic telling you a week to a week and a half, you need a new mechanic.

 

Person's well regarded on this forum.....

 

A week to a week and a half is ridiculous and not acceptable/normal.

 

Went in today and he couldn't figure it out . Once weather gets warmer car will probably last a week but for now I bought a trickle charger.

 

Are you 100% sure you have a good battery?

 

Mhhm. I exchanged the one I bought last year for another one in Feb and then exchanged that for one in March.