Power drain problems

i have a 82 camaro z-28 that i just bought about 6 months ago, that i now my project. It has a 350 in it and i am putting a 4spd saginaw or 5spd borg-warner, not sure yet. But the problem is with the battery or something. I drove the car after buying it into storage. It started fine and ran fairly decent to the storage unit. About a week later i tried to start it to get it to my freinds house to work on. I had to jump it to get it started. After we got it there we shut it off. Then decided to go buy some smokes so we were going to take the car but it wouldnt start. We got nothing out of it. We went to buy a new battery, then the car started once, then we shut her off after like 30 seconds, and tried to fire her right up, and nothing again. The alternator was tested and it came out fine. So i have no idea where to begin looking for a problem with the damn thing.Thanks in advanceP.S- i am also looking for a 4spd shifter if anyone might have one

My friend has a 89 camaro that did the same thing. He always called me to come jump him, boy did that get annoying. He finally started looking to see what the problem was, because he knew it wasnt the starter, he had already replaced that. It turned out that the ground wire coming from the battery had come loose and wasnt making a secure connection. I'd check that first if I were you.

where did the ground wire come loose?? Cus i know that the connections to the battery are tight and clean??

where did the ground wire come loose?? Cus i know that the connections to the battery are tight and clean??
No sorry, I didnt mean the connection to the battery. Follow the negative wire from the battery, the other end of it should bolt down somewhere to the body of the car to provide the ground connection. Where it bolts down to, make sure it's nice and tight.

okay i will take a look at that hopefully tomorrow, but otherwise it will take a little bit if i can't do it tomorrow. I will update you with what i find out as soon as i find out. Thanks

Are you shure that the battery is actually draining? Or are you just assuming that is the problem? Do you have a battery charger with a gage on it? If you do, or you know someone who does, you should try to duplicate the no start and hook the charger up to the batter to see if the battery is truely drained...
Does this problem only happen when the car is warm/hot, or does it also happen when you try to start the car in the morning after it has been sitting for several hours?

the problem happens with the car no matter when you try to start it, whether it is warm or cold or any of the above. we tried charging the battery with one of my friends chargers and it said it was charging the battery so we left it on for like a day and a half, then tried starting it and we got nothing, so we took the battery in to get it tested and they said that it was a bad battery, and it was checked as a good battery when i bought it, so the car completely killed the battery somehow.

[QUOTE=malletslinger]Are you shure that the battery is actually draining? Or are you just assuming that is the problem? QUOTE]

exaclty, get a multimeter so you can test the battery voltage. if it is indeed low, then you switch to the ampmeter (in-line hookup) and mointer how many amps are being pulled. Anything over .5 amps would indicate a pull. The easiest way to determing what is to remove each fuse until the draw stops.

BUT, you are saying that it goes dead in a half hour? That's one hell of a draw. Only 2 things could really cause if it's true, a shorted out alternator or starter.

You can install a battery cut-off switch too make shure your battery doesnt die when the car is sitting.(also a good theft deterrent)
Id say hide the switch in the rear ashtray ;)

That's funny, my old 'maro had akill switch there.

Great minds think alike.lol
It just seems like a good place to put it because A:it never really gets used, so it wont be in the way and B: because most people wouldn't think to look there...
I guess someone stole my idea before I even had it...and I thought I was sooo origional :cwm27: