Parked my 2002 sc430 with 6 month old battery at airport for 10 days while I was out of the country. When I got back the battery was dead. It was easy to jump and the clock was still on. I could see nothing that was left on. I have seen some other cars that have had the problem, something about theft lights, gps etc. I drove it home about 30 miles and have had no problem since.
View 14 Replies2007 Monte Carlo has a dead battery after a couple of days sitting. We've un connected alarm, etc still dies its a new battery. They say I don't drive it enough.
View 6 RepliesMy Mom purchased a new 2011 Lexus RX350 last spring. The dealer installed a remote starter at the time of purchase (we live in Alaska). We've had a continuing problem with the battery going dead if the car has not been driven for a period of time (like 4 days). When she does drive it, it is for short trips (3 miles round trip to work). The original battery was replaced in fall with a heavy duty one, but the problem continues. Its been to the Lexus dealer (130 miles away) several times, but they claim everything is within the tolerances and "there is no problem".
They did note that the remote starter was drawing more than it was suppose to and reinstalled it. Their finding was that she was not driving it enough and recommended a battery tender, which has been installed. That works as long as she plugs it in daily. However, if a plug in is not available (like at the airport, hospital or if she is visiting) the battery goes dead after 4 days (even after it has been driven 100 miles).
i was trying to align my headlights last night and forgot to switch them off. now the battery is dead and i need to shift it to neutral to roll it out of the garage and jump it. but it won't shift. the dealer said to turn it to on and step on the brake. doesn't work. i just get a buzzing sound coming from the engine compartment. is there any way to shift it? or do i just need to take the battery out and get it charged?
View 9 RepliesReviving my car after long months of long winter storage and I cannot get the door unlocked. I know the battery is dead so the remote won't work, but I cannot even unlock the door with the key, twisting it back and forth and nothing happens. I am just trying to get under the hood so i can jump the car, but no way to unlock the door. It is a 2002 SC430 , is the key supposed to work ? Or does the car need battery for the key to twist and unlock the door?
View 9 RepliesI've had this issue for a while now but is seems to be getting worse the older the truck gets. I've had the battery, and alternator tested multiple times and they always receive passing grades. If the truck sits for a period of several days or more without being started, the battery is sometimes dead when I go to start it up and go somewhere. It is really frustrating because it seems to happen and very random times, when I least expect it.
Sometimes I can go start my truck without any problems at all after a week or so. Sometimes it won't start if I leave it alone for only a day or two. Usually after I jump start the truck it will run fine and start for the next several weeks. Is it possible that there is a short somewhere causing the battery to drain sometimes? Also, there is sometimes a buzzing sound that comes from under the hood when it is warm outside with the engine off and the truck at rest... could they be related?
1995 Volvo 850 stationwagon has been dying when it sits for 3-5 days. At first I thought that it was due to the cold weather, so I was sure to drive it daily when it was snowing. But as it warmed up, my battery still drained after sitting for a couple days. Every time, I would call AAA and they would get it started no problem. I took it to a mechanic who did a basic "used car check" and didn't find anything with the starter, transmission, etc that would cause a battery drain.
My next step was to replace the battery, which I did a couple months ago. But alas, the battery has died once again. My thought is that it is due to an electrical issue? I have noticed that when driving, the speakers fade in and out based on whether I'm going uphill, or turning right or left . I thought that this was just a quirk but perhaps it's indicative of a greater electrical issue? I'm not sure what my next step should be?
I had my 2005 Prius sitting idle for three days and when I last used the car it had 6 bars of battery (blue). Today I turn it on and it has only 2 bars of battery (purple) and the engine stayed on about 10 minutes to charge the battery. After about 10 minutes it went all the way to 7 bars (green) and the engine did its normal idle stop. Is it normal for the battery to drain that much in only a few days?
View 4 RepliesMy battery on my 2008 SD goes down sometimes after the truck has been setting for a few days. This doesn't happen very often, and I've checked to see if I left something on that could have put a draw on it. I can find nothing that has caused it. I jump it off and might go a month before it happens again. I've got an add-on voltmeter that show voltage when the switch is on, and it's charging perfect. On older trucks, I would simply put a test light between the positive post and the cable and checked for a draw, but on the later model there is always a slight draw to keep memories alive.
View 9 RepliesThis question is for recommendations on whether to have the dealer service (clean) the Camry's ignitors
In a previous posting, I mentioned that my Camry was hard to start after sitting in the garage for 2-3 days. Dealer "diagnosed" (guessed?) it as a weak battery, tho the cranking speed seemed pretty normal (peppy)to me. My first thought when it would not start was the fuel system (fuel pump) or dirty ignitors.
