Re: My Battery Keeps Dying!

[zm@mhcnet.att.com (Zafer Mehmood [209])]

> 
> I have a 1988 90 that I bought a few months ago.  All was well until a few
> days ago when I left the rear defroster on.  It stayed on while I was at work
> and drained the battery.  Today I go out and the battery is dead again. 
> Nothing was left on (that I can see).  One recent development is that the red
> lights on the door handles that display the window switches will not go out. 
> This is also true of the seat heater lights on the center console.  Are there
> any ideas as to what is going on and why?  This is becoming a big hassle.
> 

I thought the rear defroster should shut off once the ignition key is
turned off - but I'm not sure. John's suggestion that the switch might
be shorted out is a possibility.

Regarding the window switches on the door arm rests ... they are supposed
to remain lit only until one of the front doors is opened (at least on my
'87 5000TQ). This is to allow locating the switches in the dark after the
engine has been shut off. It appears that in your car, the door switch is
not working right, i.e., not indicating that the door has been opened
and thus leaving the lights on and draining the battery. I'd suspect the
driver's door switch. Check if the interior lights also don't come on
when the door is opened. If the switch is bad, don't bother cleaning the
contacts - buy  a new one. I wasted time cleaning the trunk lid switch
some months ago only to have the problem reappear. Just bought a new
switch at the dealer two days ago - its only $2.40!

I also had a couple cases of "completely drained battery" with no apparent
thing left on. Turned out to be a stuck fan relay causing the radiator
fan to run continuously. This doesn't seem like the problem in your car
though.

Let us know what you find.

-Zafer

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Zafer Mehmood				   AT&T Bell Laboratories
zm@mhcnet.att.com			   Murray Hill, NJ