2000 beetle with dead battery in the mornings

[guitarwarlock19]

i have a 2000 beetle with a parasitic drain somewhere. it will drain the battery over night. im to the point where i have to unplug the battery when it will be sitting for long periods of times. (kinda embarasing in public)

the alternator went out a few months ago and as soon as i got it replaced the drain started. the shop completely refuse the idea that its the
alternator. even tho ive read everywhere on the net that the beetles are kinda known for alternators having bad diodes.

what are some ways i could test to see if its the alternator? and if its not the alternator then what are some known drains in the beetles? whats the best way to test them?
i already know its not lights being left on, bad battery (its been checked by 6 different shops), or a high powered stereo. those have already been ruled out.

also what could be causing the switch for the gas cover to not release the latch when you flip it? sometimes i have to do it a thousand times before the cover pops open. and the horn quit working. what could be causing that?
does anyone know what the number 20 mini fuse goes to? it was blown so i replaced it, and have no idea what it is for.


thanks, any help would be very appreciated.

[Thommohawk]

i have a 2000 beetle with a parasitic drain somewhere. it will drain the battery over night. im to the point where i have to unplug the battery when it will be sitting for long periods of times. (kinda embarasing in public)

the alternator went out a few months ago and as soon as i got it replaced the drain started. the shop completely refuse the idea that its the
alternator. even tho ive read everywhere on the net that the beetles are kinda known for alternators having bad diodes.

what are some ways i could test to see if its the alternator? and if its not the alternator then what are some known drains in the beetles? whats the best way to test them?
i already know its not lights being left on, bad battery (its been checked by 6 different shops), or a high powered stereo. those have already been ruled out.

also what could be causing the switch for the gas cover to not release the latch when you flip it? sometimes i have to do it a thousand times before the cover pops open. and the horn quit working. what could be causing that?
does anyone know what the number 20 mini fuse goes to? it was blown so i replaced it, and have no idea what it is for.


thanks, any help would be very appreciated.

Hello - I'm new here but have been looking at a similar problem on an 03 plate at the moment. Flat battery, (it was knackered) so replaced with new and 3 weeks later, same again. I have noticed that the draw when all locked is only 50mA BUT if the car is left unlocked, the draw becomes 850mA (quite a lot)...

Any thoughts anyone - and 'Guitarwarlock' - did you sort yours? - was it the alternator again? (diodes)...

Many thanks...

[guitarwarlock19]

Hello - I'm new here but have been looking at a similar problem on an 03 plate at the moment. Flat battery, (it was knackered) so replaced with new and 3 weeks later, same again. I have noticed that the draw when all locked is only 50mA BUT if the car is left unlocked, the draw becomes 850mA (quite a lot)...

Any thoughts anyone - and 'Guitarwarlock' - did you sort yours? - was it the alternator again? (diodes)...

Many thanks...

hey. yea. i got it fixed. i found some instructions on the net on how to check the alternator. you just completely unhook it from the car and leave the battery plugged in. leave it over night and see if it still drains. i did that and it still had a charge. i took my *** back to tires plus and made them put another one on under warranty. they did and it worked fine for a month then that alternator went out. idk if they just use cheap alternators or if theres something in my car killing them. i took it to another shop and had another one put on because i didnt want to deal with their ******** again. they charged less than half what tires plus charged to do the same thing. never go to tires plus to have work done. they are a rip off and dont know what they are doing. they tried telling me there was a suspicious wire in the ignition switch that was causing the drain. there was nothing wrong with the ignition switch, replacing the alternator fixed the problem. they cant even do tires right. it took them 3 times and 2 weeks before they ordered the right tires for my friends car. morons.
this one is holding up so far. idk tho. im wanting to fix the problems the car has and trade it in asap before something else screws up. good job Volkswagen for making a damn reliable car!