yet another p38 problem,power drain

[automania]

the latest problem in my p38 saga (should of bought a disco like everyone said), is it is going flat over the course of a day or so, charginging voltage is around 13.8 so not brill but should be ok id have thought. thing is the light on the gear changer console that tells you what gear your in, the red light, glows dimly when the ignition is off, is this normal? the battery isnt new but came off my v8 90 and never failed on that.

now to check for a drain am i right in thinking i take th + lead of the battery and put my voltmeter between it and see how many amps its drawing? then remove fuses till the amperage drops (persumin there amperage there to start).

thanks again

[thermidorthelobster]

Things glowing dimly when they shouldn't be are sometimes a sign of earthing problems.  However, with the P38 anything is possible.  Checking the fuses like you say is probably a good place to start.

[v8kenny]

That dimly glowing red light tells you that the BeCM is still active - it should go out after about 8 mins unless something is keeping it awake
This is usually down to a faulty RF receiver (picks up the signal to lock/unlock from the remote) picking up a signal from somewhere else - usually a garage door remote or a remote weather station etc
If it has just started doing this then are you parking in a different place from normal where it may pick up a new signal, or have your neighbours had  anything fitted lately ?
Check that the BeCM does go to sleep by locking the car from the inside and waiting to see if the light does go out - the key will need to be removed from the ignition - you can also disconnect the Rf receiver arial from the side window which will make it less likely to pick up rogue signals, you may have to stand a bit closer for your remote to work though
This RF receiver problem is a common one and you can now buy a replacement that cures the problem but not cheap so check other problems first
If your battery is quite old then change it RR take a lot out of the battery and it may not be holding full charge especially if you do a lot of short trips
I would change the alternator too - winter is coming and you need all the volts you can going back to the battery
The BeCM wakes up about every 15 mins to check things like if the car is level so it can adjust the height so it will quickly find out if your battery is lacking
Good luck