Belt Start Generator (BSG) Failure

[derpderp01]

Well, it finally happened. We were on vacation with the family. Temperatures were below freezing, there was snow and ice on the ground, and it was snowing. We woke up to a dead battery. Thankfully, we had a portable jump starter with a full charge in the back. Hooked it up, tried to get it going 4 times before the battery (jump starter) ran out of juice.

Thankfully, a good Samaritan was nearby with a set of jumper cables. The jeep (2019 2.0 eTorque) started right away so we buttoned the hood up, said our thankyous and started loading up the jeep while the wife, kids, and dogs waited in the warm hotel room.

Made one last sweep around the hotel room before we jumped in the jeep and began our journey home. Pulling out of the parking spot the jeep began stuttering, you could hear the engine running rough. We made it approximately 10 feet before it stalled. That was weird, so we put it in park, pressed the start button and that's when things got interesting.

The engine started surging (low idle / high idle), then stalled, but start / stop cranked the engine on again, then stalled, then on again, then stalled. At that point the engine would no longer start from start / stop but you could hear the BSG doing something (makes a much different sound then the starter), then it started "popping", then it started smoking and finally the wonderful smell of electrical fire. The jeep was dead.

After many hours of waiting in the snow and performing a flatbed truck recovery (also stuck in the snow), we had it towed to the dealership on a Sunday evening. Since we were out of town we slid the keys down the drop box chute, said our goodbyes, and proceeded to figure out how to get home.

Called the dealership at open to apologize for blocking the service entry (not our doing) and to provide any details they needed to begin troubleshooting. We were warned there was a 1 month backlog.

Determined the battery was dead, was going to throw it on the charger and test.

Starter was broken, the Bendix failed open. Jeep is out of warranty this is going to cost you an arm and a leg. Also, the part has a two week lead time.

Starter was replaced, engine starts. Check engine light on, throwing tons of codes.

BSG output voltage extremely high. Was also smoking and they replicated the electrical fire smell. Said they needed to order a new BSG and would get back to me on pricing.

Good news, BSG is under warranty and since it was responsible for "frying" the starter that too is now covered under warranty.

BSG replaced, time for test drive. Unfortunately, it failed, new error codes for issue between BCM and PCM. Battery was dead again after a test drive. Threw the battery back onto the charger / tester.

Battery passed all tests, was reinstalled, and the jeep was alive. Once the battery was charged the BCM and PCM codes cleared. It's ready and you can pick it up whenever.

We made the 5 hour round trip next day to pick up the jeep. The wife and kids followed behind fully expecting the jeep to break down again on the way home through mountain passes and snow and ice. Thankfully it didn't and here we are today.

At this point I'm not really sure what to think. The dealership, service department, and staff were top notch. I am simply amazed by how professional, quick, helpful, and friendly they were.

On the other hand, I now own a jeep which I don't have full confidence in. If it were a daily driver where I had full access to services then that's one thing. Unfortunately the purpose of this vehicle is to see where "that" dirt road goes with a wife, 2 babies, and 2 dogs. The plan is to do a bunch of "small" trips closer to home to rebuild that confidence. Fingers crossed since I obsessively love this jeep.

Hopefully, this post helps out anyone else in a similar situation.

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[Heimkehr]

On the other hand, I now own a jeep which I don't have full confidence in.

Fingers crossed...

I wish you the best of luck.

I owned a YJ that had an engine (i.e., mechanical) issue that was the functional equivalent of your electrical problems. A warranty-funded repair put me back in the vehicle after a ~1 week wait. Like you, I was now on guard.

When whispers of the same problem began to reoccur, I lost all faith in the Jeep and sold it back at the dealer less than one year after buying it new. Sometimes it's best to just move on.

 

[SmallCrawler]

When whispers of the same problem began to reoccur, I lost all faith in the Jeep and sold it back at the dealer less than one year after buying it new. Sometimes it's best to just move on.

