Hi, this is my first post in this site. Such awesome people in here I'm excited. So, I'm a scientist. I'm not a mechanic or electrician; I deal with lab work. But I'm trying to learn how to fix my own corvette! So please use small words... I can follow outlined instructions very well even if I don't know what's it's doing :-)

1997 corvette.
Stock. No additions!
Totalled before and I suspect the body shop messed it up on repair. Hes a jerk and refuses to help me; others (electricians) will charge me 1000+. Mechanics tell me they're not interested since it was totalled. When I was wrecked, a wire cut through the right hood up until 2 feet before the battery. It just messed up the front right but didn't touch the computer under the battery. So I have to figure it out.

About a year ago, the battery started running dead. It became more frequent until now it runs dead in 3 hours in the bitter cold; 20 h in the warm weather. No, I don't have a garage. Moving on. I had all the tests done that regular mechanics could do. The alternator was tested, I bought a new battery, and had checked all things like hood light, mirror lights, trunk light, brake lights, every light! I had to learn all about alternators; I didn't even know the name before. I'm learning . I educated myself on parasitic draws and I tested it with a multimeter between the negative battery post and the negative lead. I tested it on amps, not milliamps, because that's the examples I watched online. Also, I'm afraid if I insert the red multimeter cable into the "V(ohm)mA" it'll hurt something. Anyway, I made sure of the following:
1. Charged battery
2. Opened doors, pushed in door jam locks so the "door ajar" code was NOT there and all lights went off
3. Let it sit for about 1 h.
4. Then tested and pulled fuses from both fuse boxes (by battery and under passenger's side feet).

I found four fuses that registered on the "10A" position on the multimeter. The following fuses drew the following:

#37 -- 0.1 amps
#27 -- 0.01 amps
#25 -- 0.2 amps
#4 -- 0.6 amps.

Total amps through multimeter was 0.89 so it pretty much adds up. I pulled fuse 37 and 4 and it seems to be working. But the issue isn't fixed.
It makes sense because the drivers electric power seat only works sometimes. And upon jumping it before, the seat would start adjusting every which way automatically. I don't care about fuse 4 or the seat bc it's adjusted where I want it. Now for 37, it makes sense bc the under hood light does not work. As well, the mirror lights do not work.
Now when it comes to fuse 25 and 27, I have no idea, as it's currently way over my head. Especially 25 bcmi & ... I have no idea. Other things maybe related are when I pulled and then reinserted fuse 5, it's reset the multimeter to 1.5 Amps then drop down to the 0.8. When I pulled fuse 25, it dropped 0.2 amps; when I put it back in, it reset it the same as 5. The cigarette lighter fuse sparked, I looked at it, the metal twisted thing I dude was burnt, I replaced it with a spare fuse from under the hood, and then the cig lighter (that stopped working before) works again! I made sure to wait awhile before proceeding with the fuses. Could I drive it okay without all 4 fuses?

So what do I do next? I read similar on forums here but I got so lost. If you could tell me just one thing at a time and I'll do it then ask for the next thing that'd be awesome! I need small instructions and simple words bc I'm not a mechanic. Thank you so much for your help!

 

Unplug which ever seat is acting up. It's a common problem. Put all the fuses back in and see what you got. 25 milliamperes is acceptable draw, up to 50 should not cause you problems unless the car sits for more than a week at a time. If that's the case, get a battery tender and plug it in for 5-6 hours weekly. I have heard of fires when they are left plugged in 24/7.

 

It is a common issue on 97-98 cars for the driver's elec seat to draw amps ALL the time--even with the key off----On my 98 I chased this issue for years and replaced several new batteries---and rather than sorting it out I simply set the seat for ME and un-plugged the elect seat pigtails --and it all stopped the battery drain----

 

Okay thank you! So all the plugs under the seat? How can I get to them? They're covered by the super low profile seat

 

How many plugs are under the drivers seat and how do I get to them? Any tools? So I thought fuse 4 was for the seat. Well, I opened the door just now after 23 hrs of sitting, which it should have been dead. The seat worked great. Plus, it started perfectly. I drive it around and parked it, ran codes (hold option; press fuel 4 times). Then closed the door. The lights stayed on. So I had to start it to turn it off and recluse the door with the lights going off, which they did. But when I tried to restart after running codes, my vette barely started! I'm so confused. Anyway, pulling fuse 4 drops it down by 600 mA. I pulled 4 and 37 and left them out. But what I'm concerned about are fuses 25 and 27. I know 25 has to do with bcm. The codes were non stopping! I'll respond to my original thread with the codes...

 

This terminal on the underhood fuse box is the junction point for the Hot At ALL Times B+ Battery buss. Yours will have TWO wires. One comes from the battery POSITIVE terminal. The other red wire is the B+ Feed Wire for the passengers foot well Instrument Panel Fuse box (IPFB).



If you remove the feed wire to the passengers foot well fuse box, you can see immediately if you have any abnormal current draws from the under hood fuse box.

If you connect the battery feed wire to the IPFB with a spare bolt and screw, you will see just what the IPFB is drawing.

NOTE! The BCM load sheds. When you first connect a load, the BCM comes out of sleep mode. Ive seen initial loads as high as 8 amps. Then it will drop down as the BCM shuts down things (i.e. interior lamps) I can take up to 12 minutes for the BCM to go into sleep mode. Sleep mode will be close to 20 milliamps.

Here are some common things that I have seen cause current draw issues over the past years:

Seat Control Modules
Seat control Multifunction Switch
Seat Lumbar Motor runs on and off
Head Light Control Module
Bose Amp
Rear Window Defroster
Interior lights always ON Dimmer turned full CW
Hood Lamp stays on.


