Aux. Battery: When did yours die (or how old is it now if it hasn't)?

[Captn_Obvious]

It's hardly ever the Aux battery that's your problem, normally the main. I would assume a shop would recommend something if they can make money on it so that makes sense. Those aux batteries will normally last longer than the main

Yeah, I've just read too many horror stories of the aux battery deciding to take a dump while folks were 'out in the wild'.. if you knew what you were doing and had what was needed to bypass it you'd be able to make it home - sadly, that's not me (HaHa) I'm a software QA Tester by trade.. and wouldn't know how to make the temporary 'fix' on the trail.. and afraid in that situation, I'd be on the phone seeking help, that is if I had signal :p I will likely go to a dual main battery setup when I save up the coin-

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[Flyboy2109]

I think the main will be fine, ESS is rendered inoperable with the memory chip. If the main fails I will replace it with the larger battery that fits the tray with the plastic space filler removed: you know, a quality battery unlike what the OEM's put in any vehicle sold.

 

[Almost]

Anyone know who actually makes the OEM batteries? I already know they're junk, but with the poll shaking out to around a 12% failure rate within 2 years that pretty much confirms it.

I'll just replace both batteries with quality batteries made by East Penn Manufacturing (Deka/Napa) when one takes a dump. I see zero benefit to deleting.

 

[Jeeperjamie]

Anyone know who actually makes the OEM batteries? I already know they're junk, but with the poll shaking out to around a 12% failure rate within 2 years that pretty much confirms it.

I'll just replace both batteries with quality batteries made by East Penn Manufacturing (Deka/Napa) when one takes a dump. I see zero benefit to deleting.

So your saying 12% on a forum where people come to complain about issues with their vehicles confirms they put in junk batteries from the factory. I'm in no way saying they do or don't but my view of this thread is that this is a forum where a lot of people come to complain, like a lot of forums that people join. Looks like there is a 76% success rate at least for the first year, that seems like a pretty good success rate for a forum.

 

[aprez27]

I'm sure the only reason mine isn't dead yet is because I've disabled the ASS since day one. Shit stranded me twice in my old JLUR so I don't trust it.

 

[tysongladiator]

My first battery died after 52,000 miles and then the second time around 132,000 miles. Both times the batteries lived well beyond a battery's life expectancy. They did their job.

But there are too many factors to determine how long a battery will last. Most batteries come with a 3yr/36,000 mile warranty. There's no telling how long it sat on the shelf before the install. And plus, in two years, I had put almost 80,000 miles on my Jeep.

I used to work part time at an auto parts store and we would get batteries returned all the time after the owner only had it for less than a year. Not all the same. Different types and sizes.

 

[Almost]

So your saying 12% on a forum where people come to complain about issues with their vehicles confirms they put in junk batteries from the factory. I'm in no way saying they do or don't but my view of this thread is that this is a forum where a lot of people come to complain, like a lot of forums that people join.

Yeah, data is data and with almost 100 people reporting that is a pretty good sample. You have anything else to look at? Even if it is lower around 8% that is still bad. I wouldn't say 1 of 10 Jeep drivers being stranded of a dead battery in the 1st 2 years of ownership good no matter how you look at it.

Looks like there is a 76% success rate at least for the first year, that seems like a pretty good success rate for a forum.

I think you and I have widely different views on what we would define as success.

 

[Jeeperjamie]

Yeah, data is data and with almost 100 people reporting that is a pretty good sample. You have anything else to look at? Even if it is lower around 8% that is still bad. I wouldn't say 1 of 10 Jeep drivers being stranded of a dead battery in the 1st 2 years of ownership good no matter how you look at it.




I think you and I have widely different views on what we would define as success.

I think we have different views on what a forum tells you about success rather than real world data. I wouldn't base what I buy or accurate data on anything I read in a forum. That's my point about what I was saying. Call FCA and ask them what their data is on it and I'm sure it falls within their guidelines of success or they wouldn't keep putting them in the Jeeps.

Another thing about the poll is it's just asking about the years , what about the mileage. Mileage has a lot to do with how long a battery will last as well. I'm just over 75,000 on mine and my main battery went out at 54,000 miles. Aux battery is still good. That mileage is with only 3-1/2 yrs of ownership.

