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Originally Posted by mikefocke
You don't use the car much and there is a constant drain even while parked and everything off (you don't have any aftermarket additions, chargers, etc that could be drawing extra power do you?). The draw shouldn't be enough to prevent starting based on my experience but then I have a good fresh battery, a tested charging circuit and I always drive 12+ miles when I take mine out for a run...usually 50 miles one way. Mine has been sitting for 2-3 weeks and starts immediately. It was not on a battery maintainer.
Check the fluid level in the battery. Most sealed batteries evaporate over time.
So the next thing to do is get the battery charged and check the voltage. Bad, go get a new battery. Then, if fully charged and right voltage, get it load tested and the output voltage of the alternator checked. If those all check out, then you go chasing what is causing the current draw by testing all the circuits by pulling a fuse at a time and noting the change with an amp-meter in the circuit between the battery and the car. A table of expected circuit draw is located here . |
Mike--Thanks for the response and the great link. However, I didn't see any table with expected current draws there. Is there another link?
Last night I reconnected the battery after charging it and letting it sit for 24 hours. I measured the voltage across the terminals at about 13V after I connected it. After starting the car, the voltage jumped up to slightly over 14V, so it appears as if the alternator is working. My next step is a load test? Do I have to go to the dealership to get that done, or should any battery shop be able to do that?