Car battery issue, help me diagnose this problem (1 Viewer)

[top dog]

Zero chance it is the battery. ZERO. CHANCE

 

[top dog]

Just kidding. Did you think about checking the battery? It's like 6 years old. Might be that.

 

[top dog]

I once had a very similar problem. It was a 1980 Mercury Capri. I was 16 and in an apartment complex I shouldn't have been at. I somehow managed to back over a large rock at the end of the parking lot. Managed to get loose and drove home, In the morning I noticed a gas leak. I pulled out the ramps in the garage and drove that up there so I could get underneath and look. SON OF A ____!!! Big hole in the tank. I WAS PISSED! SO pissed that I jumped back in the car, slammed it into reverse and ripped out of the garage. Only problem was the door was still open. Caught it on garage and bent it backwards.

Ended up finding a door at a junk yard for an 81 Mustang. Very similar in that model year. Picked it up and put it on the Mercury. The door was white, so I spray painted it blue to kind of match the car. Sometimes the door worked, but most of the time I had to slide in and out the window like I was Bo Duke.

Fast forward about a year. One day I got up early to sneak over to my girlfriends house before school. Her parents had both left for work. I accidentally left the amp I had rigged up in that car on. The battery was dead. I tried to take my brother's car which was a 1981 Malibu Classic. THE FREAKING THING WOULDN'T START EITHER! DEAD BATTERY. I ended up riding my bike across town to her house. In Ohio. In January when it was snowing.

Moral of this story? It is probably your battery.

 

[Terminalxylem]

I am not trying to hijack, but why do you guys only get 3 to 6 years out of your car batteries? My current car is 4 years old and nothing, my last car was 11 years old and never had to change the battery. My husband's car is 7 years old and still has the original battery. His car before that was 12 years old and had the original battery. What gives?

The two I just changed were 6 and 9 years old, but I think the average lasts 3-5.

 

[ghostguy123]

Battery that old you’re probably looking at some internal grid corrosion and have some small leakage between positive and negative, just trickling away over time.

Is total random trickling normal in a case like this?

Okay—so you know how when you get a new cell phone—you might have to charge your phone like maybe once every two or three days. Once that same phone gets to be a year or two old—you might have to charge it every day. If you keep a cell phone for longer than a couple of years—often times you’ll have to charge that phone a couple times a day or more to keep it charged. Eventually—after several years—if you want to keep that phone—you’re going to have to replace the battery as it will no longer be able to hold a charge. It’s no different than a car battery. Six years is a really long life for a car battery. I end up having to replace mine every 3-4 years.

Yes, I understand that. However, I don't understand why it was 100% dead over night on a few occasions (which I believe each time the car was left UNlocked) while every other time it's been fine, even sitting for up to three days between use. Last week it sat for three days and started up strong as ever.
Frankly, I think there is some sort of weird electrical thing going on when the car isn't locked with the key fob. I know it sounds weird, but it's been too coincidental.
Ill find out for sure after the new battery is in.

 

[ghostguy123]

Just kidding. Did you think about checking the battery? It's like 6 years old. Might be that.

No,but I did change the hub caps

 

[belljr]

I am not trying to hijack, but why do you guys only get 3 to 6 years out of your car batteries? My current car is 4 years old and nothing, my last car was 11 years old and never had to change the battery. My husband's car is 7 years old and still has the original battery. His car before that was 12 years old and had the original battery. What gives?

Avg is 3-5 years, it all varies on weather, driving conditions, vehicle usage, battery.

 

[Mister CIA]

Did you try turning it off and then back on?

 

[Rustoleum]

I am not trying to hijack, but why do you guys only get 3 to 6 years out of your car batteries? My current car is 4 years old and nothing, my last car was 11 years old and never had to change the battery. My husband's car is 7 years old and still has the original battery. His car before that was 12 years old and had the original battery. What gives?

Avg is 3-5 years, it all varies on weather, driving conditions, vehicle usage, battery.

I’m not disputing the stats being reported, but between me and @msudaisy26, there must be a dozen of you replacing batteries annually to make that math work.

 

[Mister CIA]

I am not trying to hijack, but why do you guys only get 3 to 6 years out of your car batteries? My current car is 4 years old and nothing, my last car was 11 years old and never had to change the battery. My husband's car is 7 years old and still has the original battery. His car before that was 12 years old and had the original battery. What gives?

