A local North East, PA, repair facility was having an issue with their customer’s 2012 Ford F-150. The F-150’s battery would keep going dead after about five hours of use. The repair facility put in a new alternator and battery, but the same issue kept happening: jump the vehicle battery; drive the vehicle; and five hours later, the battery would be dead again. At their wits’ end, they called ENORMIS for help. The repair facility dropped the truck off with us one morning and we tasked MECP-certified technician Art Dougan with the parasitic draw diagnosis.
Art verified that there was a fluctuating draw on the vehicle battery. In fact, the highest reading was up to 4 amps. That is a lot — about 25–45 milliamps would be considered a normal draw. Art was able to pinpoint the draw to a certain circuit on the truck. This circuit supplied power to rear parking sensors, backup camera and certain modules. The strange thing was, the truck did not come with any of those accessory features.
Art inspected the interior and under hood fuse box wiring for corrosion, and even hoisted the vehicle on our lift, checking all wiring under the vehicle. He eventually found a failed connector — it was heavily corroded and the pins were brittle. The corrosion in the connector was causing a short to ground when trying to power on accessories that did not exist on the truck.
Art was able to remove the corroded connector from the wiring harness and wire directly, which eliminated the draw on the battery. He let the vehicle sit overnight at ENORMIS and in the morning, it started right up.
If you have a battery drain issue that you need figured out quickly, contact the electrical diagnosis pros at ENORMIS.
This post was provided by Doug Reichert. Call him! Doug has been in the automotive service business since 2001. In his free time, Doug likes working outside in his yard and enjoys exercising. Doug is active in his community by volunteering at his church and for several nonprofits.
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