Hunting down a parasitic draw, is this the right way to do it?

[Gilles]

JFP, once the car is on 'sleep mode' if you open the door , would this 'wake up' the car, or this would only happen after you turn on the ignition again?

[JFP in PA]

Originally Posted by Gilles

JFP, once the car is on 'sleep mode' if you open the door , would this 'wake up' the car, or this would only happen after you turn on the ignition again?

Depending upon the year/model, if you leave the door open while waiting for the car to go to sleep, the interior lights should shut off and the car is sleeping with the door open. If the interior lights do not go off, the car will still be awake. You can also use something like a strong magnet to keep the door switch pressed down if it is one that stays awake.

Power Probe makes a new tool that is a draw monitor with a battery in it that plugs into the OBD II after which you disconnect the car's battery, and the tool is powering the car's systems and lets you see when it goes to sleep or awakens, which make the process that much simpler. They also have some adaptors for the multimeter probes that hold them in the perfect position to test the amp load on a fuse without pulling it.