You can use your underhood light (pull it straight out). I checked my truck with it, so you have something to compare to. Then I checked it with my ammeter as well. Here is what I found:

Bulb lights (slightly dim) for 2 seconds when first connected. Then it goes out completely. Opening a door lights it up completely. Closing the door turns it off immediately and completely.

Ammeter reads 600mA (.60A) for 2 seconds when first connected. Then it drops to 130mA (.13A). Opening a door, the ammeter reads 2.95A. Closing the door drops it to 130mA immediately. After 45 minutes it drops to 10mA (.01A).

Your truck may have higher readings than mine if you have more options, like remote start, keyless entry, etc. I don't have those. The only things that should be drawing power on my truck are radio memory and PCM memory. The FAQ i posted earlier says up to 120mA (.12A) is normal.

Good luck.

 

The blower staying on is a classic symptom of corrosion in the Central Junction box (interior fuse box). Some F-150's had water leaks from windshield not fully sealed, or from poorly sealed cowl. The water leaks down into the fuse panel, and slowly corrodes the fuse terminals and circuit board, allowing circuits that should not have power with key off to be powered up. The Generic Electronic Module (GEM) piggybacks onto the top of the fuse box, and also gets dripped on, causing miscellaneous electrical problems. Remove the fuse panel, inspect inside the fuse panel (carefully open the fusebox to inspect), and if corrosion is found, best thing to do is have the water leak repaired by resealing windshield/cowl as necessary. Then the GEM and fuse box will likely have to be replaced.
.03A is a normal amount of draw, but the corrosion can allow unexpected things to occur. An experienced technician should be familiar with this type of concern. Have the dealer refer to TSB 98-9-13, it deals with the concern of the water leaks, but does not detail the electrical symptoms very extensively. Most of the time the leak will not be noticed on the floor of the truck. GEM controls wipers, windows, chimes, and a few other functions.

 

I had just about forgotten about this.

007, are you still breathing? Did you figure it out? Did you sell the truck? What's up?

Update us, please.

 

Sorry, Gentlemen, I have just returned all of four hours ago from a very long stint on the road. Unfortunately, I have to leave again in the morning, (My girlfriend is ready to kill me for being on the road so much) so I wont have time to run the test. I will run it as soon as I get back on Saturday. I will post as soon as I am finished running the test. Having to disconnect it every time I go on the road, is driving me nuts.

Thanks for you patience.
(wish my girlfriend could borrow some from y'all)

 

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 10-Oct-01 AT 10:53 PM (EST)[/font][p]Well, good news and bad news....

The bad news was it was in fact the alternator....they told me I needed a new one at the place I took it to, I had a ran a test, like y'all told me to, and the reslts were all @%$#& up....the light kept comming off and on, going brighter, then dimmer, and the out, and so on, they said it wasn't fixable. SO I took it back to my ford dealer, and traded it in

My new truck is a 2001 F150 5.4l V8 with the XRT package, smokin rims and all...its deep edgewood blue and silver two tone, leather interior, all the bells and whistles including trailer towing package. Brand spankin new, she has 43 kilometers on her when I bought her. (she has 305 now, lol)

not only is she better on gas, she actually has *****, which I attribute to the 5.4, the 97 was a v6. gutless. My new baby takes off like a shot

I just wanted to thank everyone who posted about this, and gave me such great advice, you guys rock. Sure beat unhooking the battery everytime I left town. Besides, it gave me the leverage to convince my girlfriend of all the reasons we needed a new truck...and wouldn't you know it, there was a beauty sitting on the lot a block from her house, and SHE spotted it...!! hehe...couldn't have worked better if I planned it!

thanks guys, for everything...in the word's of my profession, "keep on truckin, and keep safe on those roads"

Peace,
007

 

Congatulations on your new truck! Enjoy.

R