Weird Battery Drain

[Zitril]

I will do the voltage drop test, I wasnt sure if you were referring to that version or where you measure the millivoltage drop across each fuse and use charts to figure out the amp draw. Do you feel 14.6v is high for an alternator to put out? Also I managed to catch the voltage spikes on my reader.
That is the voltage spike that causes the transmission to not shift down when driving, and for there to be a bunch of codes all relating to high or voltage out of range.

This is the voltage spike directly after when turning the engine off and restarting. I do plan on doing the Voltage drop test. I know that there are a few points to check. The only reason I didnt get to it today was it has been downpouring and I dont have a garage to work in.

 

[Zitril]

I did the voltage drop test, both positive and ground. the ground from the engine to chassis was at 0.28v, all the other points were about 0.1v, if I remember correctly. I still took off and cleaned all the grounds that I could find, wire wheeling them. Still no fix. So tomorrow I will replace alternator again. I am getting close to throwing in the towel and taking it to the Ford Dealership to have them figure it out.

 

[ManUpOrShutUp]

If it's been in the barn...and there's stuff tucked into crevices...just hope you don't have any chewed wires!

I had the same thought. I live in a rural area and even after sitting for just a few weeks, I discovered a mouse nest and dead mouse in the engine compartment of my old truck.

 

[Zitril]

So I went to my local pick your parts yard and found and expy with a brand new(looked cleaner/newer than the one I just bought from advance), I pulled it and the whole alternator cable(along with the voltage regulator cable). I replaced both in my expy and everything has been running perfectly for the last few days. I think it could have been 2 possible things, the connector to the voltage regulator on the alternator was a bit corroded, and I think that there might have been a break in the cable further along, that was being affected by temperature. Wish me luck and thank you for all the advice. I really like this forum.