issue with battery in truck

[bergoff]

i have a 98 ram 1500 with only 46k on it. i went out and it wouldn't start. so i jumped it and off i went. it died about 3 blocks away. but it started right back up. went home and checked the voltage of the battery 12.7. when i try to start it drops to 3.5. its a interstate battery that is only 2 years old. swapped the battery with a good one and it only dropped to 11.3 and runs fine. has anyone heard of a short in a battery causing the motor to shut off. i will take the battery and have it tested where i bought it. it has a 85 month warranty. thanks shaun

[bergoff]

i checked the alternator and that is working fine.

[Pappy]

Bad battery(yes, any voltage drop under 10.8 depending on temperature is usually what you look for when load testing. The only other thing that it could possibly be would be a bad starter, where by it draws more current then it was designed to, but if it didnt drop as you show when you installed another battery, my money would be on the battery. 24 months should be covered under the free replacement as long as you have a reciept

[F-16Guy]

Yeah, I would say the battery, too. Batteries are a crap shoot. Sometimes you get a really good one that lasts forever, and sometimes you get a dud. I've had a couple of batteries that died so hard that you couldn't even jump start the car with them attached. It seems like one factor in battery life is how good the cable connections are. Check your cables at both ends (battery and starter/ground) for corrosion, looseness, etc. You may have to cut the cable back a way to find good wire and then install a new connector. It may be possible to buy a new cable, but new cars have so many things attached to the battery lead that it makes it more difficult. Once everything is clean, it's a good idea to spray some battery terminal sealer on all of the connections to keep the corrosion off.

[scuzz]

Also, check your wires to make sure that they haven't taken a dump as well.

[wilkin250r]

How did you check the alternator?

[bergoff]

i have had some issues with the wiring in the truck in the past. i got out the fluke and was testing amp draw and with the doors shut it was .43 milliamps. i was told by my mechanic friend that it shoud be about .03 he thought for dodge. i started to pull fuses and it dropped after i pulled a fuse labeled IOD. i have no idea what this is for but it runs the dome lights and the radio. but the radio has its own fuse. i hate wiring issues.

[Pappy]

IOD ( ignition off draw )

It should also control the power locks if I remember correctly.

Even at a OKD of .43 MaH, it would take quite some time to draw down a fully charged battery.

Did the truck sit for any length of time?

[bergoff]

no just over night. i have no mods don to it electric wise. and the battery is only 2 years old. if it dont rain i will be working on it after supper.