So I got my truck back from the dealership 2 days ago, and almost everything is now fixed. After having a new radio, a new door switch, a new washer nozzle, and new idler pulley installed, the truck is almost running perfect.

But the day before I drove my truck to the dealership, a new problem arose. I went out to start my truck, to find that the battery had died. I don't have a programmer installed, but I have a radar detector plugged in to the 12V outlet on the dash which has never caused a problem before. And I didn't leave any lights on overnight.

There was one time that I was cleaning the truck that I had heard the CD changer going haywire. It sounded like it was constantly moving the cd's around. The engine was not running, and the key was not in the ignition. I had to turn the truck on and then off to get it to stop. I mentioned this when I dropped the truck off at the dealership, and they figured the radio had drained the power.

Well after having the new radio installed, The truck still seems to have a power draw coming from something. When starting, the radar detector will shut off and then turn back on as the engine cranks. It has only done this when the power feels low. I've checked the voltage to the battery with the engine running and I'm getting 14.6V, so I'm willing to rule out the charging system. I've also been disconnecting the radar detector when I shut the truck off to prevent any power draw all together.

So where should I be checking? I've tried searching the forum for "dead battery", but i constantly get "No results found". Which is weird because I know of many other dead battery issues in this forum. So does anyone have any advice, or a certain place to check? This is the last issue I have with this truck and once it gets fixed, I will be a happy man. Any help is appreciated.

 

If it has the tiny battery both of my 08's had from the dealership, (fills 2/3rds of the box) it's the battery. Trust me. My first 08 died after 6 months.

 

This appears to have the big battery, as it fills the entire box.

 

I have been through this on my truck with my radar detector. I ended up replacing the battery and rewiring one of the 12v sockets to only be on with the ignition. Not a problem since.

What I think happens is that the radar detector draws down the battery enough every time the vehicle is left for too long and you end up with a battery that doesn't ever fully recharge. Seems like its cumulative until it gets bad enough to not start the vehicle anymore.

By the way, my radar detector is an Escort 8500 X50 and I think it draws more than any of my previous ones did.

Darrin

 

Hmmm... well I will keep the radar detector unplugged from now on. My main concern with this issue, was that I'm leaving for vacation and I'll be gone for a week and I didn't want to come home to a dead battery.
I had planned on disconnecting all power sources before I left, I just wanted to see if there might have been a different problem.

Thanks for the help.

 

If the radar detector is shut off, it shouldn't be drawing any current even if plugged in. But I always unplug any accesories when I park and put them out of site. Don't want to advertise myself as a target for a theft. Any battery can go bad from 6 months old to 10years old. It really doesn't matter that much what size it is.

Greg B