1979 Battery Drain
 

I bought a 1979 white Vette earlier this year. It is in excellent condition inside and out but I havesomething that is draining my battery in a matter of a day or two when it sits in my garage. I have only driven it for about 30 miles because the battery drains right down and plus right now I am in the middle of the Ocean on a Navy deployment. I found wiring diagrams for it and tried the procedures for troubleshooting an electrical short in the Haynes manual but no luck. I practically pulled the whole inside of the car out looking for a bad wire. Does any one know of a place in Virginia Beach Virginia that could help me fix this. I get back from deployment next monthand I would really like to get the car up and running for the summer. Thanks for your help.

Dan

RE: 1979 Battery Drain
 

Have you tried to measure the current draw on the battery with everything shut off? With a multimeter monitoring current draw, try pulling each fuse to see which circuit(s) it's in. If that doesn't yield any info, then the leakage is going thru a primary circuit like the battery connection on the alternator, etc.

Thank you for your service. What type of ship are you on? I rode DDGs in the late sixties.

RE: 1979 Battery Drain
 

had same problem with my 74, ended up being box behind seats did not close enough to turn light off. put a quick disconnect switch on battery and always disconnect battery now... lid on box is a tad bowed and will not completely depress switch. check yours or even glove box. hope this helps.

RE: 1979 Battery Drain
 

Have you had the charging system checked? Alternator or half charging battery could do this...Start here first and then look for more serious problems..Work smarter not harder.......Russ

RE: 1979 Battery Drain
 

disconnect youre neg battery cable put a test light on the post and on the disconnected cable (car off) if the light lites up theres a short then you pull each fuse until the light goes off theres youre culprit worked for me mine was the radio

RE: 1979 Battery Drain
 

When I was home in August, I did the test with the test light on the battery and started pulling fuses until the light went out. It turns out the short is in the fuze (CKYT? can't remember the exact name right now) that contols all the interior lights, windows, radio, and many many other things. I started disconnecting wires from each light and circuit inside the car and the short was still there. That is where I stopped before I left on deployment. I had time to hook everything back up and pack my bags and fly over to Africa to meet my ship. USS Carter Hall (LSD 50). I will be home soon and start digging some more.

RE: 1979 Battery Drain
 

Hey R'6'R, keep you head down and you powder dry. And thanks for your service to the good old US of A. Here's salutin' ya. God bless. Cheers

RE: 1979 Battery Drain
 

Check back behind the dash if you can get to it. On old GM cars the wires run right next to the firewall. If anything got too hot it could have created a short. It sounds like you may have the same problem I do though. My radio and clock both have a short inside them. I just havn't been able to replace it yet.

An isolator switch is an amazing investment though. You can mount it to the lid of the battery box in c3s. Just reach behind you and turn the isolator key and no more battery drain.

Once you find the battery draw and fix it. It doubles as an anti-theft device.

RE: 1979 Battery Drain
 

Blushark-you took the words right out of my mouth. Many thanks and then some for serving in the Military. We need more like you and you have my total respect.
Stay safe and look after the other guys always.
I live in Killeen, Texas, the town that encompases Ft. Hood. I ETSd here in '83 after two tours. The guys now have a hell of a purpose unlike the peaceful times that I served, at the end of Viet Nam ('75) 'til '83. We were on alert in '76 or '77 for Ziere, Africa but didn't go. (was with 1/17th Cav, 82d Airborne Div.)
God bless you guys serving.

SORRY FOR THE OFF-TOPIC COMMENTS.

RE: 1979 Battery Drain
 

The backs of our gauges and spedometer and tach. clusters have these old mylar printed circuits that are prone to shorting out. Here's a few pictures of examples. Replacement circuit boards are available on places like fleabay or through many of the more reputable corvette parts suppliers. Many people also simply run a bypass wire on the circuit board and make their own repairs. The circuit boards are somewhat primitive and thecopper conductorsare very easy to follow.

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