The Best Way to Perform a Parasitic Draw Test

[Jack@European_Parts]

TL;DR: Don't use a $15 multimeter from Harbor Freight for this.

This Harbor Freight meter works just fine............I use it so I don't drop my Fluke beating it up in shop.

This meter lights the ports and alarms when you hook up wrong.........best meter for the coin, hands down & for the complete idiot!

https://www.harborfreight.com/5-in-1...ter-98674.html

[Zenerdiode]

Oh Charles, my OCD would kick in and all those fuses would have to be turned the right way up...

[D-Dub]

Oh Charles, my OCD would kick in and all those fuses would have to be turned the right way up...

Well at least you claimed OCD and not audiophoolery by saying the fuses work best in one direction...

[Zenerdiode]

I did some testing a while ago. Riveting stuff (yeah, the hours fly by )

This was current measured by direct connection (i.e. not with a non-intrusive current clamp, the meter was in series with the negative battery clamp.)

Skip to 3:30 where the 'fun' starts. You hear some relays in BCM2 dropping and the current drawn drops accordingly. What astonishes me is the final quiescent current value is around 7mA! Each flick to 10mA is in unison with the alarm LED flash too. In that 7mA, the alarm antennas are still 'listening' for the key fob press, the door handles waiting for a touch to open; and every device inside the car that can be woken up by a button press - still needs to have its circuitry powered. 7mA. My.

[Uwe]

What astonishes me is the final quiescent current value is around 7mA! Each flick to 10mA is in unison with the alarm LED flash too. In that 7mA, the alarm antennas are still 'listening' for the key fob press, the door handles waiting for a touch to open; and every device inside the car that can be woken up by a button press - still needs to have its circuitry powered. 7mA. My.

That's good. ~5 AH per month. Car should still start after sitting un-driven for a goodly fraction of a year.

But what I'd like to know is why the heck it sucks down almost 10 amps for over 3 minutes, after you've locked it? That's the equivalent of 3 more says of sitting un-driven!

-Uwe-