Battery draining.. Help please... =(

[dawk]

I had this same problem. My battery would drain and could not figure it out. At the same time my alarm would not lock, it would unlock but no lock (arm). Also my auto door lock feature after I start the car would not lock. I could also hear a faint static in the speakers. I think the battery draw was coming from the factory speakers amps not turning off. Somehow the alarm module is wired to my radio. I messed around with resetting my alarm with the remotes (valet) feature and got it to work. It has since happened to me again and I played around with the valet feature and got it to work.

 

[nimdivino]

Guys great news and I am so happy that this is over.. We traced where the draw is coming from and it was from my amp.. Basically the amp wasn't turning off. We pretty much found about it when the speakers started making this loud and crazy sound when the battery is almost dead. Then we also noticed that the blue light from the amp was on even when everything is off. I did not see that because of some crap blocking it.. lol..

Anyway, the amp seems dead because my friend can't seem to fix why its not turning off. So I am buying a new one tomorrow, its a huge amp anyway, would like to get some trunk space again..

In case you are interested this is the amp that I have now.

http://www.epinions.com/specs/pr-Phoenix_Gold_Xenon-200_4_Car_Audio_Amplifier

Was this a good amp?

I'm going to best buy tomorrow and grab a brand new one. Any suggestions?

My set-up is Kenwood DDX-6019 with Zetoolman Sub not sure about which version though.

Thank you guys for all your help troubleshooting!! It definitely made it easier because of your ideas. :wink::wink::wink:

Nim

 

[stuntman]

I think I have the same problem.

If I let my car sit for 1.5-2weeks without driving it, the battery will be dead. If you let this happen often you will kill the battery. I've since replaced the battery and kept it on a charger when I don't drive it, but it's still draining.

I too suspect its my aftermarket AMP (Kenwood KAC) thats not turning off. I still need to look into it...

 

[kwinkler]

Also my auto door lock feature after I start the car would not lock.

I have an '05. Do these cars come with an auto door lock stock or is this part of an alarm upgrade? My car drains the battery, including a brand new one in a few days. I just use a tender now, but was wondering if a malfunctioning auto lock could be my source of drain.

 

[nsxtasy]

Was this a good amp?

Obviously, no. :biggrin:

If I let my car sit for 1.5-2weeks without driving it, the battery will be dead. If you let this happen often you will kill the battery. I've since replaced the battery and kept it on a charger when I don't drive it, but it's still draining.

I too suspect its my aftermarket AMP (Kenwood KAC) thats not turning off. I still need to look into it...

Even a bone stock NSX can drain the battery in 1.5-2 weeks.

I have an '05. Do these cars come with an auto door lock stock or is this part of an alarm upgrade? My car drains the battery, including a brand new one in a few days. I just use a tender now, but was wondering if a malfunctioning auto lock could be my source of drain.

It's probably part of an aftermarket alarm. The stock NSX does not automatically lock the doors when you turn off the car and exit. The only exception is, if you're walking up to the car and you use the optional keyless entry to unlock the doors, and you don't open the driver door within a certain time (maybe 15 seconds), it will re-lock them.

 

[stuntman]

Even a bone stock NSX can drain the battery in 1.5-2 weeks.

Really?

I don't see how that's acceptable for a production car, especially coming from Honda. I've left many cars sitting for even a month or so and they start right up, it just dosn't seem right.

 

[ftuhy]

Early Boxsters are much worse than the NSX, killing a battery in a little over a week. I worked with a guy who traveled a lot, and if he left the car in the garage for over a week the battery was dead. The Porsche dealer said "that's they way it is" and sold him a Porsche-branded float charger (with about a $50 Porsche mark-up) to cure the problem. (The fact that Porsche had branded and stocked a float charger for that purpose kind of gives you a hint of how common a problem that was, and maybe still is in P-cars)

My NSX (bone stock electronics) will significantly drain the battery in 3 to 4 weeks, so I leave it on my $7 float charger in the winter. With that, my battery is now 11 years old and doing fine.

If your battery does get severely discharged & you want a chance the battery can be recovered, NEVER jump start the car or put it on a high current charge. Put it on a very very low current charge so that it takes 1 to 3 days to re-charge. That will let the battery plates re-form without overheating and warping the plates. Despite knowing that from design experience in the electronics industry, guess who forgot about that once and fried a new battery(not in the NSX)? I've also remembered that fact and tried it on a battery that was 3 years old and got many more years out of the battery.

 

[DrDave]

^ absolutely correct. Thank you.

Dave

 

[nsxtasy]

(The fact that Porsche had branded and stocked a float charger for that purpose kind of gives you a hint of how common a problem that was, and maybe still is in P-cars)

In all fairness, it's more likely a reflection of the fact that they sell lots of cars that are not daily drivers and are used only occasionally for a fun ride on a nice day. If Acura sold enough NSXs, they would probably sell their own float chargers too, for the same reason.

 

[influence82]

My battery kept dying as well. I bought a new one form Pep Boys (with warranty) and it died three times in a month. My mechanic found the trunk light to be one problem and the interior light sensor on the door was not connected properly as it randomly turned on the light while the car drove. I took the battery to Pep Boys once and they checked it and said there were no problems, but it still died afterwards so I will have to take it back again.
I will also look into my amp to see if it is draining the battery as well. I think a good solution is to buy a float charger as some other people posted. Can I also charge the battery through the engine bay positive terminal? It is not convenient to reach the actual battery in under the hood.