I've recently had my new redtop die on me a few times after letting my car sit for 24+ hours so immediately thought my battery was having charging issues. I got a new one today as it was bleeding off power when unplugged, but I seem to think my car is pulling too much from the battery when off. Can any of you electrical gurus verify how much power in mA your subaru pulls from the battery when off? I am sitting at 350-400mA when off.

TIA,

Kyle

 

Something is wrong, most cars draw in the 25-50 milliamp area. You have any aftermarket 12volt stuff done?

Edit: How long are you letting the test run? Some cars take up to 10 mins to reach minimum draw.

 

ya any aftermarket Deck, amp/subs?

 

It's usually not headunits, Amps and DVD players sometimes. 2way alarms and Remote starters can cause weird draw issues.

 

If you have multiple draws on your battery (ie amp wires ect), take them off one at a time and put your meter in series with each one to see where the current drain is coming from. My car will only last a week or two without being driven before it is totally dead. You could always get a battery tender (trickle charger) till you isolate the problem.

 

Did you do anything to the car? 400mA is too much, you might be able to get away with 150mA. Leave the car off for an hour before checking. Some alarm systems take a while to full power off.

If the battery has corrotion on it, it could lead to a draw. Maybe you accidently pushed the parking light button and its on? Otherwise grab a tester light and start pulling fuses one at a time to narrow it down.

 

It turns out its my alarm. Pulled out fuses one by one until only the alarm was left...pulled out the fuses for it and wah lah, 40mA load. Looks like ill have to have the alarm redone somewhere a little more reputable. Thanks for all the tips guys.