QuestionThe battery for a 2003 Range Rover HSE completely drains either after the truck is washed in a drive thru car wash, after it is driven in a significant rain storm or when it is driven in the rain towing a trailer.
This reoccurring electrical short appears to slowly drain the battery to a complete discharge.
The previous VA based owner stored the truck inside a dry garage when not driven, managed to drive the truck ~150,000 miles between 2006 and 2010 but made sure the truck was well maintained by a qualified Land Rover mechanic. When the truck was purchased in October 2010 with the standard factory tow package and sound system, the previous owner claimed the CD Drive for the GPS had a broken gear and was so the GPS was not accepting or rejecting a CD. This has not been fixed yet.
The plastic bezel covering the inside of the trunk lid (top) has been a little loose since purchasing the car in October 2010. In December 2011, a thief tried to break into the car by using a slim jim to pry open the trunk. The plastic bezel on the inside of the trunk lid was pushed off and the mechanical clips were broken so the bezel became very loose. After three weeks of frequent driving with a very loose bezel, the car was driven in a large rain and snow storm and the electrical short first appeared. The electrical dashboard controls for the blinkers, the flashers, the radio/GPS electrical display and units, and the interior lights all automatically shut down as if the system was attempting to conserve power in order for me to drive home to my driveway. The last symptom, the main user default environmental settings stored on the onboard computer reset. The car limped to a Range Rover mechanic who specializes in fixing mechanical problems. He inspected all the wires under the plastic trunk bezel, reattached the trunk bezel, recharged the battery and then did an oil change. After the mechanic called to tell me the truck was ready to be picked up, the car sat for 2 days. When I went to start the truck, the battery was dead. Since the mechanic said the wires under the trunk bezel all looked normal before reattaching the trunk bezel, we assumed the problem had to exist in the trunk mounted radio. We proceeded to disconnect the radio, partially charge the batteries, pay the bill and drive the RR home to the driveway to put the car back on a battery charger. In the morning the car worked perfectly minus the radio/gps. For the next 3 months the battery retained a full charge with infrequent usage.
While towing a trailer in the rain in March 2011, the electrical dashboard controls for the blinkers, the flashers, the radio/GPS electrical display and units, and the interior lights all automatically shut down and lost the default setting for the onboard computer. Let the car sit for several days on slow charge and after the battery was fully charged, the car started and the dash looked normal and the environmental controls were then reprogrammed. The car ran great for 3 straight months with no problems.
Last week, the truck towed a U-Haul trailer full of rocks and then went thru a car wash.
Right after the car wash, the short reappeared again causing all the dash electrical systems to slowly shut down again (just like above). Quickly drove the car home and parked it in the driveway. In the morning, the car did not start. After letting the battery charge for 12 hours on slow charge and letting the car dry out, the truck started normally and all the control systems now functioned normally.
Now thinking again there is a relationship either between the electrical connector for the trailer lights and truck going thru a pressurized car wash, or the very loose inside trunk bezel and the truck going thru a pressurized car wash, are there any historical problems with water retention inside the side doors or inside the truck that could potentially short out the electrical system and causing the battery to slowly discharge?
Not that this is not a part of the same problem but the cigarette lighter next to the shift and the one behind the shift near the feet of the backseat passengers are both loose. When a phone charger is inserted into either one of these electrical plugs and then removed, the receptacle typically mounted to in plastic bezel typically pulls out and expose the attached wires.
AnswerHi Patrick,
sure sounds like a ground fault issue. You may have to locate the ground connections and clean both surfaces. Water ingress is common for all LR's and your Rangie is not immune. See what you can do about your trailer connection and making it less likely to be affected by water. You may have to be creative and seal the connection on your own.
RR battery drain problems are common - could be ground faults, could be component failures (ie. blower relay), could be corrosion in harness or connectors...very mercurial to solve.
Here is a website that you should visit and bookmark: http://www.rangerovers.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=29656
It describes how to test your battery, your alt and determine if ground faults are present. Thanks to Greg Hind.
I mention blower relay above because it apparently is a common cause for draining the battery. Some owners have reported that a TSB was issued on this but I can't find it. Here's a link to a description of a similar battery drain problem, relay and harness fix. Perhaps this is the actual cause of your problem (???): http://rangerovers.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19826
Best of luck with this,
JohnMc
