[Frankie P]

Dear Membership,

I came home from being out of town only to find that my new Interstate battery is drained dead. Clearly, I have another problem going on. At this point, I can't access the trunk or any electrically actuated switch due to the dead battery. I would like to put a charger on the car, but I will have to do so through the engine bay. Is anybody aware of a positive battery terminal lead in the engine bay? I can't get to my manuals to check, either. Any input is greatly appreciated.

On a related topic, perhaps some of you can help diagnose what is going on. After receiving my car back from an authorized dealer service center, I noted that my aftermarket amplifier would not turn on. Upon reaching home, I noticed that a 60 amp fuse link at the positive battery terminal was blown. It had never blown before in two years of operation. I just assumed that in disconnecting the battery in prepration for the service, the mechanic made contact with some part of the car that caused the fuse to blow. No big deal, or so I thought. The next morning, the battery was dead. Being a four year old battery, I just considered it a coincidence, and replaced the battery (see prior thread on aftermarket battery options). The replacement went uneventfully, the car started up just fine, and my stereo amp powered up (I replaced the 60 amp fuse as well). However, I haven't driven the car since replacing the battery (one week this past Thursday). Last night I found the new battery dead. Clearly, some type of relay which is supposed to close when the ignition turns off is staying open, and at this point, I can only relate this problem to whatever event occured during service that caused the fuse to blow. The car is still under warranty, and I will eventually have to send it off back to the dealer. Any ideas?

 

[demoe]

Frankie

sorry to hear about your problem. I beleive you have an aftermarket stereo in your car, which complicates matters. This is one of the reason why I am stalling at changing much about the stereo system except for speaker replacement. I say this, as In my Lotus I had the same issue. Battery died, replaced it, went dead in a week. Checked the Alternator/charging systems which were good. After a long period of frustration, It ended up being that I had to remove my aftermarket alarm system as it was creating a constant drain on my electrical system causing batteries to die.

 

[MikeA]

I think you can open the trunk with the ignition key. I am not sure, and am not at home today to check, however, I also had to get to my trunk to charge my dead battery one day and I recall I found a key hole, maybe in the area of the license plate light. Good luck.
Mike

 

[maserati of minneapolis]

The key is between the license plate lights on the rear decklid. Turn the key clockwise. They are typically pretty hard to turn, you may even think you might break something, but this is normal.

There are no positive posts under the hood.

As far as your drain, we have seen one car that did have a bit of a drain on the battery, but was something we diagnosed and repaired. It was related to the radio not turning completely off.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

- Mark

 

[Frankie P]

Dear Membership,

Thanks for the info. I was able to open the trunk and get a trickle on the battery. We'll go from here.

Demoe, I don't know if you should be discouraged in seeking out an aftermarket stereo. I really don't think this problem is stereo related, as I've enjoyed this stereo for 2.5 years on the original battery. The original battery died the day after I received my car back from service (July 12th). At first I thought it was a fluke, as the battery was four years old anyway. However, now with the new battery (only one week old) having died, I can't help but think that whatever event during the service that caused the 60 amp fuse to blow caused some other problem. In any event, I do appreciate the input. Better speakers will help. Be careful with regard to their impedance. Some higher-end speakers with outboard crossovers fool the NIT unit into thinking it cannot power them, and the system shuts down. No matter how llittle or much you decide to do, I would have a shop that has worked on this particular car do it. The few hundred dollars will go along way if something goes wrong. Check the prior posts as well. One post had talked about polarity changes in the original Maserati wiring harness. Good luck, and again, thanks for your input.