Testing current draw

[Burl Vibert]

Larry and Dodi Newman wrote:
> 
> I have an '89 200 with a current draw problem.  Every few days, the
> battery goes dead and I have to charge it.  I finally decided to trouble
> shoot the problem and discovered that there is a 17 milliamp current
> draw with everything turned off, doors shut, wait 5 minutes for timers
> to time out, etc.  I put a test light in the circuit, started pulling
> fuses, and discovered the draw was in the fuse for the most number of
> components - of course.  It's the one for the inside lights, radio,
> trunk light, trip computer, air conditioning control, makeup mirror, and
> clock.  There are no obvious culprits.  Without tearing the inside
> apart, how do I best isolate the problem?  Any BTDTs?
>

HI Larry

There is always a slight current draw to power the clock('s). Trip
computer etc.  17ma sounds about right, that's not even a 1/4 watt.
Perhaps there is a current draw occasionally killing the battery, but
it'll be more than 17ma.  It may also be the battery is on it's way
out. Good luck, intermittent problems can be a pain to troubleshoot
sometimes.

Burl Vibert
1987 5kcstq
Kingston, Ontario