I asked my regular mechanic for an opinion on cleaning and he pretty much said "don't" unless there isa specific problem (eg engine check lite).
Could I hear from the group whether ignitor cleaning ($210) as a "preventive maintenance" is a good idea? I am not about to disassemble the throttle body or some such and do it myself, but I AM OK with adding acan to my gas tank, if it won't hurt and can work.
I have a 1994 checy silverado 2500 with 3 year old battery, alternator, and starter. I left the car for a week and came back and the battery was dead and needed a jump start. Charged up and sat for 3 days and dead again. I check for lights on and nothing.
View 1 RepliesI have a new battery in my 2000 Dodge Ram 1500. The battery becomes dead if the car sits for 2-3 days.The engine easily starts when the battery is jumped. The charge remains for 2-3 days, but then depletes, andthe battery must be jumped again. How do I diagnose what circuit is depleting the battery?
View 4 RepliesWithin the last few weeks my super duty battery has been dead after sitting a few days. Draw is around 80 ma. When I pull the air bag fuse it drops to 10 ma. Before I tear in to this thing need to know where to start.
View 3 RepliesFor the 3rd time this winter I have been unable to start my SUBARU IMPREZA because of Dead battery. Usually it is after I have not driven for 3 - 5 days. Each time it is jump started (AAA) and I have driven it to the local Subaru Service Center. They have tested and analyzed battery and charging system and find nothing wrong!!! (Battery was replaced last March). They say drain measured very low (3mA?).
One ?clue: when jumper cables are hooked and powered up to start car, you can hear the CD changer trying to find a CD or something. But there are no CDs and we never leave it on. I mention this to the Service manager and he says that the measured battery drain is too low for that to be the problem.
Having problems with a slow drain on batteries? My truck wouldn't start after sitting for 5 days.
After recharging and starting it up once, I pulled the key, and disconnected the battery harness and checked for current on all the red wires in the harness. Only one drew current. I found the small red wire on the drivers side initially draws 470mA for 1 minute, then draws 22mA. In my experience in mobile audio, 22mA can drain a battery over several days.
Has anyone out there checked their 'dark current' draw? I have chased it all over and checked all the aftermarket add-ons and it comes down to something in the factory dash.
If I leave my truck sit for a couple of days, the batteries are noticeably weaker. It's fine overnight, but two nights and it's slow to crank. Three and it won't start without charging the batteries. I checked for a drain last night and found that it was drawing 1.2 amps.
That seems like a lot, no?
So I went to put my R32 back on the road yesterday, it has been garaged since November. Over the winter I had gone out to start her every 2-4 weeks. She would start right up all winter. 2-3 weeks ago I went out to start her and she started right up! Then last night, I went to go start her for her maiden voyage of 2015, and boom dead. What would cause this or if I should be worried?
I would let her run for about 20 minutes when I started her each time this winter, the previous successful start was no different.
Have a issue after car sits a few days and the brake pedal is really stiff when you depress it at first start up? Like it won't depress anymore then it is.
View 5 RepliesI had left my car for about 30 hours without driving, which I've done before all winter with no issues. Went to start it up yesterday morning to head out and when the key FOB failed to open the door, I knew I was in trouble.
I unlocked the door manually, and put the key in to start it up and the Treg was completely dead and the key wouldn't release from the ignition. After a call to VW roadside assistance, and a jump start, it started right up and I dropped it off at the dealer for them to look at.
The service report says "diag and found low state of charge. charged battery and found passes tests. performed TSB 27-05-01 and cleaned ground point for battery. rechecked OK"
This is a V6 Touareg (there is a similar TSB I understand for V8s).
Am back to VW. This time with a 05 Touareg. The truck was sitting for more than 3 days with dead battery and now the NAV will not turn on.
View 3 RepliesI have a 2002 Ford Windstar, mileage 61,234, garage kept and in excellent condition.On 6/30/12, I went to take the car out but the system was completely dead. We put a charge on the battery overnight to no avail. We then replaced with a new battery and it started right up (7/1/12). The car ran well until 7/18/12 (17 days) when the system again was completely dead.
This time I had the car towed to the Ford garage where they kept it for 2 days and could not find a problem. They installed another new battery (charging parts and labor). The car drove well again until 8/15/12 (less than a month) when the stsyem was dead again.
The car was towed back to the Ford garage and kept for another 2 days. They said the electrical system was checked completely and they could find nothing wrong. They put a charge on their battery and told me to drive the car at least twice a week. That's where we stand at this time.