$ Luxury Mercedes $ Dead every morning! Can we fix it?
2023 ж. 26 Ақп.
238 588 Рет қаралды
In this video we Diagnose a battery drain / parasitic draw on a Mercedes GL500.
The owner needs to jumpstart the vehicle every morning.
I take you through the steps you'll need to take, to locate a battery drain.
Can we find what's causing the issue?
Let's Diagnose it together!
Some of you might have already noticed but at 12:10 i must have accidently hit the multimeter button and changed the setting from DC to AC before starting to record my findings. It doesn't change the Diag in any way but the multimeter should have been (and was off camera) in the right setting!
Ha, I noticed. 😀
Damn.....I just wanted to winge about that one but you beat me.
Hah that's why I put my Fluke amp clamp on the shelf... It always defaults to AC!
This was what I wanted to ask you about:Why was the multimeter set to mv AC measurment:D
@@PineHollowAutoDiagnostics another great you tuber auto technician
I'm an electronics technician by trade. Your explanation of voltage drop across fuse(s) is well known, and I am embarrassed to say that I had never thought to employ this "trick" to diagnose where current is flowing. It is absolute GENIUS. You haven't disrupted anything / poked /probed / removed fuses, and you have immediate answers. I would love to own a thermal camera, and they are coming down in price, but sometimes the simplest and cheapest test equipment in the right hands can give the answers you need. I am willing to bet this isn't in any factory service manual training ANYWHERE. Thank you, Dan!
Thermal imaging cameras are not that expensive anymore, and you can do a lot with them. So it's a tool that's also worth using privately. I also thought it was a good idea to measure the voltage on the fuses. But with the number of fuses "had" to come up with something. If you had pulled every one of them, you would have woken up x control units again and then had to keep waiting.
Not on ac circuits tho'♥️😃👍
Thermal cameras are becoming better and cheaper. My first one was a Fluke and that cost thousands. Next i got a snapon that was hundreds. But now they are becoming more affordable and alot better than my old Fluke!
@@Diagnosedan Just wondering, if you could measure the voltage drop across a fuse that was carrying current, would the thermal camera have picked that up? Might be quicker than poking multimeter probes into each fuse!
Yup. It's pretty darn clever.
Danny, you are a genius! You're like a walking dictionary of the automotive world. I've never seen anyone teach and fix things the way you do. I genuinely enjoy listening to you, even before going to sleep.
Took me years to figure this out this guy is really helping people
This same thing happened to my Chevrolet Equinox, turns out there was an internal short circuit in the fuse box. The entire fuse box had to be replaced at a cost of $700. They would not cover it under warranty because they said it was not part of the "Drivetrain". I told them to remove the fuse box and see if the car will drive, then get back to me about that!
Definitely not drivetrain. Should have been covered under basic warranty, if there was any left.
$700 included labor, or just cost of parts?
I laughed so hard now. Because it will definitely not drive without the fuse box.
When they "got back" to you, how did you make out?
Not the same thing. Fuse boxes are more complex in nature.
Fantastic and in depth as always! You saved a car that most other mechanics would've just turned away. You make it look easy, but that's just evidence of your years of experience. Nice work.
What mechanics would turn away a 12 hour billable job? The ones that are in the unemployment line?
always intersting
Thanks!
@@the_kombinatorDiagnostic hours aren't always all billable, especially not when you dont solve the issue
@@Diagnosedan Then you do it like my neighbour's mechanic, and bill two diagnostic fees. She won't be going there anymore ;)
You know class is in session when you find a @Diagnosedan video. Thanks.
First useful "parasitic draw" video I have ever watched anyway. Brilliantly clear & educational, Dan.
Dan, you are David Attenborough of Automotive diagnosis and repair at the nature of things!
🤣🤣👍
Wow, great solid and methodical diagnostic work as always. Intriguing how you found it. Well done Dan 👍🏼
Thanks Paul!
