Current Draw Killing Battery...help
Thread Starter
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Freshman User
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 31
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Current Draw Killing Battery...help
Hi guys,
All was well until I put my Excursion to bed for 10 days in the garage for 10 days as I went to NC for Thanksgiving. Came back and truck was dead....no biggie I charged battery and went on my way.
Then after work tonight dead again, thinking crappy battery, but before I go to the store to exchange I will check amp draw.
Wont read on 200mA scale. Move to 10 A.
steadies out to 0.37 amps with everything shut off. Hmmm start pulling fuses.
Nothing on the fuse box in the engine compartment. time to move to accessory panel in car.
Hit fuse 14 (15a fuse), pull it, it drops from 0.37 amps to 0.20 amps. Fuse 14 is:
Dome Lamp, Cargo Lamp, Courtesy Lamps,
Running Boards, Power Mirrors, Vanity
Mirrors, Map Lamps, Underhood Lamps,
Glove Box Lamp, Power Windows (Delayed
Accessory)
Plug 14 back in and yank fuse 15 (5a fuse) it drops from 0.37 amps to 0.06 about 60mA which is about right. Fuse 15 is:
Stop Lamp Switch (Logic), PATS, GEM
So I think PATS is the anti theft system, not sure about GEMS.
I pulled the harness for the brake controller with no change. Any ideas? Where do I go from here?
Thanks
Anthony
PS car is 2000 excursion LTD.
All was well until I put my Excursion to bed for 10 days in the garage for 10 days as I went to NC for Thanksgiving. Came back and truck was dead....no biggie I charged battery and went on my way.
Then after work tonight dead again, thinking crappy battery, but before I go to the store to exchange I will check amp draw.
Wont read on 200mA scale. Move to 10 A.
steadies out to 0.37 amps with everything shut off. Hmmm start pulling fuses.
Nothing on the fuse box in the engine compartment. time to move to accessory panel in car.
Hit fuse 14 (15a fuse), pull it, it drops from 0.37 amps to 0.20 amps. Fuse 14 is:
Dome Lamp, Cargo Lamp, Courtesy Lamps,
Running Boards, Power Mirrors, Vanity
Mirrors, Map Lamps, Underhood Lamps,
Glove Box Lamp, Power Windows (Delayed
Accessory)
Plug 14 back in and yank fuse 15 (5a fuse) it drops from 0.37 amps to 0.06 about 60mA which is about right. Fuse 15 is:
Stop Lamp Switch (Logic), PATS, GEM
So I think PATS is the anti theft system, not sure about GEMS.
I pulled the harness for the brake controller with no change. Any ideas? Where do I go from here?
Thanks
Anthony
PS car is 2000 excursion LTD.
Cargo Master
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 2,790
Likes: 24
From: Mount Royal, NJ
My first guess would be a short on the circuits of fuse 14. Prime spots: wiring for the door courtesy light switches, a window motor winding starting to short, or bad control switches for windows (drivers controls first to go usually).
Bion
Bion
Thread Starter
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Freshman User
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 31
Likes: 0
But the big draw is fuse 15, which is PATS and GEM system. When I pull plug 15 it also shuts off interior lights etc as I suspect the logic for keeping interior lights on is controlled by PATS?
Arrrgggg
Arrrgggg
Elder User
Joined: Sep 2009
Posts: 514
Likes: 2
You have to make sure the GEM is "asleep" before checking for draws. Start at the basics first, make sure the battery is good before going any farther.
Drain test
1. Make sure the junction box/fuse panels are accessible without turning on interior and underhood lights.
<O
</O
2. Drive the vehicle at least five minutes and over 48 km/h (30 mph) to turn on and exercise vehicle systems.
<O</O
3. Allow the vehicle to sit with the key off for at least 40 minutes to allow modules to time out/power down.
<O</O
4. Connect a fused jumper wire between the negative battery cable and the negative battery post to prevent modules from resetting and to catch capacitive drains.
<O</O
5. Disconnect the negative battery cable from the post without breaking the connection of the jumper wire.
<O</O
6. Note:
It is very important that continuity is not broken between the battery and the negative battery cable when connecting the meter. If this happens, the entire procedure must be repeated.
Connect the tester between negative battery cable and the post. The meter must be capable of reading milliamps and should have a 10 amp capability.
<O</O
7. Note:
If the meter settings need to be switched or the test leads need to be moved to another jack, the jumper wire must be reinstalled to avoid breaking continuity.
Remove the jumper wire.
<O</O
Note:
Amperage draw will vary from vehicle to vehicle depending on the equipment package. Compare to a comparable vehicle for reference.
<O</O
Note:
No production vehicle should have more than a 50 mA (0.050 amp) draw.
<O</O
8. If the draw is found to be excessive, pull fuses from the battery/central junction box one at a time and note the current drop. Do not reinstall the fuses until you are finished testing.
<O</O
9. Check the wiring schematic in the wiring diagram for any circuits that run from the battery without passing through the battery/central junction box. Disconnect these circuits if the draw is still excessive.
<O</O
Drain test
1. Make sure the junction box/fuse panels are accessible without turning on interior and underhood lights.
<O
</O2. Drive the vehicle at least five minutes and over 48 km/h (30 mph) to turn on and exercise vehicle systems.
