dead battery

92sclikenew

Registered User
video added at bottom



has anyone found somthing that is the most commanded reson for a battery drain over night. like is ther somthing that will go bad or that is know for staying on because i have a 92 sc with about 130***miles on it and if i leave the battery connected over night it will be dead by morning. If i unhook the neg cable over night it will not go dead so the car has some type of drain on it so is ther a known thing that will cause this.. thanks any help this car has been doin this for about a month i know the pull fuse over night methed but dont want to have to pull ever fues and wait if some on can just say try this or try that.....:rolleyes:
 
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Sometimes the alternator can cause this. Best tool for diagnosing an alternator problem is a voltmeter/ammeter (aka multimeter).. If you don't have one, about all you can do is disconnect things until the problem goes away.

Start by disconnecting the Alternator.. the cable which attaches with a nut is live, so when you go to take it off, be sure to disconnect the (-) battery cable first.

Then you just have to start pulling fuses. Quickest way to zero in on the problem fuse is to pull 1/2 of them out. If the problem still exists, then you know it wasn't in that batch. Put that 1/2 back and take the other 1/2 out. Keep this up until you narrow it down. Don't forget about the distribution box behind the battery.

Have fun.
 
Instead of pulling one fuse every night, pull half the fuses. If the battery stays charged, reinsert half of the fuses that you removed. If, on the other hand, the battery discharges, remove half of the remaining fuses and reinsert all the fuses that you previously removed.
Repeat this by halving the number of fuses removed every day.
30 fuses will take you 5 days to troubleshoot.
If you don't have the driver's manual, make a note of the fuses and their locations.
TbirdSCFan - I was typing while you posted.
 
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Unless you have added some aftermarket stuff like alarm, DVD player or Amps....I would start with the alternator.

I found out the hard way that if the battery is too low and you jump the car off without first pre-charging the battery a little, it can burn out the diode in the alternator. When this happens the alternator seems to work fine with the motor running, but pulls about 3 or 4 amps when the motor is turned off.

Easiest way to test for where the drain is coming from is with a multi-meter. If it's not the alternator start pulling fuses one at a time to isolate the source of the drain.

David
 
Well dave that is prob my reson why my battery keeps goin dead the alternator because this came on slowly and yea i have jumped the car off and been on my way befor so this sounds like my dead battery prob ill get a muiltimeter and do so thanks for all the info guys
 
Ok when i pulled the (-) cable and put it back on sounds like the fuel pump runs for the short time like it would if you turned on the key. And the injecters sounded like they palsed a few times and somthing clicked by were the stock air box is. Anybody know if this is normal .

thanks anyhelp :D
 
Ok when i pulled the (-) cable and put it back on sounds like the fuel pump runs for the short time like it would if you turned on the key. And the injecters sounded like they palsed a few times and somthing clicked by were the stock air box is. Anybody know if this is normal .

thanks anyhelp :D
With the key off, nothing should run. Maybe the ignition switch? The clicking by the airbox is the IRCM (black box in front of the air cleaner) which holds 2 relays for the radiator fan, 1 for the fuel pump, and (although it has me stumped as to which one it is) the A/C compressor coil.
 
yea my igntion has been messed up for a while its almost to the ponit were i can pull the key out with it runing and it also has lots of playin it and if the ircm box is making thos run can that mean something wrong with it (yea i just forgot what it was called) but should it click when the battery cable is put on and off and fuel put sounding like its runing also at the same time i can make a video of what it is doing and put a link here let me know ill go do it really fast and work on it .
 
New Video Add Of The Problem

ok the video starts at the fuel pump and then i pull the (-) cable and put it on and when you hear that wine its when the cable is put on .ok next is right by the stock air box loction. when you hear the clicking it sounds like its coming from the ircm but i dont know. The key is off and it seem to be in the off postion any ideas shoot them at me few people say the car shouldnt do this what is it should it or shouldnt it let me know.

if your cant tell i have pulled and put on the (-) cable two time


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eu7IYxzr6jg
 
Where would be a good place to get a new switch. Autozone ,dealer, do they cost alot . last night i made my ignition switch perfectly off and my battery didnt go dead so im starting with thanks guys.;)
 
Or a number of sellers here. Check the parts forums. I can provide recommendations if you need, but PM me. They're all great and reliable people to work with. :)
 
That would be cool because i like the factory keys that say ford. When i bought my car i got the factory keyless entry code card.
 
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The ignition switch is not the part with the keys. That is the lock cylinder. You need the electrical part. Does the lock cylinder have play in it or can it be moved without the key in it?
 
ok this might sound weard but it did till last nigth now it has no play and or the switch is snug and the battery hasnt gone dead yet
 
Sounds like the lock cylinder is worn out, but I wouldn't think that that could cause a dead battery, but stranger things have happened.
 
well tell you the truth if it is worn out that bad i could prob turn the car off but not all the way off . you know what i mean....
 
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