battery goes dead if it sits overnight
 

hey guys, this problem just started happening. when it first did it i figured it was a bad battery. i got it tested and the battery was junk so i replaced it. i went to start it the other day and it was completely dead. so dead the light didnt come on when i opened the door. i charged it overnight and it ran the next day. i know its not the alternator because all my accessories work when the car is running. it was dead again today but started after i jumped it off with my truck. its kinda mind blowing to me. any one got any ideas?

Re: battery goes dead if it sits overnight
 

Something is draining it. Kinda straightforward.

Check all the lights... underhood light if it has one, (if it does, take out the bulb and leave it out) tonneau area light, etc. Make sure the brake lights are off when you walk away from the car. etc. etc. etc.

Re: battery goes dead if it sits overnight
 

Console light staying on and brake light switch are problems I've had several cars doing.

Re: battery goes dead if it sits overnight
 

Yup, that one too... used to be glove-box light in older cars... there's lots of opportunities for stooopid little bitty stuff like that to bite you right in the shorts. And more often than not in situations of this type, that's the stuff that'll get ya.

Re: battery goes dead if it sits overnight
 

A couple of links that might help you find it. (Also, make sure to actually check the voltage while the car is running.)

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars...battery-drains

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...__DqK90IIc#t=0

Re: battery goes dead if it sits overnight
 

I agree with what other have posted, check all lights. I personally have had issues with glove box lights (especially since our glove box lids don't seem to hold up too well) and trunk lights. If that yields nothing, to narrow things down, I recommend measuring the current draw from the battery with the key in the off position. Then disconnect one fuse at a time and remeasure. If you disconnect a fuse and the current draw drops to acceptable levels we at least know which circuit is at fault.

On a side note, do you have an aftermarket radio or car alarm installed? Unfortunately, improperly installed radios/alarms have to be in the top 10 causes for draining car batteries.

Re: battery goes dead if it sits overnight
 

have you had the battery checked since it went completely dead? It's possible that draining it so low caused a cell to go bad. That has happened to me a few times in the past. The cause was always something simple I overlooked as several members have mentioned already.