Battery drain.

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moomoo
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Battery drain.

Post by moomoo »

Hello all again,
I thought I'd got everything sussed on the Peugeot partner 1.9d...alas ...it's not to be!
I fitted a brand new battery less than two weeks ago.
The van has been parked in the drive and when i came to start it it was virtually flat....turning over once a flood.
I have now recharged the battery.
I was looking at one of the posts about batteries flattening and I copied what had been said and followed the advice.
Using a multimeter set on Amps I disconnected the earth lead from the battery and crossed from the (undone) lead to the neg terminal on the battery with the multimeter....
Unlike the previous poster my reading was 2.37 (Whatever that means!)...and there was a loud clicking sound coming from the engine on the drivers side.
Does anyone have any idea what the problem might be?
Thanks as always for any advice.
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mickthemaverick
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by mickthemaverick »

What the 2.37 means depends on what range you had set the multimeter to. For example: if it was on a current setting with a range of 0- X amps then the 2.37 means 2.37amps of current is being drawn from the battery when you connect it. Far too much for a standby condition meaning something is not shutting down when you switch off or you have a fault causing the current drain. If it was set on a lower current scale in milliamps for example then 2.37mA is an acceptable draw, in fact on the low side, to run the system clock and locking standby etc So to make a sensible interpretation we need to know what scale you had the meter set on? :)
I used to be indecisive, now I'm not so sure!
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by moomoo »

Hi,
I had the meter set on '5'..
I'll try to send an image of how the meter is set...
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by moomoo »

This is how I have the meter set up....
Not sure if its right though.Image
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mickthemaverick
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by mickthemaverick »

OK, so that is a 0 - 5 Amp scale so you are reading 2.37 amps. That would suggest you have a current draw which may well be the cause of the clicking. The first thing I would do is connect the meter as you did such that you can read it from the fuse box position and then remove fuses one by one checking the reading each time. When the reading drops to under 0.1 on pulling a fuse then that will be the circuit with the fault on it. The next move will depend upon which fuse it is so I suggest you go through that procedure and then post the result. Be sure to only have one fuse out at a time and clean both the fuse and its socket before reinstalling. Good luck! :)
I used to be indecisive, now I'm not so sure!
I used to ride on two wheels, but now I need all four!
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by moomoo »

Hello again,
Pardon my uncertainty...
So i'm leaving the meter set up as it is....then going to the fusebox and removing the fuses one at a time and then using the probes on the meter i'm testing across the fuse terminal holders....is that correct?
What would be a normal reading...would it be zero?
Thanks
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mickthemaverick
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by mickthemaverick »

Leave the meter connected between the -ve battery terminal and the lead from it so it reads the 2.37 as you did before. You have to measure the current with each fuse removed one at a time. If a circuit is not taking any current then removing its fuse will not change the reading. Only when you get to the circuit with the problem will you get a significant drop in current. In standby mode the car will draw a very small current below 0.2A which is to maintain 'live' systems like the clock and locking sensor etc but that will also disappear when you pull the appropriate fuse. So if at some point you do get a 0 reading then it is likely that it is the standby circuits that are faulty. Lets not jump the gun and you go through the fuses and see what you get. If you have crocodile clips for your meter leads then just clip the meter on and leave it connected as you check each fuse. :)
I used to be indecisive, now I'm not so sure!
I used to ride on two wheels, but now I need all four!
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by moomoo »

Hello again,
Yesterday I had a reading of 2.37.
I hadn't realised the ignition was on when I did the test...i was outside the van! ....My sincere apologies.
This morning I re-did the test...
When I first sat in the van with the meter set up as before the reading was 0.04..
I switched on the ignition and the reading was fluctuating between 2.4 and 3.3....
I switched the ignition off and the reading dropped to 0.75...after a couple of minutes there was a small single 'click' sound in the cab ( like a relay clicking?) and the reading then dropped to 0.04 again......
Does this appear to be 'normal'?...
If so is there any other reason why the battery would drain?
Is there any way to post a video to show what's happening in real time ?
thanks
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mickthemaverick
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by mickthemaverick »

I don't think you need video it, that explanation is pretty clear. If the battery drain is 40 milliAmps once the sleep mode is activated then I would say that is normal. At that rate it would take 25 hours to drain 1 amperehour from the battery. So if the van is fitted with an 80 amperehour battery it would take 2000 hours to drain the battery from fully charged to totally flat. So I would suggest you had left something on accidentally!! The often missed is a rear load area light operated by a door switch which can play up - just a thought. If the van has had an aftermarket radio with direct wiring was it left on with no volume? :)
I used to be indecisive, now I'm not so sure!
I used to ride on two wheels, but now I need all four!
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by moomoo »