Avg is 3-5 years, it all varies on weather, driving conditions, vehicle usage, battery.

Yep, mine was tapping out at 56 months late last summer (It was slow to rollover in the morning).

Spoiler Alert: Did not troubleshoot.

 

[belljr]

My traverse is on its 3rd battery in 14 years. So thats about average. But I went like 9 years in the first then 4

 

[[icon]]

When I come back with the same problem after the new battery, I expect your mostest of sincerest apologies, groveling, and crow eating. And money. I want money.

The testers they use at O'Reilly will tell you. They can test the cold cranking amps and the amps while engine is running and tell you if it's within acceptable range. Or as someone suggested, you can do it yourself with a multimeter if you know the amp ranges to look for. A lot easier to do it at the parts place so they can either put your new battery in for you (and take the old one, to save you a trip back up there) or rule out the battery and alternator for you, then you'll have more info to research with.

This.

Autozone, Oreilly, Napa etc will all test your/their battery and m alternator for free. Takes 5 mins.

You/they will know conclusively.

If you're going to keep the car for a while, get an AGM battery like a Die Hard Platinum (used to be made by Odyssey, not sure who now, hopefully the same) that will last longer.

 

[ghostguy123]

When I come back with the same problem after the new battery, I expect your mostest of sincerest apologies, groveling, and crow eating. And money. I want money.

The testers they use at O'Reilly will tell you. They can test the cold cranking amps and the amps while engine is running and tell you if it's within acceptable range. Or as someone suggested, you can do it yourself with a multimeter if you know the amp ranges to look for. A lot easier to do it at the parts place so they can either put your new battery in for you (and take the old one, to save you a trip back up there) or rule out the battery and alternator for you, then you'll have more info to research with.

This.

Autozone, Oreilly, Napa etc will all test your/their battery and m alternator for free. Takes 5 mins.

You/they will know conclusively.

If you're going to keep the car for a while, get an AGM battery like a Die Hard Platinum (used to be made by Odyssey, not sure who now, hopefully the same) that will last longer.

I took the car to my mechanic. Everything checked out fine.

 

[-fish-]

Battery that old you’re probably looking at some internal grid corrosion and have some small leakage between positive and negative, just trickling away over time.

Is total random trickling normal in a case like this?

Okay—so you know how when you get a new cell phone—you might have to charge your phone like maybe once every two or three days. Once that same phone gets to be a year or two old—you might have to charge it every day. If you keep a cell phone for longer than a couple of years—often times you’ll have to charge that phone a couple times a day or more to keep it charged. Eventually—after several years—if you want to keep that phone—you’re going to have to replace the battery as it will no longer be able to hold a charge. It’s no different than a car battery. Six years is a really long life for a car battery. I end up having to replace mine every 3-4 years.

Yes, I understand that. However, I don't understand why it was 100% dead over night on a few occasions (which I believe each time the car was left UNlocked) while every other time it's been fine, even sitting for up to three days between use. Last week it sat for three days and started up strong as ever.
Frankly, I think there is some sort of weird electrical thing going on when the car isn't locked with the key fob. I know it sounds weird, but it's been too coincidental.
Ill find out for sure after the new battery is in.

I hadn't really read this that carefully before. If the body control module is reading the doors as open, it may be causing your drain. You can test for it by manually switching the door latch, which will make the BCM read the door as closed. Then put it on a multimeter.

I'd also see if it's throwing any codes.

Or you can just keep buying new batteries.

 

[jhib]

I am not trying to hijack, but why do you guys only get 3 to 6 years out of your car batteries? My current car is 4 years old and nothing, my last car was 11 years old and never had to change the battery. My husband's car is 7 years old and still has the original battery. His car before that was 12 years old and had the original battery. What gives?

Might not be the only reason, but batteries tend to last longer in the colder climates of northern states.

 

[ghostguy123]

Ok boys, now what? I got a new battery a couple days ago, but just now got a notification (I have the HUM thing by Verizon plugged in) that there is a "rapid decline in battery voltage", the exact same thing that happened before when the battery was dead and would not start.

