I have been having battery drain, used the test light and started removing fuses until the light went out, when i removed a white fuse, marked short in the panel box description the test light went out, started vehicle all is fine except navigator display, no radio, I can't find any other description for this fuse, any help in this matter would be appreciated, Thanks....Tom

 

huh? test light???

oh, you are seeing what fuses have power with the ignition off... well, it is perfectly normal for many circuits in the car to be live with the key in the off position... that fuse you removed is used for keeping radio station presets and such stored in the head unit... it is a draw on the battery, but a perfectly normal one, unless there is something wrong with the unit itself...

what you need is an Ammeter... these measure how many amps are being drawn through individual (or groups) of wires...

How fast is the battery dying? Has it been tested? A marginal battery may be enough for it to start and run a vehicle, but, left overnight, may not have enough reserve capacity... Even if the battery is new, it may still have issues... Please test it and report back...

 

"Short" is the short pin... its not a fuse, it supplies power to a lot of different items. You need to do a draw test, with an DVOM, checking how many milliamps are being drawn with the key off, doors closed, security armed, and computers asleep... Anything below 50ma is good.

 

Thanks guys, the battery is new, checked with a volt meter and when running it is reading 14.44 volts, I'll have to do a draw test and get back to you, this problem started about a year ago after we bought the car, brought it back and they replaced the battery, it lasted about a year and the it started again in Feb, brought it back and they replaced the battery again, so 4 months later it did it again and i started trying to check myself and had a friend advise me to do the test light and pull fuses, I sure appreciate the feedback on this problem, i will get back to you with the reading with the DVOM, again Thanks.....Tom

 

tomviserta,
what has happened... i just inherited a 2000 lexus with the same issue -- so very curious to know if you've resolved it and how... Thanks!

--Jak

 

I removed the short fuse and the battery has been ok, Lexus dealer said it may be the navigator unit that has to be replaced, when i am going to use the vehicle i just put the short fuse back in and go, when i get back home i remove it, not about to spend big bucks they want on a vehicle i am probably going to sell in the very near future..............

 

Just keep in mind if you don't fix it, you will need to disclaim this to the future owners... If you claim there is no problem, they can and will find out very quickly, and, especially now, there is proof here on the internet...

 

Do you have any added on item such as DVD,XM or Lo-Jack? I always look for any added on item when dealing with battery drain issue.

 

Lo-Jack no longer connects to the 12v source in the car. They now have a self contained battery.

 

I've always had a question about this for ones that did connect to the 12v source. How long does that self-contained battery last? And if it dies, would it start feeding off the battery?