2006 Freestar SEL 4.2 Have a 420 mA leak all the time. Drains the battery low in two days of not charging. When disconnect pos clamp, will easily start a week later so is not a battery or charging issue. It is the 420 mA "leak" running down the battery.. I traced the leak to the 30A fuse f58. When I pull out f58, the drain goes away. f58 feeds the smart junction box where it it split up thru f8, f9, f10, f11 and the "Low Current Board". When I can get help am going to pull those fuses one at a time to see where the current is going. This could be a lot of work. Anyone had experience like this? How did you correct?

 

What we need to know is, When you pull the fuse and 2-3 seconds later, reinstall it, is the drain still there? If so good, now you can proceed to checking the circuit and wiring.
If you have the owners manual, in the specifications section, it tells you which components and circuits each fuse protects. Now you have some idea where to go.
If, however, when you reinstall the fuse and the drain is no longer there , the system has reset and now you can't find the problem because it is no longer present.
That is why pulling fuses is not the correct way to pin down an electrical problem in newer vehicles where computers are designed to protect components and wiring.
Sometimes we can hit the problem right away , while other times a schematic diagram is required to trace and check circuits. Yes, this can be a bit of work, but if you have access to info and some basic electrical tools( multimeter) it can help to find the cause of the problem.. There are some good videos on U Tube by Scanner Danner that will explain procedures and tests. If you can't find what you need , let us know and we will try to assist you , OK.

 

I incorrectly assumed that the $411 3-year old Northstar battery could not possibly be the problem. It was.

The battery seemed ok if not connected to the small OFF load of 250 mA and would start the car after three days of disconnected cables. But leave it connected and it would run down in two days of no driving. According to the “MINUTES” rating of 133 minutes at 25 amp to drain down to 10.5 V, it should have lasted 9 days at 250 mA. It would not even last two days. But I learned a lot.

First, I measured the OFF drain of another Freestar and found it to be 550 mA, same as my Freestar before I clipped the wire to the instrument panel. That also let me know that the OFF drain for that car was normal and not the problem.

An old Delco/Delphi retired battery engineer friend of mine says that if the car is always in a warm climate and never freezing, buy the biggest-case, cheapest battery, with the lowest cold-cranking amp rating, because that battery will have more acid and less lead and will therefore last longer. That’s what I did. All OK now. Love my Freestar.

The Northstar is a disappointment. Supposedly has a 4-year replacement guarantee. After runaround from Northstar HQ and the local Northstar dealer I gave up and bought the cheapest parts store battery for $117.