Battery keeps draining every few days ugh

Yeah that's crazy... And very difficult to trust a vehicle with a problem like that.

On a side note... Half of my top 10 the most intelligent people I have ever been around are women... Colette Lavoy is a PA now. I went to school with her. She memorized word for word 200+ vocabulary note cards. And she could analytically and critically apply them too. She was incredible... Dr Innes at the hospital I worked at was exceptionally smart too. Plus as you got to know her she was a really great person. Sandy Reed-Bryant who was my director at Williamsburg Landing was like Dr Innes and my sister... When you talked with her... You could tell just how truly gifted she was. She could analytically and critically apply concepts in very, very in depth ways. My own sister Tracy just like Sandy... My sister has a PhD in nursing... Tracy is just like Sandy. Exceptionally intelligent and can conceptualize very difficult concepts that 99 percent of people can't do. Dana who was the nursing supervisor at Mary Immaculate hospital was incredible too. She's like Colette Lavoy... Simply gifted unlike 99 percent plus of people walking around.

I have many other ladies that I have been very fortunate to have worked around who were really smart too. I try to learn from all of them. Because they got me beat by a long shot... And I am not a total moron. I had the highest entry level exam score at my Glenn's campus out of 24 people when I took the pre nursing exam. I have zero zero doubt Colette Lavoy beat me by a large margin... Simply one of the most intelligent people I have ever been around. Top 5 for certain.
 
Yeah man that's a crazy deal...

Battery always running low... Can't find a real reason why. And I know you tested alternator.

I heard a lady try to start her car the other day at Watts grocery store in King and Queen county... That car barely and I mean barely started. It was 87 degrees too. Guarantee that car won't start before too long.

True story I went to UVa basketball camp in between my junior and senior year of high school. This lady who played on the UVa women's basketball team was out there... And let me tell you... She was awesome. And the guys out there were good players. She went down the lane one time and switched hands in mid air from her right hand to her left hand and shot the ball in from like 12 feet. She was kicking butt out there. She was tough and bad. When I played volleyball in Virginia Beach at TVA my good friend Scott and I got to see the women's open league players play...

Tier of playing level is from highest to lowest.

Open level = BIG-TIME awesome players

AA = High advanced Really really good players

A = Advance level Really good players

BB = High intermediate level players

B = intermediate level players

C= Beginner level players

Those ladies were big time bad... One lady walked by Scott who was 6 ft 5 and he was looking up to her at 6 ft 8... He told me I am not used to looking up at many women. I'm 6 ft 2 and I was like yeah me too. Great great players... Those ladies were legit awesome.

Being honest I was not strong at all from late teens until 27 years old. I played basketball and never lifted weights until I was 25. I would have not been physically capable of performing the physical strength needed to be a firefighter or police officer... Not even close. I doubled and then some my upper body and back and shoulder and tricep and bicep strength over those 2 years.

In summer of 2002 I finally could have actually physically lifted and dragged a regular weight 160-180 pound person a long enough distance.

But my illness multiple sclerosis would not let me be able to consistently be able to perform that enough to be able to safely do that type of job. At best 65- 75 percent of the time I could have done it. That's no where good enough to be able to do that job in the right way.

At least though by 2002 I was more than twice as strong. I only gained 17 pounds of muscle. 157 to 174.

Now walking for 10+ hours in a 12 hour shift is not realistic either. At least I have found a home health position that actually can be feasible for me to do.
 
11.93 again today. No issues starting.

Quick question: can a rear O2 sensor short cause a battery drain while off? I’ve had an intermittent (more frequent lately) P0137 rear O2 sensor low voltage code.

I replaced the sensor yesterday and didn’t think to do any electrical checks. The harness looked perfect.
 
That would sure be a strange way to run the battery flat! The heater draws about an amp when it's working normally. The computer controls its getting that power. P0137 is the signal voltage, anyway.
 
I was just curious. I doubt the sensor even has a signal with the engine off and/or the key off.
 
The IR temp gun looking at individual fuses might work if the power draw is constant. To improve the possibility of it working, take a thick piece of cardboard and cut a rectangle hole in it just the size of the exposed area of the fuse. Use that as a shield near the fuses one at a time so the IR gun only sees IR from one fuse at a time.
 
I’ve been working the back shift with little desire to mess with this. I’m sorry for not being more proactive. I’ve been putting it on the smart charger a few times per week to keep things topped up.

I’m actually wondering if this is an intermittent battery problem, like a series of partial shorts that only manifest when things are shake up a bit, then clear with the same agitation. That‘s a bit of a stretch, I know...
 
There is a class action lawsuit against Subaru for 2015-2020 cars including the Forester. I understand your car is much older.

www.torquenews.com

Subaru Battery Drain Lawsuit - New Claims Now Include Forester, WRX And Legacy

Here is the latest Subaru battery drain lawsuit update. The lawsuit includes 2015-2020 Subaru Forester, 2015-2020 Subaru Legacy, and 2015-2020 Subaru WRX models.
www.torquenews.com www.torquenews.com

My son’s 2020 Impreza not covered by the class action, shows similar issues. He went to the garage to start his car and had to jump it with the huge Craftsman manual charger on wheels. He charged it later with the Noco Genius 5 all the way to full but it has still happened three times in the past few weeks. However almost the entire two years he was parking it unlocked in the garage at night with the key fob on the passenger seat. I told him this drains the battery as key fob in the car wakes up the electrical system. My wife’s Venza used to do the same thing.