You're a specialist, with all your extra instruments, Dan ! These vehicles are legally desposed of in Japan after 5 years of service, almost new ! Modern luxury vehicles are insanely complicated : total B.S.obsolescence par excellence ! Money for you, specialist Dan !
You are a very good technician. (I am an auto mechanic 30 years ASE certified, you impressed me.)
Dan... you are the man! A true diagnostic magician!
😁👍
New module: 50 eur. Knew which one: 500 eur 🙂 Well DONE Dan! 👋 Vhen you started poking around the glove box I´ve been thinking i know, its the light in the box not shutting off ! :) These tips with measuring voltage drop around fuses should be definetely something teachers might learn new car mechanics at schools, it is literally basics but many mechanicians are not able to use.
Yes, didn't know about the mV trick, I would have started taking fuses out one by one.
The glove box light almost killed my car over a few nights multiple times. The "button" that is pressed when the glove box closes was was not making contact with the pins inside 😂
The sad thing is, they were taught about this, probably already in middle school, but they never understood this very basic law of physics called Ohm's law. This is a general phenomenon in education, children/young people learn science like a poem. They know the formulas, and sometimes they can solve standard problems, but do not understand the meaning of things they are learning/calculating.
@@alexg9155 It's a good idea to change those bulb to LED's. They draw way less current than those old classic bulbs, actually only a fraction of it. And those bulbs won't trigger any light on the dash because they are not that important, unlike the parking lights or license plate lights.
@@a.f.1587 Yeah, I have LEDs everywhere inside the car, glove box included, that's why the battery still was good enough to start the vehicle :)
You are humble, you dead a perfect job, and said you think. You dead a decent job your decent job is perfection I love all your work
Thank you very much
Geweldig!! Ontzettend leerzaam! Dank Danny!
Sir, you are the best, we want more uploads ! Please :D
I agree, he is the best, and I also want more uploads
You guys always want more🤣🤣🤣🤣
@@Diagnosedan Yes! 😀 Because you are the best teacher I know and I learned a lot from you. It is good to have somebody who is far away and who cares for sharing his knowledge with the world. I really appreciate it. Big hug from Serbia ❤️
Great diag as always, Dan! I hope you and the family are doing well!
Thanks!
I’ve seen this video before, this is the content that keeps me coming back! These little issues are really hard to find and therefore a real challenge!
Fantastic detail of diagnosing this parasitic drain. You are a wealth of knowledge.
Watching those who are truly world class in their craft is always so fascinating to me. Dan, if you and Pine Hollow Diagnostics and Super Mario Diagnsotics ever did a case study together, Automotive KZhead would melt down…the pinnacle would have been reached.
Dan don't need them ,he already does this. He is a legend, one level by himself.All the rest, can see him via telescope 🔭 😀.
Both great technicians with great channels Indeed! Thanks for your comment
YES!!!
thanks TJ for the vote of confidence
Don't forget scanner Danner
When zeroing the amp clamp you need to place it at the exact orientation and as close as possible to the position you will be measuring. The reason is, the amp is quite sensitive to external magnetic fields (mainly the Earth field), so shifting and maibly rotating it after zeroing may cause reading errors. But at 800mA it is not that big deal, but once you start chasing 10mA, it became very important...
that is obviously not an option here. - needed to be zerod away from the current, building a perfect baseline was not possible with the parasitics potentially still flowing.
My friend your logics are impossible now I am seeing your vedios every day and learn lot of things thank you so much
You are the new « Sherlock Holmes » . Bravo.
I'm from Waco Texas, I enjoy your videos very much they have helped me to be a better mechanic. I would have loved to have been an apprentice under your teaching. THANKS for sharing your skills and knowledge with us all.
That was a very hairy repair track down. He makes the difficult seem too easy. Dan is the best!
I would even now, at 44 years of age, not mind to spend a couple of weeks with him in his shop. I will be a willing student that will do all the crap tasks, only to be able to learn from him.
Thanks for the great comment, i hope to visit Texas one day that would be great.