I agree that when you lose confidence in a vehicle with gremlins it's best to move on.

first Jeep, a CJ5, was reliable. But I was young and stupid... so I turfed it.
first CJ7 blew a head gasket and a clutch... so I turfed it.
second CJ7 blew a transmission on the trail... so I turfed it.
my only YJ blew an oil pump on the trail... so I turfed it.
Ford Bronco II 4wd buttons went dead at the beach... kept it for awhile, but later turfed it.
first and second FJ Cruiser both impressively reliable... but turfed for different vehicles.
Gen2 Ford Raptor vacuum-actuated 4wd developed several leaks, unreliable... so I turfed it
4Runner TRD Pro, impressively reliable, but sluggish with droning TRD exhaust... so I turfed it.
2021 JLR is so far like my CJ5. Reliable and fun... so I intend to keep it (fingers crossed).

If you really don't want to risk getting stranded in the middle of nowhere with small kids and dogs, a 4Runner is a safe bet. Capable and reliable. Just avoid the TRD exhaust... it'll drive you nuts on a long trip.

 

[derpderp01]

Few more notes while it’s top of mind.

Before departing the dealership, we performed a series of engine starts then engine shutdowns to verify basic starter / BSG system functionality.

We also tested with a voltmeter to determine if the 12-volt battery was being charged. It read 14.4 volts steady.

Based on the limited research done, we’re under the impression the system works in the following way.

Belt Start Generator (BSG) -> Charges 48-volt Battery -> Through Inverter -> Charges 12-volt Battery.

On first start, the starter is engaged. On subsequent start / stop actions, the BSG is responsible for the engine. We believe start / stop works in the following way.

48-volt Battery -> Drives BSG

To reduce risk, we disabled the start / stop function for the trip home and made zero stops to limit engine shutdown. Once we safely made it home start / stop was re-enabled to thoroughly test all systems for future trips.

 

[oldcjguy]

You had a part go bad. If an alternator went bad and was replaced, would you be as concerned? A bad alternator can leave you just as stranded. I understand that it's not a daily driver, that you use it as a recreational vehicle and you're concerned it may not be fixed. Valid concern. If that were the case I'd be concerened about any repair that could leave the vehicle disabled. Drive it as a daily driver for a month or so. Make sure everything works as it should then just enjoy it. The BSG and 48 volt battery are covered for 8/80 as they are considered to be part of an emissions device on the vehicle.

 

[mwilk012]

You had a part go bad. If an alternator went bad and was replaced, would you be as concerned? A bad alternator can leave you just as stranded. I understand that it's not a daily driver, that you use it as a recreational vehicle and you're concerned it may not be fixed. Valid concern. If that were the case I'd be concerened about any repair that could leave the vehicle disabled. Drive it as a daily driver for a month or so. Make sure everything works as it should then just enjoy it. The BSG and 48 volt battery are covered for 8/80 as they are considered to be part of an emissions device on the vehicle.

Exactly this. If you are worried about a single part failure, then you should lease a new one.

 

[Deleted member 59498]

Where do you people go you are so worried that much about breaking down? Which any car, jeep or suv regardless of make can break down, including 4Runner which I owned and they break down also. LOL

 

[CHazlerig]

Well, it finally happened. We were on vacation with the family. Temperatures were below freezing, there was snow and ice on the ground, and it was snowing. We woke up to a dead battery. Thankfully, we had a portable jump starter with a full charge in the back. Hooked it up, tried to get it going 4 times before the battery (jump starter) ran out of juice.

Thankfully, a good Samaritan was nearby with a set of jumper cables. The jeep (2019 2.0 eTorque) started right away so we buttoned the hood up, said our thankyous and started loading up the jeep while the wife, kids, and dogs waited in the warm hotel room.

Made one last sweep around the hotel room before we jumped in the jeep and began our journey home. Pulling out of the parking spot the jeep began stuttering, you could hear the engine running rough. We made it approximately 10 feet before it stalled. That was weird, so we put it in park, pressed the start button and that's when things got interesting.

The engine started surging (low idle / high idle), then stalled, but start / stop cranked the engine on again, then stalled, then on again, then stalled. At that point the engine would no longer start from start / stop but you could hear the BSG doing something (makes a much different sound then the starter), then it started "popping", then it started smoking and finally the wonderful smell of electrical fire. The jeep was dead.

