Club 80-90 Forums

Hi all..
Developed a major problem...Battery runs flat over night. I have done the usual checks on battery, it seams OK. Rather glad as it is only a year old.
Used the van over the weekend and Monday evening, every thing fine. Battery completely flat Tue morning
I have connected ohm meter to Bat leads, with bat removed, and it gives a full reading, removed fuses one by one expecting it to drop , no luck.
Any ideas,please And yes I did make sure nothing was switched on

is your alternator ok? alternator charges the battery when driving and keeps it charged. worth checking -

ps - wiki says -
VW Electrics tracing battery discharging cause
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Disconnect the negative terminal from battery, join (12v bulb and holder from Maplins £1.90) test light between battery and terminal (end of cable), if you have a light showing, it means you have a drain. Remove each fuse in the fuse box one by one till the light goes out, this tells you which circuit the problem is on. it is then a case of finding the fault on that circuit

may also want to check the 'checking alternator' article on the wiki as well -

edoh. Thanks for reply
Done all of that. Used meter in place of bulb. Alternator is giving 14+ Volts

Hi Steve,

Thats a big curent drain so you will be looking for problems in some nice thick wire.
We had the same problem with ours that took awhile to resolve
'twas the wiring from the alternater in the engine bay to the junction box (aslo in the engine bay near the coil) it had overheated at some time and the insulation had broken down allowing it to earth-it runs close to the fuel lines and carb(1.9 petrol caravelle) so I am glad we found it.

Mate had the same problem and on thiers ......turned out to be a slightly loose connection on the starter motor allowing the live to short out and drain the battery.......the only way we detected it was that the starter motor was warm and the van wasn't running...!!! or it could short out through the alternator because of a faulty regulator module..........

All worth having a look at.
Good Luck

mig
Thanks . Will have a look and let you know.

And who is this Steve??

most likely cause is the wire from the battery to the starter motor! it has probably corroded at the starter end, can be re insulated and reterminated fairly easily, but only a few times before you have to renew the wire!