Good battery being run down ?

[Rcflyman]

I tried a search but can't find anything for my problem . I got my 2001 Ex. Sport 3 weeks ago and this morning for the 3rd time there was not enough battery to start the engine . The problem is intermittent . All 3 times I was able to start it with my charger/starter . I stopped by Autozone tonight after work and on the way there ran the headlights , radio and heater . The battery was fully charged and tested under load dropped less than 1 volt . So what is running down my battery overnight and not every night ????? It is not a dome light I have made real sure that the lights are all off . Anybody had this problem ? Thanks in advance for your help . It is turning cold and I don't want to have to wonder every day if my Sport is going to start or not . What a pain . Bruce

 

[BrooklynBay]

One person I know just had this problem, and it was the battery. I put a Duralast Gold label battery in, and they were fine. Have your battery load tested.

 

[Rcflyman]

BrooklynBay I did have it tested under load at Autozone on the way home tonight and it tested good .

 

[BrooklynBay]

Did you clean the contacts? Corrosion around the battery terminals is pretty common, and has been known to create starting problems.

 

[Rcflyman]

I will give that a try when I get a chance but the terminals don't appear to be corroded .

 

[Damonkr]

Having the same issue with my 02 ranger. I did discover that the contacts which turn on and off the dome light in my door locks were ditry and occasionally would leave the dome light on. I cleaned them with brake clean which sloved the dome light problem however i still have the battery draining issue. I have the day off tomorrow so im going to check some more ill keep you posted on what i find.

 

[Rcflyman]

Having the same issue with my 02 ranger. I did discover that the contacts which turn on and off the dome light in my door locks were ditry and occasionally would leave the dome light on. I cleaned them with brake clean which sloved the dome light problem however i still have the battery draining issue. I have the day off tomorrow so im going to check some more ill keep you posted on what i find.

Thanks for your reply Damonkr . I still don't know what caused mine not to start . Both times it happened it was in the low 20's F and I had played my CD player the night before . By this weekend it is supposed to get in the 20's at night again . I am using the radio instead of the CD player so I guess I will see what happens . Good luck finding out what is wrong with yours .

 

[Rcflyman]

Well it happened again . It has been starting fine every day for the last 6 days . It is in the 20's again just like the last time it would not start . All it does is click . I think I am going to get a new battery even though this one tested good . It just clicks and the starter does not turn but if it is like the last 3 times it will start right up with my starter/charger . I thought it could have been from the CD player but I have not played the CD player in a week . I wonder how accurate that battery test is at Auto zone ? This really sucks . I wish I could have got a little newer Explorer that had some kind of warranty . It has been allot of years since I had a vehicle that would not start in the winter . The 20's is nothing either it could get -20 before the winter is over .

 

[Rcflyman]

I just got back from a system test and the battery, starter and alternator all test good . I am going to have to go to a Ford dealer and hope they can figure it out . I found out the battery is only 1 year old .

 

[Damonkr]

Fixed my problem by cleaning the bat. terminals as well as the connection to the starter. I also found that the last time i replaced my bat. the bat. i was sold at the local part store was not the correct size for my vehicle. The one i had did not thave enough Cold Cranking amps. Check yours for this. The 4cyl.and v6 use dif bats. not sure about newer v8's as mine is a ranger. I replaced mine with the biggest optima that will fit my stock location as i just added a winch. After i cleand all the bat connections mine stopped acting weak even with the old bat. Hope this gives you some other things to consider, also i would never take my vevicle to the dealership as they are verry expensive. Any trusted auto shop should be able to fix this problem wih ease.

 

[Rcflyman]

I finally took it to a Ford dealer . It turns out to be the GEM module went bad and was leaving accessories on all the time drawing down the battery . They are going to replace it today .I am glad they figured it out but it costs $500 .

 

[Rcflyman]

also i would never take my vevicle to the dealership as they are verry expensive. Any trusted auto shop should be able to fix this problem wih ease.

I have had bad luck taking vehicles to corner repair garages . They don't have the technology to figure these problems out . They probably wouldn't have figured this one out nor would they know how to program the GEM module .