Parastic Drain Case Study. 2008 Chrysler Town and Country 

As a consumer, this clears so much fog about how a well equipped shop handles a parasitic drain. Had no idea of how the new multi-thousand dollar diagnostic machines were used for this process. Aside from basic of checking the amp flow from the battery while key-off, you hit the whole tracking over time to see the draw fluctuate. And, you made the connection that the one problem was feeding into a common bus that was waking other systems. You have given me hope that there are still mechanics that can fix "hard" problems. Awesome!!!

My goodness, gentlemen - thank you for putting this up here! You just saved me and my Dad a ton of time and money troubleshooting this issue. We changed the battery as the first port of call, thinking the Optima battery had done its time after 13 years. But the issue persisted. We were in the process of troubleshooting, thinking it was the radio when removing its fuse, until I watched this video. Went and checked the map light, and it was absolutely the same issue. What are the odds, and what a strange issue that could cost people a lot of time and money 😑

At around 19:50, this is freaking awesome man. I haven't had the chance to watch. Just scrolled through a little, but I definitely will be watching. Nice job Brin!

Wow! I can’t believe it... crawled in the back of my van took a look and sure enough the light was out/ extended! Definitely worth the watch! Thanks for your thoroughness!

Definitely helped me out I was having the same problem and it turns out that light in the back was the issue definitely a 5 star video

Boy, I'm glad I found your video. My 2010 Grand Caravan had the same parasitic amperage drop that would cycle every minute or so and drain the battery overnight. I detected the loss by using a voltage meter set to "DC amps", and connected it to the negative battery terminal, (disconnected from the battery) and the negative battery post. Amperage would fluctuate between .50 amps and 2.50 amps every 60 seconds or so. After watching, I got in and turned every map light on and off to ensure they were all in the off position, and I also found 2 in the rear that had no light on but were in the "on" position. I exercised them several times until they turned on and off easily, made sure they were all "off", and then waited a few minutes and checked the meter. At rest, amperage consumption stayed at .50. The next morning, the van started fine. Problem solved.

Been doing electrical diagnoses for 45 yrs. on thing I learned is to look at published information and tech support sites such as AITN, youtube, etc. Just came across this video. I have been getting my butt kicked on a 2010 town and country, same exact problem. Draw coming on and off, M12 and primarily M13. I got in the back, saw the reading light switch was out but was not on, barely touch it and it would come on then go out. pressed it in.....presto draw fixed. Can't thank you enough.

Very well done, concise video. So many things to look for in today's vehicles due to multiplexed systems. Funny how a usual suspect in most parasitic drains was not immediately apparent, assuming it was a LED lamp with driver, never turning the lamp on, indicating an active draw, but telling the IC it was on. In older vehicles, would have been a non-issue due to it being glaringly apparent because the bulb would have been the draw and would have been quite noticeable at a glance. This is the thing people don't see in the background, all the diagnosis and time spent training (knowledge) to be able to use the equipment to render such. "So, it was just the map light being on, why is my bill so high?!"

I had the exact same issue in my 2010 and thanks to your video I was able to trace it down to one of my LED dome lights in the rear that was in the on position but if you jiggled it it would actually come on but most of the time it was off so you could not visibly see any potential drain.

THE BEST LEARNING VOID I HAVE SEEN. WHAT YOU AND THE OTHER TECH WENT THOUGH IS REAL WORLD. HOLD YOUR HEAD UP YOU HAVE NOTHING TO BE ASHAMED OF. YOU FOUND THE PROBLEM AND YOU FIX IT. SOME PROBLEM ARE NOT FIX IN 15 MIN OR 30 MIN. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK.

Terrific job guys . Brin and Carlos you should be very proud of this one , and I will certainly be linking this for others to learn from

Bad ass video!! New techniques (to me) and you didn't leave out the mistake. You could have, and we would have thought the cluster fixed it, but you didn't. That earns you trust from us viewers and shows your integrity, something that most channels don't have. Keep it up, and you'll have a great youtube career like Scannerdanner!!

