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Overheard a guy at the parts counter arguing his car needed a new alternator because his battery kept dying

He was convinced after watching a YouTube video, but the counter guy asked if he'd checked for a parasitic draw first. Tbh, it made me realize how often we jump to the expensive fix without doing the basic checks. What's the most common misdiagnosis you see customers bring in?
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3 Comments
finley820
finley8202mo agoMost Upvoted
Honestly, I've seen that go both ways. Sometimes the simple check is all it takes, but other times people waste hours chasing a small draw when the alternator was bad all along.
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andrew_miller90
That 'waste hours chasing a small draw' part got me. When you do see a real parasitic draw, what's the weirdest source you've found? I'm talking stuff like a glovebox light staying on or a bad relay stuck closed. Seen any that made you scratch your head for a while?
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oscarb71
oscarb712mo ago
What changed your mind about that?
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