bigb_02wj

Stop at the mall came out my jeep has no power no lights or wont start I just replaced the battery last week just to mention I did have a car remote starter put but it wasn't working properly. I had it tooken out yesterday car ran fine yesterday made 90 mile trip to michigan ran fine this morning so what's the problem

OrvisKrawler

loose connection at the battery? wiggle the terminals and see if they move

Phatwitaph

seams like corrosion on the battery terminals, i had this happen to plenty of vehicles

bigb_02wj

Yes it was the dude who put my battery jacked up the negative cable thanks for the info that never went through my mind in the first place

Marks2000XJ

I know this is and old thread but did not want to start a new one since this thread is identical to my problem. This problem just started with me. Same thing. 2002 Grand Cherokee (inline 6 engine). Intermittent problem with no power, no lights, no start. Jeep is just dead in the water.

It does not happen every time I come out to start it up. Sometimes no issues at all then other times it is like the battery is completely dead. I have checked the connections at the battery and they appear to be okay. Checked the ground connections from the battery to the frame and motor. The one at the motor is questionable as there is a small oil leak in the area and has that connection covered in oil.

Another note, when I bought the car the owner only had one key. No remotes. So I have to unlock the Jeep with the key. I am not sure if this is just a coincidence but a couple times I locked the door with the key and had the no power issue. If I get out and lock it with the door lock switch and come back later to use the vehicle, no issues.

Could this no power issue be a problem with the security system on the car? Like it is getting activated when locking the door with the key and causing the whole car to be disabled? Or does it sound like a battery/grounding issue?

It's weird because the problem is intermittent. I never know when it is going to occur. It's a hit and miss thing.

It happened to my son last night. He called me and said when he unlocked and opened the door, no lights, no power, and no start. Dead in the water. I told him to pop the hood and wiggle the battery connections. In the process he noticed the battery was not strapped down either, strap is missing (yes I totally missed that when I was under the hood). So while jiggling the battery cables he also moved the battery around some.

He got back in the car and said the lights were back on and the car started. So I am leaning towards maybe a bad connection somewhere on or around the battery or maybe a bad cell in the battery?

Any and all suggestions, help, fixed welcome. Thanks in advance.

dave1123

Chances are it's those molded lead battery cable ends. After a while they stretch and loose connection, even though they feel tight. I replaced both on mine with these $2 bolt-on ends and the problem is gone, going on 2 years now.

Marks2000XJ

Yeah the molded lead connectors are/were stretched a little causing some loose fit on the negative side but I fixed that and it was not the problem. I had to jump start it yesterday and it fired right up so I took the GC up to Advanced Auto and had them put their tester on it. It showed only having about 550 amps which was 200 less than what it was rated for.

I guess it must have had maybe a bad cell or something and not holding a charge. The battery date was 8/11 so it was over 4 years old. Long story short I bought a new battery and that has seemed to have done the trick. So far so good.

dave1123

Yes, I had an Interstate battery in my WJ which gave me NO warning. I came out of a store and it cranked slow, but caught. I looked at the date and it was 5 years old. I looked at my watch and decided to go to Battery World and get a new one right then. It didn't pass a load test but was working fine up until then.

That's a thing about jeeps. Just when you think you got it right, something else will pop up. Jeep...Just Empty Every Pocket! But gee, they're fun!