Battery Woes
 

So for the third time since I've had the monte, since the summer of '06, the batter had just up and died. The first time it died was in the garage during the fall of '06, luckily I managed to get the Camaro up and running and gave it a jump that way so I could make it to school. After that I didn't have any problems for a few months until getting back from a basketball trip at 1 AM and my batter was dead yet again, had a friend jump me so I could go home and get some much needed sleep. Those first two times were before I had even thought about the underglow and subs that I now have hooked up to the electrical system. Now a few days ago my subs kept cutting out after about five minutes of use, so I just switched them off (I've got them wired to a remote switch instead of a remote lead so I can control them manually). The next day I went out and there wasn't even enough juice to unlock the doors with the remote, so I figured maybe the remote wasn't working 'cause the last two times the battery died there was still enough power to unlock the doors atleast. Sure enough the battery was completely drained, so I thought to myself that maybe I left my subs on, checked my switch but no, they had been shut off.

So has anyone any idea as to why my battery insists on doing this to me? After jumping the battery is acting normal and I haven't had any problems with starting or anything since, real easy starts considering it was -10F last night when I came home and the car fired right up with the remote start...

RE: Battery Woes
 

[align=center]Hi Garrett, [/align][align=center]I hate electrical problems on a car. It's like trying to find[/align][align=center]the gremlin's. Have you checked your Battery Cables to[/align][align=center]make sure they are tight & in good shape ?[/align][align=center][/align][align=center]Have you checked the output of your alternator ?[/align][align=center][/align][align=center]An electrical "drain" can be anything that is drawing power (draining) from the battery with the engine/key OFF. Every vehicle will have some amount of electrical drain which is normal. Radio and clock memory and engine computer memory will drain a small amount of battery power with the key off, and that is normal.[/align][align=center]Tracking down an electrical drain can sometimes take hours! Make sure the shop you choose to help you has a qualified electrical mechanic so you don’t needlessly pay for inaccurate diagnosis time.

Some causes for an electrical drain[/b]

1. Trunk, hood, or interior light or glove box light that is staying on when the engine is OFF

2. Aftermarket radios, CD players, amplifiers, cell phone chargers etc. etc. are notorious for drains

3. Electric seat motors and electric antennae motors that are stuck in the ON position

4. Relays or components under the hood that are ON or running with the engine OFF - for instance electric cooling fan motors, anti lock brake pump motors, air ride suspension pump motors.[/align][align=center][/align][align=center]I hope some of the above helps. I'm sure that some of[/align][align=center]our experts members will post some thoughts/solutions[/align][align=center]when they read your post.[/align][align=center]Garrett, Good Luck[/align]

RE: Battery Woes
 

The cables and all seem just fine, not sure on how to check out the alternator though, and that's what I was thinking that it might not be charging up the battery fast enough and that would cause my amp for the subs to kick off, but I'm not sure.

RE: Battery Woes
 

RE: Battery Woes
 

I like that telus.net link there Space, only problem is that while I'm away at college I don't have access to my dad's garage and tools, but I'll ask around and see if anyone I know has a voltmeter. Maybe one of the car part stores around town could check for me, anyone happen to know how much most places charge to just check a battery and alternator?

RE: Battery Woes
 

RE: Battery Woes
 

Is the battery stock? It could just be barely alive and on its last leg.. Have a shop do a load test on it to see how healthy it is.. might be that simple.. or start pulling fuse by fuse overnight and see if it stays alive..

RE: Battery Woes
 

Hey. Just reading your issue. As I am assuming your car is an'06, it may be the body control module. While my battery did not die, I can out one morning to a message to "Sevice Battery Charging System". The dealer had to flash a new code in for the body control module. Haven't had a problem since (been about 4 months).Just something to consider.

RE: Battery Woes
 

I think you should pull your Alternator and bring it in to an AutoZone and let them hook-it-up and spin it to see what its putting-out. Your sound system draining a minimally charged battery might have caused some issue with the charging system ... particularly, the Brushes arcing on the Stator and scorching a carbon trail on the face of the Stator that just about kills the charging capability.

If you have accessories that require high-amps ... the Battery needs to be healthy and fully charged at all times. If its not ... and the demand for current exceeds the amps regulated to charge the battery ... you begin a viscous circle of dead batteries and burned-up voltage regulators until you get the alternator output above the threshold where supply exceeds demand. If you are making low amps out of the Alternator ... the battery can't "catch-up and get charged" and will be drained until accessories requiring high amperage fail and eventually the battery will become so depleted as to not have sufficient reserve to supply the Ignition circuit ... and you roll to a stop.

RE: Battery Woes
 

Yeah, the batter is stock and yes it is an '06, I've never had any "Sevice Battery Charging System" codes though, about twenty million Service Tire Monitoring Systems though. I'll try to stop by Checkers or Auto Zone today and see if they can't check stuff, thanks guys.