Need Advice Please!

[gordizmom]

This is interesting. My truck also has an aftermarket radio. It was in the truck when I bought it. Is it easy to unhook the wire? I don't drive my truck much so it wouldn't bother me to not have a radio.
Shortly after I bought my truck I started noticing that the radio lights would go out and the dash lights would go out also. I was unable to see the odometer. Once in a great while the dash lights would come on but never the radio lights. There has to be something causing this shortage and I bet it's the radio but would the radio wiring effect the dash lights?

 

[Rich_007]

One thing in your original post I wanted to comment on:

I am considering buying a portable battery charger and just use it when my truck won't start.

If you have a drain, you could kill the battery to the point where even if you put a charger on it or jump it, it will start up, but if its totally dead it may not retain enough charge to start back up for you when come out of the store to head home.

Just didn't want to see you spend a hundred bucks on a charger/booster and have it not really solve your problem. If you were going to go that route, you might almost be better off having a second battery to swap out when needed. You could keep the spare on a trickle charger so its ready when you need it.

 

[AftonJay]

I second the rear wiper, i have not had a gen 1 so i am not sure it is the same set up. But on the Gen 2 the peg can either miss the hole on the round disc or if the wiper is out of place it will keep running the motor trying to return the wiper to the off position. Or if the wiper arm does not mover freely, check its movement with the glass open so it is not connected to the motor.

 

[JerrySLC]

I have a 1997 Eddie Bauer which I rarely use, just for pulling an RV. I have a phantom draw which I suspect is the compressor for the air suspension. If it sits more than a few days, the battery won’t turn the engine over. I gave up looking for the draw, and I just disconnect the battery whenever I park it. Battery is fine whenever I reconnect it. A small battery charger is also a good idea!

 

[rjdelp7]

Does you Expy have air suspension? They 'maintain' air with the key off. Normally they shouldn't kick on much or at all. I owned a 1999 Town Car that would randomly kick on. I would hear it in my garage, running at 2am. Everyday driving should keep the battery charged. A short, once a week trip, might not be enough. I have a AAA battery that is going on 6yrs old. It was in my 2001 Lincoln when I bought it. They are about $40 more, than most brands, but good quality.

 

[gordizmom]

Thanks again to all of you who responded. There is no telling what is drawing off of the battery and it would probably be very costly for me to have a specialty shop look for the cause. I am retired and on a fixed income so finding the issue would be too much.
I now have a small jump starter. It's a Gooloo quick starter and the reviews on it are very good.

 

[Gumbyalso]

I think the aftermarket radio could be a big clue. I would start by disconnecting that and see what happens. That's an easy diagnosis. Or somebody could have gooned up the installation a created a sneak circuit. The "original alternator" surprises me. I have a 2000 EB 5.4 I've had since new. I have 320K on it now and have put in several alternators. How many miles on your 2000? I have not had the rear wiper issue described, though I have changed the rear wiper motor at least four times because of some very lousy rebuilt motors. In the first few years when my 2000 was new I had a phantom battery drain that I was never able to diagnose. It just quit doing it on its own. My 2000 EB does not have air suspension. Don't know if that was even an option in an EB that year.

 

[VoxVeritatis]

I think the aftermarket radio could be a big clue. I would start by disconnecting that and see what happens. That's an easy diagnosis. Or somebody could have gooned up the installation a created a sneak circuit. The "original alternator" surprises me. I have a 2000 EB 5.4 I've had since new. I have 320K on it now and have put in several alternators. How many miles on your 2000? I have not had the rear wiper issue described, though I have changed the rear wiper motor at least four times because of some very lousy rebuilt motors. In the first few years when my 2000 was new I had a phantom battery drain that I was never able to diagnose. It just quit doing it on its own. My 2000 EB does not have air suspension. Don't know if that was even an option in an EB that year.

I have a one-owner garaged 2002 Eddie Bauer 5.4L with just under 170K miles on it. I purchased it new and have replaced a few batteries, but the original alternator remains operational.

 

[CaptOchs]

I had a battery drain twice on my Gen2. It was the wiper both time.
1) grease dried up so wiper blade was hard to move. Eventually motor couldn't complete the cycle and it drew power even if truck was off.
2) wiper motor just died. Wiper moved Ok, but motor was hot to touch. Just disconnected it. New one is cheap on Amazon.

 

[Jeff Shinham]

I had a very similar problem with my 06. Would start great sometimes, not at all other times, even got stuck in the garage, tried to jump start it and it wouldn't move. It did lots of crazy stuff like shifting in and out of 4 wheel drive. --- Replaced the computer, that didn't even fix it.

The battery checked out as fully charged, so I thought it was something else.

Finally went back to the basics. Took the battery terminals off and cleaned them well. Truck started right up and ran great.

The same thing happens with my old 65 Mustang, I guess it must be the Florida heat.

 

[Plati]

I bought and use a Battery Tender.
https://www.batterymart.com/p-battery-tender-jr-12v-0_75a-battery-charger.html?msclkid=a4b9f5f03cc51f6b16e1ab835cdbd886&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=*Shopping - Battery Tender&utm_term=4576992030823614&utm_content=Battery Tender

My 2003 Expy sits for up to 6 weeks at a time when I travel. The battery used to drain and then would freeze in the cold .... damaging it. No more, it's maintained at 12.8V until I'm ready to use it again. Nice! I permanently mounted the pigtail to the battery so all I have to do is plug it in. I almost think EVERY new vehicle should have this feature built in and batteries would always be charged up and at full strength all the time (if you plug it in). Maybe in the future there will be wireless charging like for cell phones. You just pull into your spot in the garage and charges overnight.

patent ---> https://patents.google.com/patent/U...utomobile&oq=wireless+charging+for+automobile

 

[Spaznaut]

I second a battery tender or a solar charger (good one). The tell is that when you replaced the battery it worked good for awhile and it slowly got worse. You drive once a week and you didn't say how far you go. I'd say your not getting the battery charged back up after it sits for a week and small parasitic draws from the computer, radio, and other small things are drawing you down slowly. Cold and hot weather don't help. I have this issue with a van I have that doesn't get driven enough. It will kill your battery prematurely. The rear wiper motor would have probably shown while they were checking voltage.

 

[Aspen03]

Having caught up on here the aftermarket radio is a very likely place to start. If it and cluster lights are going out, something is amiss. I have no idea what they would have tapped into that would affect the cluster unless the person doing the radio install was a complete fool and just probed around until they randomly found 12v and said that'll do or mangled a ground in the process of doing the install

If they hooked the aftermarket up and have the amp turn on wire for the factory system connected to a constant 12v rather than accessory that could easily drain the battery over time. If you have basic tools it's a pretty quick job to pop that radio out and see if the problem persists. Worst case you know what it isnt...

FWIW if the mechanic did a proper test and literally went circuit by circuit without skipping anything he would have found something drawing current, the circuit it was confined to anyway. Its sometimes a little hard pinpointing the exact cause unless it's something totally on it's own.

 

[jpeltzel]

Does your windshield leak? The times I've had a dead battery, it had rained or snowed a day or two before and water got under the dash and my blower motor would come on,, intermittently