Any Ford Techs for a good one?

[damacman]

Whenever I leave my 2k3 Mustang GT sitting for more than five days, I typically come back to a dead battery. Tired of this nonsense, I did some troubleshooting this evening. With a fully charged battery, I'm able to measure 180 ma of current draw between the positive post and the positive battery lead - 140 ma of this is from the GEM module. Pulling fuse # 39 results in the click of a relay and the abscence of this 140 ma draw. Obviously, this draw is coming from the coil of a relay.

What is the current draw spec for the GEM module? Is this normal? Seems awful high to me . . .

 

[damacman]

bump

 

[BrutalStang]

i can tell you its definatly not normal, i use to leave mine in an airport for at least 7 days at a time, no trouble starting it up when i got back. have you tried asking the dealer yet?

 

[billfisher]

a large current draw while not running CAN be diodes. shorted diodes draw current at all times. the only way to test is to seperate the armature from the stator and check the diodes with a meter.

 

[Superhereaux]

what components are on fuse 39?

which gem is it? there are several

 

[n0v8or]

Not a Ford Tech but I'll give it a try anyway.

According to the wiring diagrams, fuse 39 is for the GEM only. However, the GEM drives other things, like the trunk release relay and dome lamp timer.
I do know that Ford's internal spec for car-off current drain is 6mA, so 180 is not reasonable.
You probably be OK for 2 weeks with anything less than 30mA.
You need to locate what relay is being switched when you pull fuse 39.

 

[n0v8or]

I checked for relays driven by the GEM:
Windshield washer pump relay
Windshield wiper high-low speed relay
Intermittent windshield wiper relay
Trunk release relay
Parking lights relay (used to confirm alarm is set).

I did not see any others, but could have missed one.

 

[damacman]

n0v8or - thanks, I'll check further into this. The relay is plainly audible and sounds as if it is within the GEM module itself. I'll get a chance to spend more time on this next weekend. Thanks again!