<O
</O3. Allow the vehicle to sit with the key off for at least 40 minutes to allow modules to time out/power down.
<O
</O4. Connect a fused jumper wire between the negative battery cable and the negative battery post to prevent modules from resetting and to catch capacitive drains.
<O
</O5. Disconnect the negative battery cable from the post without breaking the connection of the jumper wire.
<O
</O6. Note:
It is very important that continuity is not broken between the battery and the negative battery cable when connecting the meter. If this happens, the entire procedure must be repeated.
Connect the tester between negative battery cable and the post. The meter must be capable of reading milliamps and should have a 10 amp capability.
<O
</O7. Note:
If the meter settings need to be switched or the test leads need to be moved to another jack, the jumper wire must be reinstalled to avoid breaking continuity.
Remove the jumper wire.
<O
</ONote:
Amperage draw will vary from vehicle to vehicle depending on the equipment package. Compare to a comparable vehicle for reference.
<O
</ONote:
No production vehicle should have more than a 50 mA (0.050 amp) draw.
<O
</O8. If the draw is found to be excessive, pull fuses from the battery/central junction box one at a time and note the current drop. Do not reinstall the fuses until you are finished testing.
<O
</O9. Check the wiring schematic in the wiring diagram for any circuits that run from the battery without passing through the battery/central junction box. Disconnect these circuits if the draw is still excessive.
<O
</O
New User
Joined: Jan 2010
Posts: 1
Likes: 0
Hi guys,
All was well until I put my Excursion to bed for 10 days in the garage for 10 days as I went to NC for Thanksgiving. Came back and truck was dead....no biggie I charged battery and went on my way.
Then after work tonight dead again, thinking crappy battery, but before I go to the store to exchange I will check amp draw.
Wont read on 200mA scale. Move to 10 A.
steadies out to 0.37 amps with everything shut off. Hmmm start pulling fuses.
Nothing on the fuse box in the engine compartment. time to move to accessory panel in car.
Hit fuse 14 (15a fuse), pull it, it drops from 0.37 amps to 0.20 amps. Fuse 14 is:
Dome Lamp, Cargo Lamp, Courtesy Lamps,
Running Boards, Power Mirrors, Vanity
Mirrors, Map Lamps, Underhood Lamps,
Glove Box Lamp, Power Windows (Delayed
Accessory)
Plug 14 back in and yank fuse 15 (5a fuse) it drops from 0.37 amps to 0.06 about 60mA which is about right. Fuse 15 is:
Stop Lamp Switch (Logic), PATS, GEM
So I think PATS is the anti theft system, not sure about GEMS.
I pulled the harness for the brake controller with no change. Any ideas? Where do I go from here?
Thanks
Anthony
PS car is 2000 excursion LTD.
All was well until I put my Excursion to bed for 10 days in the garage for 10 days as I went to NC for Thanksgiving. Came back and truck was dead....no biggie I charged battery and went on my way.
Then after work tonight dead again, thinking crappy battery, but before I go to the store to exchange I will check amp draw.
Wont read on 200mA scale. Move to 10 A.
steadies out to 0.37 amps with everything shut off. Hmmm start pulling fuses.
Nothing on the fuse box in the engine compartment. time to move to accessory panel in car.
Hit fuse 14 (15a fuse), pull it, it drops from 0.37 amps to 0.20 amps. Fuse 14 is:
Dome Lamp, Cargo Lamp, Courtesy Lamps,
Running Boards, Power Mirrors, Vanity
Mirrors, Map Lamps, Underhood Lamps,
Glove Box Lamp, Power Windows (Delayed
Accessory)
Plug 14 back in and yank fuse 15 (5a fuse) it drops from 0.37 amps to 0.06 about 60mA which is about right. Fuse 15 is:
Stop Lamp Switch (Logic), PATS, GEM
So I think PATS is the anti theft system, not sure about GEMS.
I pulled the harness for the brake controller with no change. Any ideas? Where do I go from here?
Thanks
Anthony
PS car is 2000 excursion LTD.
Any ways i ended up changing my fuse box (under dashboard) when i tried to open it , witch was mistake , I broke it , and i found water inside. I don't know where it came from, but it was causing all of my problems. I decided to buy new fuse box from dealer they told me its about $162 (with company discount ) witch is not much, but then they told me that this part is discontinued and no more available. I had to buy one at eBay for $75. So far no more problems. i bet you got the same problem. Good luck.
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New User
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 22
Likes: 0
well I had the same problem over a year ago couldn't find it started looking under the hood after I went through the whole fuse box.....turned out it was the small electronics that controls the glow plugs. Its silver has two large harnesses that plug into it. just unplug one and see if the draw disapears from the battery.
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Senior User
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 246
Likes: 1
From: Westerville, Ohio
You probably checked but my kids are notorious for leaving on the reading lamps. They are hard to see in the daytime. Half a day of chasing gremlins until my 8-year old is in the car with me and says, "Should this light be on Daddy?"
I would also lubricate the door switches with a conductive spray lube. The switches are located in the same opening as the latch. Just spray behind the latches.
Good Luck,
Stew
I would also lubricate the door switches with a conductive spray lube. The switches are located in the same opening as the latch. Just spray behind the latches.
Good Luck,
Stew
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