2000 jimmy battery drain

[Sputtle]

First, I will appologize if this is a double post. I did a search of the forums and didn't find anything relating to my problem. If you have seen this somewhere, a post pointing me in the right direction would be great

Once or twice a week, I will jump in the truck and try to start it, but the battery will be dead. Dome lights, gauges, dingy bell, pwr locks and radio all work fine. There will be just enough power to give me the dreaded dead battery clicking noise. I've been desperately trying to track down the problem, but no luck yet.

So far I have replaced the alternator, battery and starter.

The covers on the visors broke off some time ago, so I removed them and completely unplugged the visor lights to rule that out. Didn't help.

I've put a multimeter between the negative battery terminal to try the "pull fuse and check" strategy, but so far I can't catch anything draining battery power. After everything powers down, it pulls a sweet and steady 11mA

Its definitely intermittent. We use the truck all the time, and every once in a while the battery will be dead. Not necessarily after sitting all night either. Twice its only sat for 3-4 hours and the battery was dead. I can only assume this is a short somewhere, but I don't know where and could really use some help on this one.

Now I have pulled all the fuses the truck doesn't need to run legally. It hasn't had a dead battery yet, but it's only been 2 days.

 

[Sputtle]

Looks like I found it. A week has passed since I pulled the fuses for the radio and no problems.

While the truck is off, a short on a speaker shouldn't drain the better, right? I'd rather not take apart all the doors if I can rule that out.

 

[Molson02536]

Looks like I found it. A week has passed since I pulled the fuses for the radio and no problems.

While the truck is off, a short on a speaker shouldn't drain the better, right? I'd rather not take apart all the doors if I can rule that out.

That is correct, a short on the speaker will not drain the battery over night, good chance the radio does not turn off when the ignition is turned off. Is the radio after market or OEM????

There is a live wire to the radio to keep the clock and per station saved, inspect that wire to see if its shorting out anywhere behind the radio. The wires could have been rubbing against something that the insulation worn through and is causing the short.

Good luck and keep us posted and take your time on removing the trim around the radio. You have to tilt your steering down to remove the trim and make sure you don't break your hazard switch while working the trip off.

Molson02536

 

[Sputtle]

So far I've taken most of the dash apart. I've looked at all the wiring harnesses for the radio, the dash switches and the gauges. All the wires look almost brand new. Absolutely no sign of wear at all. Of course, they're taped up for the most part, so there's a lot I can't see. But I suspect they're fine.

I've had the radio out for the last week, and the battery died again this morning. I can only assume its a short somewhere in the gauge assembly.

 

[dirtclod]

I also have a battery drain problem. It's not similar to yours, but maybe the info will help. About 3 yrs ago, the battery charge wouldn't last a day. I wasn't able to find the problem, but the dealership did, for $1200. A circuit board in the main computer was the cause.

At this point, I still have a drain, but only if I leave a door or the hatch open for about 1/2 hour. Also, if I'm sitting in it and listening to the radio with engine not running, it will not start after about an hour.

 

[Sputtle]

I've noticed that too. Sometimes I'll have the radio on while working on it. The first time it happened I was changing the brake pads in the parking lot of where my wife works. She noticed a noise on the way to work so I fixed it there. It took about an hour and I had the radio on the whole time. Then once I was done I packed up everything and left. She went to go eat on her lunch break and the battery was dead.. haha. I didn't even think to check it.

 

[Smoky02]

What is your battery voltage when you are having the problems? If it is 11.5 volts or more then the truck should start. If your voltage this high and the truck is not starting then you need to look and all of your battery and starter connections. All it takes is a loose or corroded connection to increase the resistance which drops the voltage.

If however it is below 11 volts the truck may crank a little bit put may not start as you need over 11 volts for fuel injection. If your battery voltage is below 10.5 volts then the truck will probally not even crank.