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Re: , Here's what I did.... (archive)
[ Follow Ups ] [ 5-series (E28) Message Board ] [ Msg. Board FAQ ]
Posted by a on October 29, 2000 at 13:10:35:

In Reply to: Sorry, Here's what I did.... posted by Dean on October 29, 2000 at 11:31:53:


I see where I misled you...I did not connect the meter to the battery... I connected the meter to the pos/neg cables on the car. No battery was connected to the system.

I'm trying to see if I have a short in the system. If there were no circuit then the needle should not move... but it does. I assume there is always a draw on the system for the clock, memory etc.

I was wondering if what I was reading was that normal draw.

Dean

Is there a standard amount of current the system draws. I have the battery disconnected and when I put the olm meter across the pos/neg battery terminals I am getting about 5.5 (meter setting= rx 1k olm).

What should it be.... I think I have all switches turned off.

TIA,
Dean

Dean you're confusing me. ohms are units of resistance. if you have 5500 ohms resistance across discoed terminals you have either a bad battery or a bad vom,probably due to the fact you tried to measure resistance across a live circuit.BTW most Volt Ohm Meters dont measure draw,(amperage) in order to do that you need to rig an ammeter in series to the load. in a car that would prolly be between the +term of the battery and the + cable. i suggest reading the 1st chapter in Bentley and the instructions that came with the vom in order to get a better idea of what you want to measure.


yeah, the instant after i hit "submit", it dawned on me what you were doing. if you read 0 ohms, then you would have a dead short. try removing a fuse at a time and then take readings. still,that is only a reading of resistance,not draw which is current and measured in amps. "resistance is futile" i couldnt resist,doh!
seriously, there are too many parameters,0 ohms is a short,ol= infinity= open, anything in between is normal

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