BC

 

[QUOTE=Bill
[/QUOTE]

Hi Bill,

Im so happy you responded! I've read a number of posts by you :-)

Could you help me? Here's the codes I got by pressing option and fuel 4 times. (Saw you said that in another post.)

10-PCM. P1571 H
28-TCS. C1226 H
38-RDT. NO COMM.
40-BCM. B0432 H
40-BCM. B0502 H
40-BCM. B0503 H
40-BCM. B0507 H
40-BCM. B0508 H
40-BCM. B2482 HC
40-BCM. B2527 H
40- BCM. B2587 H
40-BCM. B2592 H
40-BCM. B2593 H

Then when I kept pushing option after the codes ran (after "no more codes") I got the following:

10-PCM 1 codes
28-tcs 1 codes
38-rdt
40-BCM 11 codes (but there's only 10 above! I triple checked and it says 11 here but only gives 10. Peculiar.)
GOHhpc NO CODES
80-radio no codes
99-hvac
HO-ldcm 7 codes
Hc-scn
Bo-rfa 5 codes.

And those that I left blank were blank. I proofread above to make sure those were exact codes.

So many codes! Is there any hope for my poor car?

 

As others have suggested... Disconnect your seat.

 

Here is a little info on DIC codes. H is History and tells you something has happened. C is Current and tells you something is still happening.

It is good to know what was in History so if it comes back you can watch it. Once you pull your codes and record them you can clear them and then see what comes back. It is normal for the system to throw codes that are temporary and don't come back. Just a glitch.

REMEMBER, pull your codes while the car is still running. If you pull them after you shut the car off then most codes will show as History.

 

Toooo much data.. Clear each module and see what codes come back. We will work off that list.

Make sure that the battery is fully charged and clear the DTCs and then read them.

Bill

 

I have used 3 battery tender juniors on my cars stored all winter here in Pa. I have all three separate tenders on my cars for 5 to 6 months and have never had a fire or a dead battery for over ten thats ( 10) years, they are the best long term battery tender I have used . The batteries stay in the vehicles and I just plug in the battery tender and forget about the cars until winter goes away . Then just disconnect tender and start up and drive away. How many fires have you had with a battery tender on a car.

 

As the others have said, seat switch issues are common. Bill is a whiz with the car's electrical system so do what he says and he should be able to get you sorted out. A lot of screwed up cars have been helped by the forum. It helps to fill out your location information too someone may be in the area that can help you if needed.

 

I'm sorry for stupid questions; I've never done this before... Are DTCs the name of the codes I wrote above? And so should I put the key to the "on" position or start it when clearing the codes? And to clear them I should just hit "reset" on each code? Then how long will it take codes to come back? By the way, after I pulled fuses 4 and 37, it starts right up perfectly every time.

 

Oh that's very cool. Thank you! I wouldn't have known that. I'll redo it all with the vette engine running

 

DTCs Diagnostic Trouble Codes. YEP

Follow the guide lines provides Read the DTCs running or Ignition ON. What ever POPs up after you clear the DTCs,,,,, troubleshoot.

I read my DTC when ever the car farts wrong when Im driving. That includes driving down the road. Press Options/ FUEL and pull the DTCs... LOL Just dont reck!!!!!

Thats why GM says engine off ingition on.

BC

 

Okay thanks! I cleared all the codes both by turning to in and pressing accelerator three times then starting it and pressing option/fuel 4x. Then I held down "reset" till I got "no codes" for everything. I drive it around for about 15 min and revved it up. But no codes come back. Is it because I have fuse 4 and 37 out? Should I put them back in to get codes? Or just wait longer to see if codes cone back with the troublesome fuses out?

 

Turning it ON and pressing the accelerator three times??????? You do that to RESET the OIL LIFE INDICATOR % in the DIC.

When do you change your oil?? If you use the % oil life indicator, I dont know if its going to be correct.
You might want to check on that. When you change the oil, you "Turn the ignition switch to ON Engine OFF and pressing the accelerator three times. The oil Life Indicator should go blank and then to 100%

YES,, reinstall all the fuses and monitor the DTCs.

Bill

 

I change the oil every three to five thousand miles. Okay, I put the fuses back in and drove it around an hour. In case you need it, my car was wrecked before and fixed at a body shop. Airbags are not replaced. And tire sensors and coolant sensors were never fixed but cut off somehow to save money on repairs. Hood, glove box, and both mirror lights do not work. Also, the radio fuse blew when pulling fuses and I replaced it with a spare and it works fine now. Anyway, I cleared all codes, reinserted fuses 4 and 37, drove around, and 3 codes came back. I got the following data while the engine was running:

10-PCM. P1571 H
28-TCS. No codes
38-RTD. NO COMM
40-BCM. NO CODES
60-IPC. NO CODES
80-RADIO. U1016 H
99-HVAC. NO COMM
H0-LDCM. NO CODES
H1-RDCM. NO CODES
H6-SCM. NO COMM
B0-RFA. C2105 H

 

Oh, and the only button that doesn't work is the drivers seat electric control to put seat BACK. Forwards and every other direction works. Once in a blue moon the back button works. I didn't unplug the seat yet, although I agree with all the suggestions to unplug the three connections under the seat, because I want to fix it. I'll unplug the connections with the multimeter connected if you suggest so.

 

On my multimeter, there's three holes to put the two plugs in. For the red cord, there's an Amp and then a mA one I think. But the smaller hole says unfused 10 sec max, which I have no idea. Anyway, can I put the red multimeter lead into the smaller amp(ohm)volt hole to get finer and smaller readings because currently even 0.01 amp could be boarder line...