After many hours of waiting in the snow and performing a flatbed truck recovery (also stuck in the snow), we had it towed to the dealership on a Sunday evening. Since we were out of town we slid the keys down the drop box chute, said our goodbyes, and proceeded to figure out how to get home.

Called the dealership at open to apologize for blocking the service entry (not our doing) and to provide any details they needed to begin troubleshooting. We were warned there was a 1 month backlog.

Determined the battery was dead, was going to throw it on the charger and test.

Starter was broken, the Bendix failed open. Jeep is out of warranty this is going to cost you an arm and a leg. Also, the part has a two week lead time.

Starter was replaced, engine starts. Check engine light on, throwing tons of codes.

BSG output voltage extremely high. Was also smoking and they replicated the electrical fire smell. Said they needed to order a new BSG and would get back to me on pricing.

Good news, BSG is under warranty and since it was responsible for "frying" the starter that too is now covered under warranty.

BSG replaced, time for test drive. Unfortunately, it failed, new error codes for issue between BCM and PCM. Battery was dead again after a test drive. Threw the battery back onto the charger / tester.

Battery passed all tests, was reinstalled, and the jeep was alive. Once the battery was charged the BCM and PCM codes cleared. It's ready and you can pick it up whenever.

We made the 5 hour round trip next day to pick up the jeep. The wife and kids followed behind fully expecting the jeep to break down again on the way home through mountain passes and snow and ice. Thankfully it didn't and here we are today.

At this point I'm not really sure what to think. The dealership, service department, and staff were top notch. I am simply amazed by how professional, quick, helpful, and friendly they were.

On the other hand, I now own a jeep which I don't have full confidence in. If it were a daily driver where I had full access to services then that's one thing. Unfortunately the purpose of this vehicle is to see where "that" dirt road goes with a wife, 2 babies, and 2 dogs. The plan is to do a bunch of "small" trips closer to home to rebuild that confidence. Fingers crossed since I obsessively love this jeep.

Hopefully, this post helps out anyone else in a similar situation.

Well, it finally happened. We were on vacation with the family. Temperatures were below freezing, there was snow and ice on the ground, and it was snowing. We woke up to a dead battery. Thankfully, we had a portable jump starter with a full charge in the back. Hooked it up, tried to get it going 4 times before the battery (jump starter) ran out of juice.

Thankfully, a good Samaritan was nearby with a set of jumper cables. The jeep (2019 2.0 eTorque) started right away so we buttoned the hood up, said our thankyous and started loading up the jeep while the wife, kids, and dogs waited in the warm hotel room.

Made one last sweep around the hotel room before we jumped in the jeep and began our journey home. Pulling out of the parking spot the jeep began stuttering, you could hear the engine running rough. We made it approximately 10 feet before it stalled. That was weird, so we put it in park, pressed the start button and that's when things got interesting.

The engine started surging (low idle / high idle), then stalled, but start / stop cranked the engine on again, then stalled, then on again, then stalled. At that point the engine would no longer start from start / stop but you could hear the BSG doing something (makes a much different sound then the starter), then it started "popping", then it started smoking and finally the wonderful smell of electrical fire. The jeep was dead.

After many hours of waiting in the snow and performing a flatbed truck recovery (also stuck in the snow), we had it towed to the dealership on a Sunday evening. Since we were out of town we slid the keys down the drop box chute, said our goodbyes, and proceeded to figure out how to get home.

Called the dealership at open to apologize for blocking the service entry (not our doing) and to provide any details they needed to begin troubleshooting. We were warned there was a 1 month backlog.

Determined the battery was dead, was going to throw it on the charger and test.

Starter was broken, the Bendix failed open. Jeep is out of warranty this is going to cost you an arm and a leg. Also, the part has a two week lead time.

Starter was replaced, engine starts. Check engine light on, throwing tons of codes.

BSG output voltage extremely high. Was also smoking and they replicated the electrical fire smell. Said they needed to order a new BSG and would get back to me on pricing.