 

[belljr]

Ok boys, now what? I got a new battery a couple days ago, but just now got a notification (I have the HUM thing by Verizon plugged in) that there is a "rapid decline in battery voltage", the exact same thing that happened before when the battery was dead and would not start.

Never heard of it but why didn't it give you a warning before?

And google returns ton of results that HUM is possibly the problem. You didn't think to tell us of that before? lol

Why is Verizon Hum Causing Car Problems? (Easy Fix Steps!)

If your Verizon hum causing car problems, you must be frustated! Here in this guide, learn the reasons behind the issue & also how to solve the problem.

xtrium.com

Does Hum drain my car battery when the engine is off?
When your car is off, the Hum OBD (On-Board Diagnostics) Reader goes into a low power mode.


maybe its defective

"Anyway, the actual battery voltage despite it reporting it was under 12 volts was actually 12.94 after sitting all day after the Alert and started just fine. Is anybody else having this problem or even use the dang thing? My in-laws insist we both have one for the accident awareness and safety reasons, but winter's a coming and I don't want to find out this little thing is draining my battery and just hasn't killed it yet."

"Hi all, I searched the forums but didn't find anything for this...I have a Hum obdII reader and service from Verizon. It's generation one and I keep getting yellow battery alerts but the voltage isn't actually low. I called Verizon and they told me to have a garage clear the nonexistent low battery code"

 

[ghostguy123]

Ok boys, now what? I got a new battery a couple days ago, but just now got a notification (I have the HUM thing by Verizon plugged in) that there is a "rapid decline in battery voltage", the exact same thing that happened before when the battery was dead and would not start.

Never heard of it but why didn't it give you a warning before?

And google returns ton of results that HUM is possibly the problem. You didn't think to tell us of that before? lol

Why is Verizon Hum Causing Car Problems? (Easy Fix Steps!)

If your Verizon hum causing car problems, you must be frustated! Here in this guide, learn the reasons behind the issue & also how to solve the problem.

xtrium.com

Does Hum drain my car battery when the engine is off?
When your car is off, the Hum OBD (On-Board Diagnostics) Reader goes into a low power mode.


maybe its defective

"Anyway, the actual battery voltage despite it reporting it was under 12 volts was actually 12.94 after sitting all day after the Alert and started just fine. Is anybody else having this problem or even use the dang thing? My in-laws insist we both have one for the accident awareness and safety reasons, but winter's a coming and I don't want to find out this little thing is draining my battery and just hasn't killed it yet."

"Hi all, I searched the forums but didn't find anything for this...I have a Hum obdII reader and service from Verizon. It's generation one and I keep getting yellow battery alerts but the voltage isn't actually low. I called Verizon and they told me to have a garage clear the nonexistent low battery code"

It did give several warnings before, and almost every time the battery was dead, especially if we didn't try to start it until a few hours after getting the warning.

Anyway, so last night my daughter drives the car to work, new battery and all. She parks at 9:30pm. At 2:30 in the morning I got an alert of "rapid drop in battery voltage". Same warning the other times when the battery was dead.
I checked the app, it shows 11.36 volts.

Now, fortunately she just texted me and said the car started. Also, usually when this happens I will get another notification that the battery is back to full health.

So, what on earth is causing a brand new battery to have a "rapid decline" in 5 hours when there are no lights on or anything obvious that is drawing power?

I'm really not thinking it's a defective HUM considering the times it has sent me an alert it was accurate considering the battery was totally dead almost every time, and the other times the car was started before more time passed.

 

[ghostguy123]

I'm more than happy to try the experiment of unplugging the HUM and see what happen, but I think it's pretty obvious there's something else amiss here.

 

[belljr]

Might need to see a mechaninc

 

[3C's]

Long term OBD modules are a problem waiting to happen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfswqlq5ONE

 

[ghostguy123]

Long term OBD modules are a problem waiting to happen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfswqlq5ONE

I originally put the thing in cause it has a GPS as well, so I always knew where my newly licensed daughter was taking the car.
I WILL be removing it. However, I'm still pretty confident that the HUM is not the problem.
When I remove it, and it is dead again, back to square one.

