Chasing a battery draw down in my 70 Fleetwood

[Mike Baillargeon #15848]

G'day Mike,

You are doing the correct stuff to isolate the problem, but what you need to do is every time you disconnect an item, you have to go back to removing and replacing the battery terminal to see if that spark is still there.

If you have an aftermarket radio in the car, then that will draw current all the time as the memory needs constant power.

Bruce.

Winner, winner chicken dinner !!

After much searching and using all the suggestions here I found the problem....I want to thank everybody for all the tips on how to tackle this problem!!

It looks like the after market radio somebody installed was causing the battery killing draw....It looks like it was professionally installed but when I unplugged the power to it the arc stopped at the battery.....

So I left the fuse in that circuit and took my battery tender off and tested the battery voltage with car running and it was 14.3 and then with the car off it was at 13.....left the car unattended for 6 hours tested the volts and it was still at 13 volts!!....car fired right up....

Here is a picture of the radio that's in the car....I'm sure somebody spent some money on this....I guess it has that memory thing Bruce was talking about that constantly runs..??

One of my buddy's stopped by and gave me this bird house....It was a good day!!

Thanks again everybody!

Mike

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

G'day Mike,

Congratulations on finding the problem.

The Memory function of the radio shouldn't draw so much power to quickly drain the battery, unless there is a fault with the battery, as all it does is supply power to hold the pre-set stations, and clock.   I take it that it is that type of radio?

If it is not one of these new, modern electronic radios, then it may have been wired up incorrectly.   You might have to check the Internet for a wiring diagram of the radio, and trace the power wires, which there should be two to 12V.   One to power the functions of said radio with the radio turned on via the Accessory terminal of the ignition switch, and the other to constant 12V for the Memory.

Both of my "special" vehicles have upgraded radios to the latest type, and have never caused problems.   BUT, leaving the trunk lid open, without removing the bulb, really causes problems.

Bruce.

[Big Fins]

I had aftermarket radios in a lot of cars. None of them ever drew a battery down to where it wouldn't start the car. Instead of yours drawing millivolts to supply the memory, it had to be connected in a full power fashion like the radio was on all of the time.

You should have a standard 14ga power lead connected to switched power and a smaller 18-20ga wire connected to a battery power source to maintain the memory. There may be a wire for the power antenna which is generally yellow and the 4 speaker leads with grounds, unless the body is the common ground like Cadillac used to do.

[James Landi]

Had a similar issue--- I simply installed a heavy duty solenoid between the battery and the positive lead... bought a high amperage golf cart unit that is made to stay on when activated-- less then $20. Installed a toggle switch under the dash--- VOILA -- an elegant work-around.  Switch on, turn key and run, then switch off when done. ALso serves as a theft deterrent.   James

[Cadillac Fleetwood]

Mike,

Congratulations on your successful tracing.  I have the proper factory 1970-only AM/FM stereo radio (with the correct grained knobs and tone rings) if you need one.  Send me a PM.

Charles Fares