Wow❤...As a Motorcycle mechanic,i am learning lot of things from you Mr.Dan..Your diagnostic methods are absolutely amazing.Recently i have found you in KZhead and after that every night before sleep i have watching at least 2 episodes..Thanks a lot that you are improving my knowledge🙏🙏
Ha that's great to hear!
I'm now going to call you Detective Dan! No progrmming necessary. Nice find!
Great channel. The author is a professional in his field. Greetings from Ukraine!
Is it true you have tomatoes in the shops? From UK
@@DeepakKumar-lv4te Of course there is😁.SLAVA UKRAIN!💪
Thank you very much for taking the time to watch my videos in what must be challenging times for you.
Great channel Dan really enjoyed your videos
Thats great
Brilliant work as always dan, I always know youll sort any problem out.
Thanks for watching
At the end of the day, Dan fixed it again and threw in a little comedy. The thing I like most is that you do not blame others,Top man.
Thank you
I knew this would be a breeze for you. This is a testament to your method of diagnosis.
Thanks for watching!
Thanks Dan. Really appreciate your new approaches to diagnostics like using a thermal imaging camera. Keeps things interesting. Great job, much appreciated.
Thank you very much
Excellent detective work there, and well done!
Thanks!
Today cars are all electronics. Informations you are giving are so valuable. Lucky people living close to you..
Awesome Job! Please do more GL450's. Thank you again for all you great video's.
Glad you found the draw in the 2nd fuse box and not the last one. I wonder how many more of those modules will need replacing in the coming years?? Nice video by the way.
I wonder how many of those modules will be out of production in 5-10 years.
Me too😁 thanks for your comment its appriciated
Excellent work Dan, as usual! I'm surprised the thermal imager didn't show any heat on the fuse with the voltage drop.
Most of the time a fuse doesn't show up unless the current is very high
Your diagnosis of fault code is very genius... And Every video is learn Something new for me and Detailed diagnosis techniques and very knowledgeable... Thank you For your Genius Diagnosis video.
My pleasure
After watching this Dan, i can take on parasitic drain job 😊feel like anyway. You are my new idol loving watching your videos, thank you so much
Dan, I think they only other thing I would of done is check and monitor the current draw on that electric motor to be sure it wasn’t drawing excessively high current and burning that module out over time.
Actually we know what the draw of that motor was dont we? 😉 about 750mA
@@Diagnosedan Right, that was the draw you encountered, but I’m referring to what it would draw afterward, during use with the new module at its normal operating speeds, and to see if that changed as it got heated up from use.
Congratulations again Dan! The most fascinating of all the experience shared with us, is the way of diagnosis!!! Continued success in everything you do, the more you share with us! I really admire your skill and knowledge!!!
Thank you very much
this guy is a legend. Certainly my favorite automotive youtube channel
Wow! Thanks!!
Great video. I have a 2011 GL550. It's a very complicated automobile, bt videos like this help make things a tad easier.
Nice one Dan , great in depth testing there , the public haven't got a clue how difficult our job can be , they have no understanding how complex modern vehicles are , well done sir 👍👍👍👍
It can be very challenging at times but we dont give up do we😉💪
Great video as always Dan Great explanation and diagnoses using a methodical method. That Snappy thermal imager is great to have.Thanks as always Dan!
Thanks for always leaving a positive comment! Its really appreciated
Brilliant detective work again.
A fantastic explanation of a parasitic drain discovery. I think the nation owes you a huge thank you. Batteries will no longer be changed on a wim. I always recommend everyone to watch your channel, cos we all know, diagnosedan fixed it again!
Ha ha thanks!
Silly question- can we fix it??? of course Dan can!
🤣🤣
Dan, another excellent video. I love the way you take advantage of the miniscule resistance within the fuse. I never thought that tiny resistance being enough to give you a voltage drop across the fuse. I am curious, I will draw a quarter amp through a fuse and dial it up to 20 amps as I graph the voltage drop across the fuse. Can't wait to see the results. Thank you Dan, you really teaches well.