 

[sharpsicle]

I think we have different views on what a forum tells you about success rather than real world data. I wouldn't base what I buy or accurate data on anything I read in a forum. That's my point about what I was saying. Call FCA and ask them what their data is on it and I'm sure it falls within their guidelines of success or they wouldn't keep putting them in the Jeeps.

Another thing about the poll is it's just asking about the years , what about the mileage. Mileage has a lot to do with how long a battery will last as well. I'm just over 75,000 on mine and my main battery went out at 54,000 miles. Aux battery is still good. That mileage is with only 3-1/2 yrs of ownership.

Years, mileage, duration of drives, percent of time sitting untended, exposure to extremes, these all affect battery life. You'd need to map out the frequency and occurrence not of the failures, but of the root causes of the failures, to really get anywhere beyond an overall average. That's a lot of work, so much so that it would be a full-time job for a true statistician. In the real world, conclusions can't be made without investigation and analysis.

How many times have we found that someone complaining about a battery problem had something else affecting it that shortened the lifespan? It takes a while to get there, to find that root cause, but once you do it makes a lot of sense why the failure happened. Now imagine doing that for every respondent of this poll. Ugh.

And yes, asking on a forum like this about problems is like going to a hospital looking for sick people (my favorite addage). Of course it's going to look worse there than it does in the real world. The same happens here, and in fact gets magnified here.

The unfortunate truth is that it's not just an echo chamber here, it's a highly magnified negatively-skewed echo chamber. If we used this forum as a measuring stick for Jeep reliability and quality, you'd expect our trucks to be stuck dead on the road half the time.

 

[Jeeperjamie]

Years, mileage, duration of drives, percent of time sitting untended, exposure to extremes, these all affect battery life. You'd need to map out the frequency and occurrence not of the failures, but of the root causes of the failures, to really get anywhere beyond an overall average. That's a lot of work, so much so that it would be a full-time job for a true statistician. In the real world, conclusions can't be made without investigation and analysis.

How many times have we found that someone complaining about a battery problem had something else affecting it? It takes a while to get there, but once you do it makes a lot of sense. Now imagine doing that for every respondent of this poll. Ugh.

And yes, asking on a forum like this about problems is like going to a hospital looking for sick people (my favorite addage). Of course it's going to look worse there than it does in the real world. The same happens here, and in fact gets magnified here.

The unfortunate truth is that it's not just an echo chamber here, it's a highly magnified negatively-skewed echo chamber. If we used this forum as a measuring stick for Jeep reliability and quality, you'd expect our trucks to be stuck dead on the road half the time.

So True!

 

[Fundamental Jeepster]

As of now I plan to leave mine as designed. Works fine. I do turn off ESS every time I drive.

Same here.

 

[Almost]

I think we have different views on what a forum tells you about success rather than real world data. I wouldn't base what I buy or accurate data on anything I read in a forum. That's my point about what I was saying.

I don't. That is why I own a diesel and I'm not deleting the AUX battery. Neither one is a real issue. I would consider a battery not lasting 3 plus years a minor issue, but that is not a design issue. It's a poor manufacturing issue. That was why I asked who makes the OEM battery.

There are 3 main battery makers. Clarios (JCI), East Penn Manufacturing and Exide. Look into these further and you will find out 2 of the 3 are junk. I only buy East Penn batteries and they always last 5+ years.

 

[jcarbs]

Had to have both replaced at about 33k miles. They were replaced under warranty. The Jeep OEM batteries are no different from other manufacturer's batteries in that most don't make it to 36 months. Yes there are exceptions, but the rest of us have to keep AutoZone busy.

 

[Zaptrac]

I honestly have no clue if mine died or not. My start stop will go months without ever activating. And then randomly on one trip it will start working again. And then stop working for months. Been that way since a year after i got my truck

 

[tysongladiator]

Had to have both replaced at about 33k miles. They were replaced under warranty. The Jeep OEM batteries are no different from other manufacturer's batteries in that most don't make it to 36 months. Yes there are exceptions, but the rest of us have to keep AutoZone busy.

Yep, you're right. I used to work part time at Autozone back in the day. And battery sales kept us busy back then too. Way before Jeep JTs and JLs came out. ?

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