Ignition switch drain?

[i94ponycar]

Okay so i've tried several new switches. The first one didn't work cus it was just a bad run of the part and was missing pins.the second and third new ignition switch cylinders I tried both seated just the same as the original part. They move to start, run, and acc just fine. However neither of them would turn counterclockwise all the way to release the key. So new ignitions won't turn back all the way, but the old part does. Double and triple checked the part number and they're all correct. I'm lost as to why this is a problem. Any ideas??

 

[ttocs]

I got mine at autozone not sure of the number they looked it up and got it off the shelf

 

[i94ponycar]

Got mine from AZ too. How did your install go?? Did the key come out okay??

 

[ttocs]

didn't have an issue but I did have a locksmith re-key the lock so it worked with my original key.

 

[i94ponycar]

It keeps draining my battery overnight

 

[ttocs]

I am really not so sure how it was the switch to begin with. I was guessing more like an old mach amp that is staying on or something but never got to troubleshoot with you. The key/switch should be a simple 3 sec fix I am not sure what the issue is with the parts your getting though.

 

[i94ponycar]

I think im reduced to disconnecting the battery at night until I find whats drawing after the key is taken out. Problem is, the car thinks the key is always in the ignition.

 

[ttocs]

That shouldn't cause a drain unless you open the door though. We need to figure out what circuit is causing the drain as I still don't think its the switch myself. We need you to disconnect the battery, set your multi-meter to the curren measuring function(current is normally labeled "I" or in Amps) and insert the meter in between the battery and the lead you disconnected. See what the meter reads and then go to the fuse box and start pulling one fuse at a time. When you get to the circuit that has the draw you will see the meters current reading drop to almost 0. When we isolate which circuit it is then we can figure out how to fix it.

 

[i94ponycar]

That shouldn't cause a drain unless you open the door though. We need to figure out what circuit is causing the drain as I still don't think its the switch myself. We need you to disconnect the battery, set your multi-meter to the curren measuring function(current is normally labeled "I" or in Amps) and insert the meter in between the battery and the lead you disconnected. See what the meter reads and then go to the fuse box and start pulling one fuse at a time. When you get to the circuit that has the draw you will see the meters current reading drop to almost 0. When we isolate which circuit it is then we can figure out how to fix it.

That was my next step, but I eventually need that ignition in anyways

 

[ttocs]

That is true. I might still have the box and old ignition let me take a look. I tend to keep crap like that as the only reason I swapped it was to keep the key from being pulled out while it was running.

 

[i94ponycar]

That is true. I might still have the box and old ignition let me take a look. I tend to keep crap like that as the only reason I swapped it was to keep the key from being pulled out while it was running.

Exactly. So do u see why one would speculate the battery drain and the ignition switch malfunction may be connected? I got the battery, starter, and alt tested and they passed with flying colors:banghead:

 

[ttocs]

I can understand that how ever I could leave my keys in my ignition for as long as I liked and unless it was stuck in the acc position supplying power or the door was left open I would expect it to be the same battery state when I returned.

 

[i94ponycar]

I can understand that how ever I could leave my keys in my ignition for as long as I liked and unless it was stuck in the acc position supplying power or the door was left open I would expect it to be the same battery state when I returned.

So on my multi when I pull fuses I should set it to batt 12v??

 

[ttocs]

no. When you start to pull fuses we are measuring current, not voltage and it is also important that you hook it up correctly and not measure it like you do voltage. When measuring voltage you keep the battery connected to the car and just touch one meter-lead to one side of the battery and the other lead to the other post. When measuring current you need to disconnect the battery first(doesn't matter if you disconnect the +/-) and then put your meter in between the battery and the lead you disconnected. This way any current that is used goes through the meter, then back to the car which is how the meter needs to read it.

So to make all that technical crap easy:
1.)disconnect battery terminal again it does NOT matter which one.
2.)set your meter to DC-current which is normally abbreviated to the term I(C was used already) and is measure in Amps, or today for us in mA(milliamps). The AC/DC voltage setting is normally switched with a small separate button from the large selector dial in the middle of most meters again just be sure the display says DC.
3.)Take your meter, connect one lead to the now disconnected battery terminal, connect the other lead to the disconnected batter cable. It doesn't matter if you match +/+ or -/-(infact it should be +/- _ +/- if you want to get technical) on the battery/meter leads if you have them backward the current reading will still be the same it will just show up as the same negative number. So if you hook it up and it tells you that you have a -4mA reading you actually have 4mA just ignore the negative sign.
4.)see what the initial reading is, then start pulling fuses one at a time or if you can see if jiggling the ignition does anything as well.

Once you figure out what circuits are causing the problem from the fusebox then we will need to narrow it down further and see if we can find the individual circuits that are protected by the fuse and disconnect them too see if with the fuse now in place by disconnecting that individual piece if we again see the current drop. I can't remember if we covered it or not but the mach amps have been causing battery drain problems over the past few years. You may even have one under your radio even if you do not have the mach tweeter pods/enclosure and it can be causing this.

 

[i94ponycar]

I do have the original 460

 

[ttocs]

just for shits-n-giggles then tonight disconnect the hrns's going to the rear amps and see if it starts in the morning. There is still an amp in the dash under the radio that could be the problem if those two are not it but if I had to bet money on what the drain is I would put it on the rear amps. Past 3-4 yrs seems like we(in the audio forum) have found more and more of them are going bad, staying on and killing batteries overnight.

 

[i94ponycar]

Suddenly i'm wondering what I did with the amp wire when I installed the head unit ...:sly:

 

[i94ponycar]

This is what I got ...

 

[i94ponycar]

Found it, fuse 8

 

[ttocs]

now go check the manual or even better yet if we could find a wiring schematic we could see what is on that circuit and then disconnect those individual items with fuse #8 plugged back in.