 

[3C's]

Long term OBD modules are a problem waiting to happen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfswqlq5ONE

I originally put the thing in cause it has a GPS as well, so I always knew where my newly licensed daughter was taking the car.
I WILL be removing it. However, I'm still pretty confident that the HUM is not the problem.
When I remove it, and it is dead again, back to square one.

It's possible that there's two (slightly) unrelated issues, 1 being the battery was near EOL and had weak cold cranking amps, and 2 the HUM is misreporting battery issues. Hopefully that's all it is...

 

[ghostguy123]

Long term OBD modules are a problem waiting to happen. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfswqlq5ONE

I originally put the thing in cause it has a GPS as well, so I always knew where my newly licensed daughter was taking the car.
I WILL be removing it. However, I'm still pretty confident that the HUM is not the problem.
When I remove it, and it is dead again, back to square one.

It's possible that there's two (slightly) unrelated issues, 1 being the battery was near EOL and had weak cold cranking amps, and 2 the HUM is misreporting battery issues. Hopefully that's all it is...

That would be great if so.
However, it wasn't weak cold crank amps. The battery was 100% dead each time to the point the key fob couldn't unlock the doors.

 

[audiophile]

My 2007 Acura TL had a similar issue. Long story short, the Bluetooth hands-free phone module would continue to search for a nearby phone even when the car wasn’t running.

If I drove the car regularly, there usually wasn’t an issue as it would recharge during the drive. If the car sat for a few days, the battery would drain and I’d have to jump start it.

Suggest doing a Google search for “Why is my (year/make/model) battery draining?” This is how I discovered that the Bluetooth module is a known issue on my car. The fix was simply to disconnect/pull the plug out of the module. That solved the issue. HTH

 

[STBootleg]

The bumper bearing is pumping too much coolant to the antenna.

 

[MTskibum]

Ok boys, now what? I got a new battery a couple days ago, but just now got a notification (I have the HUM thing by Verizon plugged in) that there is a "rapid decline in battery voltage", the exact same thing that happened before when the battery was dead and would not start.

Never heard of it but why didn't it give you a warning before?

And google returns ton of results that HUM is possibly the problem. You didn't think to tell us of that before? lol

Why is Verizon Hum Causing Car Problems? (Easy Fix Steps!)

If your Verizon hum causing car problems, you must be frustated! Here in this guide, learn the reasons behind the issue & also how to solve the problem.

xtrium.com

Does Hum drain my car battery when the engine is off?
When your car is off, the Hum OBD (On-Board Diagnostics) Reader goes into a low power mode.


maybe its defective

"Anyway, the actual battery voltage despite it reporting it was under 12 volts was actually 12.94 after sitting all day after the Alert and started just fine. Is anybody else having this problem or even use the dang thing? My in-laws insist we both have one for the accident awareness and safety reasons, but winter's a coming and I don't want to find out this little thing is draining my battery and just hasn't killed it yet."

"Hi all, I searched the forums but didn't find anything for this...I have a Hum obdII reader and service from Verizon. It's generation one and I keep getting yellow battery alerts but the voltage isn't actually low. I called Verizon and they told me to have a garage clear the nonexistent low battery code"

It did give several warnings before, and almost every time the battery was dead, especially if we didn't try to start it until a few hours after getting the warning.

Anyway, so last night my daughter drives the car to work, new battery and all. She parks at 9:30pm. At 2:30 in the morning I got an alert of "rapid drop in battery voltage". Same warning the other times when the battery was dead.
I checked the app, it shows 11.36 volts.

Now, fortunately she just texted me and said the car started. Also, usually when this happens I will get another notification that the battery is back to full health.

So, what on earth is causing a brand new battery to have a "rapid decline" in 5 hours when there are no lights on or anything obvious that is drawing power?

I'm really not thinking it's a defective HUM considering the times it has sent me an alert it was accurate considering the battery was totally dead almost every time, and the other times the car was started before more time passed.

How you troubleshoot this is to turn the vehicle off, and pull out the fuses one by one and then do voltage drop tests against the specific fuse plugins.

Then once you find the specific fuse, then you need to research which modules are using that fuse and then replace that specific control module.

I have done this before and someone with minor mechanical skills can pull this off.

 

[ChiefD]

I'm more than happy to try the experiment of unplugging the HUM and see what happen, but I think it's pretty obvious there's something else amiss here.

