Last weekend, I installed a new car stereo (just deck, no amp, speakers) where *I think* I wired everything correctly. While installing, I removed the negative terminal from the battery and then put it back on after I was done. This week my car has been slow to start and I had to jump it once. The battery and car (99 camry) is pretty old and it has been very cold here this week. Is this just a coincidence or is possible that I wired something with the stereo wrong that is draining my battery?
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Re: Car electric system question (aka am I an idiot?) [danimal_t]
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Both are possible. Do you know which fuse is the car stereo? Pull it and put an amp meter across the fuse contacts (engine off, stereo off, all off). You should see zero or close to zero current. If you see current then yeah the new stereo draws power while off. Is it because it's defective, or bad design, or wrong wiring, that's what you'll need to find out.
You can place an amp meter (or multimeter set to amps) anywhere inline (in series) with the circuit, but the fusebox is by far the most convenient place to do it. Pull a fuse and do it there. The amp meter has low internal impedance and will close the circuit. That's how they work. (As opposed to a voltage meter which has high internal impedance and is hooked up in parallel.)
You can place an amp meter (or multimeter set to amps) anywhere inline (in series) with the circuit, but the fusebox is by far the most convenient place to do it. Pull a fuse and do it there. The amp meter has low internal impedance and will close the circuit. That's how they work. (As opposed to a voltage meter which has high internal impedance and is hooked up in parallel.)
danimal_t wrote:
Last weekend, I installed a new car stereo (just deck, no amp, speakers) where *I think* I wired everything correctly. While installing, I removed the negative terminal from the battery and then put it back on after I was done. This week my car has been slow to start and I had to jump it once. The battery and car (99 camry) is pretty old and it has been very cold here this week. Is this just a coincidence or is possible that I wired something with the stereo wrong that is draining my battery?Dilbert nailed it. However if that is a bit above your pay grade then just go get your battery tested. Any local auto parts store will load test it for you so you know if it is the cold killing an old battery or not.