RO88YB

I decided to replace the radio in my sister's car for her. nice thought right?-not when she tries to start it and the battery is COMPLETELY dead. The vehicle is a 2001 chevy cavalier (4 door) and the radio is a VR3 brand.

After replacing the radio, i waited till the next morning before rotating her tires. after the tires were rotated i took the car for a spin and it ran fine. I parked it. .A few days later she tries to start it and the battery is dead. Then, i jumped her car and had it running in park for ten minutes (in order to get it nice and charged). The very next day she tries to start it again and the battery is completely dead. Every time the radio is not left on.

My best guess would be the afterstock radio is not a good idea or a wire is shorting out somewhere. (btw i did all the wiring with wire nuts and electric tape)

If anyone has the slightest idea what to do, i would appreciate the effort.

-Thanks

therewolf

Seek professional advice. Go to a large local shop which install audio/video gear.
With my truck, for example, it turned out that particular year needed a special data port adapter for an aftermarket radio to work.

Also, (before you go to a shop) you'll want to replace the wirenuts with either crimp-connectors or solder connections. The style of connections you're making are for 110 Volt AC house wiring, not 12 Volt DC car wiring.

Last, there's the possibility you have a low-voltage short draining the battery. Just a bare wire lightly touching a metal surface would be all it takes.This is assuming you don't have a blown diode plate in the alternator.

How much juice is the new audio system pulling? If the audio system pulls a lot of power, or is played very loud constantly, juice from the alternator which is supposed to charge the battery is running the audio system. If the battery doesn't have a chance to recharge, you'll have difficulty starting.

MDTAHOE

That will never properly charge a battery. It could be possible that the battery was on its last leg before you started working on it. The time you had interior lights on and radio playing could have just pushed it over the edge. There may not be anything wrong with your install, you just may need a new battery.

RO88YB

Thanks for the help. i got the car started and unhooked the radio. ill try and start it tomorrow to find out tomorrow if the battery sucks or if the radio is pulling the power.

I will also have to find time to test the battery and ask about the wiring. Ill be back with input later.

RO88YB

ok so the power wire coming off the car was constantly live and therefore was running the amp. So i took the wire that ran the amp (from the radio) and connected it to the ignition switch...PROBLEM SOLVED : )

Thanks everyone

DJ Lambert

I'm having o4 chevy taheo.the same problem, I put a new radio in wall back and everytime I try to start it
​​​​​​in the morning, it goes complete dead. I charged up with my charger at the house next day, I charge it up, put it back in and start up the next day, if that if I had it off a baby, days, 2 or 3 days, goes complete dead battery goes completely dead, does anybody have an I deal how you get that problem fixed or resolved thank you
Email at dmlambertjr1@yahoo.com
If you have any ideas, how to fix it or how to resolve the problem.

hanky

At this time we don't know the condition of the battery or how well the charging system is working.
Those two items need to be known then if all is OK, start measuring for current drain while the vehicle is parked.
The right way to do this is to get everything set up so you do not need to open any doors or touch anything before you get a chance to measure which fuse is carrying more than normal current. You measure the voltage drop across the fuse. Pulling out the fuse could cause the problem to disappear .Once that is determined, then we look in the owner's manual to see what that particular fuse protects. Now we have some idea what system(s) are involved and where to look..