I've had a defective HUM thing at home for years now. Started right after marriage.

 

[ghostguy123]

Ok boys, now what? I got a new battery a couple days ago, but just now got a notification (I have the HUM thing by Verizon plugged in) that there is a "rapid decline in battery voltage", the exact same thing that happened before when the battery was dead and would not start.

Never heard of it but why didn't it give you a warning before?

And google returns ton of results that HUM is possibly the problem. You didn't think to tell us of that before? lol

Why is Verizon Hum Causing Car Problems? (Easy Fix Steps!)

If your Verizon hum causing car problems, you must be frustated! Here in this guide, learn the reasons behind the issue & also how to solve the problem.

xtrium.com

Does Hum drain my car battery when the engine is off?
When your car is off, the Hum OBD (On-Board Diagnostics) Reader goes into a low power mode.


maybe its defective

"Anyway, the actual battery voltage despite it reporting it was under 12 volts was actually 12.94 after sitting all day after the Alert and started just fine. Is anybody else having this problem or even use the dang thing? My in-laws insist we both have one for the accident awareness and safety reasons, but winter's a coming and I don't want to find out this little thing is draining my battery and just hasn't killed it yet."

"Hi all, I searched the forums but didn't find anything for this...I have a Hum obdII reader and service from Verizon. It's generation one and I keep getting yellow battery alerts but the voltage isn't actually low. I called Verizon and they told me to have a garage clear the nonexistent low battery code"

It did give several warnings before, and almost every time the battery was dead, especially if we didn't try to start it until a few hours after getting the warning.

Anyway, so last night my daughter drives the car to work, new battery and all. She parks at 9:30pm. At 2:30 in the morning I got an alert of "rapid drop in battery voltage". Same warning the other times when the battery was dead.
I checked the app, it shows 11.36 volts.

Now, fortunately she just texted me and said the car started. Also, usually when this happens I will get another notification that the battery is back to full health.

So, what on earth is causing a brand new battery to have a "rapid decline" in 5 hours when there are no lights on or anything obvious that is drawing power?

I'm really not thinking it's a defective HUM considering the times it has sent me an alert it was accurate considering the battery was totally dead almost every time, and the other times the car was started before more time passed.

How you troubleshoot this is to turn the vehicle off, and pull out the fuses one by one and then do voltage drop tests against the specific fuse plugins.

Then once you find the specific fuse, then you need to research which modules are using that fuse and then replace that specific control module.

I have done this before and someone with minor mechanical skills can pull this off.

The rear windshield wiper has recently stopped working. Maybe I start there. Granted this problem started months ago, the quit recently.

But yeah, your suggestion is right in line with the YouTube searches. However, ****, it's 20 degrees outside. F everything about that right now.

 

[belljr]

Just know this. You probably needed a new battery anyway.....

 

[ghostguy123]

Just know this. You probably needed a new battery anyway.....

Please explain why

 

[ghostguy123]

Oh boy oh boy, I just bought my first multimeter. Gonna go check to see how much if any drain is coming from the car in a few hours. I sure as heck am not gonna diagnose where it's coming from though.

 

[titusbramble]

Just double checking, I'm not accidentally on the Steam forums reading about a known bug on My Summer Car regarding car batteries, and the OP is actually having issues in real life, not with a 40 year old video game Datsun? Right?

 

[Gally]

I had a similar issue with a 2000 Tahoe many years back. It ended up being the radio. I took it to a mechanic and he said they couldn't find anything and suggested going to a radio installer. I took it to them and they said it's likely not the radio and mechanics always blame them when they can't find anything. But sure enough they traced it to the radio and and were shocked that ended up being the issue. Replaced the radio and never had the issue again.

 

[ghostguy123]

I had a similar issue with a 2000 Tahoe many years back. It ended up being the radio. I took it to a mechanic and he said they couldn't find anything and suggested going to a radio installer. I took it to them and they said it's likely not the radio and mechanics always blame them when they can't find anything. But sure enough they traced it to the radio and and were shocked that ended up being the issue. Replaced the radio and never had the issue again.

Was the radio draining the battery to the point of complete ZILCH over night?
Whatever is drawing power seems excessive.

