I was able to find out what the source of amperage draw was coming from, and it is the IOD. It is drawing 0.426 amps. The meter reads 0.923 and the Vehicle reads 0.497 without it installed. Generally, vehicles should have this amount to begin with correct? What could possibly be the issue with the IOD? Why is there an excess in amperage draw?
Typical settled current passing through the Ignition Off Draw fuse should be .005-.035 amps for retention of memory in radio/cluster etc. When testing, this current needs to be measured for a few minutes as it can remain high for up to three minutes. Ensure hood light is unplugged and all doors remain closed during testing so the illuminated entry system isn't activated. If contact is lost on the fuse terminals at any time during the test, internal timers in electronic components may reset requiring the test to start again. If you are getting .497A with the IOD fuse removed you have draw from another circuit and need to start pulling fuses one at a time to isolate the circuit drawing that current.
Because many of the modern electronics that run the engine, the radio, the car alarm, and a lot of accessories all need a small amount of current to keep settings stored in their chips. All your radio stations, engine errors record and some other settings you've made or the car has made would disappear without these current draws. I do suspect that your car alarm is the main culprit, probably drawing nearly a half an Amp when it's on for the sensing circuits and monitor circuit. I wouldn't worry about an amp to an amp and a half. Most modern lead acid batteries carry a cold cranking amp rating of hundreds of amps. If you are having trouble starting in cold weather or after the vehicle sets for a few days, better to investigate the condition of the battery, cables, terminals and alternator than worry about less than an amp draw. It's just a sign of the times, everything needs juice. I hope this helps you understand what's happening a bit better.
IOD stands for Ignition Off Draw, so obviously it will always exist on modern cars. There are things like clock, radio stations, etc., that always draws a small amount of parasitic current. I am not sure what the normal IOD draw should be, but is yours so much that the battery dies over night and won't start? If not, then forget about it. Try taking the battery cable terminal off a battery post and putting a test light across the gap. It is does not light bright, then it is probably too low of amps to worry about. But if it is too much, then you disconnect things one at a time, like stereo, to determine the cause.
