Battery drain...

[Kevin Bacon 5]

What meters are you guys using? I've got a cheapy old Gunsons "engine analyzer" thing and the amp meter just doesn't work. I need to get a decent meter. Any recommendations?

[Leavon 0]

I've got a Skytronic 600.527, it was only £15 but seems to work okay.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Thanks mate

 

I did what you did, meter between lead and battery post, but I think it must have internal fault.

 

I've got to go to B&Q later anyway, so I might grab one of these whilst I'm there - http://www.diy.com/diy/jsp/bq/nav.jsp?a ... =266893288

[Leavon 0]

That'll do the trick. Just remember to set it to Amps when you're measuring.

[davidwort 0]

I've got a sykes-pickavant auto meter, does dwell angle and oldschool stuff like that :)

been very reliable and is fused with a conventional small barrel fuse (pack of 10 from maplins was pence), that's saved me/the meter a few times, things like the hold function for readings can be quite handy.

[ANDREW 30 0]

I've got a similar problem with mine, the central locking is playing up and it has blown a fuse that took the electric windows out with it!

When i went to start mine this morning it was a bit lazy on the starter and only just started!

The fuse for the windows/ central locking is above the relays on it's own and is a 20 A !

[imyhamid 0]

Anymore news on this lads as i'm having the same problem, just not had a chance to look at it. Hopefully one of you will find the problem so i can have a go at fixing mine and not have to spend money on a sparky!!!!

[Leavon 0]

I'm removing the C/L fuse when I park up at night, haven't got time to investigate further this weekend but it's booked in at a sparkys on monday so I'm hoping he'll shed some light on the matter, I'll update when I know more.

[imyhamid 0]

Any joy at the auto electricians mate i hope they managed to shed some light on the problem. :)

[Kevin Bacon 5]

BTT

 

Really interested in this.

 

The missus has had me making trellises this week, so I've not had a chance to troubleshoot mine.

 

That B&Q meter by the way, is really good for the money! I'm impressed :D

[Leavon 0]

Life got in the way of my visit to the sparky on monday, so I've had to put it off till next week.

Meanwhile I've been removing the C/L fuse when I park up and, I've had no probs since but it hasn't gone for more than a couple of days without a drive so that's not the confirmed problem.

 

Those meters are handy things for sure.

[ANDREW 30 0]

Well i replaced my central locking pump and the electric window module today, but i think my problem is still with me as after unlocking the car i could hear the central locking pump still running!

I jump started my car from the wifes and took it for a 15 mile drive, when i got back it would start off the key a couple of hours later not enough juice to turn the damned thing over.

I think i'd better give the battery a good charge before i jump to conclusions, but i recon the problem is something else! :(

I'm totally gutted as i wanted to go to rtts tomorrow, i don't fancy going and looking a right numpty infront of hundreds of people when it lets me down.

[Craig_M 0]

Did anyone get this sorted? mine's started doing the same thing this past week.

 

Ive checked the usual suspects such as interior lights etc. The aftermarket alarm is pretty new and havnt had any problems before so im guessing c/l or faulty battery!

[Kevin Bacon 5]

I did a quick check on Saturday and mine pulls 0.245 amps with everything off. I didn't recheck after an hour like Leavon did, so I will try that later.

[davidwort 0]

I did a quick check on Saturday and mine pulls 0.245 amps with everything off. I didn't recheck after an hour like Leavon did, so I will try that later.

That seems a fair old amount, I vaguely remember a figure of about 0.1A on mine, I'm probably totally wrong with my sums, but I reckon 0.245 would be enough to kill a 50-60Amp/hr battery over about a week and a half.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Indeed, but mine cranks over incredibly slowly after 3 days, so I don't understand it!. I have a 72AH battery, so should give 12 days standby @ 0.25a?

 

It's not that important, it's garaged every night and I plug in the C-Tek trickle charger if leaving it all weekend, but if I ever have to park it an airport or something....

[dirtytorque 0]

multimeter should be in series with the battery to measure current not across the battery terminals.

[Leavon 0]

Okay I'm pretty sure the source of my problem was/is the central locking. I've just managed to leave the car undriven for 4 days with the C/L fuse pulled, normally leaving the car for that length of time would be a guaranteed flat battery, just turned it over and it started straight away full of beans.

 

If I leave the fuse in, after a while the drivers door can't be opened with the key, it feels like the central locking is continually pulling the pin down so I have to get in through the passenger door. I'm guessing there's a fault with the C/L module so I'm gonna try and source a 2nd hand one and swap it out.

 

Kev if you've been having similar C/L trouble then could be that this is the source of your probs too.

[davidwort 0]

could it be a vac leak on the CL system?

I remember swapping doors for a few days and not connecting up the vac hose to the spare passenger door I temporarily fitted, the CL pump just kept working sucking fresh air in until I put my finger over the end of the hose and fooled it into thinking the door had been locked down :)

 

I think kev's suggestion about the control unit is more likely now though.

[Leavon 0]

Thanks David, any idea how I might check that?

[davidwort 0]

Thanks David, any idea how I might check that?

It's possible, but I'm sure you'd hear the vac pump in the boot working overtime and your door pins would probably struggle or not pull down with the CL at all.

Just trying to think of any possibilities really.

I suppose if you pulled the power supply from the actual vacuum pump that would be one thing to eliminate.

I think the window control box does the CL too, the wiring harness is the same integrated one.

 

Edit:

just looked on ETKA and the CL pump is described as pump and control unit (integrated I guess?)

[Leavon 0]

Ahh okay, that makes it a little trickier if I've got to replace the pump.

 

Edit: just found this on the clubgti forum,

 

Inside the pump there is a metal conact switch on a vacuum/pressure plunger, the plunger gets worn over time and starts to stick, it can be sorted out but it entails stripping the pump down and cleaning up the unit, its's a fiddly job to do but can be sorted out relatively easy.

 

As I'm not using the C/L at the mo I might give this a go.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

Thanks for the info Leavon, it does seem likely you've pinpointed the right area.

 

What's the fuse number for the C/L? I'll try removing it tonight after work and see if it starts better on Monday.

 

I think my issue might be a little different to yours, but the same area, because I can open the door with the key OK, but the C/L only works from the alarm fob. I'm sure a few years ago when mucking around at Audioscape I had an issue with one of the several brown wires by the fuseboard, which is probably a ground or something for the C/L controller. it's going to be a pain trying to figure that one out.

[Leavon 0]

Yeah it does sound a little different but be good to know if it's that that's causing the battery drain.

 

It's not actually one of the numbered fuses, it's a bit hidden away, above the row of fuses there's a bunch of relays and it's above those.

[Kevin Bacon 5]

OK thanks mate, I'll have a dig around later and try and find it!