There are fuse voltage drop charts available online.😁
Zelf nooit geweten hoe ik lekstroom moest aan een auto in rust. Deze vlog is daar zeer helder over. Ben daar zeer blij mee. Dankjewel.
Good video as usual mate, but I must say that realizing its a Japan spec car will make a difference in diagnosis. If you have and im sure you have used merc wis, you will notice in the wire diagrams that there are often differences between a Japan, US or rest of the world car normally noted such as code 456 Japan or the like. That will make a big difference in what fuse fuse does what. Keep up the good work buddy
Thanks for the feedback
It’s left hand drive, can it be japan spec without being right hand drive?
You have an ex Yakuza car in front of you. Its clearly a model for Japanese market and Japan cars are right hand drive, but for some reason the japanese mafia prefers LHD cars, just to make a statement. Was watching a video about this.
I did know that some Japanese prefer European luxury cars LHD. But i didn't know those people were Yakuza😲
What's the word I'm looking for? ... Oh yes ... BRILLIANT!!!!
Dan, you are great, I noticed that you don't skimp on tools, you have all the tools in the world, the blunders are funny (BLOOPERS)
Not all tools, many more on my wish list😁
@11:51 you were checking AC volts not DC, so you may have read even higher mV if the meter was set right.
mV is not amps... and I bet it stays AC AND DC by mV on this Fluke.
@@-_Robert_- Corrected. The fluke can select AC or DC using the yellow button. It’s not auto switching on this model.
Do you have statistics of the cars coming in with dead control modules by make and model? It would be fun to see which models and what types of modules keep failing the most
Yes we do. As you might know or not know we have a program called DDTSB. For that program we make aftermarket technical bulletins and to know what fails on what model we have statistics on almost everything
@@Diagnosedan aaaaand that was a shameless plug for DDTSB :D haha. Love the show keep up the good work.
Hi DiagnoseDan, I wish I know to check Voltage drop cross the fuses when I worked as GM Technician! as they say, you're never "Too Old To Learn" !! Thank you the great Videos! 😃
We all learn every day until our last day😉
PERFECT ❤EXPLANATION ABSOLUTLY ❤loved it Greetings from Maastricht NL ❤❤❤
hahaha...."Pit menu"....as in "money pit".....😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Thank you Dan for another great video. Question, didn't the new module require coding to the vehicle. Here in the US many if not all MB modules require OEM SOFTWARE CODING, THANK YOU, TMP from N.J.
This module is a "dumb" module and doesn't need to be coded, you can't even "talk" to it with your scantool directly
A good auto technician is a good diagnostician... Great work.
My man Dan!!!!! Love this guy and his content.
Great video Dan. Voltage drop across fuses is absolutely last resort for me. I'd take that amp clamp and go to the last fuse box downstream from the battery, and work my way closer to the fuse boxes closest to the battery. This will save you time!
Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment Mario. I can see why you would use that method although in my experience the power feeds coming in to the fusebox aren't always easily accessible.
Another way to read voltage drop on the fuses is to extend one meter lead(+) and connect it to the battery + terminal. Then probe each fuse with the negative meter lead. The drop of the circuitry between the battery and the fuse will be included so the drop will indicate on either side of the fuse, just a little higher on the load side. No chopsticks needed.
🤣🤣 I'm getting handy with my chopsticks
@@Diagnosedan yeah this skill is kind of fun on low voltage circuits (much below 220V) 😁
Or just a wire to + with a clamp meter around and then touch every fuse with voltage and read current
@@Diagnosedan When will you show us eating Chinese food or Sushi with your multimeter chopsticks?😂
@@soptea Whoops! Not every fuse has power applied - some may be powered via relays (also visible there on some fse boxes) and you run the risk of damaging things or waking up some 'dormant' module (if the car was asleep).
That’s actually what I thought the problem was going to be. I have an E39 5 series BMW and the #1 cause of a parasitic drain with those models is the “Final Stage Unit” that controls the blower motor failing. Good job, really enjoy your videos.
