Weird Electrical Problem, so frustrating... Options

[tonytutino]

All of this started when i got my amp/sub put in last month on the 19th. (Its a 800w amp powering a JL 12inch W3) Well, a couple weeks ago i noticed my battery didn't want to seem to hold a charge and eventually it just quit. So i bought a Duralast Gold battery from Autozone on the 16th of December (having them test my alternator too which worked fine) and it worked great up until today. It just was dead when i tried to start it. Didn't leave any doors open, lights on, etc. so i took it back thinking it was just a bad battery, well they replaced it and tested my alternator again and everything checks out... As soon as i got the new battery i drove 15 minutes to work and that was it. i come out 8 hours later and its dead AGAIN!
I have no clue whats wrong... even if the alt. was bad, i don't see how driving just a few minutes on a battery would drain it... anyone know whats up?

[lubu]

did you hookup the amp right?? I know its stupid but sometimes we fcuked up the easiest connection..

Im thinking that you hooked the power-on or the power wire to a live wire??

[AudioFreak]

I'm with lubu on this one. Sounds like your amp is staying on. When you turn off your car does the power light on the amp stay on? If it does either the amp's remote is connected to a constant power source instead of a switch or the relay inside the amp is stuck on. It's almost always just wired wrong.

Also you said you got a new battery and drove to work for 15 mins. A new battery isn't fully charged. It will take a couple of hours of driving or better yet over night with a slow charger to fully charge the new battery.

This post has been edited by AudioFreak: Dec 31, 2007 - 5:01 AM

[tonytutino]

thanks for the info guys, i thought the same thing about my amp. i pulled the fuse from the engine bay so hopefully this could solve the problem. but i am 90% sure my amp turns itself off because you can see the blue power light glow reflecting in the hatch glass and it turns off when the car does..

however, i didn't hook up my amp/sub i had a shop do it just cause i'm a newb when it comes to electronics.

[goferris]

sounds like you have a draw on it somewhere. i know there are several ways to check i just don't know how. do a search

[Jaws4God]

I have a similar problem... I have an amp and volt meter and it seems like there are no major draws on the system.. seems to be fine if I drive it day after day.. but just got back from week trip and it was dead..

the amp cuts off cuz I have a switch to it plus it goes off when radio is off.. so IDK

I have a Optima Yellow Top Battery..

[tonytutino]

yeah man i dont know what's going on. i have ruled out that my amp is drawing power because i unplugged the fuse for it in the engine bay and drove all the way up to lexington without it on. and it still died the next morning. and whats worse is that i'm stuck here because it snowed and the roads are heavily iced and my car won't start. bleh i'm starting to hate this car

how do you even go about checking for a draw?
Also, if the amp was hooked up improperly, even with the fuse pulled, could it still be drawing some kind of power with the amp off?

[woosey]

OK first off to check for a voltage leak somewhere you need a clamp meter that can measure DC voltage you turn your car off, make sure everything is off (interior light etc) and then test the battery + for current, you should only see around 0.3 amps being drawn when the car is off (the car alarm/immobliser using most of that!)

So common problems that cause battery drain are -

Poor alternator performance
Alarm broken/open circuit
open circuit else where on the car.

What i would do is -

1) Get your car started (jump start/bump start!)
2) Test your voltage with engine on, you should see around 13.6 volts on idle
3) Hold the engine at around 2k rpm, then test the voltage again, it should be nearer 14.2-14.4, if it is not, then your alternator is toast im afraid (its important you check the alternator does increase in voltage as engine speed increases, most people don't do this!)
4) If this does all check out then get back to me on what alarm you have and any other modifications you have done to your electrical system (added LEDs/sat nav etc)

I have a similar problem... I have an amp and volt meter and it seems like there are no major draws on the system.. seems to be fine if I drive it day after day.. but just got back from week trip and it was dead..

the amp cuts off cuz I have a switch to it plus it goes off when radio is off.. so IDK

I have a Optima Yellow Top Battery..

Can you test your DC current pull when the car is off/doors closed etc please? And we can go from there

This post has been edited by woosey: Jan 2, 2008 - 5:58 AM

[tonytutino]

thanks woosey, i had already done all of that though.

all i have on the battery is a set of grounding wires and the power cable for my 800w amp.

i think i'm going to get a testlight tomorrow and check fuses for the draw :-/

[woosey]

thanks woosey, i had already done all of that though.

all i have on the battery is a set of grounding wires and the power cable for my 800w amp.

i think i'm going to get a testlight tomorrow and check fuses for the draw :-/

a test light will just show voltage? Which they will all have?

So your alt definitely checks out then, 14.4v at full output?

[tonytutino]

sorry, guess i should have been more clear. i'll use the test light to find which circuit is drawing my battery by removing the fuses one by one until the test light glows dim. (having the test light hooked up to the battery) make sense?

[woosey]

sorry, guess i should have been more clear. i'll use the test light to find which circuit is drawing my battery by removing the fuses one by one until the test light glows dim. (having the test light hooked up to the battery) make sense?

ah ok. Do you have an alarm fitted?

[tonytutino]

no i don't have an alarm

[tonytutino]

well i got a test light and did the draw test.
it turns out that something on my Power Distribution Circuit is drawing the power. as of what exactly it is, i don't know right now cause i can't read wiring diagrams too well.

in the process of removing all the fuses, the final one that i couldn't get out (the 100amp) would NOT come out whatsoever. eventually it ended up breaking and i just busted the fuse in half in hopes of trying to get it out. but its stuck in there really good. after the fuse broke though, thats when i noticed the test light had dimmed drastically.
i need to replace it obviously, but hell if i can't even get it out..


edit: to my surprise the fuse was bolted in. i got it out now at least. now its just to find out where the draw is coming from on this circuit. any electric experts, help is needed!

