Trickle Charge?

[BCTrails4x4]

Newly owner of ‘25 Jeep Willys was in the show room hooked up to trickle charge when I came in, bickered back and forth with the rep about the check engine light and @venger sign lire up, result; replaced aux battery under warranty coz it threw off a code(basically dead), so main was draining but never threw a code so they couldn’t replace under warranty. Fast forward 8 months, I’m noticing my Jeep sometimes doesn’t sound the horn when I lock it by pressing the button on the handle. Sometimes it doesn’t even lock when I press the first time, I had to press it second time. Now I’m seeing the voltage ranging from 12.6-13.5 most recently it’s been at 13.0 far from my previous Jeep was showing which was constantly at 14.5(that was also new, but it wasn’t sitting in the showroom like my current Jeep). I spoke to my guy at Jeep, he told me I need to keep it on trickle charge. Now I’m new to Jeep, I’ve never had to trickle charge any previous vehicles(VW). He said his wife’s infinity is also new but had battery changed twice within 3 yrs. He said newer vehicles is like this, they need to be under a trickle charge. I’m calling BS on this, can anyone chime in? Is it common thing to trickle charge a new Jeep 8 months in? Also I’ve kept the @vengers button(auto start/stop) off after every entry since the change of the aux battery. So this voltage reading is accurate or not? Being new to Jeep I don’t want to jump into conclusions, but what my rep is saying seems off, especially his wife’s vehicle is Infinity, not a Jeep. Maybe hers needs trickle charge, why does Jeep?

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[KCSgtMaj]

My 2024 Rubicon had the batteries die at 24 months. I believe the dual battery system is a terrible engineering flaw, the electronics and battery design. My Wrangler doesn’t get driven every day and may sit for a week or more before another trip, so I plug it in to a battery maintainer. There are a lot of electronic draws on the vehicle even when it’s shut off, which I believe the aux battery powers and is usually the first to die. it seems as though the engineers have forgotten the rule of having a dual battery system, both batteries need to be the same type and size, if they are not the smaller battery will always fail first and draw down the larger battery. I’m sure the bean counters had something to do with the design. In my 61 years on this earth I’ve come to understand one thing, engineers want to build great things but the bean counters won’t let them.

 

[Nokones]

My 23 Wrangler Rubi 2 Dr has the 3.6L eTorque. My auxiliary battery is a 48 volt Lithium battery that is in the rear and water cooled.

All late model vehicles have control modules that draw power. When the car sit for days, this power draw will drain the battery(ies). It is best to keep the battery State of Charge (SOC) of your batteries up above the threshold or the battery will render itself useless in a short period of time.

Most of the newer cars are equipped with AGM batteries. These batteries are not like your batteries that were used in most cars older than 2015. These batteries require a different charging algorithm than the older car batteries. They also don't like to be drained down beyond a certain point whereas the older car batteries didn't care as much.

If you allow the SOC of an AGM battery to drop below a certain point too many times you will piss-off the battery and will only give you a short life because it doesn't like the life you gave it.

AGM batteries require special maintenence for longevity.

If you properly maintain an AGM battery and keep it happy you should see well over 7 years of service. I usely replace AGM batteries at 12 years because just to be on the safe side.

About 2 1/2 years ago, I installed a Genesis Gen 3 Dual Battery System with Odyssey Group 25 batteries for powering my refrigerator, winch, air compressor, and other power accessories. I also don't drive my Jeep for days, but, I keep my batteries charged up with an Odyssey 25 Amp Smart Charger. AGM batteries require a smart charger.

I kept the OEM battery for some reason that I don't know why. I have an Optima Smart Charger on it and I periodically load test the battery and it still checks out ok.

 

[Ang1Sgt]

That sounds very odd. I replaced both my batteries (2020 Willys) last year with brands I trust. My Jeep gets semi-stored in my garage as soon as the town starts throw salt around. I was going to put a trickle maintainer on it but didn’t get around to it. The batteries held up well and started first time once out of storage. I watched the charging system and it came right up and in less than 20 miles the Start/Stop system functioned as it should. I do this to ensure both batteries are up to the task at hand.

When I changed my batteries, I was told by a great guy on these forums, to replace the IBS sensor with the batteries. I think this was very sound advice.

 

[Bryce919er]

In today's day & age of a million modules & "intelligent" battery charging that never fully charges a battery in deference to gas mileage (theoretically) I consider maintenance charging a must if not a daily driver. To that end, install a battery tender lead with a 6ft extension & route it out here. I plug in every time the Jeep will sit a week or more. Do not even have to open the hood. I used a cable tie with a Christmas tree push pin built-in then stuck it in an empty factory frame hole.

 

[Nokones]

Make sure that the Tender is a smart AGM compatible Tender. If it isn't, you need one that is AGM compatible. AGM batteries require a specific algorithm to prevent from damaging the battery.

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