Good news, BSG is under warranty and since it was responsible for "frying" the starter that too is now covered under warranty.

BSG replaced, time for test drive. Unfortunately, it failed, new error codes for issue between BCM and PCM. Battery was dead again after a test drive. Threw the battery back onto the charger / tester.

Battery passed all tests, was reinstalled, and the jeep was alive. Once the battery was charged the BCM and PCM codes cleared. It's ready and you can pick it up whenever.

We made the 5 hour round trip next day to pick up the jeep. The wife and kids followed behind fully expecting the jeep to break down again on the way home through mountain passes and snow and ice. Thankfully it didn't and here we are today.

At this point I'm not really sure what to think. The dealership, service department, and staff were top notch. I am simply amazed by how professional, quick, helpful, and friendly they were.

On the other hand, I now own a jeep which I don't have full confidence in. If it were a daily driver where I had full access to services then that's one thing. Unfortunately the purpose of this vehicle is to see where "that" dirt road goes with a wife, 2 babies, and 2 dogs. The plan is to do a bunch of "small" trips closer to home to rebuild that confidence. Fingers crossed since I obsessively love this jeep.

Hopefully, this post helps out anyone else in a similar situation.

Well. I am in a similar situation but she is my daily driver. I purchased my Jeep Nov 2019. She is a 2020 Sahara Unlimited. She has the 2.0 etorque. Last weds Jan 25 I was working late & went to leave and she would not engage. The lights on inside still lit up but she wouldn’t start. I had to have her jumped. I thought I would just buy a new battery the next day. I went to auto zone. My battery was tested 69% and he tested my alternator too. He said it was okay too. He said something else is draining my battery. I will be dropping her off at the dealership where I purchased her this evening so hopefully they can get me a rental since she is my daily driver.

 

[mwilk012]

Well. I am in a similar situation but she is my daily driver. I purchased my Jeep Nov 2019. She is a 2020 Sahara Unlimited. She has the 2.0 etorque. Last weds Jan 25 I was working late & went to leave and she would not engage. The lights on inside still lit up but she wouldn’t start. I had to have her jumped. I thought I would just buy a new battery the next day. I went to auto zone. My battery was tested 69% and he tested my alternator too. He said it was okay too. He said something else is draining my battery. I will be dropping her off at the dealership where I purchased her this evening so hopefully they can get me a rental since she is my daily driver.

Autozone CANNOT test or diagnose anything at all for any reason. They have no idea what they are doing. For one, you don’t even have an alternator.

 

[Strommen95]

You had a part go bad. If an alternator went bad and was replaced, would you be as concerned? A bad alternator can leave you just as stranded. I understand that it's not a daily driver, that you use it as a recreational vehicle and you're concerned it may not be fixed. Valid concern. If that were the case I'd be concerened about any repair that could leave the vehicle disabled. Drive it as a daily driver for a month or so. Make sure everything works as it should then just enjoy it. The BSG and 48 volt battery are covered for 8/80 as they are considered to be part of an emissions device on the vehicle.

This is essentially what changed my opinion on the whole ETorque vs Auxiliary Battery/Non ETorque debate. The 8 year, 80,000 mile warranty is pretty comparable to the average lifespan of an alternator. ETorque offers no more complication while offering a few more benefits.

 

[They call me...PaPa]

I literally just got off the phone with the dealer servicing my Jeep for a similar repair. Yesterday I was in heavy start/stop traffic on I-95 south of DC, absent-mindedly with auto start/stop left on, noticed a really rough start and CEL illuminated. Seemed to run ok after a moment so I turned start/stop off and proceeded - thought maybe CEL just needs to be reset. Few miles later the battery light came on. Shifted display to monitor battery voltage and observed fairly rapid decline as I hoped to get to right side and an upcoming exit. Lost power steering - Jeep was running, but weakly. As I got to the emergency lane, the Jeep bucked, would barely crawl and dash lights went nuts - everything lit up and flashing and the defrost blower came on high for some reason. Jeep stalled, dash lights continued to go act possessed, but ultimately stopped.

