[Vwdiesel] 89 Jetta naD Battery drain

[Tad]

Doyt- when this happens, are you sure the battery is too low to crank?
 Could it be a flaky ground, solenoid or other connection in the starting
circuit?  Assuming it's not something (lights/radio/etc) being left on, I
would be surprised to learn that something is *intermittently* turning
itself on and killing your battery.  Or is this a constant drain that is
only killing the battery when left alone long enough to do so?

Speaking of lights - could it be the dome light button in the door
occasionally leaving the dome light on?  Or trunk/glove box light(if
applicable)?

Personally I would have started with the ammeter prior to replacing any
parts, but hey, it *was* Easter. :)

On Mon, May 2, 2011 at 11:56 AM, Doyt W. Echelberger <
doyt at buckeye-express.com> wrote:

> Several times in the past month the battery on my 89 Jetta Dna (100K miles)
> has been too low to crank over the engine. And the battery is about 2 years
> old, in warranty and tests good.
>
> I tried to remedy this situation by checking the charging system (which was
> OK), actually measuring the battery ability to charge and discharge,  (no
> problems), and then for good measure and (because it was Easter and the
> switch felt loose) I replaced the ignition switch module.  The tear-down
> proved me correct. The old switch WAS broken and didn't crisply click
> through the starting stages.
>
> OK, that should have fixed the problem, right? The glow plugs were staying
> on and were eating up the battery, right?
>
> Yesterday I went out to start the car and the battery was too low to crank
> it over, just like before. But I DO have anew ignition switch.
>
> I figure the next step is to test every circuit with an ammeter for current
> flow, with engine off and nothing turned on, starting right at the positive
> terminal of the battery.
>
> But I thought I'd poll the list first, for BTDT and alternate approaches. I
> KNOW you guys, as a group, are way smarter and more experienced than I am.
>
> Doyt Echelberger
>
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