1998 Cadillac Catera Battery Draining Help!

NvMySi · #1 (**permalink**) 10-13-09, 08:54 PM

Alright guys i bought this car 2 weeks ago of a kid with suspension damage i have since fixed that and i am still having 1 problem, the battery is draining every day, i basically charge my battery full, put it in the cadillac start it up its good, the next morning i start it its dead completely, i went to get the battery tested and its very good as its only 6 months old, the alternator is good as well as i tested it, now im wondering if there is a common electrical area i can look at in the cadillac that can make the battery drain ?something must be on in the catera that is draining it or something powering something? im not sure at all if you guys can help me out thatd be great, all interior lights are always off. anyways hope you guys can help me out, thanks.

TitanCTS · #2 (**permalink**) 10-13-09, 10:52 PM

I believe the positive battery cable is the usual suspect for drained batteries on the older cateras. That would be a good place to look.. Check for corrosion on the grounding points and do a voltage drop on the battery cables to be sure they're ok.

NvMySi · #3 (**permalink**) 10-13-09, 11:04 PM

i have a multimeter a digital one but i dont know what to set it to so many settings, can you help me out, and i'll check it out thanks.

pedrazamarcos · #4 (**permalink**) 10-14-09, 01:00 AM

I think something is on,Find what is on and turn it off.

NvMySi · #5 (**permalink**) 10-14-09, 07:43 PM

alright so i used a multimeter to check if the alternator is good and im getting 14.3 volts and 14.1 volts when the blower motor is on and headlights are on, seems that the alternator is good then, another question is how do i disable this, when i plug the battery back up my lights blink dashlights blink, for a while. and then everytime i open the door they blink too. it didnt do this before. any idea on what it is? my remote doesnt work for the keyless i dont know how to program it. anyways hope you guys can help me out with this drainage.

NvMySi · #6 (**permalink**) 10-15-09, 08:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pedrazamarcos

I think something is on,Find what is on and turn it off.

LOL easier said then done my friend. if it was that simple no one would ask question.

fuzzkill · #7 (**permalink**) 10-15-09, 09:37 AM

Hook an ammeter up, turn everything off, verify drain.

Start pulling fuses one at a time until drain stops.

Investigate that circuit.

NvMySi · #8 (**permalink**) 10-15-09, 07:36 PM

how do i do that? i did the same think with a circuit tester 1 on the negative post and one on the cable, and the light was on, i pulled out every fuse and relay and light still stayed on. are you telling me to do the same thing with a ammeter? i have a multimeter what would i set it to see at least how much of a drain im getting. thanks

fuzzkill · #9 (**permalink**) 10-15-09, 11:08 PM

Unhook the battery cable and connect it through a DMM with a DC amp setting (power will flow through the DMM)

or

use a DMM with an amp clamp and place it around the negative battery cable (amp clamp will read amps while cables are still hooked up)

NvMySi · #10 (**permalink**) 10-16-09, 08:28 AM

problem solved ended up being the battery even though they told me it was good. thanks anyways guys