Hello again,
Thank you for your replies and advice...much appreciated.
I'd like to ask something else..
Trivial to some but to me really annoying.
The courtesy light on the van isnt working...
I've checked the bulb in its holder and it works fine. I tested the wire to the holder and there's no power there
I tested the power across the fuse holder in the cab fuse panel for the interior light...it's on a 20A fuse but there's no power across the holder terminals....I say no power ...there's 0.11V I'd assume there'd be 12V at least.
I have another fuse panel boardImage from the same vehicle from a breakers yard.
I'm probably wrong but i'm assuming something inside the fuse panel in my van is not working properly..ie no voltage at the fuse point?
Is it a matter of just swapping the panel to try it....or will it need 'programming with PP2000 because it's come from a donor vehicle?
Thanks
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mickthemaverick
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by mickthemaverick »

When you say there is no power across the fuse terminals, there won't be unless the circuit you are testing is switched on so that the earth from the far end of the circuit will give you 12V across the fuse. You should put the red lead on the fuse terminal from the supply and the black lead to a known earth, I always use a door hinge which is easily accessible. On the supply side you should see 12V but on the distribution side you should have nothing with the fuse out and 12V with it in. Likewise when you test the power feed at the light you will need to have one of the switches, door or manual in the on position. You really need the vans wiring diagram to check that out as there are a number of switches in the circuit. :)

As to the need to reprogram, that is something I can't comment on with any knowledge, maybe someone else will!! Personally I wouldn't think any programming would be necessary but I honestly don't know!! :)
I used to be indecisive, now I'm not so sure!
I used to ride on two wheels, but now I need all four!
moomoo
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by moomoo »

Hello again,
I left the van for a few days to test the battery voltage after it had been stood for a while..
When I first tested the battery with the engine running the voltage was 14.38V
When i switched off the engine the voltage was 12.6V.
Ive tried it today without the engine running and the voltage is 12.1V
With the engine switched on...(sluggish turnover again..to the point of just starting)...the voltage is once again 14.38V.
I've made sure everything is switched off ..radio etc...but still the battery seems to be draining.
The battery itself is less than a month old.
I must be missing something?
I was thinking of taking it to an auto electrician but they charge about £55 p/h
I'd obviously like to solve the problem myself if possible
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by wheeler »

You cant reprogram the BSI to be used in another vehicle, not with dealer tools anyway.
You could fit it to your car for testing the interior light however you would want to disconnect the instrument panel first as if the test BSI has a higher milage stored in it then it will permanently write the higher miles to your instrument panel.
The vehicle will not start with this BSI fitted but should allow you to test the electrics.
If you want to use the other BSI you would ideally need the matching engine ECU & a working transponder chip as they are all a matched set.
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by moomoo »

Hello'
I used pp2000 on the van some hours ago....
There were no faults on the BSI according to PP (original van BSI).....I don't know if it would pick up a fault on the interior lights?...I did go to thhe lighting section and the comfort section but there were no faults...I didn't see the courtesy/interior lights under either heading.
There was a fault on the instrument panel though ....No permanent +ve it said...whether the interior lights are connected somehow i don't know.
Although I'd like to remedy all the little niggling faults my main concern is the drop in voltage on the battery.
Today I took the three week old battery back to the shop....he tested it with his machine under load and said although the voltage was down slightly it was still good. He swapped it for another new battery.
I put the new battery on the van and immediately noticed the rapid clicking noise near the alternator again...after about 3 or 4 seconds it stopped.
With the l battery leads attached to the new battery terminals i tested the voltage....12.78V....
I didnt touch the van for about an hour or so...no doors opened ...nothing. ...I tested the battery again and it was 12.76V
Another hour later without touching anything and it's 12.72V
As I said the battery is brand new.
There is nothing on in the van.
I'm clutching at straws here but could there be something wrong with the alternator?
I'm flummaxed!
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mickthemaverick
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Re: Battery drain.

Post by mickthemaverick »

If you are still determined to track down the draining you need to go through the fuses one by one as I detailed earlier and find out for sure where the drain is. Its just a methodical approach which will get there eventually!! :)
Last edited by mickthemaverick on 16 May 2022, 22:02, edited 1 time in total.
I used to be indecisive, now I'm not so sure!
I used to ride on two wheels, but now I need all four!
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