He keeps the keys on a carabiner on his belt loop but that did not solve it entirely. I think the battery needs replacement. On the Impreza 5th generation forum there was a pro tip: Subaru recommends to lock the car with the key fob from the outside and press the lock button three times. This trick forces the car into sleep mode. The discussion there was it works and customers that use the trick are not coming back to the service department.

I read it is a combination of systems and maybe software that keeps the car from going into deep sleep mode, in combination with an undersized 530 CCA battery. I am looking to buy him a 650 CCA AGM battery today at Sam’s Club or Costco. The OEM battery is only guaranteed for a year. Apparently the high CCA and bigger capacity plus AGM that tolerates deep discharge better, helps. Locking the door three times with the key fob gets around the problem or so they say.
 
After sitting for a week I came back to a no-power situation. Not even the LED lights will turn on!

4.96VDC!!!

Considering I can’t find any parasitic draw issues I’m beginning to think it’s the battery.

The battery is taking a charge, so I plan to monitor it while I smart-charge it and then see if I can get a bad load check or SOH to try and warranty the battery.
As a reminder I never had an issue with the OE battery. The mysterious dead battery issue only began a while (not directly) after replacing the battery.
 
gathermewool said:
After sitting for a week I came back to a no-power situation. Not even the LED lights will turn on!

4.96VDC!!!

Considering I can’t find any parasitic draw issues I’m beginning to think it’s the battery.

The battery is taking a charge, so I plan to monitor it while I smart-charge it and then see if I can get a bad load check or SOH to try and warranty the battery.
As a reminder I never had an issue with the OE battery. The mysterious dead battery issue only began a while (not directly) after replacing the battery.
Click to expand...

While applaud the amount of diagnostic work you performed looking for a solution, this just goes to show the old line among mechanics (and I'm sure many other professions) still rings true: "If a problem only arose after a repair/replacement, always start back where you left off".

I remember being burned like this years and years ago: I replaced the plugs and wires on an early 90's GM car with the 3300. Afterwards, I had a dead hole misfire. I checked EVERYTHING: plug wire routing, coil output, injector pulse and flow. Nothing. I never considered removing the freshly installed plug... why would I? It was brand new! After much head scratching... I removed the offending plug only to find the ground and electrode to be touching! This was a basic copper plug, so I set the gap and installed. The car ran perfectly. Best I could figure, the box had been dropped at some point and bent the plug. Ever since that day, I inspect the gap on every single plug I install.
 
No, I get it. It’s just hard to justify dropping another buck, buck fifty on a new battery, ESPECIALLY after dropping so much on one of the most expensive batteries out there not too long ago.
 
gathermewool said:
No, I get it. It’s just hard to justify dropping another buck, buck fifty on a new battery, ESPECIALLY after dropping so much on one of the most expensive batteries out there not too long ago.
Click to expand...

Is there not a warranty on said battery? Even our half-decent FVP house batteries at work carry a 5 year free replacement warranty....
 
14Accent said:
Is there not a warranty on said battery? Even our half-decent FVP house batteries at work carry a 5 year free replacement warranty....
Click to expand...

What’s there to warranty if it tests well? I have no idea what the issue is.

Sitting overnight with a meter connected in series with the battery, and set to show the min and max, no unusual parasitic draw was noted. This was repeated multiple times.

The draining issue didn’t start immediately after the new battery was installed, as far as I recall; however, it might still be the battery. I’m not sure how to test for that, except to swap in a known good battery and see what happens.

Finally, I believe the battery group I need is less than $100 at Costco. The battery I need for the Legacy is only $75!
 
Last edited:
gathermewool said:
What’s there to warranty if it tests well? I have no idea what the issue is.

Sitting overnight with a meter connected in series with the battery, and set to show the min and max, no unusual parasitic draw was noted. This was repeated multiple times.

The draining issue didn’t start immediately after the new battery was installed, as far as I recall; however, it might still be the battery. I’m not sure how to test for that, except to swap in a known good battery and see what happens.

Finally, I believe the battery group I need is less than $100 at Costco. The battery I need for the Legacy is only $75!
Click to expand...

I find it hard to believe many stores would give you a hard time about exchanging a relatively new battery given the expansive tests you've performed. Sure, they may put up a fight, but good business is good business. It's not like the store is eating the cost of the battery, they get reimbursed just the same.
 
14Accent said:
I find it hard to believe many stores would give you a hard time about exchanging a relatively new battery given the expansive tests you've performed. Sure, they may put up a fight, but good business is good business. It's not like the store is eating the cost of the battery, they get reimbursed just the same.
Click to expand...

I find it hard to believe you find it hard to believe. I guess it never hurts to try, but my guess is they’ll test it SAT and politely tell me to go pound sand. Without being certain I won’t argue.
 
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