Still looking for the source of my 1969 144's battery drain problem. Tried swapping out batteries, so, it's not bad cells in a particular battey. Disconnected three wires on the alternator, one by one, no difference. It's not the diodes draining off power.

Hooked a volt meter between the battery positive post* and the disconnected battery terminal to the +starter.

Drains at about 12v

Leaving the volt meter in-line, I pull each fuse in turn, hoping to identify which circuit is faulty.

None!

I could pull each and all fuses and the drain continues unabated.

A guy at Carlisle suggested a wirring harness might be chafing somewhere.

By disconnecting each of the two accessory power harnesses at the =starter terminal, I rules out the single medium-guage red wire that runs up along the passenger side firewall (I didn't folloe it, but I figure it goes to the =alternator terminal)

Curiously enough, with both accessroy harnesses pulled and just the battery cable attatched to the =started post, it still drains at a rate of 3v. Is this suspicious?

So, the short is in the main harness going through the firewall into the steering column and top of the fuse block. Somewhere brfore the fuses there is a short to ground, so it seems.

I wiggled all the harnesses and individual wires I could see and feel, opened up the steering column covers and checked there, too.

Can't find anything.

Coincidently, I have no horn nor backup lights, whereas I did have both in the recent past.

Two guys conculted there electrical diagrams and said there should be a blue wire to fuse #5.(Horn and Rear Demist)

I have no such blue wire. Actually, no wires are on #5.

My Hanes manual disagrees. For 1969 it shows the Horn with Brun (brown) wires along with the reverse lights on fuse #2. Brown wires is what I can see at the horns, themselves.

Any ideas?

(Obviously, circuit #2 need to be investigated closely)

This car did have a history of chafing on the choke cables where they pass though an oval gole in the steering column support bracket. I repaired that with PlastiDip.

I need to identify how the horn get its constant power. It passes, I know , through a round relay. It's numbersd 803 (in part) and I have just one - on the firewall in front of the passenger.Unfortunately, I have no handy spare to swap in.

So what do you all think?


*Hint: if you're wanting to conduct such a drain test and can't figure out how to hook the red lead of your voltmeter to that fat battery post (I have aligator clips which are not THAT wide opening), try sliping a equally sized socket over the therminal. Put your red clip onto that where the 3/8" ratchet would insert.