Hi all,

I was searching the forum for a possible common battery or electrical problem, but nothing really turned up. Anyways, my car is doing this weird thing where it acts like the battery is dead once a day. I try to get into my car with my remote but nothing works. I start it up like normal (so I don't think it's the battery), but my stereo and gauges are reset like I had unplugged the battery or something. The volt gauge hasn't shown anything different since I got the car and the previous owner told me that he had replaced the battery recently (I've had this car for less than a year). Everything seems normal otherwise.

It's not a huge problem because the car does start like normal, but I'm afraid that it will lead to another more serious issue. Does anyone know what this could be?

Some things of note: I have an aftermarket stereo that has been with the car for a few months and my car was in a pretty large accident in March (I got the car back in May).

tl;dr - Car starts, but acts like the battery is dead before I start it.

Thanks for any help!

 

That does sound odd. The radio memory ought to survive voltages well below what you can start the car with. The remote control for the doors too.

Unless someone re-wired lots of circuits from battery to accessory/ignition following the accident I can't think of what might cause the problems you describe.

What happens once you start the car, re-set the radio station memory and then shut the car off for just two minutes or so? Does the radio lose it's memory immediately - yes that means it's missing the battery source to retain that memory - and it might just be tapped into the same fuse/circuit as the remote for the doors.

Do the doors lock and unlock with the key fob at all? If never then focus on that circuit and fuse. If only when the car is running it sounds like someone wired that circuit to the accessory/ignition controlled side of the system vice constant battery.

Big accident? You'd have to do some major damage to get into the wire harnesses.

 

Thanks for the reply. It's strange because the car acts completely normal until the next day; as in, I reset the radio/CD and everything and it acts normal. I can turn off the car and turn it back on and it will act like nothing is wrong. I'm beginning to think something environmentally affects the problem because it seems to occur in the morning (unless it happens at night and I just find out the next morning when I start my car - it's my daily driver). Anyways, to answer your question, the radio memory stays intact until the next morning.

The door only unlocks/locks with my key the old fashion way. The power locks don't work when I get inside the car, so I have to manually unlock the passenger door if someone is with me. However, the power locks and remote work after I start the car until the next morning.

The car was completely normal all throughout the end of April and most of May after I got my car back. It only started within the past week or so. My accident was in the rear of the car and was mainly cosmetic, so I don't think that affected the electrical system or battery. I don't know if the guys at the shop messed with anything... I don't think highly of them at this point since they also happened to steal some things from my car.

I was hoping that this was a small thing that I could take care of, but I guess I might have to bring it to a shop since I don't have many tools or the time to do anything major right now. But any input is highly welcomed!

 

Replaced the battery and everything seems good to go so far. I will report if something is wrong tomorrow morning. If I don't, then assume that the problem is fixed.