Electrical Troubleshooting help truck won’t start

Hey guys not sure if this is the right place for this question I can delete and repost somewhere else if I need to.

So I’ve been having issues with the truck. It seemed like it was a low power issue on the battery it was pretty old and I bought this truck used with a ton of extras on it so lots of power running off this battery. It was having trouble turning over, but then would start and next time starting it up was fine, this happened a few times, then I left for a week or two and it won’t start now. I tried recharging the battery/jumping it and nothing worked. Some lights would turn on but when I applied the break to start it everything would fade like it was low power.

I just put in a brand new battery and same issue.

I’m about to start checking fuses, but I’m wondering if that sounds like a fuse issue to you guys before I start pulling them and checking or if you think it might be something else.

PS the electrical is an absolute mess I planned when I bought it to rewire all the components but haven’t gotten around to it and am probably paying the price right now.

 

I’m certainly not the best electrical guy here, but sounds like parasitic draw draining the battery.

You could disconnect everything not OEM and see if the battery maintains a charge.

Good luck,
Alan

 

When a fuse blows whatever it protects is dead.

Doesn't seem fuse related to me.

Pull the battery and have it load tested.

 

Worth getting a brand new battery load tested too?

 

Sorry, blew right by that! We'd assume that to be fine.

 

I’m thinking that’s the case for the battery completely draining for sure. The only thing that’s puzzling is that the new battery I connected to turn try and turn the truck over acted the same as a dead battery.

 

yeah no worries that’s what’s strange that a brand new battery seems to have the symptoms of a dead one to me. I’m not the best electrician clearly haha

 

Also I can reinstall the battery and take a video if anyone that sees this thinks it will help. I disconnected the new battery just incase there’s something drawing power.

 

Are the battery terminal clamps tight and clean?
Also new does not mean good what is the voltage of the new battery?

 

of course I can’t find my voltmeter but I tightened everything down and cleaned it well. Looked promising didn’t die with the break application but the second I tried to start it the whole system shut off.


now I’m hearing a clicking around the fuse box not constant but like two clicks every 15seconds or so

editing this to say I was wrong apparently I didn’t “tighten everything down” after double checking

thanks again!

 

Use something like this to check for current drain.
Clamp on makes it so easy.

$48 KAIWEETS HT206D Digital Clamp Meter T-RMS 6000 Counts, Multimeter Voltage Tester Auto-ranging, Measures Current Voltage Temperature Capacitance Resistance Diodes Continuity Duty-Cycle (AC/DC Current)

https://www.amazon.com/KAIWEETS-Multimeter-Auto-ranging-Temperature-Capacitance/dp/B07Z398YWF?crid=1JX58N69Q8WTD&keywords=clamp+on+dc+amp+meter&qid=1692841328&sprefix=clamp+on+dc%2Caps%2C201&sr=8-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&th=1

 

Fucking A I love you I checked every wire coming out of the rats nest that is the electrical system one loose wire tightened it down and bingo I fired up. I feel like a fucking idiot mostly because I am but thank you!

 

Glad you found it and thanks for coming back to post the resolution, lots of folks don’t.

 

Do you know what wire was loose?

 

Looked to me it was one of the main connections on the negative terminal I think it loosened for taking off the terminal clamps. So originally the battery was dead but then the wires loosened up from moving the terminals around a lot

 

I’d still prioritize fixing the fuckery of wiring, a parasitic draw can still be there, and you won’t know until you test. A draw can still make your life miserable and take a toll on your new battery.
It’s strange to me how a loose accessory wire can prevent the truck from starting on a new battery, that leads me to believe there’s some really shoddy work from PO. keep in mind, these trucks can puke on something as simple as the henky phone charger or an “upgraded” LED map light.

better yet, I’d disconnect all that crap until I could properly rewire.
GL

 

Yeah I need to take a weekend or two and redo all of it. I have wired up a van build from nothing so building the system correctly isn’t an issue for me to do it right. But diagnostics isn’t my forte, clearly.

originally when I purchased the truck I wasn’t worried about the rebuild of the electrical system I just haven’t done it yet.

I think it was honestly the main connection to the battery that was loose and just me being dumb and not checking thoroughly enough. To your point having the original battery go to shit still means there could be a problem within the wiring, it would be a bummer to kill my new battery because I was too lazy to redo the electrical.

 

good you know how to wire, I would still do some research for prep.
Maybe for now, if you know you are going to leave it sit, disconnect or better yet; get a battery tender, these are good to have around anyways.

 

100% that’s a good call to disconnect to not fuck this brand new battery.

Appreciate the advice!