Subject: Battery Drain Check List for 2005 and 2006 Corvettes - keywords adapter column draw harness interface IPOD lamp light lock manual parasitic program shift shifter steering transmission wheel #PIC4188 - (08/31/2006)



Models: 2005-2006 Chevrolet Corvette




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The following diagnosis might be helpful if the vehicle exhibits the symptom(s) described in this PI.

Condition/Concern:
A customer may complain of an intermittent battery drain.

Recommendation/Instructions:
If a complaint of a battery drain arrives to a dealer it is important to do a little product investigation prior to applying battery power or jump starting the vehicle. Please read each step carefully. Only perform the steps that have the model year of the vehicle in question.

Use the emergency entry procedure to enter the car, unlock the trunk or hatch and release the driver's door.

2005 manual transmission only. Attempt to turn the steering wheel. If the steering wheel is locked it is a good indication the transmission was placed reverse before it was shut down. The Electric column lock waits to see if the shifter was placed in reverse prior to issuing the command to lock the column. If the column is locked the shifter had to be where it was supposed to be. If the column is unlocked there is a good chance the shifter was not in the proper location when the car was shut down.
2005 manual transmission only. Check the location of the shifter. The shifter should be placed into reverse prior to turning the vehicle off. Again if the shifter is not in the proper location the electrical system will not power down.
2005-2006. Open the hood and apply battery power, either to jump or charge the battery. DO NOT START THE ENGINE. Enter the car, close the door and wait for 90 seconds. Take note of what is on. Address any item that is on that should not be.
2005-2006. Are the headlamp or day time running lamps lit? With the key off there should not be any lamps lit. Perhaps the headlamp switch has been inadvertently turned on. Remember the only time the headlamps are turned off are in the off position or automatic. If the customer has turned the stalk to parking lamps or headlamps the headlamps will be lit when the ignition is off. There should be a chime to remind the driver the lamps are lit but often times the chime is ignored. These are on the 20 minute battery saver circuits but it does not take many short start and stop trips to draw the battery down to a voltage that will not allow the car to start
2005-2006. Is the radio still on? There have been reported cases where the radio stays powered up after the vehicle is shut down. This has been an intermittent complaint and it only occurs on cars equipped with the Bose systems which is the multi-disc player and the Nav radio. Only service the radio if this concern can be identified.
2005-2006. Does the customer own an I-Pod? It is possible an I-Pod interface has been installed. This devise connects directly to the radio at the XM connection. It will keep the audio powered after shutdown. Even if the IPOD devise has been unplugged, this device must be removed from the vehicle completely. The devise triggers the Bus to maintain power even when the devise is not powered.
2005-2006. Close both doors. After 2 minutes are there any interior lamps on? Visually check the map lamps on the rear view mirror and vanity lamps. Often these lamps can be bumped and if the car is only driven during the day it will not be noticed. Under dash lamps are controlled by the courtesy lamp switch. Many customers do not realize that the switch has been bumped and they have been turned on. The old switch (C5 cars) used to push in and you could tell it was off. The new switch (C6 cars) does not press in. It can be bumped and turned on and go unnoticed. There should not be any lamps on in the interior of the car after 3 minutes if the ignition has not been turned on, including the cluster. Note anything that is on.
2005-2006. Check for electrical accessories plugged into the cigarette lighter and the accessory plug in the console. Even though there may not be anything plugged into the accessory cord it can be a source of battery draw.
2005-2006. Check the glove box lamp (if equipped). This lamp is not part of the battery run down group and it will stay powered until the battery is completely dead. If you can not see the lamp go out when the glove box is closed then this is suspect. Check this area when the car is in a dark area. If the glove box lamp is lit there will be light escaping from the edge of the door but it will only be visible in the dark.
2005-2006. Use the Tech 2 and inspect the key cylinder operation for the deck lid or hatch depending on body style. Be sure this cylinder changes status on the Tech 2 as the cylinder is rotated. An "Active" input to the BCM may keep the BCM awake and induce a battery drain condition. The Tech 2 path is... Model Year > Passenger Car > Chevrolet > Y Car > Body and Accessories > Body Rear End > Data Display > Body Control Module > Chassis Data > Keyless/Remote Start Data > locate the parameter labeled "Trunk Key Cylinder Switch". This item should change from Active to Inactive and the cylinder is rotated.
2005 Corvettes equipped with manual (RPO MN6) ONLY. Finally if all the above information has been inspected and Strategy Based Diagnostics has been performed with no resolution, reprogram the PCM/ECM with the latest calibration through TIS-2WEB. This calibration will address some intermittent battery draw concerns on manual transmission equipped vehicles only. Once the calibration has been down loaded to the PCM/ECM, release the vehicle for customer to evaluate.

 

Very informitive, Thank you.

 

Perfection of information - God Bless You
Now only if dealers would actually read the bulletins they get.

 

That's what we've been looking for. Bookmarked this page....thanks!

 

Thanks for sharing shopdog. What follows is a rant, but it is in no way directed at you.
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I love how 3/4 of the instructions are devoted to having the tech ferret out possible user errors by the "idiot" customers. They ought to spend more time improving the sh*tty Delco electronics.

The cause of the DBS in my C6 was a defective BCM, which my dealer was smart enough to suspect and replace outright. I would give GM the benefit of the doubt except I had dead C5s twice because of bad BCMs.

If I stop buying Corvettes (this may well be my last one for this reason) it will be because of crappy electronics. Bad quality in this area and fit and finish ruins an otherwise great car, and is a damn shame. GM, there is a reason why you are losing money, can't sell cars, and have problems with those you do sell, and it has little to do with customers. Time to get your heads out of your azzes.

 

I find it hard to beleive that there isn't one word about On-Star, because it also turns modules on, but only on early 2006s.

 

Thanks Vetteshop.Very informative.

 

Does this apply to the firmware update 12613186?