reed9

Some electrical problem is causing my battery to drain every day. Also, the lights often stay on after the car is turned off....but even when they do go off, the battery drains. Dealer can't seem to find the problem.
any suggestions?
thx

Hymie

Buy or borrow a multimeter that has a DC current range of at least 5 Amps.
With the ignition off, disconnect the battery negative lead – connect the multimeter (on DC current) between the negative battery terminal and the vehicle chassis.

The meter will now be reading the battery drain current, which should be at least 4 amps (to discharge your battery within a day).

Pull the vehicle fuses, one at a time (putting them back if the current drain does not drop) – until you find the fuse through which the current is draining. Bear in mind that the current flow may pass through two or more fuses (which are in series). The lower rated series fuse, will be protecting fewer electrical components. Having identified the fuse, through which the drain current is flowing, it should be a simple matter of disconnecting the faulty component.

Another thing to bear in mind is that most circuits should be dead with the ignition off – a possible current drain path is through a faulty diode pack within the alternator. Such a fault can be intermittent, dependent on where the alternator brushes come to rest. Try unplugging it (the alternator) to see if it is the current drain path.

reed9

thanks! best advice that I have received so far. Will try that this week!
Reed

Hymie

While waiting to obtain a multimeter, make sure you know where all the vehicle fuses are located – I don’t know about the 96 GCL, but my 2000 WJ has fuses located within the engine bay and under the dash. Also check that you can identify the fuses and cross reference them to documentation, listing the electrical items fed from each fuse.