Wilsonk uk Posted August 4, 2020 Report Share Posted August 4, 2020 Hi, I've had a 2010 DJ from new, regularly serviced only done 88k miles. About 18 months ago began to get starting problems so changed out battery. Problems did not go away. Car would drain rapidly ie overnight and be utterly dead. No dash lights or anything. Jump start it and it would be fine for a couple of weeks then die again. Tried to get battery replaced under warranty but they refused saying battery tested fine and car was underused. was convinced it was a battery issue so replaced again and guess what- no joy. My mechanic is baffled. He is wondering if our house alarm is somehow interfering with the car- he has seen this before. We did get an alarm around the time this all kicked off but it has died away from the house. Was driving around one day. Stopped to put gas in. Got back in car, completely dead. It's like some stole the battery! I miss my big dodge, nothing like it in uk. Please can anyone offer ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted August 5, 2020 Report Share Posted August 5, 2020 some have said the bluetooth module can cause a battery drain, check the forum out a lot of info there on thoes that have had a problem like yours,good luck OhareFred and jkeaton 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted August 5, 2020 Report Share Posted August 5, 2020 Welcome to forum. You need to confirm a few things. Parasitic load needs to be measured when car is not running. Remove positive terminal under hood, set meter to milliamperes and see how much is drawing after watching meter for around 2 minutes and ecm has gone to sleep mode. Should be around 100 to 175 milliamps. Switch meter back to dc volts and measure power at battery with car running, should be around 14 to 14.5 volts. Then turn on most accessories, voltage should stay above 13 volts if alternator is decent. jkeaton and OhareFred 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natefrog2 Posted August 6, 2020 Report Share Posted August 6, 2020 (edited) On 8/4/2020 at 6:13 PM, Wilsonk uk said: Hi, I've had a 2010 DJ from new, regularly serviced only done 88k miles. About 18 months ago began to get starting problems so changed out battery. Problems did not go away. Car would drain rapidly ie overnight and be utterly dead. No dash lights or anything. Jump start it and it would be fine for a couple of weeks then die again. Tried to get battery replaced under warranty but they refused saying battery tested fine and car was underused. was convinced it was a battery issue so replaced again and guess what- no joy. My mechanic is baffled. He is wondering if our house alarm is somehow interfering with the car- he has seen this before. We did get an alarm around the time this all kicked off but it has died away from the house. Was driving around one day. Stopped to put gas in. Got back in car, completely dead. It's like some stole the battery! I miss my big dodge, nothing like it in uk. Please can anyone offer ideas? Had a similar issue and mine appears to be tied to the Bluetooth Module. My timeline was along these lines... Fall 2017: Bluetooth U-Connect Stopped Working March 2018: Slow turn but car started, check engine light comes on. Battery was new so it was determined alternator was fried (70K Miles) April 2018: Car dead. Jumped started and check engine light goes back to battery again. At this point it became a guessing game. They replaced the battery under warranty. May 2018: Didn't use car for 2 days and was completely dead. Charged battery, took to garage for a week, and nothing was found. Bluetooth fuse (found in manual) was removed. Mid-July 2018: Took vehicle to a Dodge dealership for a quote on the Bluetooth, they reinserted a fuse, and UConnect briefly worked. However UConnect was not working by the time I got home and they quoted me $650 to replace BT module. I passed but left the fuse in. Late-July 2018: Vehicle was cranking slow again. At this point I was strongly feeling the BT module was the issue, so I removed the fuse. As of today (2 years later) I have not had a dead battery and really no issues at all other than maybe 1-2x the radio clock reset overnight. Based on everything above it seems like the issue is tied to a bad Bluetooth module or at the very least the radio. I did buy a new Bluetooth Module a year or so back, but I have yet to install it. Part of it is b/c I'm afraid the car will stop starting again, but it is also in a really rough spot. I just didn't want to drop $600 to fix at dealership (I got the module for $225). Good luck, it is a super frustrating issues especially since the Journey (ours is 2012 Crew) is a pretty nice vehicle that we like. Edited August 6, 2020 by natefrog2 John/Horace 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilsonk uk Posted August 6, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 6, 2020 Thank you all for your replies. Lots to go on there - very useful. Natefrog2 that fuse sounds particularly compelling given your experience versus mine. Can you recall was it fuse number 10? