Hi
I have an 03 Sunfire, and I have a problem that if I don't use my car for about 3-4 days the battery goes flat. And I mean dead flat: no clicks no whirrs, nothing, not even that annoying door open bong thing or a dashboard light. These batteries all test good when I take em to get em charged up, and it doesn't matter how old they are. This one is only a few months old.
The only possible thing I can think of is that I have the power wire to my amp hooked directly to the battery because I couldn't find anywhere else to attach it, but it has a separate power on wire that is hooked directly to the ignition. WHen the ignition turns off, so does the amp. So the amp is not even on unless the car is.
I figure that if it is draining to ground somehow, it isn't going to take three days to do it. Connect a battery to ground and I figure it is going to discharge in a matter of seconds, not days.
Opinions please?
Phil
[The only possible thing I can think of is that I have the power wire to my amp hooked directly to the battery]
I would first, disconnect this and then see what happens? i.e. return the system to stock to see if the problem goes away.
Possibly, you have a Negative cable grounding problem, which is preventing the alternator charging the battery correctly.
Alont
How old is the battery?
Have you removed and cleaned the terminal connections lately? As well as cleaning the ground attach point.
Is the alternator putting out the correct voltage, to both run the car, all your accessories and still charge the battery?
Check for parasitic loads (loads that run while the car is off). Normal loads of course should be small (clock, remote keyless,radio memory) but you are looking for higher loads, like trunk light or glovebox stuck on, or add on accessories not connected correctly. To do this you need to use an ampmeter to look for loads running through the negative cable when the car is off.
Also you need to load test the battery to see if it is still capable of holding a full charge. An old battery can appear to have a full charge, but when loaded will just die very fast.
If your battery is an original from 03, then it is nearing the end of its life anyway. If it does need replacing, just make sure the alternator is still putting out sufficient load to both charge and run all your equipment. If you don't have the tools to check the electrical system yourself, many places will charge and load test your battery for free. Some will even do an electrical charge system diagnoses free.
Make sure all of your wires have a good connection. If the terminals are corroded really bad or loose, then the alternator won't be able to keep the battery charged.
Red face here guys. Took it to PepBoys Friday for a charge, told battery good. Took it back to Autozone today for a charge, told battery bad and got a new one under warranty.
Sorry for takin' your time up
Phil
