Quote:
Originally Posted by speedygonzales
What I wanted to be sure of was that the charging system was indeed doing it's job.
I don't believe anything in your vehicle can do what you think it's doing. That is all of a sudden start drawing a bunch of current.
If I may suggest you take your vehicle to auto parts store that can put their analyzer on the charging system.
I also highly suggest you take off your starter and have it checked for current draw along with anything else they can test it for.
Hear me out here. Suppose your charging system can't quite put out enough current AND your starter draws way more than it should. See where I'm going with this?
Let me give you a little information on motors. Like several other things, have wire windings which I know you are aware of. These windings are insulated from one another by varnish. Over time this varnish wears out and more and more windings become shorted together. As this happens, the resistance of the starter is less and less and it pulls more and more current.
Now let's suppose you crank it over and the charging system isn't quite up to the capacity it should be. So the battery is some what lower than it was before you cranked it cause cranking uses up some of its reserve. Now you park it and come back later to test it and starter that is now pulling way more than it should is now encountering a battery that has less than it normally does. What you think?
BUT...........I'm trying to figure out if you measure battery voltage BEFORE or after you attempt to crank it over after having sat all weekend.
I didn't want to keep asking questions before throwing my idea about the starter and charging system out there for your consideration.
Again I don't think there is anything in your vehicle being as old as it is that is capable of randomly drawing a bunch of current. Hell I don't think there's anything on my vehicle that could do that.
************UPDATE****************
I texted my neighbor that has a shop that specializes in electrical repairs. My 20YO son works for him. So I don't want to take credit for this.
He said you can do what you are trying to do (find random high current) with a DVM set to Min/MAX. Duh obviously it won't have an alarm so you can come running but it will answer the question of randomly timed high current draw!!!!!!!
He also mentioned the light switches like for the doors but that you should see all the time.
Hope that helps.
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I don't think its a Big draw. maybe a amp? Can't tell, can't seem to catch it.
We have this auto service company that I did take it too, maybe a year, year and a half ago and after reading back though my post, I seen were I only put down replaced the starter. I have replaced it twice and do have a draw meter that I check it from time to time. My charging system was ok at the time they checked out my charging system other than the battery was a little weak at that time. Maybe because of the amount of times it got pulled down farther than it should have. It got replaced but the problem was still going on.
I have tested it with the volt meter several times before even trying to start it. That is were I knew it was between that 9 and 10 volts.
When it was up on the rack over at Green Streak (the place I go when I need up in the air or something tested that I don't have equipment to do so) I did put the fluke meter across the solenoid or the trigger post to see if any juice was maybe leaking across for any draw...It got replaced with the last starter too.
Now I Do have a issue with the gauges. My temp and fuel gauge are not working properly. Could be not tied together as one problem but I did replace both water temp sensors and its still a issue. The fuel pump is about 4 years old now and I can't remember if I replaced the fuel sending unit or not so, that could be hinky.
I can't go back and look at the posts right now but in case I didn't mention, someone said they had a issue with the instrument cluster drawing more power than it should have. I can't see that myself but been watching them on Ebay and checking the local U-Pullit yards that are local. Seems everyone wants over $100 bucks for them and I found this place in Moscow Idaho that dos a Total rebuild to new for $150 bucks so might just do that anyway. One more thing eliminated.
The door switches, glove box, ash tray, all disabled at one time or another.
Its hard for me to believe that I could have Several Phantom things going on but I guess anything is possible, just not likely more than on..
I am still trying to come up with a warning system once she starts drawing more than a 1/4 of a amp, its triggers.
I did find my old alarm system I had in my Van that worked a pager, but its a goner. I am sure the circuitry is so old in it that it had capacitors in it..
Now that I am not using the truck every day like used too, I will start testing the battery voltage each morning and evening just to see what is going on too.
Thanks for all the tips too !!!