Aux battery drain

[Triple Zero]

I’ve been hearing a lot of horror stories about the auxiliary battery draining and leaving people stranded. I’ve heard it was common in the 2018 JLs. Is this still happening in the newer years?

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[dchemphill1]

I have a 2020 and had to replace the AUX battery under warranty. Started with start stop system working intermittently and then stopped altogether. Main battery was load tested and was fine. I don't believe the batteries are of great quality...after warranty will upgrade to better batteries.

 

[jludave]

Is this still happening in the newer years?

OEM JL batteries, regardless of year, tend to only have about a 3 year lifespan. If the main or aux starts to go, the other is not far behind. General rule of thumb with the JL is to replace the battery/batteries after 3 years.

 

[Triple Zero]

Good to know. Thanks.

 

[Reinen]

That is mainly because of confusion about the Main & Aux battery configuration in the JL. Some don't realize the Aux battery exists because it's not in plain sight. The Main & Aux batteries are directly linked so you need to think of them as a single battery system, if you replace one you replace the other. If you don't do that you will have a battery horror story. The battery you didn't address will take out the battery you did address.

The 2018 issue was a software logic glitch. If the Aux battery was low voltage the JL wouldn't even try to start, even though the Aux battery isn't used to cold start the engine. That's been fixed. Now, if the Aux battery is low voltage the JL won't try to start on the first press of the start button but it will on the 2nd press. So you'll know something is wrong but you can still start the engine.

 

[DarkWater]

Has anyone tried the Dakota lithium batteries? Pricey...are they worth it?

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