Awesome diagnostic procedures. You’ve taught me something. Great job. Keep in mind too that once the modules go to sleep after an hour or so and you want to test the amp draw and you a have a remote key to open doors or touch feature to unlock doors, if you bring that key anywhere near that vehicle, it can and will wake up the modules. So keep the doors unlocked and keep that key far from vehicle if you plan to test your parasitic draw.

One thing Brin. When you pull fuses and reinstall them you take a chance of waking up modules. This would show a draw that would be normal since a module is awake. You must also make sure to give all modules a chance to power down before staring a draw test.

Thanks Guys, I'm dealing with the exact same vehicle. Doing just what your customer's was. Fully charged battery drained overnight. At least you did the leg work and I can focus on looking for CAN coms and hopefully pinpoint the draw. Great video!

I think no one in the world could have found the real issue on the first call since it was intermittent. Great great video thanks Brin

HI,thank you so very much for the detailed and easy to understand explanation you did. I'm currently having the same problem with my 2010 Town & Country. After 2 batteries changed besides the one previously in the car ,2 new alternators, besides the one previously in the van,3 mechanics,now my car has been twice at the Chrysler dealer, they're trying to find the problem,because sometimes it drains the battery overnight and sometimes it doesn't. I wish that the y would see this video so that they might get an idea of what's going on with my car. Thank you once more for your excellent,very helpful video. I wish you many,many blessings always.🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

This is a great video...been showing it to co workers and fellow technicians. Some guys dont want to let go of there test light and use other tools.

Please don't apologize for lengthy video as they are most helpful to many of us. In that regard, what does ' d-pin ' (de-pin?) mean?

Great job on this. I know that sinking feeling you get when you know you got it wrong. But it provides motivation to never make the same mistake. Thank you for sharing.

Thank you for this detailed information video we are having the same issue with our 2008 Town and country. I am glad that I watched till the end and hope to find a solution.

Excellent video and diagnosis. Really appreciate your honesty. Most techs would have just blamed the cluster. These type of Diagnostics are very challenging and definitely not money makers. Good job!

This was awesome. Thank you guys for sharing not only your knowledge but also your struggles.

Thanks and i really appreciate your honesty. It shows the complexity of our field

Don't feel bad bro you guys did a great diagnostic procedure.New systems are complex.electrical combined with can system it's fun stuff.I got a Mercedes c class that was drawing the battery over night.and man it was fun.took me a few days to pin point the problem.some failed modules and a weak battery.great job bro.

Wow, I have a 2007 Voyager and have been having this same issue. I removed the fuse IOD, and left the battery hooked up overnight and in the morning it still had a charge. I believe the IOD fuse is for the Interior Lights, Remote for the Doors, and the Radio. This is as far as I have got. I dont have the equipment to do all the tests that were done in this video, however, this video has given me Hope. I feel I am on the right track.

THIS is what every other youtube case is missing with regard to pinpointing the source of parasitic draw! Exceptional job, guys.

I almost didn't watch this until the very end. I'm glad I came back to finish watching. I have the exact same amp draw on the same fuses but my map lights aren't the problem. 😕

You guys did good job after all, that’s was a though one. But you guys decided to take us all along even do. We learn more of our mistakes. You guys are awesome.

Absolutely awesome critical thinking and diagnostic skills. Pico is worth its weight in gold.

You did a great job explaining that and it actually helped and hopefully will work, I will find out in the morning.

It takes a heck of a man to post his mistakes, however you didn’t shoot the parts cannon at it. It was a step by step process which lead you eventually to where the problem was. Dan Sullivan said the hardest part, or most time consuming part about electrical is the Diagnoses, the repair is easy or less time consuming, thanks I did learn a lot. I’m no where near that skill level but it helps me think outside the proverbial box!

had exactly the same problem, never fixed it. It was for a guy who was selling cars, so had two identical Chrysler's: swap clusters, swapped timps - no luck. The guy called and said that customers are interested in it, so i just rewired the fuse to ignition temporary and said to return when the car was looked at. The car was sold - never seen it again. The guy was happy - i was not. Thanks for sharing this video.

