Alyssa McColley

Ok so on Sunday we were getting in our 98 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo V6 2WD and it wouldnt start! Pretty annoying considering we just bought a new battery less than a month ago and we didn't leave anything on. We jumped it and it started up but my husband gets out and immediately shuts it off because gas was leaking out from the top of the tank like a shower head. It was weird!! We replaced the fuel pump probably three months ago and since then its been a hit or miss on reading the gas gauge properly so Im thinking maybe its a defective part? Anyway we took the other car and left the Jeep to rest for 6 hours or so. Came back and my husband unbolted the tank and propped it so he could see where the leak was coming from but when we jumped it again nothing came out. Bolted the tank back in jumped started it again and still nothing. My husband thought maybe light bar he just installed was draining the battery so he disconnected it and charged the battery on the trickle charger. It said it was completely charged up but when he put it back in again the jeep would not start. What also struck me as odd is when the other battery died it made a click click clicking noise when you tried to start the car. It does not do that now it just kind of makes a whirring down, bogging noise and does nothing.... Any ideas?

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Leaking fuel above the tank could be a line from the fuel pump, or the seal between the fuel pump gasket and tank. What did he find once he dropped the tank? If the leak has since stopped, he may have fixed the leak by reseating the clip on the line? Not sure, but you need to be 100% sure the leak has been fixed before driving it again. The gauge acting funny could be the gauges or the sender on the pump is bad. There should be a small arm on the side of the fuel pump assembly. That tells the gauge how much fuel is ion the tank. If that arm is bent, the gauge could read incorrectly, not at all, or get hung up.


As for the battery, once you are 100% sure you are no longer leaking fuel, check your cables and grounds. Make sure the terminals, clamps and grounds are clean and tight, and no corrosion. Doublecheck the battery voltage with a meter. Turn the lights on. Are they dim? If so, the battery is not charged. With it being a new battery, it could be a defective battery (even being new), or the alternator isnt charging it for whatever reason. Seeing as the old battery had issues, i am lead to believe that the grounds, cables, or even the alternator were, and still are, to blame. Check the rest of it out before buying anything. It could be a bad ground and nothing more. Hopefully.


I am not familiar with the v6 ground locations, so i will leave that to another poster. Still learning this stuff myself.

Alyssa McColley

He only unmounted the gas tank to take a look and nothing looked out of place or anything and no fuel is leaking out anymore.

The battery terminals are brand new as we bought new ones with the battery. I think we will take the battery to be tested...