 

[ghostguy123]

Awesome, just got another alert for rapidly declining battery.
This is fun

 

[Gally]

Was the radio draining the battery to the point of complete ZILCH over night?
Whatever is drawing power seems excessive.

It was a large draw. It was a long time ago but it seems like it was happening quickly. Not sure if over night but maybe after a full 24-48 hrs.

The stereo guys were shocked at the draw and it was new to them but it was the problem.

 

[ghostguy123]

Mtim

Was the radio draining the battery to the point of complete ZILCH over night?
Whatever is drawing power seems excessive.

It was a large draw. It was a long time ago but it seems like it was happening quickly. Not sure if over night but maybe after a full 24-48 hrs.

The stereo guys were shocked at the draw and it was new to them but it was the problem.

I just did a multimeter test. 0.03.
So what is that, 30 mili amps? It's in the normal range from what I can gather.

So HUM alerted me a little while ago for a rapid battery decline. I just started the car a little while ago. It started, but not as strong as it normally does it seemed.

Anyway, I removed the HUM, and I guess we will see if my daughter gets stranded anywhere.

So to recap:
The battery is new.
According to the multimeter there is no parasitic drain.
The HUM was removed.

So, if the battery dies again, any ideas on what it could be?

 

[ChiefD]

You'll need to check every fuse.

 

[ghostguy123]

You'll need to check every fuse.

Yeah, that sucks.
So with no recorded parasitic draft, how can a fuse cause a dead battery?

 

[ChiefD]

This is a 6 beer project by the way

 

[ChiefD]

You'll need to check every fuse.

Yeah, that sucks.
So with no recorded parasitic draft, how can a fuse cause a dead battery?

Are you sure you had your multimeter on the right setting?

 

[ghostguy123]

You'll need to check every fuse.

Yeah, that sucks.
So with no recorded parasitic draft, how can a fuse cause a dead battery?

Are you sure you had your multimeter on the right setting?

Yeah. 10a

 

[ghostguy123]

This is a 6 beer project by the way

Yes it is, but Im not doing it when it's 20 degrees out.
And awesome, my daughter just picked up my jumper cables and is going somewhere with a friend that is like 3 hours away.
All i said was good luck, and I'm not coming to get you.

 

[top dog]

Might be time to trade that sucker in.

 

[Chaz McNulty]

You'll need to check every fuse.

Yeah, that sucks.
So with no recorded parasitic draft, how can a fuse cause a dead battery?

Are you sure you had your multimeter on the right setting?

Yeah. 10a

Put the meter to the DC voltage setting. After you turn your car off, take a voltage reading across the terminals. It should be close to 13 volts. If it is under 12 volts after a night, there is something draining it.

What kind of battery did you get? I got a cheaper battery (non-AGM) and returned it a week later as it was draining. Spent the extra $50 and had no issues.

 

[ghostguy123]

You'll need to check every fuse.

Yeah, that sucks.
So with no recorded parasitic draft, how can a fuse cause a dead battery?

Are you sure you had your multimeter on the right setting?

Yeah. 10a

Put the meter to the DC voltage setting. After you turn your car off, take a voltage reading across the terminals. It should be close to 13 volts. If it is under 12 volts after a night, there is something draining it.

What kind of battery did you get? I got a cheaper battery (non-AGM) and returned it a week later as it was draining. Spent the extra $50 and had no issues.

Duralast Platinum. It was the only option that popped up at AutoZone for a 2012 Ford Escape.

As of right now technically there is no issues, as in, the battery hasn't been dead yet. It also hasn't sat for a long time yet.

 

[ghostguy123]

Ok guys, update. The the battery was dead again.
New battery. HUM not in the car anymore. Battery dead. 100% dead. Can't even unlock the doors with key fob it's so dead.
What on earth can drain a batter so fast overnight that the battery is 100% dead? Nothing is visible being left on. When I tested with the voltage meter it did not show anything was draining the battery.
Can this be something stupid like a loose cable connection or something? But if that was the case, how does jumping it work? And why is it only happening when the car sits for a while?
This.......sucks. Any ideas?
I'm gonna check fuses, but if those aren't an issue then what? As I said, when I tested, nothing was drawing power.

 

[gianmarco]

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say go to a mechanic.

 

[belljr]

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say go to a mechanic.

I'd buy a new battery