Hey all, I have a 2014 Dodge caravan, my battery dies when I leave it set. I disconnected the ground cable and hooked a test light between the battery terminal and the ground cable and discovered I have a dead short. I pulled all of the fuses but the light stays on. Any ideas what could cause this? Also while I had the test light set up I hear a clicking from in the dash board. the test light pulsed with the clicking.

 

Typical Chrysler product wiring problems, which have been their #1 issue for the last 40+ years. Sorry for playing the bummer on this one, but I would take it to a skilled automotive electrical tech, they are all well versed in Chrysler electrical issues, and tracing down the cause yourself will most likely be a monster of a job.
Hopefully someone here has had this specific issue before and can answer your questions.

 

You need a volt/amp meter, not a test light.
You need to know how much current is being drawn.
Did this problem start all of a sudden? How long have you owned the van?

 

@wick012..... that is not a very helpful reply. All auto manufacturers have had wiring problems.

All vehicles will light a test light when connected like that. The computer draws power, the alarm draws power, the radio draws power. Like mentioned..... you need am ammeter connected inline to determine the exact load and then troubleshoot from there. If there is a draw with ALL the fuses out it may be an alternator issue.

 

Most newer cars don't disconnect all electrical loads ( like the clock, fob receiver, computers, etc.) when the ignition is turned off. Each complete circuit draws current from the battery. Your test light is just another load in the complete circuits. You need a schematic for your vehicle to determine if any electrical loads are not fused and always on. As someone has suggested, a better test is to use a dc ammeter. place it in series between the battery negative terminal and negative battery cable. Read the ammeter with the ignition off. Check with your dealer service department to verify the reading is within spec. Don't feel alone here. I have a 2013 Lexus that only gets driven once every 2-3 weeks. Sometimes the battery will start the car, other time the voltage is too low to turn the starter. The operators manual states the fob has a vehicle battery save feature. I checked the ignition off battery draw and saw no difference with the battery save feature activated. When the dealer told me to use a battery tender, I knew I was rowing the wrong way. GOOD luck.

 

Just as an aside..... if you have a seldomly used vehicle that is kept outdoors.... a small 5W solar panel is the perfect thing to keep the battery maintained. It takes up little room on the dash.