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I drive a Vauxhall/Opel Astra Mk5 1.8l SRi, registered in 2004. For 2/3 months now I've been having to keep a spare battery in the car as the car battery is running flat.

My first thought was that the battery was old and needed replacing, so had that done - the problem persisted.

Then I thought, it's likely the alternator, so I had the electrics checked - something in the electrical system is draining the battery at a rate of 2 amps when everything is switched off.

I had the alternator removed from the electrical system for repair / replacement - two mechanics have tested the alternator, and it's working fine.

I'm all out of ideas as to what could be causing the problem now, so if anyone has any ideas on what to look out for, I'd be most grateful.

Note: Last night I was checking the interior electrics, specifically the light in the glove compartment. I was closing the compartment door slowly to see if the light went off (a bit like you do with the fridge door when you're a kid), but I couldn't see whether it went off or not. When I held my hand over the light it felt very warm - too warm for a few seconds worth of illumination in my opinion. - Could it be the glove box light? I don't see how such a small and insignificant bulb could drain a battery overnight, or even draw 2 amps from the battery.

Your thoughts please!

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    The easiest way to see if the bulb is the problem is to pull the bulb and see if the issue goes away. I would think 2amps is quite a bit of draw for a single bulb, though. It may be part of the problem and not the whole problem.
    – Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2 ♦
    Feb 12, 2014 at 12:30
  • 2 amps is way too much for one little bulb.
    – agent provocateur
    Oct 19, 2018 at 19:10

2 Answers 2

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Put a cell phone with video recording 'on' in the glove box and close it to confirm if the light goes off.

Measure amps on the battery and then start pulling fuses to see if you can determine the system causing the drain.

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2 amps seems a bit much for a small glove comp light.

I suggest using a multimeter and testing connections with the car off.

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