Battery dying... HELP PLEASE!!

[tek2graphics]

Well, Im finally enjoying my daily driver!
Problem now is that i've been changing a battery almost every 3-4th week in a row. So far I've had 3 batteries replaced (bad batteries). And had the latest one recharged 2 times.
I had the alternator checked at an alternator shop, and they said it's charging very good for it's age. Had the relay & regulator replaced, and checked the ground, and so far all looks good. But battery lasted 3 weeks again, was recharged, and died again 2 days later. Recharged it again today.... Not sure what's going on.

HOWEVER i found a few wires going nowhere. Please see the pics... I found one live wire but not sure where it goes. the lighter has no wires going to it.(?)
Also, one of my tail lights (the last one to the right) turns off when I step on the breaks.
Fuel gauge and Gas gauge do not work. Speedometer is not accurate. (max at 35-40) been like this since i got car.

Any help would be appreciated.

Parts I've replaced:
Starter Relay, Regulator, Ignition Coil, Starter (rebuilt), Horn Relay, Automatic Fuel Pump & Ignition Switch

[ants875]

Some of those wires are for options you probably don't have, as long as they are not shorted to ground don't loose sleep over them. If I understand your problem the battery will go dead after a few weeks of use, is this with you driving everyday or the car sitting? If it's with you driving then you need to check the alt with a good meter, digital would be best, I know you said you had it checked at a alt shop was that in the car or on a their bench? My professional experience is that those benches are worthless since they are not a true real world test. You want to see 14.6 volts of out put with a little rpm and all the loads on, headlights, wipers..... if that is good then you need to check for a voltage draw with the key off on these cars it should be almost 0 milliamps, unless you have a light staying on or an aftermarket radio that is not working right or wired wrong.

Ant

[popscomet]

YOU may have a draw on the batt when everything is off,,you may have to this in the dark,but with everything turned off,disconect the ground and then barely touch the batt post and look for a tiny spark or you might even be able to hear it,,that will help to take away the blame from the charging system,,you shouldn't have nothing on a car that old,,just 2weeks ago a friend had the same problem,he replaced everything pertaining to the chargeing system,come to find out,the dome light button in the door was at fault,,,an easy fix !! Check the bulb in that faulty tail light,I have had the tiny filament burn loose and fall and weld itself to the other and that caused the mess up....of course this is JMO and the old fashion way,the only way POP know's and taught as a kid growing up without meters and timing lights and such....the bigger the spark ,the bigger the short,best of luck.......pop

[tek2graphics]

Thanks for your response. It's a daily driver. I will get the Alt checked while its in the car. Had it done once at a parts store.. but will try again.

Some of those wires are for options you probably don't have, as long as they are not shorted to ground don't loose sleep over them. If I understand your problem the battery will go dead after a few weeks of use, is this with you driving everyday or the car sitting? If it's with you driving then you need to check the alt with a good meter, digital would be best, I know you said you had it checked at a alt shop was that in the car or on a their bench? My professional experience is that those benches are worthless since they are not a true real world test. You want to see 14.6 volts of out put with a little rpm and all the loads on, headlights, wipers..... if that is good then you need to check for a voltage draw with the key off on these cars it should be almost 0 milliamps, unless you have a light staying on or an aftermarket radio that is not working right or wired wrong.

Ant

[tek2graphics]

Will try that tonight.. Do I barely touch the positive terminal with my finger? As far as tail light goes.. checked this morning and i guess it's fixed. Doesn't turn off anymore. (??)

