My 95 JGCherokee Limited has a problem, some days it wont start THe battery goes completely dead,I jump start the engine and it works for a while but then it happens again any given morning again, I really dont know what could be causing this problem, I think is maybe the Alternator.

ohh and also some times the front lights start blinking out of no where.. it does that for a little while and then the lights start blinking again..it seasm like teh scurity system is going nuts..

Any one can help me with this issue?

I am about to buy a new alternator and replaces it but first I wanted to get some advice from any of you,

Thanks,

Go to your mechanic or the dealer and have them check the battery and the alternator, they usualy do it for free. That'll show you the function of both things. You can deduce it further from there.

The battery is 3 months old, I dont know about teh alternator but it looks pretty old, the big thing is that I am not in the US, I am in Japan, Atsugi City near Tokyo and the Mechanics charge lot of money here, ther is only one Jeep Dealer in tokyo since this is an imported car over here..
I need to try to find out the problem and save me some money..

Thank you

well, then logically your next choice is to replace the alternator. If a mechanic is going to charge you more to check it than replace it, replace it.

question , japan has a law that the engines must be replaced every 100,000 miles , how do you get around that with a 95 old car ??.... better to start replacing everything you can , i just bought a 94 GC , and replace everything i can get my hands on before it goes bad

also , a low battery will trigger the built in alarm system , and check the alarm switches , disconect the hood switch , it goes bad first , then check door switches , disconect if necessary , ... the car s not going anywhere there

My jeep only has 52,700 miles on it... That is why I got it while I am stationed here, It is very low in millage, japanese people dont use the cars that much..

How can I find the Alarm suitches? where are they located in teh hood and the doors?

If you are handy with tools, you could get a digital multi-meter and check the battery voltage your self.

with the engine off for 10 to 15 minutes there should be a minimum of 12.6 volts at the battery posts.

Engine running - 13.8 to 14.6 volts while charging.

Not many consumer meters have the capability to check the charging amps but if the voltage is with in spec your likely ok

The other thing that will kill the battery is a draw while the key is off.

Most likely is one of the lites that come on when you open something. a glove box lite or the hood lite is common to cause this.

some of the jgc's have a problem with the PCM not shutting off and will drain the battery if the vehicle sits for 3 or 4 days depending on battery condition.

JD

Thank you

well I don't think ur problem is the Altenator, if so, it would die while driving, the altenator only replaces juice lost while the engine is running, since thee battery seems to go dead over night, I think u prolly have a bare wires somewhere draining the battery. I would say in the door jam (Power Windows, Locks, Mirrors, etc.) but those wires only get power when the key is in the "ON" Position. but 1st I would search for a bare wire.

email me with any questions or info u need Joe dksob81@hotmail.com

bare wires blow fuses or cause a lot of heat and melt insulation and cause fires.

the light on or extra draw from a PCM that doesn't shut down is what causes the battery to go dead sooner that it would normally.

All vehicles have some key off battery draw - normally less than 0.050 amps.

JD

if a wire is bare, and it is getting grounded somewhere it will draw battery power, the only way a fuse will blow is if power is drawn from the Fuse itself.

fuses are always installed in the circuits near the battery + connection so all the current going to the load has to pass through the fuse.

very few circuits have no fuse, circuit breaker or fusible link.

Have yet to see a bare wire cause a "draw" without melting wires or blowing a fuse/circuit breaker.

True, but I have seen it, someone had a problem with there battery dying every night, they couldn't figure out y, I told them to seach for a bare wire (it is prolly getting grounded somewhere), then they found one of the wires comiing off of the Positive battery was bare and was getting ground ont eh battery hold down, causing the battery to die over night.

hence my reason for bare wiring killing battery

for that to happen without melting the wire, there would have to be a fair amount of resistance at the wires contact point. Keeping the resistance within the limit required to only drain the battery without melting the wire would be a very unusual feat.

the guy should probably buy a lottery ticket................

hahaha

I think I found the problem, yesterday I notice that my headlights started flashing again, so I went and turn teh alarm off and the sat inside the car with the alarm on, thats when I noticed a sound comming from the right rear speaker, it sounded like it was burnt or somthing like that, so I opened the door and disconected the speaker, and the alarm stoped comming on during teh night and this morning the car started just fine...
Maybe that was the problem? what you guys think..??

navyjo

Is it still working and starting good???

JD

yeahhh this morning started and it is working fine..thanks for all your help...

Think you should do the voltmeter like JD said. What is your volt gauge reading when running?

Any suggestions on the best way to test the PCM for power drains? If its bad, how much does one of those run? Not cheap I'm sure. I have a similar dead battery problem, but mine happens overnight. I've had the electrical system diagnosed twice by two different places coming up with nothing. The battery was just replaced, the alternator provides a good charge, I've disconnected all the extra stereo components.

Trying to narrow down my search, I took my JGC to my stereo place and had them go over the security system, and remote start, and stereo components (all aftermarket). They found that the PCM was staying on well after the car was shut off. That seemed to be the only unusual power drain when the vehicle was off.

Thanks for any comments

Jeeps do have a key draw but nothing that should be near high enough to kill the battery over night, it will die in about 4-5 days tho.

I have the same problem on a 1999 JGC. It happens randomly several days or even weeks apart. I have noted headlights flashing while parked key off. Volt meter shows 14 volts. Replaced battery problem the same. Battey goes dead in less than an hour. What can draw down a new fully charged battery in that short of time and not over heat something? Even head light should not pull a battery down that low in that short a time. Even so the electrical system is suppose to shut down in 15 minutes if left on by mistake. At this time I am at a loss. Guess I will try the dealer monday, but most of the time I know more than they do.

My 95 JGCherokee Limited has a problem, some days it wont start THe battery goes completely dead,I jump start the engine and it works for a while but then it happens again any given morning again, I really dont know what could be causing this problem, I think is maybe the Alternator.

ohh and also some times the front lights start blinking out of no where.. it does that for a little while and then the lights start blinking again..it seasm like teh scurity system is going nuts..

Any one can help me with this issue?

I am about to buy a new alternator and replaces it but first I wanted to get some advice from any of you,

Thanks,


I am having the same problem. I have a Jeep 96 Grand Cherokee Laredo. The battery keeps dying. When you drive it, the inside lights and all the door locks start going crazy. Also, what is a PCM?
I need help fast! It's affecting my job, I have to place a charger on all the time.
Thanks!

PCM - PowerTrain Control Module aka "COMPUTER"

Have you tried a new battery? I had a problem where my jeep sat for a week straight and when I went to start it the battery was dead and then it seemed like everyday after that the battery was dead or just about - it owuldn't keep a charge for more then 7-10 hours. I got a new battery and haven't had a problem since.

I just replaced the battery. But, I read a little further into the messages and found people with the same light problem I had and they replaced the door switch. I think I will try that. Thank you sooooooo much for your reply and help. This is a GREAT site.