Alarm system draining my Batt...

[Bizz]

Hey Gentlemen. Long time listener, first time caller here. I've been loving the wealth of information here. Never thought I could repair as much of my own car before I bought my 99runner! That being said, ever since I bought her a little over 2 years ago, the alarm system has never really worked. I had to disconnect the horn because the alarm would go off on it's own when the weather would get too hot, or in the middle of the night for no apparent reason. But yet I lived with it. Until now.

Its new quirk is draining my battery. After finding myself stranded for no reason with a dead battery, I did some tests. I found that when NOTHING on the car is on (no keys in ignition. Nothing.) the system is pulling over 2 amps from the battery. I disconnected the fuse to the main power on my alarm, and the drain went from over 2 amps, to~ 300 miliamps, which seemed a lot more reasonable. My guess is there's a short in the alarm somewhere that's causing the drain?

My question would first be: Does anyone recognize this brain? It doesn't appear to be the RS3000 or 32000, and I've tried reprogramming/putting it in valet mode it using the write ups on this site, to no avail.

Second is that I really don't care for having the alarm feature enabled. I'm fine with the simple keyless entree or even manual entree if push comes to shove. I'll post some pictures of the setup out of an overabundance of caution to try to give you as much helpful information as possible.

Thanks in advance for any/all of your responses.

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Lastly, I have the Toyota (Dealer?) Key Fobs with the 3 button front and panic on the back.

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I believe that's the red LED people talk about with the Dealer Alarm, but I can't really "press" it.

 

[BrianSD_42]

Isn't it possible that you just have a crap battery? With a good battery you should be able to leave the car for months even with the alarm armed.

Also your alternator might not be properly charging the battery when running.

Did you do an amperage (not V) test with the engine running?


I currently use a solar trickle charger to offset the alarm / stereo drain when leaving the car for months at a time and it works great.

 

[mikebontoft]

Isn't it possible that you just have a crap battery? With a good battery you should be able to leave the car for months even with the alarm armed.

Also your alternator might not be properly charging the battery when running.

Did you do an amperage (not V) test with the engine running?


I currently use a solar trickle charger to offset the alarm / stereo drain when leaving the car for months at a time and it works great.

how long do you let it sit? 2 amps isn't a short to ground. it could be a short to a switched power source though.

stupid phone likes to quote sometimes and quick reply others. there isn't a way to make the quick reply box permanent is there?

 

[BrianSD_42]

2 amps seems like a lot but I want to ask ... how did you test it, exactly?

where did you place the (+) and (-) leads? can you post up that info along with the specific draw.

 

[4R99JB]

The LED you refer to, if it includes the glass breakage mic, isn't something to press. Only the factory installed system includes the rear window remote option.

I agree that there is something else going on. I'd also recommend retesting the drain on your system; 2 Amps won't make a pot of coffee but is a lot for nothing on; could be a bad measurement for sure. :shrug:

If I had to guess that something was wrong with the alarm system I say the glass breakage sensitivity; but it would only "Alert" for so long, due to noise regulations. That would only even matter if the horn were shorted / defective. If shorted, it would have blown fuse by now.

 

[Bizz]

Thanks for the responses, guys. As far as how long it sits, it's my daily driver. The battery is a Duralast which is supposed to be good for five years, and it's only 2 years old. The alternator is good. We hooked a voltmeter up to the battery whilst running and found it was getting close to 14 volts; when the car was off, the battery read between 12 and 13. We thought we eliminated the battery and alternator from the problem.

How we conducted the drain test? We took a 2 amp fuse, placed it in between a negative and positive wire, and closed the circuit by using the battery terminal while it was connected to the system. It vaporized the fuse. Did the same thing with a 15 and a 5. Neither of those blew. In addition to that, we hooked the voltmeter up to the system while it was unplugged from the battery (positive to positive, negative to negative) , and unfortunately the voltmeter fuse blew (was only a 2 amp fuse...which is why we conducted the previous test.) I'd have to get a higher rated fuse to get an exact reading.

Makes sense that the LED would be the glass breakage sensor.

Only the factory installed system includes the rear window remote option

So this system is obviously the factory installed system? The dealer installed system is the RS3000, correct?

 

[4R99JB]

Makes sense that the LED would be the glass breakage sensor.

So this system is obviously the factory installed system? The dealer installed system is the RS3000, correct?

Technically the led is the led and the little black spot below it is the microphone that listens for glass breakage.

I can not find any "Published" information on the factory systems model number; but your correct, if it were dealer installed it would be RS3000. In model Year 2000 they began using the RS3200.

This problem is beyond my skill set but I wish you luck figuring it out. Keep us posted. :driving:

 

[Bizz]

Thanks for the help, all. Ended up getting the module taken out at my local stereo shop for 75 bucks. Dealership wanted 150, so I got that going for me. The funny thing is, I assumed I would lose the ability to have a keyless entry system, considering most alarms have the keyless entree built in. That, however, is not the case. Even after the module was removed, the key fob still had the ability to lock/unlock the doors.

Has anyone else heard of a "factory" keyless entry without an alarm system on the 99 Runners? Is the programming of such the same as an RS3000 or 32000? My guess is not. Going to do a little more research, but any responses are appreciated.

 

[4R99JB]

Someone posted a photo of a module for the back window not too long ago. I assumed that it was just a motor control but I'd be very interested to know if your window switch still works also. I was not aware of a system that works so independently. Good info, thanks for sharing. :bluejump:

 

[Bizz]

The back window feature on the fob still works, interestingly enough. Now I'll have to track down the module that controls the remote to see how I can program new fobs to it...