This post has been edited by tonytutino: Jan 8, 2008 - 1:04 AM

[Jaws4God]

edit: to my surprise the fuse was bolted in. i got it out now at least. now its just to find out where the draw is coming from on this circuit. any electric experts, help is needed!

they can be tough.. electrical problems are annoying.... best thing you can do is evaluate what works / doesn't work... get a haynes manual and pour through the electrical diagrams and try to determine where on the diagram the problem might me.

helped me solve my problem when I accidentally grounded one of my injector wires when I painted my valve cover..

[tonytutino]

well i took out the alternator this morning to have it tested in a better way at autozone. they said it passed but just for kicks i took it to advanced auto parts right down the road. there, the dude said it was completely dead. after having to separate answers i went to another autozone, passed there. and yet another advanced and it passed. so 3/4 say its good. and the other one is probably just cause it wasn't hooked up right.

but i took it to my mechanic and he said my amp killed my high-mileage alternator and says i just need to get a new one.
looks like its just that simple, woop!

but will my amp kill the stock 70amp alternator again? i considered getting an aftermarket higher amp one but i would prefer OEM

[goferris]

edit: to my surprise the fuse was bolted in. i got it out now at least. now its just to find out where the draw is coming from on this circuit. any electric experts, help is needed!

they can be tough.. electrical problems are annoying.... best thing you can do is evaluate what works / doesn't work... get a haynes manual and pour through the electrical diagrams and try to determine where on the diagram the problem might me.

helped me solve my problem when I accidentally grounded one of my injector wires when I painted my valve cover..

is there anywhere online that i can download a haynes manual (or one similar) i also have an electrical problem with my driver's side door. the switch doesn't recognize when the door is open or closed. you would be surprised what a pain that can be and the trouble it has caused me. i have tried replacing the switch and that didn't do the trick either.
thanks. didn't mean to thread jack. i hope you get it all fixed and put back together tony.

[Mangozac]

is there anywhere online that i can download a haynes manual (or one similar) i also have an electrical problem with my driver's side door. the switch doesn't recognize when the door is open or closed. you would be surprised what a pain that can be and the trouble it has caused me. i have tried replacing the switch and that didn't do the trick either.
thanks. didn't mean to thread jack. i hope you get it all fixed and put back together tony.

I just use the electrical manual from Celica Tech http://www.celicatech.com/imagearchive/bgb...94_6gmanual.htm

But I'm pretty technically minded (hell, I'm an electronic engineer) so I don't have much of a problem reading the diagrams in it. I don't know how others would go.

[thespacepanda]

A better question would be why are you running an 800 watt amp into a W3? W6 I could understand, but the rms for a W3 is 300 watts.

[tonytutino]

A better question would be why are you running an 800 watt amp into a W3? W6 I could understand, but the rms for a W3 is 300 watts.

oh, i got a deal on this w3, it wasn't my initial choice to go with this sub.

[tim86]

hmm... also I had battery problems with all batts before i got optima... u might want to change someday... sounds like it was the alt tho, its just weird that happened so fast and when u have 800 watts...

[tonytutino]

does anyone know if the autozone / advanced auto alternator tests are reliable?

just because if it tested ok numerous times it should'nt be the problem... even though my mechanic said he thinks its the alternator.
(he didn't diagnose the problem i just asked him on the phone)

but i am just going to order a new one from toyota anyways.

just incase i sell this money pit anytime soon

[tonytutino]

UPDATE:

after finally scrounging up funds for a new alternator from toyota, i put it on, go to work, and come home... battery is DEAD. AHHHHHH

i'm seriously pulling my hair out at this. i had a fully charged battery with a brand new alternator and i STILL have my fukcing parasitic draw.

i think i give up. tomorrow = mechanic time.

[Cutrara]

I had a problem exactly like this. I had your standard autozone battery/alt tests done, and passed them all. It turns out the the actual alternator was fine, but there is a voltage regulator or the like ATTACHED to the alternator and mine was staying closed and drawing power. Replaced the alternator and it's been fine for over a year. Let me be clear that the actual alternator was working, thats why it passed the test.

[tonytutino]

i understand that, however i replaced the alternator and power is STILL being drawn from the battery...

[addictions]

A better question would be why are you running an 800 watt amp into a W3? W6 I could understand, but the rms for a W3 is 300 watts.

its 800 watts peak only 355 rms on a solid charging system ( not a OEM alt) lol and to the kid who is having all the problems with his can your alt gives 80 amps on a good day and 14.4 volts power=ExI... E being your voltage I being your current making max power around 1100 watts or so and if your can runs on or about 300-700 watts depending on whats all on then you add another current draw thats asking for 55 amps or 800 watts more! your going to have trouble. few ways to fix this
1) big three upgrade
2) better alt
3) add another batt
4) all of the above ( my favorite )

[6strngs]

so all these problems started after having the amp and sub installed? disconnect the power cable for your amp from your battery. if the problem is fixed, then you've found your problem. something is obviously putting a draw on your battery even when the car is not running. and I'd be willing to bet it's the amp/sub. I'd make sure that the amp is not drawing any power (use a multimeter or test light to check) when the car is not running.

[tonytutino]

problem solved...

as much as it seemed to obviously be my sub/amp... it was my rear defroster relay. who would have thought? 190 dollar fix. oh well at least its all sorted out. i had to take it to a muffler shop to do the actual testing of circuits. i don't understand how toyota wasn't even willing to really look at it...

thanks for all of the help/ ideas though guys.

[trdproven]

I did not have time to read the others posts but my guess since the alternator is working, make sure your remote wire is hooked up right or else your amp won't turn off with your car and drain your battery.

This post has been edited by trdproven: Feb 25, 2008 - 6:23 PM