Starter vs battery

Asked by Lf777 Feb 15, 2015 at 04:16 PM about the 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited 4WD

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

I need advice bc I am trying to figure out if I
have a starter or battery issue.

I went to start my car- all electrical stuff
worked radio lights heat. No dimming was
noted and horn works strong. No clicking or
noise when I turn the key. Tried jumping with
a portable and nothing. Jumped with another
car and started right away. The guy who
helped said in this cold weather (low teens to
single digits) it's probably the battery (which
is only 2 years old)
Car ran fine for two weeks

Now I'm having the same issue. Only this
time I'm being told it's the starter. I was
assuming it's the battery since the car works
after a jump and the temperature here has
dipped pretty low. I'm just looking for some
advice from someone experienced cause
this is becoming an annoying issues and
there is still a month and half left of this cold
weather

4 Answers

If it starts with a jump the starter if fine. The colder it gets, the less cranking amps your battery can produce, all cable connections must be clean and tight. And a 2 year old battery should be good unless it's a $40 cheapo, in that case it might have lost it's CCA's.. or is not big enough in the first place for your car. .a portable , if you mean like a charger, does not put out enough to matter when starting.

1 people found this helpful.

Well this second time around I had no success with jumping so I'm assuming it's the starter.

500

battery can draw juiice without holding charge battery is shorted out change battery

2 people found this helpful.
20

I went through the same thing for 2 years. Here is what I finally figured out. Let me also ask you if the power locks and powers windows are working on the drivers side door? Common problem...the wires that are in a sleeve within the drivers door begin to short out. When its in the process of shorting out, they will keep some sort of light or other small feature (I forget what) on because of the short which in turn drains the battery. Here is the fix: open up the drivers door and look for the sleeve of wires. You may need to open this sleeve up and you may need to cut it very carefully to access the wires inside. One of the wires inside is either cut/or broken or is about ready to break and is shorting out. Thus-causing that small feature to stay on when the car is off and thus, drains your battery. If you are not having issues with your power window/doors, the short may not be as far along but check the sleeve of wires in the drivers door and I think you want to focus on the white one or ground one.

2 people found this helpful.

Your Answer:

Grand Cherokee

Looking for a Used Grand Cherokee in your area?

CarGurus has 3,535 nationwide Grand Cherokee listings starting at $4,950.

Postal Code:

CarGurus Experts

  • #1
    Hornet_2497
    Reputation
    8,770
  • #2
    Gene Arnett
    Reputation
    6,960
  • #3
    thejeepdoctor
    Reputation
    6,460
View All

Find great deals from top-rated dealers

Search

Related Models For Sale

Used Dodge Charger
36 Great Deals out of 913 listings starting at $5,495
Used Dodge Durango
54 Great Deals out of 1,902 listings starting at $6,987
Used Jeep Wrangler
132 Great Deals out of 5,983 listings starting at $8,990
Used Ford F-150
346 Great Deals out of 13,355 listings starting at $3,000
Used Toyota 4Runner
25 Great Deals out of 528 listings starting at $7,990
Used Ford Explorer
70 Great Deals out of 2,022 listings starting at $3,333
Used Chevrolet Tahoe
12 Great Deals out of 841 listings starting at $698
Used Chevrolet Silverado 1500
198 Great Deals out of 8,239 listings starting at $6,995
Used Chrysler 300
28 Great Deals out of 525 listings starting at $4,995

Content submitted by Users is not endorsed by CarGurus, does not express the opinions of CarGurus, and should not be considered reviewed, screened, or approved by CarGurus. Please refer to CarGurus Terms of Use. Content will be removed if CarGurus becomes aware that it violates our policies.