I'm having an issue with my 2dr 08.

This morning when I went to start the Jeep, everything appeared normal until I turned the key to the start position. As soon as the key hit the start position, the Jeep electrical system completely and totally shut down. I mean completely...no radio, no dome lights, no door locks, no dash board lights, no starter turnover, absolute complete and total electrical failure.

I opened the hood and starting looking around. A few minutes later, I heard a click from the fuse box which I'm guessing was a circuit breaker self-resetting. Now the electrical system was back and the Jeep started right up like nothing had even happened. (except the radio's clock came up 12:00)

It's done this twice now. Anybody else ever have this happen? Any idea what is happening with the starter that could cause the vehicle to completely shut down the electrical system when I turn the key to start?

It's going to the dealer as soon as possible, but it'd be nice to know what to tell them to look for and to know what they need to fix to guarantee this doesn't happen again or get worse down the road.

Thanks,
Glen

 

https://www.jk-forum.com/forums/jk-electrical-lighting-sound-systems-13/having-problem-dash-dead-57343/

 

Thanks, but that's not the issue. Absolutely _nothing_ electrical worked at all and the engine didn't start. It's like the battery was completely disconnected from the vehicle for 2 to 3 minutes--long enough for the clock on the radio to reset to "12:00." After the single click noise from the fuse box, everything was back to normal.

 

Ah, I see. In that case i'm all out of ideas. I had the dash death issue once, but the engine kicked right on.



Have you driven through water or mud perhaps???

 

Sadly, no, my Jeep hasn't seen any dirt or water lately--just a paved road to a gravel parking lot at 10,000 feet yesterday.

 

Maybe it's a ground issue. I'd say go around and check all of the ground straps in the engine bay, and see if they're all clean and tight????


I mean, it's a start

 

I'll check that. I just did the on-off-on-off-on procedure with the key to pull the service codes. No codes. :confused:

 

Clean and reseat your battery terminals. This is classic symptom of a loose or high resistance battery connection. Everything will work until you need to pull a lot of current like the starter does. This will arc at the terminal and the surge will trip your main Circuit Breaker.

 

Any recommended cleaning procedure? I thought people use to use baking soda and water and a wire brush. Is this still the procedure?

Thanks,
Glen

 

Ding! We have a winner! The neutral battery wire is loose where it connects to the connector that connects to the battery post. Probably happened when I installed the fused power lead to the CB and ham radio last April.

You saved me a ton of embarrassment at the dealer!

Thanks, Derff!