Kevin Schemmer Posted May 21, 2017 Report Share Posted May 21, 2017 I just bought a 2007 GT500 Super Snake and for some unknown reason to me the battery keeps running down. I have made sure everything is off inside the car, lights, fan, radio ext. Does anyone else have this problem or know what the drain is coming from? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twobjshelbys Posted May 21, 2017 Report Share Posted May 21, 2017 (edited) I just bought a 2007 GT500 Super Snake and for some unknown reason to me the battery keeps running down. I have made sure everything is off inside the car, lights, fan, radio ext. Does anyone else have this problem or know what the drain is coming from? Thanks Things like radio and burglar alarm system are "always on" drawing some trickle current. If you don't drive our car every week or two you should be using a battery tender. (Which is a smart trickle charger, but not the same. Be sure to get Battery Tender. The one I got came from Interstate Battery but it is OEMed from the one that comes up if you google battery tender. The unit comes with two pigtails: Clips and "O" rings. Both have a polarity aligning connector. I mounted my pigtail "O" rings behing the battery cable bolts (or accessory tap if you have one) and permanently mounted the cable end polarity plug in the front grille area (wherever it would conveniently reach) so I didn't have to raise the hood. Be careful though, you forget to remove the connector it will typically disconnect at the polarity plug but I had one instance where it pulled the AC brick out of the plug. Also, be sure to get the "smart" version. The simple version is "always on" (two LEDs on the front), but the smart version will trickle charge to "fully charged" and then go into standby mode. This version has three LEDs on the front. Edited May 21, 2017 by twobjshelbys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Schemmer Posted May 21, 2017 Author Report Share Posted May 21, 2017 Thanks for the info. I'll give that a try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
39Mustang Posted May 21, 2017 Report Share Posted May 21, 2017 Since I own multiple late model Shelby's I know this shit for sure lol MotorCrap batteries are just that crap. Get rid of it and get an Interstate or Optima If car not every day driver then no matter what your batter is these cars actually Fords since 2006 just suck the batter dead if not being used due to all electronics specifically the alarm and the clock within the radio. Either battery tender like he said or you still need to drive it around the block as starting it up letting it run 5-10 mins is actually worse puts more draw on a battery going down Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shel-b001 Posted May 21, 2017 Report Share Posted May 21, 2017 I just bought a 2007 GT500 Super Snake and for some unknown reason to me the battery keeps running down. I have made sure everything is off inside the car, lights, fan, radio ext. Does anyone else have this problem or know what the drain is coming from? Thanks Every time you let your battery go dead it destroys a percentage of the cells, not good for ANY make of battery . I use a battery tender on my car, boat & truck batteries & get good life from all my batteries . My `07 Shelby is still going strong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKSHELBY Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 yep , when you are not driving it plug it in. I have used a C-Tek maintainer for 9 years an I still have the original 2008 battery in my SGT... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clark17357 Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 I just bought a 2007 GT500 Super Snake and for some unknown reason to me the battery keeps running down. I have made sure everything is off inside the car, lights, fan, radio ext. Does anyone else have this problem or know what the drain is coming from? Thanks I have a backup idea if the other suggestions do not resolve your issue and it stems from personal experience. A few years ago at the Terlingua event, my battery was, seemingly, unable to hold a charge and was dead each morning. Thought it was the battery dying so, when I got to Alpine, Texas (first real town after Terlingua) I bought a new battery and drove home to San Diego. I do not have the opportunity to drive my car often and keep it at my office. A couple of weeks later, I went to start it and the battery was dead. I did the normal checklist (like you did), charged the battery back up and hoped for the best. No luck; dead again. I am fortunate to know an automotive electrical genius (a rare bird as we all know) so I asked him to check things out. He did and his process was to disconnect every modification made by Shelby (my car went to the Mod Shop so has any number of connections not on your typical SGT). He reported that, even reduced to stock, there was still an electrical bleed. I asked him for his best idea of what was wrong. He said it was probably something called the GEM. The GEM stands for General (some say Generic) Electronic Module. I did some research and found that some Ford vehicles have frequent GEM issues. The 2005-2009 Mustangs have an almost a zero GEM failure rate (F-150s have a right rate). Anyway, I ordered a new GEM (took forever to get it because they are not, typically, stocked by the dealer) and had it installed. The installation of the new GEM did the trick. Hope you can solve things without having to go that route (about a $750 deal but I am in SoCal so, maybe. less elsewhere for the labor) but, if not, give this some thought. Best of luck. Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug_GT350 Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 Since I own multiple late model Shelby's I know this shit for sure lol MotorCrap batteries are just that crap. Get rid of it and get an Interstate or Optima If car not every day driver then no matter what your batter is these cars actually Fords since 2006 just suck the batter dead if not being used due to all electronics specifically the alarm and the clock within the radio. Either battery tender like he said or you still need to drive it around the block as starting it up letting it run 5-10 mins is actually worse puts more draw on a battery going down I hate to disagree, my original Motorcraft battery lasted 10 years! It went dead several times early on due to the lack of a Battery Tender but once I started using one I never had a problem again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilmor Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 MotorCrap batteries are just that crap. Get rid of it and get an Interstate or Optima Tell that to my 10 year old Motorcraft. OP, how old is your battery, and have you had it tested? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clark17357 Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 Not to get off into what brand of battery is best when replacement time comes (so, of course, that is where I am going J ) but I have had uneven performance from Optima batteries. I have had one (Red Top) in my boat for over 5 years and it is fine. When I put Optimas (all Red Tops) in 4 of my vehicles, all used regularly, 3 of the 4 failed within 2 years. The one that did not fail was still going strong when I sold the vehicle. I put an Interstate battery in my 2008 SGT when I had the GEM issue described above in this thread and, as others have mentioned, use a battery tender. Here in SoCal, we do not have the bitterly cold, battery killing temperatures some of you have to cope with but, regardless, a battery tender is a must. Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug_GT350 Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 Not to get off into what brand of battery is best when replacement time comes (so, of course, that is where I am going J ) but I have had uneven performance from Optima batteries. I have had one (Red Top) in my boat for over 5 years and it is fine. When I put Optimas (all Red Tops) in 4 of my vehicles, all used regularly, 3 of the 4 failed within 2 years. The one that did not fail was still going strong when I sold the vehicle. I put an Interstate battery in my 2008 SGT when I had the GEM issue described above in this thread and, as others have mentioned, use a battery tender. Here in SoCal, we do not have the bitterly cold, battery killing temperatures some of you have to cope with but, regardless, a battery tender is a must. Jim As long as we're hijacking the thread.... It ain't the cold that kills a battery.... According to the Car Care Council, a group representing automotive repair shops, your battery is more likely to fail in summer than in winter. "Summer heat is the real culprit," said Rich White, executive director, Car Care Council. "Many battery problems start long before the temperatures drop. Heat, more than cold, shortens battery life." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clark17357 Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 As long as we're hijacking the thread.... It ain't the cold that kills a battery.... According to the Car Care Council, a group representing automotive repair shops, your battery is more likely to fail in summer than in winter. "Summer heat is the real culprit," said Rich White, executive director, Car Care Council. "Many battery problems start long before the temperatures drop. Heat, more than cold, shortens battery life." I'm a SoCal kid (age 67 kid) and know nothing about cold weather (and you just proved it) other than to blame it for anything bad that happens. What I do know for certain is that batteries fail at the most inopportune times. Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twobjshelbys Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 Almost all batteries in Phoenix and Vegas (and the rest of the desert southwest) will fail after about two years (in the the third year). Cars I park in the garage don't have much trouble buy my truck battery just died in its 5th year (two years in CO, so year 3 here). The previous battery had lasted 8 years. I had the same history in Phoenix. So now I buy the cheapest battery with full replacement for 3 years (usually 5 years prorated in years 4 and 5). This time that place was Walmart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffJ Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 11 years and going on my Motorcraft in my GT-H. I use the Shelby branded C-Tek on that car and have a 5 bank Battery Tender for the others in the garage. I used to have a lot of battery drain in my car. That stopped when I started turning off my radio before shutting off the car. At least in my case, that solved the dead battery issue. With the C-Tek now, it of course keeps the battery at full charge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug_GT350 Posted May 22, 2017 Report Share Posted May 22, 2017 I'm a SoCal kid (age 67 kid) and know nothing about cold weather (and you just proved it) other than to blame it for anything bad that happens. What I do know for certain is that batteries fail at the most inopportune times. Jim Ain't that the truth! 11 years and going on my Motorcraft in my GT-H. I use the Shelby branded C-Tek on that car and have a 5 bank Battery Tender for the others in the garage. I used to have a lot of battery drain in my car. That stopped when I started turning off my radio before shutting off the car. At least in my case, that solved the dead battery issue. With the C-Tek now, it of course keeps the battery at full charge. You would be surprised at the looks I get when I tell people that.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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