2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee electrical issue

[Hiluxpanda]

I forgot to plug the van in when we stopped at the inlaws last night and woke up to a flat car battery after the fridge sucked it completely dry...i mean this thing was beyond dead.......it took road side assist bloke jump cables and two portable jump start packs connected simultaneously to get her going again.

However now the centre entertainment/radio/ reverse camera display is seemingly powerless...no response to any buttons pushing.....


The best my amatuer auto electricial brain can conjure is Im thinking fuse has blown.......is this possible from such an event?

 

[WHHEMI]

Can't answer your question sorry but I think you need a fridge switch so this doesn't happen again.

 

[yabbietol]

Had a similar experience a few months ago had van hooked up to go away, one of us was not feeling well so we decided to go in the next morning. I forgot to unhook the electrical connections to the van (12 pin plug and Anderson plug). Fridge was running in the van all night.

The Pajero would not start the next morning NRMA called and got it jump started OK. So we went away after buying a new cranking battery and felt all OK. We got to Walcha in a few days and I noticed the Anderson plug had no 12V so did some fault finding and found the 30A fuse from battery has melted into the fuse holder, giving an intermittent fault. Then went to local Auto Elect who was really good and we got a new fuse holder and fuse. I asked why the fuse melted and he said as batteries under load went flat they try to keep up 12V and draw more and more current and eventually they run out of omph, but they can while going flat melt stuff.

In summary check all your cabling and especially any where there would be some resistance such as fuses, fuse holders, connectors and even look for melted cable. A blown or melted fuse is a real possibility.

Good luck
Terry

 

[WHHEMI]

Had a similar experience a few months ago had van hooked up to go away, one of us was not feeling well so we decided to go in the next morning. I forgot to unhook the electrical connections to the van (12 pin plug and Anderson plug). Fridge was running in the van all night.

The Pajero would not start the next morning NRMA called and got it jump started OK. So we went away after buying a new cranking battery and felt all OK. We got to Walcha in a few days and I noticed the Anderson plug had no 12V so did some fault finding and found the 30A fuse from battery has melted into the fuse holder, giving an intermittent fault. Then went to local Auto Elect who was really good and we got a new fuse holder and fuse. I asked why the fuse melted and he said as batteries under load went flat they try to keep up 12V and draw more and more current and eventually they run out of omph, but they can while going flat melt stuff.

In summary check all your cabling and especially any where there would be some resistance such as fuses, fuse holders, connectors and even look for melted cable. A blown or melted fuse is a real possibility.

Good luck
Terry

Sounds like you need a fridge switch too.

 

[bigcol]

or

my fridge (engel) and Anderson and everything else all runs off my aux battery

run that sucker down, bad luck, I can still start and drive away

 

[Jasman]

I put a solenoid on the Anderson Plug so it's only powered when the Jeep is running.

 

[twscoot]

From a quick search I think pulling the M12 fuse might be worth a go. There's also a radio reset sequence that you can find on Jeep Garage.

 

[Hiluxpanda]

From a quick search I think pulling the M12 fuse might be worth a go. There's also a radio reset sequence that you can find on Jeep Garage.

I pulled it this morning but to the eye it looks ok......should i get a multimeter and check it still??

Not sure what else to do.

 

[yabbietol]

Visual checks on fuses work about 70% of the time so it is always worth checking with a multimeter.

Here is a way to check fuses without a multimeter or voltage tester but be careful.
If you do not have a multimeter look for a fuse that is similar value or higher and to test only temporarily place it in the relevant fuse holder. If higher a value fuse do not leave it there or you may do some expensive damage. Once you have determined that the circuit is working remove the higher value fuse immediately. Something else may have blown the original fuse, so be quick and be careful.

If fuse is same value it is OK to leave it in place, but sometimes a fault will blow it almost immediately, so fuse juggling can be a pain. If you have a spare fuse of correct value replace suspect fuse and see what happens. If no visual fault is found and fuse OK, it really does sound like a visit to a good Auto electrician.

A cheap multimeter or 12 V voltage tester is a good thing to have in your caravan or car when travelling they can answer a lot of questions.

Regards
Terry

PS To the above comments about 2nd batteries and fridge switches they are both a good idea and worth using. For simplicity and to answer the question of the OP. In my above post I did no go into the second battery failure and the suspect wiring by a local auto electrician who I no longer use.

 

[NoWorries]

Ring Jeep and ask the question, might be a easy fix

 

[Hiluxpanda]

Thanks terry picked up a multimeter this morning at jaycar.....now learning to use it....but from my mediocre skills i think its its the fuse....or im checking the wrong fuse.....which is unlikely...i cant see another fuse that it could be in the manual.

Visual checks on fuses work about 70% of the time so it is always worth checking with a multimeter.

Here is a way to check fuses without a multimeter or voltage tester but be careful.
If you do not have a multimeter look for a fuse that is similar value or higher and to test only temporarily place it in the relevant fuse holder. If higher a value fuse do not leave it there or you may do some expensive damage. Once you have determined that the circuit is working remove the higher value fuse immediately. Something else may have blown the original fuse, so be quick and be careful.

If fuse is same value it is OK to leave it in place, but sometimes a fault will blow it almost immediately, so fuse juggling can be a pain. If you have a spare fuse of correct value replace suspect fuse and see what happens. If no visual fault is found and fuse OK, it really does sound like a visit to a good Auto electrician.

A cheap multimeter or 12 V voltage tester is a good thing to have in your caravan or car when travelling they can answer a lot of questions.

Regards
Terry

PS To the above comments about 2nd batteries and fridge switches they are both a good idea and worth using. For simplicity and to answer the question of the OP. In my above post I did no go into the second battery failure and the suspect wiring by a local auto electrician who I no longer use.