Hello guys, I have an RDX (2013) which dies after a day or two. It has about 60k miles and was in an accident from the rear (but it is still clean title). Also of note, the check keyless access system light always comes on, but I’ve used the car for a year and it has never posed any problem (even the dealership said they weren’t sure what was causing it other than possible faulty repair from the accident near the trunk)

It’s not the battery as I have swapped for a new one (convinced by dealership even though the other one was 1 year old and STILL perfect). I don’t think it’s the alternator because The battery was at 14ish Volts with engine running.

I measured a drain of about 500mA from fuse 29, which is the backup fuse well after the car turned off- which I linked to a clicking noise coming from under the steering wheel area. This clicking was continuous and happened for about a month (when car first started issue), but today it didn’t occur. When it did occur, it seemed that it would happen when the car was locked. Also of note, my key fob would automatically unlock the car if it’s inside and I locked it (i’m not sure if this a feature or issue as i have disabled auto lock doors).

I, today measured the drain on the battery (without the clicking) to be about 130mA- which completely disappeared (~1.3mA) when I removed fuse 29 aka the backup fuse. Do you guys know what circuits this fuse powers or what components I can unplug to see what is causing this drain?

Please, please, please ask for more info if you need it- I’ve been trying to fix it for a month now (i don’t like the dealership after what they pulled on me and even an ‘electrician’ a friend knew said it was nothing, but there is clearly drain).

 

It could be leftovers from some dealer installed alarm system. Even if you don't buy the alarm, they leave parts behind, just not installing some module.
Dealers put those systems in all their cars because it makes them easier to unlock and show. But you can imagine that the installer was perhaps less than
competent. Maybe not even a dealer guy, but some vendor who comes by. Look down directly under the steering column and see if there is some little box
or the screw holes from removing one. Look for a sticker on the driver's door. I had to take our used 2016 back to the dealer to have the remnants of a system removed
because it was causing the horn to honk every time we started the RDX. They said they could make it stop honking, but by that time I had already researched the brand
(KARR in my case) and found complaints of the system cutting the ignition even when disabled.

You might as Dave, in his factory service manual requests thread, for the keyless access system troubleshooting and wiring diagrams. It could be an issue related to the rear damage.
I know it could on our 2016, but I don't know how the 2013 rear hatch operates.

 

Thanks, I asked dave for the keyless access system diagram and will read it if he is able to come back with it. I also found the power distribution diagram from him. If you are a little knowledgeable on this topic I had just a few more questions:
Are these components right (from page 6 of attached power distribution diagram); how can I find these in my vehicle? They all seem to be located in the center junction box 2 but I am not sure how to find that.

1. gauge control module
2. acuralink control unit
3. audio unit/audio-navigation unit
4. multi-informational display unit
5. audio display unit
6. anc/active sound control unit
7. sunlight sensor
8. audio-navigation switch panel
9. homelink unit
10. front hfl-navigation-anc/active sound control mic

Lastly, should I include the MICU and the part of the circuit that leads to the driver's junction box?

Thanks again, you gave me hope for my situation!

 

Whoops, forgot to attach the diagram, here you go. Thanks again

 

A few recommendations. This is just information. The practice of removing one fuse at a time until you find the faulty circuit is not recommended; doing so will wake the system up. I suggest you search ‘Parasitic Drain’ in YouTube about this and you will see what I mean. Garage Gurus has a good video on this and also does Opus IVS. There is a long list of situations that will cause the system to wake up; for this reason you need to plan ahead. You must first prepare the vehicle and your test setup, then allow the vehicle to go into sleep mode, then you can start your measurements. Generally speaking, my rule of thumb is that (in sleep mode) up to 50- milliamps is considered normal, and up to 85-miliamps is borderline. Use the manufacturer’s spec when available. The Acura RDX Factory Service Parasitic Draw Check procedure indicates 42 mA or less is acceptable. On the other hand, parasitic draw while the ECM is “awake” will be 100-200 mA range or higher; this is normal current draw for an awaken system and is not indicative of a problem. Once you wake the system up by removing a fuse, this will mess up your testing and you must wait 45 minutes to an hour for the system to go back to sleep before you can proceed. The right way to test is to measure voltage drop across each fuse. There is a correlation between voltage drop measured across a fuse and the current being drawn by that circuit. Power Probe ( https://www.powerprobetek.com/) publishes some voltage drop conversion charts you can use to convert a voltage reading to the corresponding current being drawn (look under Knowledge, Technical Library). I have uploaded a PDF that contains these charts. Lastly, if using a clamp meter to monitor, it needs to have a 1mA resolution, such as the Extech 380942 Mini Clamp Meter. Lastly, if you have access to a thermal camera / thermal imager, this is an excellent application where an active fuse(s) or circuit will light up and become quite evident and you can do this without awakening the computers. You can also use a thermal camera to find systems or ECUs that may still be running after everything shuts down. I hope this helps someone.