Very well explained as far as process of elimination. I enjoyed your demo. Thanks for posting it.

Well done Brin! This shows so much on so many different levels, of approach and diagnostics. I really need to start using this pico we have here.

Exactly same issue here. Parasitic drain. I visually inspected all the lights and they were off. I even turned the master light switch off (beside the steering wheel). After watching this, I went around and turned every light on and off, opened and closed each compartment in the ceiling, and the current draw went away. I wish I could pinpoint this to a specific bad switch or something. No telling when it'll happen again.

What an amazing video, way to go to you and the team for doing such an amazing job running the tests, talking us through them, and showing us what was happening, and then giving us the twist ending at the end. Thank you!

Great case study Brin, well layed out. Sorry to see that there was more to it. Thanks for your time involved.

Great video very well explained. Thanks for sharing the struggles even though it stinks but it helps to know everyone has it. Thanks for taking the time to make it and share.

Thank you for keeping it real. There's too many fixes but not many show the ones they misdiagnosed. That was an elaborate analysis procedure.thank you for being real.you're very good tech

Just had one of these today. It was the very back one on the passenger side. 525 ma draw that went away after pulling C2 on the IPC and waiting a few minutes for the IPC to go to sleep.

I think you just solve the problem I have had with my car for the last eight years thank you so much for posting this video

great video,i like that you also show your mistake,you do a great job teaching.i never take my autos to a shop but you i would

Thank you for sharing this case study, showing procedures and for your thorough diagnostic procedure. Wasn’t expecting that ending. Again thanks

Fantastic video, this is almost the exact same way I test as well. Same exact story. Rear hatch latch assembly was my issue.

Wow! That's a heck of a diag... what a process! You may not have succeeded the 1st time, and it happens... you stuck with it and nailed it in the end. Plus you gained more knowledge that will probably stick with you forever... 👍👍

awesome diag Brin, go figure those darn map lights!

Great stuff Brin! Though for you guys, it was understandably a little painful. For us, this video is a gem! Most of us seasoned tech's will honestly admit we've been down this road before (more than once). Crow is not a dish we enjoy eating in front of the "peanut gallery", but you did & we totally respect you for it! I for one learned a lot about this particular ckt. I just sub'd & look forward to more awesomeness. Thank you!

Trained by Techs Good morning 🙏 🌄 Have a great day and take care Trained by Techs Great tutorial thank you 👍 From Nick Ayivor from London England UK 🇬🇧

Man, I triple checked that no interior lights were on. Ended up pulling the m13 fuse and was about to leave it out lol. This video saved me so much more diag time. Exact same solution. Let me know your Venmo handle, I want to send you $50.

Great work on the diag and the video. Shame that simple circuits have to be controlled and integrated with modules. They need to go back to the KISS theory with things like that. I always laugh when I get things like this at the shop.

I liked the video, but i also wanted to see him actually do the oscilloscope connections to the vehicle, and also show the procedure he used to access the schematic info while using the scope platform. Thanks.

No In fact thank you so much for teaching others in need like my self it just builds up my game plan even more on my nx parasitic draw vehicle.

Wow! Thank you so much for the link to the fuse voltage drop charts.

Excellent video, We are human and we do the best we can and we make mistakes and at least your humble enough to admit it.. Once again good work.

Awesome job!!! Great diagnostic work - Thank you very much!!

Fantastic work. Well done. Thanks for sharing. I learned a lot out of that.

Great video. We just bought a 2008 and went to start it the next morning. Battery was dead. I switched out the battery (with an older but charged one) and it was dead after a few hours. So I put an ammeter between the battery and the cable and it read 3.6A. Then I found this video. I will be checking the map lights since my 5 children love to click them on and off. I hope the draw is from one of them and not something else.

I would not feel bad about that. YOU FOUND THE ROOT CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM! $#&% little lights! The fact that the light was extended, did the light ever come on in that position? That was definitely a programming problem! Chrysler should have programmed the cluster to turn off power to the lamp driver module with ign key off! You guys did good!

How do you go about changing a customer on something like this. I ask because I have about 8 hours into a 2004 Lincoln town car DDM drivers door module. Intermittent drivers door ajar issue. After a couple of comebacks door module is diagnosed bad so after installation of two used EBay door modules that are also bad purchased by customer they want the car back.

Wow thanks for sharing, great find! 👍

Wow, I had the same exact issue on a 2009 dodge Grand Caravan!! Thank you !!

Thank You. Honesty is not easy but it is always right!

Good job. Atleast you found it. Just a learning experience.

After watching this video, I removed the 30 amps fuse and left the van for 4 days in a parking lot and able to start again. It's been consistent but of course no GPS and backup camera. Usually, just overnight it won't start at all. The next step I did was removed the amplifier and left in a parking lot. After 2 days, the van starts as well with no problem. Next step is to buy a 18 bucks amplifier from junkyard and see if this solves my problem assuming that the part that I'll buy is a good unit.

Good video, my wife's T&C was having the exact same problem and this video helped me figure that out. Dang kids leaving the light on. 🤣

Looks like I have the same issue the radio temp was 107 . But watching you stream i will look at the cluster too

thank you . this was a big help . found same problem .

Just think what kind of a problem it would have been without the (Pico) scope. Thankyou! I wish I had that scope 10 to 15 years ago!

Great job guys! I learned a lot from this and from your mistake

So m13 fuse is for the cluster? How can i deactivate the cluster without replacing it.. which fuse

Incredible work gentlemen!

GREAT Diagnostics, I also like how you keep changing the lettering on your hat, Forward the backwards.......

What's the actual fix?

Great logical diagnostic routine.

Great video! Would you guys mind if I showed this to my students? We are at a technical college in Milwaukee.

Thank you for keeping it simple

Great Job buddy and I need one of those clamps

Dont we all have tried been looking in the wrong direction for hours and hours. How about light in that curtasy light, did that work?? And you did replace it, right, so it wont mallfunction again. ;). Great vid.

Well presented. I've shared it with my French audience on Facebook :)

Hey what cause van to lost power and turn off when come a stop

What do you do if theirs no voltage drop in any fuse except IOD and IOD main?

Better explained! IMPOSSIBLE ..... THANKS @BRIN

Terrific job Brin

Wow that video was very informative and helpful thank you. For all the detail

Where are u located? Come fix my 2011 chrysler town and country. I had electrical issues, wipers would turn on by themselves, dash lights flash, radio and headlights goes off. Eventually my alternator burned out, replaced alternator and brand new battery. After shutting the vehicle off, battery drains and have a hard time starting the vehicle again. I removed the m12 fuse now- will c if it continues…

Finally top notch training 👍

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Great diagnostics my friend

These videos are amazing!!!

You know it never seems to fail. You test, sure you found the problem and something simple you wouldn't think would be the cause of the problem, bits you. Don't feel bad, I'm sure everyone else probably would have done exactly what you did. Get find at the end of the day.

What a rookie! Just kidding, your videos have helped me step up my game. Thanks much!

Can any mechanic do this or do I need to find a special mechanic?

Hey, super video, good learning, keep up the good work :) Copenhagen Denmark

Any voltage at any fuse is an issue so u dont need to really even no what amps its drawing?????

Nice job bro . I don't know I have a dodge caravan 2008 SXT the 30Amp fuse drain the battery . without the fuse everything will be okay ,I hope i get the same problem but I only have DVD screen uconect and I don't have light like this.

Do you bill this out as actual hours?

Great lessons Thank you

Fantastic job

good vid ,,,, cudos for not giving up :)