Posted on 03/22/2015 3:30:31 PM PDT by waterhill
I saw your thread and the many different opinions and didn’t have anything to contribute as there ‘was’ help in there.
However, on the drive home today i recalled something. Useful or not, it’s somewhat pertinent:
About 15 years ago I was at a parts store picking up a few items for what I was fixing. I was in there quite a while, long enough to have heard this guy buy & bring back in for return THREE different batteries for his Jeep. The auto parts guys were no help at all with their little ‘tester’. Batteries tested good, yet they kept feeding him batteries.
I cashed out and walked outside, asking him if he’d like some ‘real’ help. He pleaded with me to help.
He had been having some slow starting issues (sounded like drained battery), managed to get it started to drive to the parts store, but no battery he put in it would start it. He told me earlier in the day he’d done the alternator already.
I didn’t even have him turn the key. I asked for a screwdriver, scored the inside of the battery terminal clamps on the cables, popped em back on with a pound of my fist and had him turn the key: Voila.
Lead eventually forms an oxidized coating (a dielectric) that prevents electrical connection, no matter how tight the terminals are clamped.
It was the worst case of oxidized cable clamps I’ve ever seen (the symptom, not their appearance), but to an inexperienced eye they looked perfect and SHOULD have worked.
Just saying don’t overlook the simple. Just because an electrical connection is solid, doesn’t mean it’s a good one, especially on an older car that’s parked outside, particularly a vehicle near coastal areas (that goes for grounds, too). Hopefully you have a similar problem or a simple hidden compartment light, and not an intermittent short. Assuming it’s not as I described above you’ll likely find the issue with the ammeter & pulling fuses.
Good luck.
Diodes in alternator.
this thread has potential
Correct. I had an alternator kill a battery. And I mean KILL a battery!
New alternator, new battery, everythings OK now.
Potential?
I thought it was negative...
Hope this gets to everyone, the heater/ac blower was hard-wired into the battery. I really feel dumb. I still hate fords, but at least I did not have to roll around in the mud.
Thank you to everyone for the responses. God Bless.
Keith
That wasn’t factory design, right?
Was this something somebody put in as a “repair”?
No, the previous owner was screwing around as far as I can tell. It apparently was a ‘repair’...grrrr.
Again thanks to All....I believe someone had suggested this, but I don’t have the time.
That was a good suggestion.
What you discovered is definitely NOT typical repair procedure, and not something I would normally be looking for, unless I noticed some bastard looking wiring under the hood.
I meant yes, someone decided to get fancy. I used to do that with my old GMC’s and knew where the kill-switches were. And when I would sell one, I told the prospective buyer everything. Someone just didn’t care.
Later put one on a(V-8)cargo van...didn't work so well...then again, that thing always had cold-weather cranking/starting issues.
This particular one required you to push a reset(circuit)button located on the unit which is attached to the battery...I understand there are newer ones that allow you to reset from inside the vehicle(touch brake pedal?).
HVAC blower was hard-wired into the battery.
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