1998 Toyota Camry battery going dead

[farmer boy]

The battery keeps on going dead on us. It showed no sign of weakness before so it doesn't seem likely that it would be bad. The battery light in the car isn't on so the alternator isn't likely bad. All fuses(including the clock) have been removed 1 by 1 and there is still a steady flow according to the multimeter. I disconnected the positive cable and hooked the multimeter to it and the positive post and it reads voltage. I'm not sure wht is going on but there has to be some connection between the positive cable and the negative post on the battery to register any voltage. I haven't removed any relays(not sure if that matters) because I can't get them out.It is also not the starter pulling the current. When the accesory cable and the starter cable are separated only the accesory cable shows voltage.

Thankyou for reading this and any help is appreciated.
 

[chevdud97]

You will show voltage doing it the way you set it up. You have to disconnect negitive terminal from battery. Hook one lead to terminal on battery. One lead to battery cable. Put your meter to amps not volts dc. Putting it on amps shows current flow through meter. Thats the only way to do it. Should read less than 0.03 amps. Email me if you have questions
 

[keh]

Sometimes burglar alarms can cause problems if the car has one.

KEH
 

[John B.]

First of all how old is your battery?
Second if you can check the liquid levels in the cells.
Third check to see if your alternator is charging, the idiot light may not be working!

Other than that here are a few things to look for, look at the cigarette lighter make sure it's not stuck in (on), glove box light may be on if applicable, rear window defroster relay may be stuck on, inside trunk light, any of the inside dome lights. These are few of the things that I have heard that has happened thru my 30 years of being a mechanic.

Disconnect both of your battery cables and then hook a small batter charger to the cables and use the charger as your power source, turn the charger on and see how many amps is being drawn. Knowing how many amps is being drawn can help determine what is on.

Relays can become stuck and pulling the fuse that feeds them will have no effect on the current drawn since the relay is already tripped and stuck to the on position.

Hope this helps and if you find out what the problem is let us know what you find.
 

[Sparks]

Are we to assume that your car's battery is as old as your car?
 

[farmer boy]

The battery is likely the original battery. At this point we figure the battery is done because it's getting hot when trying to charge it and the voltage won't go up on it. I'm guessing the alternator is working because there is more voltage coming from it then from the battery across the terminals. It was only putting out about .2 volts higher then the battery and now with a good battery it's up to about 14 volts. I'll see what happens in the next few days and post back.
 

[patiolant]

I've had batteries work great for years with no signs of slowing down, then die (as in not being able to turn the trucks engine over) from one day to the next.
 

[El Toro]

If the alternator has an internal regulator it may be the culprit that's draining the battery.
Hal
 

[John B.]

If it's up to 14v then it's charging. Yes it sounds like your old battery was sulphated if it was getting hot.
 

[IHC Red]

This is a good answer... If it reads about .03 amps then system is likely O.K.

If you don't have a DVM, pull the battery and take it somewhere they check for free. It's probably the battery.