Golf battery discharging when stood - why?

I have a Golf GT that is less than two years old. On two separate occasions, several weeks apart, it has been completely dead on Monday morning after being parked up without use over the weekend. I have had to gain entry using the turn key and jump start the battery.

My franchised Volkswagen dealer checked the car on each occasion, including keeping it for a week, with no conclusion. The battery appears to be fine and all systems are shutting down with no apparent electrical leakage. I am now living on tenterhooks awaiting the next failure. I commute every day so the car gets good usage. Have you heard of this before?

Asked on 8 November 2012 by KG, Etchingham

Answered by Honest John
Having experienced this myself, with a different make and model of car, the most likely cause is failure of the switch for the self-dimming interior light. If you switch the light off completely you may not only find your battery retains its charge, but that you have isolated the cause of the problem.
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