YOU may have a draw on the batt when everything is off,,you may have to this in the dark,but with everything turned off,disconect the ground and then barely touch the batt post and look for a tiny spark or you might even be able to hear it,,that will help to take away the blame from the charging system,,you shouldn't have nothing on a car that old,,just 2weeks ago a friend had the same problem,he replaced everything pertaining to the chargeing system,come to find out,the dome light button in the door was at fault,,,an easy fix !! Check the bulb in that faulty tail light,I have had the tiny filament burn loose and fall and weld itself to the other and that caused the mess up....of course this is JMO and the old fashion way,the only way POP know's and taught as a kid growing up without meters and timing lights and such....the bigger the spark ,the bigger the short,best of luck.......pop

[popscomet]

AS soon as you touch the post with the cable,if you have everything turned off and ,if you have a draw,it will spark !! you might have to start disconnecting a cable when your not running the comet,that way you won't kill the battary,until you get the culprit isfound....in fact thats what I'd do,,,,not only is it hard on the battary,but some wires may be getting hot,,,,,pop

[Comechero65]

It can happen a diode in the alt can have a short and the alt will still charge, though not as well, but also drain the batt when the engine is stopped. Sometimes you can hear the alt 'sing' with a shorted diode.
may be time to put an ammeter in line with the batt and one by one start disconnecting wires till the drain goes away.
Ron

[tek2graphics]

Ok, so i tried what you said and disconnected the negative terminal and slowly touched it back to the battery, and nothing happened...

AS soon as you touch the post with the cable,if you have everything turned off and ,if you have a draw,it will spark !! you might have to start disconnecting a cable when your not running the comet,that way you won't kill the battary,until you get the culprit isfound....in fact thats what I'd do,,,,not only is it hard on the battary,but some wires may be getting hot,,,,,pop

[tek2graphics]

Gonna try this too... thanks!

Ok, so i tried what you said and disconnected the negative terminal and slowly touched it back to the battery, and nothing happened...

AS soon as you touch the post with the cable,if you have everything turned off and ,if you have a draw,it will spark !! you might have to start disconnecting a cable when your not running the comet,that way you won't kill the battary,until you get the culprit isfound....in fact thats what I'd do,,,,not only is it hard on the battary,but some wires may be getting hot,,,,,pop

[BigH]

Ok, so i tried what you said and disconnected the negative terminal and slowly touched it back to the battery, and nothing happened...

This is good news no need for sad face, sparks is bad news.

In answer to your question about the black/red band wire, it look as if it's in the loom heading down the A-pillar to the rear of the car, as the loom has 6 wires it’s likely:
Tail lights (black), Left brake-indicator (green/orange), Right brake-indicator (orange/blue), Fuel tank sender (yellow/white), Dome light (black/blue), and Back-up lights (black/red).

Chances are the 6 volt voltage regulator on the back of the instrument cluster has burnt out if neither gauges work.

Poor electrical grounding of the taillights to the car body is causing the ‘turn off’ when you step on the brake. Make sure there is good clean metal-to-metal contact on the light-housing in question or the lamp-base if other lamps in the same housing work.

The hole is where the heater fan switch goes.

You’re right about the cigarette lighter.

The 3-way plug could be the light power outlet for the radio light and other dash-light accessories (I can’t see the colour of the wire)

Just tip: when you're taping the neg battery cable terminal on the battery post, best to wrap a thin single strand of wire around the terminal and touch that to the post. If the current draw is high it will melt the strand of wire and not your loom.


Regards, H.

[popscomet]

When I try to trace a short...I take the battary out and use a old batt charger in it's place,,that way it trips the built in breaker and does no damage to anything....wait a minute and the breaker trips back on and back to traceing....jmo.......pop

[ants875]

The best way to check for parasitic draw is with an amp meter. You can use an old school test light, on that has a real bulb in it. You hook the meter or test light in between the ground wire and the battery, any voltage pulled through will show as amperage or will light the bulb the brighter the bulb the bigger the draw. The danger with looking for a spark is battery's are explosive and can hurt you.

Ant

[BigH]

The danger with looking for a spark is battery's are explosive and can hurt you.

Too true, batteries full of nasties like, sulphuric acid, hydrogen, lead etc. I hope you're taking all this good info in, tek2graphics ?

[tek2graphics]

Thank you all for your responses.. decide to get mechanics help... :S

[tek2graphics]

I know tho sis an old post... but just wanted to let the "next person" know that what was wrong was that the alternator was not charging the battery. I was told that there was a a cable that must have been broken so it was rewired and have not had a problem since. Hope it helps. Case closed.