Hello, a new member here and working on a dead short in my 2004; battery tests good but is going dead after 3 days. Followed some instructions I read about on the forum and saw a .15 amp draw disappear when I pulled the left hand hi beam fuse. Reinstalled and is now reading .04. Will do more investigation but am wondering if a relay in theCEM needs to be replaced.
THis car has, not kidding, 23,800 miles on it. Always garaged at 55 degrees. Fully loaded as well so plenty of items to check-
just hoping the alternator does not have a bad diode or other issues.
My first Volvo.

 

You need an inductive ammeter. Clamp it to the battery cables in the trunk. Problem is when you unlock, open, touch, breath, anything - many control units wake up.

So any tests you do - are not valid unless - no doors are open (latch them with a screwdriver after opening, including the tailgate) the key is not in the ignition and the car is in the same state you have a problem (locked or unlocked) Then wait a few minutes and check for a drain.

Anytime you remove a fuse and reinstall it - something will wake up and give you a false reading. Yes it's frustrating.

Battery goes dead after three days - Have you tried a different battery? Have you disconnected the battery and seen if it goes dead after three days even if disconnected? (meaning there is nothing wrong with the car)

I did have a s60 of that vintage that the battery would go dead - only when locked. I took it on personally and spent several days trying to find the cause. Did not charge or sell the customer anything (or find the cause of the problem) . They got frustrated later and took it to another shop - $600 later with some new parts - they come back to me - problem is not fixed, battery still goes dead when locked.

 

Hoonk, I had the battery tested at a local Autozone, I am assuming their test is legit. I did have all the doors shut and unlocked. I plan on repeating the test today with the doors locked and giving it 15 minutes before I start pulling fuses again.
Thanks for the assistance,
TG

 

How old is your battery?

 

7 years, I am still drinking coffee and have not started round two of testing

 

7 years? How long was the warranty? (bet it was a lot shorter than 7 years - because they did not expect the battery to last that long!)

Replace the battery and stop testing for 3 days. A name brand size 48/H6 will work fine in a 2004. If you want the next bigger size put in a 92-t7.

Then test if you still have problems.

 

Sounds like a plan, I tested with the doors locked and had a very low reading, so low I think I need to have an instrument tech show me how to operate my multimeter. I saw the amperage drop as the lights go out, then the surge when I locked. Interesting. Thanks again and I will message in a few days. Hopefully all will be goodTG