Battery Drain...seems a common issue?

[Andyzeg]

Hi - I'm new to the Forum so thank you for letting me join!

I just bought a 2007 R51 2.5 DCi and I experiencing the issue of serious battery drain.

I can see from many posts on this forum and on the internet...that the most likely culprit is the mini relay which controls the ECM. If these are going faulty, they can produce several symptoms, including stalling, poor or no starting, and battery drain. My Nissan has had all these symptoms. They fail internally and allow that computer to stay active even when the car is switched off and left standing...hence the chronic battery discharge.

Before anyone suggests...I already did the multimeter test on the amps being used (which was high but I can't remember the figure) and also tried the remove fuses thing...but nothing seemed to change it.

I therefore tried to get a new replacement relay from my local Nissan Dealer in Inverness, Scotland...but they were stumped! They could not find the part from its numbers. Perhaps in the UK they were discontinued and no longer available? But I did see that there was a Nissan Recall for pre 2006 Pathfinders for the very same issue!

I have seen them on Ebay..but only used ones...and also sellers in the US are listing them as the "recall" relay but the part number they show is somewhat different..so I don't know for sure if they are the same?

I wonder if anyone can advise us here about this relay issue? The one I took out of mine has the following details -

Mini Nais Relay - 4 prong
Type X (has an X stamped on it)
ACM 33211
M13
61025 - 2602

The ones available from the US have only this part number -

284B7-CW29E

I would really rather not but another used one which would risk the same fail occurring.

As regards stalling...I also replaced the Crank Sensor which has helped with that problem.

If anyone is wondering where these relays and a host of 'hidden' fuses are on their Nissan...look for the large square block in the engine compartment and unclip the lid (mine was tough to remove so I had to prise it up with a screwdriver). On mine it is on the right hand side of the engine (looking from the front) and close to the bulkhead. When you pull up the lid, you can lift up the IPDM unit holding the relays and fuses. Check online for the position of the ECM Relay on your vehicle.

They should be taken out using a special tool...but can be removed with pliers if you are very careful...if you squeeze a bit too hard then the relay begins to crack!

Any help would be gratefully received...as I also hope it will assist many other Pathy/Navara owners with similar issues.

Here is the original Nissan Recall PDF with photos -

https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2010/R ... 7-9900.pdf

Many thanks in advance

[Andyzeg]

Well....already an update!

I got a call from the Nissan Dealer who told me that they had found TWO of the illusive relays in stock after all...so I popped round and bought BOTH for £10! The code was similar to the "recall" item above - 284B7-CW28E (and not CW29E).

I dutifully went home and fitted one of them (battery disconnected of course) and the car started ok....but...I suddenly had an engine management light on! I had a little think....and decided to allow the ECM (ECU) to reset by disconnecting one battery terminal and then touching to the other terminal (negative to positive).

Upon restarting...the light disappeared (PHEW!!) and the car seemed to be running a little bit smoother. After a few restarts, it was clearly starting much more readily...

So far so good...but the clincher will be to see if the battery discharges over the next day or so.

I will keep you posted.

If this works...then it might help a lot of other owners with similar issues.

Cheers

Andrew

[underworld1001]

Appreciate the update Andrew! Thanks!

[Andyzeg]

Well....the car started fine yesterday morning, and had a drive of about 4 miles...all seemed to be ok.

However, this morning, the battery was flat...not even enough power to enable me to turn the key in the ignition.

So not sure what is going on? Either my battery was still low and had not charged enough over the last few runs...or the battery drain is still happening.

Today, I got my multimeter out again and this is what happens :-

With negative disconnected and the meter between the cable and the negative battery terminal -

It starts with a draw of around 2.6 amps...fluctuating down to about 1.5 amps..and then going down to 610 to 620 millamps. Way too high....should be about 50 milliamps or less from what I have read.

I then set about removing fuses and relays one by one but could not identify a culprit. However, I was not waiting the 30 seconds or so for the initial draw to settle down. Maybe I should have?

I also disconnected the main red cable from the alternator...no change.

When ever I touched the meter points to make a connection...I could hear a whirring...like a pump or quiet electric motor sound for a few seconds... this also happens when the battery cable is reconnected. Whatever this is...it appears to be the reason for the initial higher amperage draw (2.5 amps). But I do not know what this is.

So it seems that in this case at least...the ECM relay I replaced does not appear to be the problem.

I will have another think and try to pin this down.

Regards

Andrew

[ssobol]

On my 08 R51 with the 6 cyl gas engine, I noticed that it takes some time for the current draw on the battery to drop down to the 50mA level. Somewhere around 20-30 minutes.

[Andyzeg]

On my 08 R51 with the 6 cyl gas engine, I noticed that it takes some time for the current draw on the battery to drop down to the 50mA level. Somewhere around 20-30 minutes.

Yes...I had read this elsewhere. I will do some more thorough checks over the weekend and see what I can come up with.

I have trawled through dozens of internet posts regarding this issue with a number of Nissan models...so perhaps there is a common problem?

[ssobol]

On my 08 R51 with the 6 cyl gas engine, I noticed that it takes some time for the current draw on the battery to drop down to the 50mA level. Somewhere around 20-30 minutes.

Yes...I had read this elsewhere. I will do some more thorough checks over the weekend and see what I can come up with.

I have trawled through dozens of internet posts regarding this issue with a number of Nissan models...so perhaps there is a common problem?

Might not be a problem. It could be how it is designed to work. I think this way of operating is common to most modern cars.

[Andyzeg]

Might not be a problem. It could be how it is designed to work. I think this way of operating is common to most modern cars.[/quote]

You may well be right!

[Andyzeg]

I have found the main source of the battery drain...upon removing the 10a fuse in the glove box marked "KEY SW"...I connected up the multimeter and this time...waited until it settled down.

The amps dropped by 450 milliamps so that was what was using all the power parasitically. Of course...without that fuse, I can't use my key...it is an intellikey but I am having to use it as a normal ignition key as it is not communicating with the car. I bought it like this.

I will do some investigating. perhaps there is an inherent fault in the key system that has both prevented it from working correctly AND caused it to use so much amperage when the car is switched off?

I read that the car is constantly sending out signals looking for the key...but to use so much power to do so is crazy!!

I also removed both the ELECTRONIC PARTS fuse AND the ROOM LAMP fuse - they are the 2ND & 4TH from bottom fuses on the left side of the glove box fusebox.

After this...the amps dropped to 50 milliamps! With the electronic parts fuse out...the whirring from inside the dashboard area stopped and the first reading was at about 1.5 amps...dropping away quickly afterwards.

The room lamp fuse seemed to add some amperage too...despite the interior lights being switched off and the doors closed...strange?

I will keep you updated as I work towards a solution.