Very good, enjoyable and informative. Understanding circuits is so important. A++
I look forward to these videos. I'll never work on a Mercedes in my area but I know I can use the same procedures on the Chevys, Fords or Dodges that the Hillbillies drive here. :)
🤣🤣👍
LHD car in Japan is odd?
alot of Japanese people prefer European luxury cars LHD
Great Dan never lets a "error" unresolved.
😉😉
A Japanese car but with the steering wheel on the left? Weird.
I once heard it is a status symbol to drive an import car with the steering wheel on the left, don't know if it's true or not, but if it is, that might explain it.
@@unmountablebootvolume that's true that is a thing there in Japan, they like to copy western stuff for some reason.
Or they swapped it. Some years ago I was searching for a BMW M3 and you don't want to know what kind of imported junk is driving around. Some of them from the UK for example had the steering wheel swapped for the Dutch market. Crazy.
@@unmountablebootvolumeThats also what i heard
Sir I really appreciate your videos they are always very instructive and educational
Thats great to hear
Dan the man fixed the fan. Superb!!
😁👍
Thanks. I wish there was more patientechanics loke you in the world!
Good to see you back here.
Step by step diagnosis, clear and precise explanation. Great job! 👍
Thanks!
Another great videos, Your bloopers are fun to watch!
😁👍
Where are you Dan not seen a video in over 2 months missing you’re genius 😢
Sir to you it might seem common sence. But for me you are a absolute genius 🙏🙏🙏
🤣👍
Wonderful diagnosis Dan again,thanks
Diagnose Dan Bloopers............ now let's all laugh Toooogether 🤣
Your videos are very helpful. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
Wow, you were lucky with this one Dan, not far to look at a fuse well done Dan.
Thanks David
You do well, Mr. Dan. You do well. 😊👍
Best on the net! No one can beat Dan!
Wow wow wow! What more can I say, I accidentally stumbled across one of your videos, and watched it, and really liked it, i have since watched quite a few of your videos, it's very clear to me that you are extremely good at what you do, not to mention that you also do your videos in English, that not being your first language, and explaining a very complex subject, is just amazing, in my opinion you are one smart chap, keep up the new videos, as I'm personally enjoying them. Neil from England
Nice job Dan! I was hoping it would be harder one for you... Like all the networks staying awake 😁😁💪
I think that would be easier, the only things that could cause that is ECU , BCM , Relay or Key ,
@@akaitv6606 no lol
Didn't you in one of your last video charging battery and in same time measure for parasitic draw.
@@ivandrago2557 yes just connect charger to the battery posts. It was a big draw and took a while to diagnose so had to maintain battery voltage 👍
@@PineHollowAutoDiagnostics Thank you
Wow, this is the second of your Vids I've watched. Totally brilliant man. Love it!
Power fully diagnosis....thanks u so much diagnosis dan......from india
This was soooo coool!! I've learned something new today. Thanks, Dan!
I had a 12-volt battery drain down to 800 millivolts, and the customer rarely drove the vehicle! My first step was to check the battery voltage before even attempting to jump the battery! I am impressed with the number of fuses and your dedication to finding the fuse causing the problem!
Thanks for the great comment 👍
DiagnoseDan, the best again 👍 Thanks for sharing your knowledge. I had a similar problem (a battery drain) in VW Phaeton W12, one of my first job. In short, it was a great adventure 😀.
Entertaining, interesting and educational. Thanks Danny!
Thank you very much
Dan we miss you!! Go out and find some interesting case studies and put them out for us to see. You always have good videos.
i love dan videos. every time i watch his video i learn somthing.
I'm from Belarus. This is perfect. Thanks a million!!!!!I study from your videos from KZhead, I specially learned English for this
A thats great! I hope the videos help!
Always a pleasure watching you work Dan!
Thats great to hear
Excellent diagnostic methods ..
Great job teaching! AGAIN!
😁👍
First thought: The handles of the doors - sometimes there is a short! They heat up massively! I love to see your videos and learn every time!
Thats great to hear!