i gotta draw

[70kracken]

my 70 charger has had a bad draw in it since i've had it, i mean it'll drain a full charged battery in two days.  how can i find it?

[Plumcrazy]

Disconnect one of the battery terminals and connect a test light between the battery post and terminal.  It should light brightly if you have a major draw.
Remove one fuse at a time to narrow down the possible circuits that could be causing the problem

[70kracken]

remove fuses while the light is still hooked up?  i'm telling you, electrical is way out there for me

[Plumcrazy]

remove fuses while the light is still hooked up?  i'm telling you, electrical is way out there for me

Yes.   When the light goes out you've narrowed down the possible causes to the circuits that fuse feeds.
Don't forget to close the doors and glove box while you're checking it.

[70kracken]

thanks for all the help, i'll check that out and let you know what i found

[70kracken]

i think i found the draw.  i used a test light on the battery with the positive cable off the post, connected the light to the post and cable and the light came on.  then i started to pull fuses, but the light came on every time.  i then checked the post on the starter realy and the light came on, so i then started pulling wires off the relay and tested them.  the light didn't come on for any of the wires once they were off the relay.  i pulled the fuseable link off the relay and tested it and the light came on.  since the fuseable link provides power to the whole car, how do i chase this draw down now?

[71_deputy]

ok- put the starter relay all back together.

since you pulled the fuses- next is something that has a circuit breaker.

using the same meathod for the test light- disconnect the headlight switch from the harness and see if it is off.

is there a clock in the dash?  does it work- or did it work??  the clock's power is only drawn about once a min or two to wind itself up.
if the winder is toast- then the coil in the clock is drawning all the time

so remove the red wire that feed the clock.and check again

John Mac

[70kracken]

my battery will completely drain in about four days, does that clock pull that much juice?  it did work when i first got the car but it hasn't worked in years, i'll give that a try when i get home from work and i'll let you know.  thanks for all you guys' help

[Plumcrazy]

You're getting close.  The draw is after the fusible link but before the fuse box.

Here's what doesn't go thru the fusebox.
The wire comes thru the bulkhead connector as a red wire and goes to the ammeter.  It leaves the ammeter as a black wire and goes to a splice.
From that splice, a black wire with a tracer goes to the headlamp switch.  Try unplugging  the switch.
A red wire with a tracer goes to the fuse box.  It could be rubbed thru before it gets to the fuse box.
A violet wire goes to the horn relay.  Try unplugging  the relay.
On a hemi car a black wire goes back out thru the bulkhead connector to the alternator.
The last wire that's red goes to the ignition switch.   Try unplugging the ignition switch

Good luck

[RAWPWR]

what about a trunk light or glove box light or ignition light?

[70kracken]

my glove box light and ignition light works fine, but my trunk light has never worked

[70kracken]

i checked all that stuff and the light is still on, what now?

[Plumcrazy]

i checked all that stuff and the light is still on, what now?

You unplugged the horn relay,headlight switch and ignition switch right?  And you are closing the door too when you get out of the car to see if the test light is on?

Also that trunk light got me thinking.  The trunk light appears in the wiring diagrams with the rear lighting.  They show a single black wire going to the instrument panel wiring.  But I don't see it there.  I'm wondering if it's power doesn't go thru the fuse box?  See if there's a single wire connector with a black wire near the parking brake or under the trim panel there. If so unplug it.   If you can't find it, reconnect the battery.  Get a long piece of wire and attach it to the positive battery terminal, don't let it touch the car.  Run it back towards the trunk and attach the lead from your test light to it.  Now anything you touch the test light to that is grounded will light the light.  Unplug the wire to the trunk light and touch the test light to it.  If it lights, the wire to the trunk light is shorted to ground somewhere.

If there's no problem there go back to hooking your test light between the battery post and terminal and disconnect the black wire from the ammeter.

[nh_mopar_fan]

I don't have a wiring diagram but if the trunk light was an option, then the extra black wire from the front is correct. In my 66 Valiant, that wire originates from the drivers side kick panel where the circuit breaker is. The trunk light wire is spliced into the circuit that powers the rear lights which comes off the headlight switch.

[71_deputy]

the trunk light gets it's power the same as the dome light via a fuse on the block

try this-  with the positive wire still disconnected on the battery- then take the heavy power wire off the alt- make sure it doesn't touch ant thing and then try the test light- you may have a bad diode in the alt!!

John Mac

[70kracken]

well, i think i fixed it, my hot wire from the battery to the starter relay was worn through and possible touching something.  where it was worn, the wire was a little rusty, so i cut it and soldered it back together, heat shrinked it and taped it.  my test light wasn't coming on and my headlights are a little brighter!  i guess in a couple of days i'll really know.  i appreciate all the help guys.  now i have another question........when i was jacking around with all my wiring, i noticed that my side marker on the driver side doesn't work, i took it out, checked the bulb, which was still good, so i then checked to see if power was at the connector, which it was.  where the connector on the socket side goes into the socket, is all corroded, i can't tell if i can take the socket out of the plate or if i have to get a whole new plate.