short in wiring?

stroker · 09-02-2007, 11:36 AM

Good Morning... I have a 64 Roadster and am going nuts trying to find a short or a bad connection somewhere.. First battery went dead(only one month old)so changed it along with regulator, alternator and starter. Worked great for about 1 month then dead again.I used battery tender for about five minutes and charger said FULL. Car started and the next day dead again. Have new engine wiring harness put in about 6 months ago. every thing works fine on charging system (14.5 volts constant) so what do I do next????? thanx, Stroker

RevXtreme 1 · 09-02-2007, 12:02 PM

First thing to check would be for a loose connection. If the battery charger showed full charge it would lead me to believe you have an "open" somewhere & not a short. If in fact the battery is going dead, it would take 1/2 hour or so to get it charged enough to start the car.

Now if the batterytruely is going dead, you need to check for a draw. Disconect the pos terminal & with a volt/ohm meter set it to amps/milliamps and connect one end to the battery & the other to the cable. This will show a draw & how much of one. The next step then is to remove fuses one at a time to see which circuit is causeing the draw. When you find the right one the meeter will no longer show any draw & you can narrow it down from there.

My guess though is an open...a battery tender will not have enough power to bring a dead battery back to life. You would need 10 amps plus.

gmjunkie · 09-02-2007, 01:07 PM

I agree with above statement!!! Also I would run a Load check on the battery,I have had some with a Floating Plate (Defective) that would act the same way!!! Be dead and then be Fully charged 2 min. later!!!

stroker · 09-03-2007, 12:15 AM

thanx to RevXtreme and GMJunkie for reply. Will try tips tomorrow morning and let you know. I was thinking it might be in the fuse box because they get a little green after 40 yrs or so...Thanx again, Stroker

stroker · 09-10-2007, 02:56 PM

Well I tried what you guys suggested but there was no reading on the ohmmeter, of course when I turned anything on there was a small draw but nothing with everything off...The car has started every day for the last 3 days, no problem but Im not convinced it could fix itself..Im ready to tear out the dash and see if there is a wire rubbed thru or something. Any other suggestions? How about the fuse box, could something be screwy in there??? Thanx again, Stroker

**Rich Z** · 09-10-2007, 05:43 PM

It is NOT impossible to get two bad batteries in a row. I don't have much confidence in any products these days.

BTW, what brand of battery are you using?

Anti Venom · 09-10-2007, 06:51 PM

On the c2 the first place that I check is the Ammeter. Those are really notorious for draw. Also why GM later went to voltage meters instead. Many of those cars that come into the shop have battery cutoff switches for the problem that you are having. Best of luck finding your draw.

stroker · 09-10-2007, 07:40 PM

You know I have been trying to find an ammeter gauge because my gauge is all over the place but always on the plus side, maybe its shorted inside..Finally found one(reproduction) at Long Island Corvette Supply today. Should have it in a few days. I'll let you know. Thanks for the tip...By the way my battery is a Interstate Megatron. It is the second one in 8 months but it was free. They said first one was sulphated whatever that means..thanks again....Stroker

stroker · 09-22-2007, 11:37 AM

Anti Venom....Put in a new ammeter gauge and problem has gone away...so far so good..battery stays fully charged, checked it every morning (engine off) for the last five days and it reads 13.35 volts, after starting gauge reads 15. or so...Thanks again, you're the BEST!!!! Stroker

Anti Venom · 09-22-2007, 11:41 AM

I am so very happy that my past experiences could be put to good use for you, Now go drive that car and have fun!