Electrical / Battery Issue

I had a 1972 Winnie which was wired in the same way that your customer describes. Things that were operated from the dash like the windshield wipers, washer fluid pump, lights, horn, turn signals etc. were always powered and could be turned on without the key in the ignition. I always wondered about that. But that shouldn't drain the battery. If those things are all off and the battery is still draining then there is some other parasitic drain that needs to be tracked down. You could take a multimeter and start checking circuits, the electrical systems on those Winnie's aren't that complicated. The easy way to take care of it would be to install a battery cut-off on the chassis battery.

By the way, welcome to the forums. It's nice of you to help the woman out. Good luck with the repairs.

Miles