Luckily, 5-year roadside assistance request went smoothly and my tow rumbled up about an hour later. Used the pull strap in the console to get into neutral, driver took me to Jeep dealer about 20 miles away but still an hour from home. Dealer service was open til 9, and I was able to get their last rental (no loaner since outside of 3 year basic warranty). All things considered I think, for a breakdown, all went as well as I could have hoped.

Tonight they told me that they observed 2 problems, left front wheel speed sensor throwing a code, and generator failed. Said I’m looking at about $400 for the sensor and the generator’s covered under 8-year warranty for that component. $400 is a bit high for the sensor but given the relief that I wasn’t looking at a major repair bill, I’m not going to jinx myself and I’m happy to tell them to take care of it. Said getting parts is a couple days out, they’ll call me early next week.

I’m crossing fingers that nothing new emerges when they do the work. Given past repairs on prior Jeeps with my local dealer (this one is 50 miles from home) I was expecting a poor experience, but so far so good and it was good to hear a proactive reassurance that the primary failure was covered under warranty.

To the question of whether I trust the Jeep now that I’ve had this experience…I absolutely get the concern, but I don’t recall having a car that didn’t inconvenience me at some point, and this has just caused me to reassess my preparedness for such an event so I’ll think through that because I feel like I got lucky this time. I’ll also look into the pros/cons of disabling auto start/stop because if there’s a weakness in this I suspect that.

 

[diesel_dave]

I literally just got off the phone with the dealer servicing my Jeep for a similar repair. Yesterday I was in heavy start/stop traffic on I-95 south of DC, absent-mindedly with auto start/stop left on, noticed a really rough start and CEL illuminated. Seemed to run ok after a moment so I turned start/stop off and proceeded - thought maybe CEL just needs to be reset. Few miles later the battery light came on. Shifted display to monitor battery voltage and observed fairly rapid decline as I hoped to get to right side and an upcoming exit. Lost power steering - Jeep was running, but weakly. As I got to the emergency lane, the Jeep bucked, would barely crawl and dash lights went nuts - everything lit up and flashing and the defrost blower came on high for some reason. Jeep stalled, dash lights continued to go act possessed, but ultimately stopped.

Luckily, 5-year roadside assistance request went smoothly and my tow rumbled up about an hour later. Used the pull strap in the console to get into neutral, driver took me to Jeep dealer about 20 miles away but still an hour from home. Dealer service was open til 9, and I was able to get their last rental (no loaner since outside of 3 year basic warranty). All things considered I think, for a breakdown, all went as well as I could have hoped.

Tonight they told me that they observed 2 problems, left front wheel speed sensor throwing a code, and generator failed. Said I’m looking at about $400 for the sensor and the generator’s covered under 8-year warranty for that component. $400 is a bit high for the sensor but given the relief that I wasn’t looking at a major repair bill, I’m not going to jinx myself and I’m happy to tell them to take care of it. Said getting parts is a couple days out, they’ll call me early next week.

I’m crossing fingers that nothing new emerges when they do the work. Given past repairs on prior Jeeps with my local dealer (this one is 50 miles from home) I was expecting a poor experience, but so far so good and it was good to hear a proactive reassurance that the primary failure was covered under warranty.

To the question of whether I trust the Jeep now that I’ve had this experience…I absolutely get the concern, but I don’t recall having a car that didn’t inconvenience me at some point, and this has just caused me to reassess my preparedness for such an event so I’ll think through that because I feel like I got lucky this time. I’ll also look into the pros/cons of disabling auto start/stop because if there’s a weakness in this I suspect that.

$400 for the speed sensor is utter robbery. Glad the more expensive issue was covered though.

 

[They call me...PaPa]

$400 for the speed sensor is utter robbery. Glad the more expensive issue was covered though.

I don’t disagree - he initially said $600 and I told him give me a few minutes, looked up the part and it seems $65-$80 part only was the ‘do it myself’ ballpark and I called back and mentioned that - he looked it back up and said their part cost was $129 + install, re-estimated Around $400. It’s less than an hour job so I’m definitely being pinched, but I’m also going to revisit the rental since the generator was the primary failure and under warranty - so should be a loaner in my view.

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