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2003 Impala: Car starts and drives fine..parked..car wont start..jump

 
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  • Answered by:Neal
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Customer Question

2003 Impala. Car starts and drives fine. when parked for more than 48 hours car won't start w/o a jump. Direct draw I think goes to 10 amp fuse marked PCM (crank) inside & 60amp fuse underhood marked Audio-Defog. When pulling these fuse draw drops from 30 to 10. Any ideas what the draw actually is? Thanks

 

Country: United States
Make: Chevrolet
Model: 2003
Year: 2003

Already Tried:
When pulling 10 amp PCM fuse & reinstalling get a lot of clicking sounds from under dash. I'm hearing chevy has had problems w/gauge cluster.

Submitted: 404 days and 11 hours ago.
Category: Chevy
Value: $29
Status: CLOSED
Picture
Expert:  Neal replied404 days and 11 hours ago.

I'm Neal and I am here to assist you. Only accept when you are happy with my assistance. If I can't help I will open your Question to other experts.

The cluster is a problem in those and can create a draw.

Here is the procedure to test for draw, including what to expect and when as far as draw.

 

The first thing to do is a test for a major short. Remove the positive and negative
cables from the battery. Put an Ohm-meter across the positive and negative
cable. If your reading is close to 0 Ohms then you have a direct short. You
need to trace the short before you can perform the following tests.

In order to check for parasitic draw, you need to be careful so you don't ruin your
meter. Here's what you need to do.

  • If you don't already have one,

get a digital meter capable of reading up to 10 amps DC. Your battery must have
a reasonable charge for this test - it won't work if your battery is dead.

  • Check to make sure ALL loads are turned off. Unplug anything you may have plugged into the cigarette lighter.
    Remove your keys from the ignition. Close all doors so the dome lights are off.
  • Disconnect the thick positive (Red) cable that goes down to the starer.
  • To start make sure your meter is set to the 10 amp DC range. Some meters have a special connector for the red
    probe when you are reading current. You can either do this next step by just
    holding the meter probes to their respective contact points or you can use
    probes with alligator clips to snap them in place so your hands are free to do
    something else.
  • Connect the positive probe to the battery
  • Connect the negative probe to the red cable that is still connected to the vehicle. Make sure this cable and your
    probe do not touch ground.
  • If there is a severe current draw (more than 10 amps) it will either pop a fuse in your meter or destroy it
    outright. That's why you need to test for a short, otherwise, your meter should
    now be reading the current drain on your battery.
  • If your vehicle has an alarm system or remote locks, the current draw may be around 2-3 amps for a few
    minutes after you last close the door. This is normal. If you're not sure, wait
    at least 20 minutes after you last open or close a door before you take a
    reading.
  • If everything is normal, you will read less than 35 milliamps, or .035 amps. If the current drain is higher than
    that, you need to find out what is draining your batteries: You can start by
    pulling fuses until the load goes away. If that doesn't reduce the draw, you
    need to look for a wire that is corroded or frayed.




Customer replied404 days and 9 hours ago.

Neal
If U read my question U will see draw tested & linked to 10amp PCM fuse on driver side end of dash.
Bob

Picture
Expert:  Neal replied404 days and 9 hours ago.

I did read you question but wanted to make sure you were waiting for things to power down. Based on what you described, I would suspect the cluster.

Customer replied404 days and 9 hours ago.

Neal
What does the 10amp PCM (crank) fuse control?
Bob

Picture
Expert:  Neal replied404 days and 9 hours ago.

If you are talking about the 15amp in the underhood fuse box then it only powers the pcm.

graphicgraphic

Customer replied404 days and 8 hours ago.

Neal
I'm talking about the 10amp fuse in the panel on end of dash (drivers side) I never mentioned a 15 amp fuse in my questions.
Bob

Picture
Expert:  Neal replied404 days and 8 hours ago.

That one on the end of the dash controls the pcm/bcm and the cluster

That is why I specified, Iw anted to make sure we were talking about the same one.

Customer replied404 days and 8 hours ago.

Neal
What is pcm/bcm? Something w/powertrain?
Bob

Accepted Answer

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Expert:  Neal replied404 days and 8 hours ago.

PCm is the powertrain control module which is the engine computer and the BCM is the body control module which controls other functions like lights and locks.

Expert TypeChevy Mechanic
Category: Chevy
Pos. Feedback: 96.7 %
Accepts: 2288
Answered: 5/12/2012

Experience: Shop Owner and Mechanic on multiple makes.

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