Start Issue: Car is dead, then gains charge?

[tyler_lueken]

I'm kind of baffled.

After a long period of time, around 6-12 hours, my battery will be dead. I may open my door a couple times, but no more during that period. Something has to be drawing off the battery when the car is off. I just haven't figured it out yet.

When I turn the key, it won't crank, nothing is on, the car is pretty much dead. So I turn the key back to off, then try to start it again. This time it will crank a few times, then die. I turn the key back again, then the alarm starts going off, but it is really quiet. I try to start it again, cranks a few times, then dies. Now, once I turn the key back, the alarm goes off, but it is loud like it is supposed to be. Finally I try to start it again, and it fires up after about 3-5 seconds of cranking.

My seat doesn't move to it's memory spot, the CD player cycles through all the trays, looking for CD's, hibbidy bloo blah, just as if the battery was removed, then replaced.

The only add-on's I have are DDM Tuning HID kit and a SiriusXM dash mounted radio. I used to be able to leave my XM Radio on all the time, all night actually, and never had a starting issue. I've had that for more than a year. My HID's were installed in October or so. The starting issue started in March.

The battery is 2 years old. Replaced in Feb. 2009. I took it out and charged it a few weeks ago. When I put it back in, the car started up perfectly as expected, a few days later, the problem occurred again.

Since the battery isn't that old, I don't suspect it to be the problem. I haven't gotten my alternator tested, even though I need to. I was sitting in the car one night while it was running, and I pulled up on 3 of the window switches at once, everything dimmed, really low.

Any ideas? I've read stuff about fuel pump, someone had something drawing on their fuse #25, strange things happen, the car hates me? haha

 

[brentalan]

start pulling fuses overnight and put them back in the morning. If it starts up, you found your parasitic device.

 

[chris2523]

The battery is 2 years old. Replaced in Feb. 2009. I took it out and charged it a few weeks ago. When I put it back in, the car started up perfectly as expected, a few days later, the problem occurred again.

Since the battery isn't that old, I don't suspect it to be the problem. I haven't gotten my alternator tested, even though I need to.

i suspect it's a problem. have it and the alternator tested.
the LS NEEDS excellent voltage to work properly. it does not take kindly to bad batteries.

also. i've had batteries last anywhere from 6 years to 6 days. being new-ish doesn't make it good.

 

[manoli]

i suspect it's a problem. have it and the alternator tested.
the LS NEEDS excellent voltage to work properly. it does not take kindly to bad batteries.

also. i've had batteries last anywhere from 6 years to 6 days. being new-ish doesn't make it good.

Agreed sounds like a battery to me my Ls did very strnge things when the battery was on its way out, the battery could have a short in it as well.

 

[LS4me]

Could be the ignition switch......

 

[joegr]

Or more likely a loose connection at one of the main electrical junctions.

 

[1LoudLS]

could be a loose power or ground connection

Edit: damn i was beaten to it again.

 

[LDM]

I had that same problem when I bought my car. Took it for a test drive at the dealership, no problem. Bought it, and they went to wash it... it wouldn't start. Jumped it and it started. Drove it a day and it wouldn't start, like the battery was drained.

Turned out the previous owner put a smaller battery in it, and it slid in the battery compartment... having the positive terminal land against the metal over the top battery mounting bracket which grounded it out.

Moved the battery by putting a piece of board behind it so it didn't slide. Told the dealership, they put in a new battery of the correct size that would not slide around.

Check your battery compartment, make sure the battery hasn't slid backwards towards the rear end of the car... check positive terminal make sure it's not hitting the battery mounting bracket causing it to ground/short out.

(Even though there was a plastic boot around the positive terminal you could see it had been arcing causing a short and draining the battery).

 

[saloking]

yes deffinetly start at the battery had very very similir problems. i had a 540cca ford factory battery in it and after my car was started and driving i could tap the brakes and the lights would almost go out and if i hammered on the gas lights would go dim and the advance track light would go nuts also my radio would just reset itself and half the coil packs just stopped working i was freaking out that something was really wrong with my car tested the battery 3 cca which is way beyond junk put a new 990 cca yellow top 31d deep cycle (220$) kinda spendy but fixed every problem and i even tested it i left my radio on and the head lights (hid conversion) on all night on purpose then came out radio still loud and and lights all on for the car just to start right up perfect again. i think its the battery this car likes its perfect battery with only a 110 amp alternator. way to low i think

 

[tyler_lueken]

The problem hasn't occurred since I have posted, so a week. I have a trunk leak, so i removed the battery, tray, ground wire, etc, put it aside, and sanded and painted the trunk. Since then, no problems at all. Loose connections, something where it shouldn't be, anything arcing causing a short is pretty much checked off the list. Maybe it was the moisture in the air? Also, I just discovered a few days ago that sometimes when I turn off the car, pull the key, and open the door, the radio doesn't shut off. Which would mean anything else that would be running in the on position, would also be using up power. Hmm...??

Next on the list is driver's side VCG, coolant overflow, and belt. Battery and alternator still need to be tested just in case.

And just 20 minutes ago when I was leaving McD's, my car started beeping at me like it was trying to tell me something on the message screen. It would beep 3 or 4 times, then stop, then beep more, then stop, then beep, then stop for good. But there was no message?

 

[joegr]

Please note that there are major electrical junctions (that could be loose) in places other than just the trunk with the battery. There's the distribution box under the hood, a junction behind one of the front tires, and so on.

Do the interior lights come on when you open the driver's door? Do you get a door ajar alarm for that door when the key is on and the door is open? When the radio remains on, do the windows also still work?

 

[tireman]

strange goings on

could be battery or alternator going bad. strange things happen with the alternator or battery are getting ready to fail. yours sounds like the battery. Check with a DVOM, battery voltage should drop then recover after a start or after the air conditioning comes on. does your charge light come on? if your car is older, check the contacts on the relays and fuses, reset them in the sockets or clean if need be.

 

[LDM]

I just had beeps happening to me in the last 3 weeks, but no message or codes. It would go away, then start again later, or on a new day. Finally 2 weeks later a battery light turned on in the dash and it said Check Charging System. I had the battery and alternator tested, the test was fine. Since it had a new battery from 2 months ago, I went ahead and put in a new alternator that I bought from Lincoln/Ford. Since it has 104,500 miles I figured it was due for an alternator.

No more beeps in the last week. Alternator seems to have resolved the problem.