Dead Battery two times in last two weeks

ksdst1 · Post by **ksdst1** » 29 Nov 2006, 22:10

Hello all, I have a 96 850 GTL auto, non-turbo
Here goes, first posting and at mid-night

My battery went dead last winter so i replaced it w/ an Everlast (walmart). This battery went dead a little over 2 weeks ago so I got a wrnty replacement and took car to mechanic. They say they checked alt/volt reg/and for loads on all fused circuits and found nothing.
Thought I was ok but this last friday the battery had drained again. Both times i notice before the dead battery, when turning the ignition there was about a 3 second delay before the car turned over...next morning the battery was drained, both times.

Question, if it isn't the alt/volt reg/ or fused circuit shorts then how could the starter possibly drain/short, etc the battery over a two week period of "not every day" use?

Any ideas on what might be going on?

Post by **MadeInJapan** » 29 Nov 2006, 22:23

Check all your latches and doors (especially the rear if it's a wagon and trunk lid if a sedan) as well as your glove box door. This is a fairly common issue on 850's...things don't close well enough to turn the open door light off. If the light is on all the time it will drain your battery.

ksdst1 · Post by **ksdst1** » 30 Nov 2006, 07:54

MIJ....thanks for the suggestion. I have read a lot about dead batteries in the forum and was ready to test all fused cirucuits including interior lights w/ a volt meter but "according to the mechanic" they checked all these circuits already and found no load on the battery.

I don't know enough about starters to determine if it could even be the culprit. I thought it only drains power for the few seconds when you turn the ignition and it is engaged.

Plus there is the fact that the started/lights/all lag about 3 seconds when turning the key before all including the starter engages the 2 nights before both batteries went dead. However, the remote fob still worked fine to get me into the car when this happened.

Starter or ignition????

bobsnow100 · Post by **bobsnow100** » 30 Nov 2006, 10:12

Besides checking the glove box light staying on,which has happened to me once,is to make sure your battery connectors are in good shape and are clean. It could be that when the engine is running, that the battery isn't being charged fully due to dirty or bad connections and gradually failing

Post by **billofdurham** » 30 Nov 2006, 11:58

make sure your battery connectors are in good shape and are clean

I agree - plus make sure that the earth (ground) connection where it meets the body is in good condition. This is one that is often overlooked.

Bill.

Robbie · Post by **Robbie** » 30 Nov 2006, 12:46

Hi

I had a similar problem with a new battery going flat. It was caused by the belt driving the alternator slipping slightly so it wasn't charging properly.

Hope this helps.

Good luck

Rob

tca217 · Post by **tca217** » 30 Nov 2006, 21:01

Take the battery someplace and have them "load test" it. Just because it is new doesn't mean anything. I will bet it has a bad cell. And don't buy a cheap Wal-Mart battery, many people on this and other forum sites have said the same thing. New Wal-Mart battery=battery problems.

ksdst1 · Post by **ksdst1** » 01 Dec 2006, 07:12

Thanks all for the replies. So basically it could be b/c of two crappy wal-mart bats, dirty connections, interior lights, or a bad belt

Actaully I have to trust the garage I took it to after I replaced the bat in that they actually did what they said and did a full check of the bat, connections, and checked for loads on all fused circuits which pretty much rules out all except a possible slipping belt. Although the belts look good and i think were replaced recently when timing belt was replaced.

Which brings me back to my first inquiry. Can it be the starter or ignition somehow?

Taking it back in on monday to have garage do a second check on the elec sys for free so i'll see if anything comes back.
tnx....

ksdst1 · Post by **ksdst1** » 04 Dec 2006, 09:16

Well I took my car in again to have the electrical system checked one more time. They say all is good but that the starter is the problem after I reminded them that when both bats went dead the night before when I turned the ignition there was a 2-3 second delay before the starter made any noise at all. This morning when I connected a brand new bat the starter fired right up. No lags at all. I asked how the starter could drain two batteries and I got an "I can't figure that one out" sorta answer.

Is the starter (or ignition switch) really the problem? I don't want to pay $400 to replace it just to find out that it is not the problem.

bobsnow100 · Post by **bobsnow100** » 04 Dec 2006, 09:33

I don't see how a starter could drain the battery when the igintion is off, unless something in your key switch is not funtioning correctly and causing some electrical drain overnight.