scottmac03

Hello all, I'm having an issue that I just can't figure out.


1995 EB 4X4 5.8 Auto


Ok, so the other day my remote starter won't start the truck. I went out to find a dead battery. Jumped it and ran it for a little while and all was good. The next morning, same thing. This happened for a couple days and I know the battery is good. Load tested it once it recharged and no problems.


Then I noticed after I shut the truck off that the radio stayed on. So I checked my amp and it was also powered up as well as the sub. Now the radio has a detachable face and kills power to the radio and amp but not pre-amped sub.


So, process of elimination took me to the power source which is the solenoid. Had a new one laying around so I replaced it and cleaned up the battery terminals etc... All was good!! Radio and amps turned off with key. I thought Great!!!


The next morning.....dead freakin battery! Hook up the power pack to start it and the darn radio comes on with no key in it! So overnight, somehow the radio turned on all by itself and killed the battery again. Now I did think about having a priest come over to make sure there was not a deceased Chevy lover haunting my garage that had possessed my beloved truck, but if 320K hard driven miles can't hurt it, I know a ghost isn't!


So, I'm at a loss all. The only thing that makes sense is going even further back behind the solenoid to the ignition.


Now I found myself playing around with other things to see if there was power present when key is in off position. The only other thing I can find is the wipers want to work, but don't have enough power to function. There is a whining sound coming from the dash when they are turned on (again with the key off).


Anybody heard of this happening before???


Suggestions??


Thanks in advance all!!!

MGD

Hi.

Back to basics.

You need to isolate the circuit causing the drain first, and gauge it's degree.

You do that by inserting an ammeter between the positive batt terminal and the positive cable. Start with a high current range, and go down until a readable value is shown.

Ideally, this should be around 30-50 ma give or take, as the parasitic draw with the truck off, key out and doors all closed.

If it's significantly higher, start pulling fuses, one at a time until it drops to normal. Including the fuses to all aftermarket gizmos.

That is the branch of wiring harness and associated electrical components to focus on.

Helps to have a schematic.

good luck

scottmac03

Ok so I have tested the system and when the fuse for the wipers is pulled the draw is reduced. I did disconnect the remote starter and stereo and all it's component's because they had power all the time.


Now the issue is when I go to start my truck, the starter will not disengage. I had to disconnect the battery as a final result. When I connect the battery cable, the starter motor engages all by itself.


I've done a little bit of reading and have a question for anybody that may be able to answer it.


It appears that the ignition switch has auxiliary power running through it as well as controlling the power to the starter motor. Could all these problems be related to a defective ignition switch??


Thanks guys!

scottmac03

Well its not the ignition switch.

koja7296

starter problems probably because of your remote start . Battery draw is probably the alternator . Happened to me on my '96 , same symptoms. If I remember right its the rectifier that goes bad and causes a draw on the battery . Been awhile ago but I know it was the alternator.

scottmac03

So to recap and bring everybody up to speed:


Wipers, radio and starter motor work with no key in the ignition.
Replaced the solenoid, battery, starter motor and ignition switch. Starter motor would engage even when the solenoid was disconnected when the battery was connected.


Still have power to the wipers and the radio. Starter seems to be fine at the moment.


Remote starter has been completely removed. Pulled the fuse panel and everything seems fine. All wires are in tight and no corrosion. I did find when I pulled the wiper fuse, the radio loses power. Traced the wiper line and found nothing. Traced the radio line and found nothing. All wires off battery are clean and tight. Same with the solenoid. Fuse box ground is tight and clean.


Any suggestions???

5Rangers

Sounds like the wipers and the radios power source has been modified sometime. Those should only power up with ignition on... So you have people in there doing extensive mods like adding remote starting systems and high powered stereos and amps... it would not suprise me to find that persons rewired those systems to a hot buss.

broncojunkie

Did you re-test each circuit? I usually do it using a test light, instead of volt meter. Unhook positive battery cable and hook your tester up between the cable and your positive terminal. Light will be on.

I start by pulling the fuses for anything I know is drawing power. You probably have the drivers door open to access the fuse box, so pull the fuse for the dome light. If your test light went off, you either don't have an electrical connection grounding out OR the problem was in the circuit for your dome light. Chances are, the test light is still glowing, so move on.

If you've got the hood open, maybe your light is on under the hood. Pull that fuse. Your memory wire for the radio presets will be pulling a slight draw. You can pull that fuse, too. If you suspect the short might be there, go ahead and leave it in. It won't pull much, so your test light will barely glow if everything electrical is turned off or their respective fuses are pulled.

If all electrical functions are turned off or their fuses pulled and your test light is still glowing, you have a wire shorting out somewhere. Start pulling fuses one at a time till the light goes out. If it doesn't, start pulling fuses and relays under the hood.

I've dealt with this issue twice in the last year or so. First time, the voltage regulator was bad. It was pulling current even with the truck not running and key out of the ignition. Second one was harder to find, since it was intermittent. I finally found that the drivers side power mirror was shorting out only when the mirror was in a certain position. I had traced it to that circuit and just started hitting buttons and switches. My test light went out when I adjusted the mirror.

Sorry if you already know how to do all this stuff, but someone else reading this might not know what we are talking about.

5Rangers

Did I read it wrong? He has everything fixed except his radio and wipers which can be powered with the truck off? Everything else is good?

broncojunkie

I'm not really sure. I thought he was saying the battery drain problem was still there, but what do I know?