Current draw, when the car is off Options

[tradisrad]

I had a dead battery in my car yesterday, I jumped it and went on my way. After a 15 mile drive the battery was still dead and I had to jump the car again. I borrowed a battery from a friend and put mine on the charger.

And now I am wondering why my batter was dead. I disconnected the radio and with the car/ignition/lights/etc. off I put my Amp meter in line between the battery and the + cable an found that I have a 0.60 Amp draw on the battery.

Are there any usual suspects that may cause this drain on the battery?

The car is a 1970 with a 2056 D-jet.

[messix]

start pulling fuses and then disconecting harnesses till you find the draw.

[underthetire]

I had a dead battery in my car yesterday, I jumped it and went on my way. After a 15 mile drive the battery was still dead and I had to jump the car again. I borrowed a battery from a friend and put mine on the charger.

And now I am wondering why my batter was dead. I disconnected the radio and with the car/ignition/lights/etc. off I put my Amp meter in line between the battery and the + cable an found that I have a 0.60 Amp draw on the battery.

Are there any usual suspects that may cause this drain on the battery?

The car is a 1970 with a 2056 D-jet.

After a 15 mile trip your car should have re-started. Charging system is bad or battery is bad.

[Drums66]

....Or sulfated battery cell? how old is the batt? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/idea.gif)

[realred914]

discounect the voltage regulator and see if the current draw stopps. (That would be one of the skinny red wires to the positive battery terminal), or just pull it off at the regulator plate

maybe you need a toe?????????????????? hahahahahaha

[underthetire]

I'm thinking a diode went in the alternator, and thats why it's not charging either.
Think we need a pole..

[realred914]

I'm thinking a diode went in the alternator, and thats why it's not charging either.
Think we need a pole..

is that a postive or negitive pole he needs?

hahahahahahaha

[tradisrad]

battery is optima mfg. 9/09.

[Drums66]

,,Chances are it's not the batt...maybe ?
get your friend porvdub to test the system for you, first!? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/bye1.gif)

[monkeyboy]

I'd have the Optima tested. My dad's was only a year old when it went bad. According to Optima, we didn't drive the car enough...

In went a Odyssey and a battery buddy. It won't happen again.

[jt914-6]

I'm thinking a diode went in the alternator, and thats why it's not charging either.
Think we need a pole..

This sounds like what my work truck was doing......battery draining down.....and charging @ 12 volts not 13.5....had bad diodes.....fixed the problem.....remove the wire from the battery to the alt. at the alt. and see if current drain goes away.

[Eddie914]

Diode or diodes ...

If only one goes out, you may get a little charging, but there will still be a current draw, even with all the fuses pulled.

BTDT

Eddie

[tradisrad]

so I have traced a short to the ignition switch using my Ohm meter.

The funny thing is I only have the short when the key is in the off position. When I go igniton "on" the short goes away

so I am guessing my switch has failed. Any thought from the World?

unfortunately I had a minor surgery on my foot and need to spend most of the weekend with my foot elevated so I can't do much more work today. Although I would argue that being crammed with my head under the dash most certainly keeps my foot elevated!!

[messix]

there are circuit the are on when the ignition is off; the clock, radio memory, the door pins for the interior light come to mind. try to pull fuses till that draw stops, then you can trace down the harness and unplug things or trace the wires to find damage that is causing the draw.

do you have a copy of the wiring diagram?

[Spoke]

Pull the plug or wires off of the ignition switch and see if the current draw stops.

Be careful since wires on the ignition switch come straight from the battery with no fues or fusible links.

[warrenoliver]

I had a dead battery in my car yesterday, I jumped it and went on my way. After a 15 mile drive the battery was still dead and I had to jump the car again. I borrowed a battery from a friend and put mine on the charger.

And now I am wondering why my batter was dead. I disconnected the radio and with the car/ignition/lights/etc. off I put my Amp meter in line between the battery and the + cable an found that I have a 0.60 Amp draw on the battery.

Are there any usual suspects that may cause this drain on the battery?

The car is a 1970 with a 2056 D-jet.

My '73 2.0 suddenly developed a battery drain. I traced it back to the clock circuit and then finally to my already dead clock. I disconnected the clock and it solved the problem. Don't know if you have a console and clock but it is pretty easy to check the clock.

YMMV (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)


Warrenoliver

[Cap'n Krusty]

The alternator is a "battery maintainer", NOT a "battery charger". Expecting it to charge your battery in a few minutes is expecting a miracle, and you'd be putting undue stress on the alternator. There's a risk it could permanently damage your alternator, according to Bosch.

Every single car equipped with an Optima battery that's been in my shop has had electrical system problems, specifically battery issues, and every one has had the battery replaced with a conventional battery. Except for one car, which has a significant battery drain issue, a replacement (conventional) battery has solved the problem. Some of the Optimas I've seen fail were just weeks old, some months, but all ended up being unchargeable.

I fail to see the obsession with Optimas among 914 and other Porsche people, especially people who drive their cars infrequently. If you're worried about overflow, simply protect the battery from the weather. If your car has overcharging problems, which will cause corrosion and overflow, fix the problem. If the battery is exposed to a small flood of water when it's wet out, cover the battery or enclose it in a box. Or move it.

I would guess nearly all the threads on this forum about Optimas involve some sort of failure issues, but I'm not gonna do a search to work up the numbers. As with K&Ns, too many people fall prey to the advertising and to other similarly clueless online "experts".

The Cap'n

[tradisrad]

The battery drain was being caused by the white wire in the ignition switch that provided power to the "park" lights when the car is off. The wire shorted out at the factory press-on. I'll add a picture soon. See here: http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=109871 Cap'n have you seen this failure?

I am not so sure that there is an obsession with Optima batteries, but it is more of a preventative measure. As we all know standard batteries can leak and the rain then washes the acid into the hell hole.

[Cap'n Krusty]

Maybe we should do a poll? The issue comes up often enough to be noticeable.

The Cap'n

[charliew]

I have two fieros and a 86 k5 blazer and a 91 3/4 ton suburban with optimas. I keep battery tenders on all of them that I don't drive weekly and they seem to be ok but optimas do not work well setting. I do not like the thought of battery acid getting on the metal around the battery. One of these days I will try a different brand of sealed battery but the optimas are easy to find. Also I remember there being a special charge procedure to bring a optima back if it has set with low voltage for awhile.