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natefrog2 Posted October 12, 2020 Report Share Posted October 12, 2020 On 8/6/2020 at 11:26 AM, Wilsonk uk said: Thank you all for your replies. Lots to go on there - very useful. Natefrog2 that fuse sounds particularly compelling given your experience versus mine. Can you recall was it fuse number 10? Yes, it had a 10 on it which I think means 10 amp. It was like the 3rd one down from the middle of the fuse box on the passenger/glove box area. I actually finally replaced the Bluetooth module yesterday, what a b**** to get to. I saved $350-400 doing it but it took a long time as 1 of the 2 screws was a pain point to reach even after taking out brake pedal and panel under steering wheel. But I eventually got to it, replaced it, put my fuse back in, and my U-Connect is now working again. Now the only hurdle is hopefully I don't start having battery drain issues again. I'm hopeful the drain was related to the module that went bad and I replaced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natefrog2 Posted October 22, 2020 Report Share Posted October 22, 2020 So far, so good. Week and a half in and HFM still working, car has been starting, etc. The longest time between car starts was about 60+ hours so that is positive. Fingers crossed, haha. OhareFred, Armando G and 2late4u 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted October 22, 2020 Report Share Posted October 22, 2020 1 hour ago, natefrog2 said: So far, so good. Week and a half in and HFM still working, car has been starting, etc. The longest time between car starts was about 60+ hours so that is positive. Fingers crossed, haha. thanks for replying back on the condition Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Canuck Posted January 22, 2021 Report Share Posted January 22, 2021 My daughter has a 2010 Dodge Journey SXT and I live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. We get some really cold nights in January and I have been getting up early before I go to work because my daughter phones me every second morning asking me to come over to her place to boost her vehicle. So I traded her vehicles and I have been checking for a parasitic drain on her battery for the last 2 weeks without any luck until this morning at 5:30 AM to help my wife get ready for work. I went to the front door to remote start my wife's car and noticed the brake lights were activated on the 2010 Dodge Journey SXT so I went outside and yes the battery was dead again. I checked a few websites and this is a known problem with Journeys and the brake switch staying on after turning it off. I would never have noticed it if I would not have gotten up at 5:30 AM with my wife. Thank you honey! Now replacing my brake light switch. I will let you know if that solves it but I am 99.9% sure that is the issue. larryl, OhareFred and 2late4u 1 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larryl Posted January 22, 2021 Report Share Posted January 22, 2021 Yes a ten cent part made of plastic in the freezing cold what could go wrong??? Glad you found it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted January 22, 2021 Report Share Posted January 22, 2021 (edited) Daughters and car maintenance ; very familiar story. Are you using 5w20 synthetic and a block heater, also helpful. I have family in Calgary, extreme winters for vehicles. But no salt is nice; kills our Ontario cars. The biggest parasitic drain issue in the journeys appears to be blue tooth modules that stay on. Fuse gets pulled and module later changed out. Pricy problem. Edited January 22, 2021 by John/Horace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 22, 2021 Report Share Posted January 22, 2021 my grandson gmc truck it was an old the brake light part went bad about 2 yrs ago but i google it. and that is how i found the problem and also found out gm had a recall done on his type of truck but his had never been done so we were able to get it fixed for free from the dealership, i dont know if there is a recall on the journeys for this as this is the first ive ever heard that it was a common problem, oh well just thought you might want to check with a dealer to see if it would have been covered and maybe get reimbursed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted January 22, 2021 Report Share Posted January 22, 2021 2 hours ago, Crazy Canuck said: My daughter has a 2010 Dodge Journey SXT and I live in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. We get some really cold nights in January and I have been getting up early before I go to work because my daughter phones me every second morning asking me to come over to her place to boost her vehicle. So I traded her vehicles and I have been checking for a parasitic drain on her battery for the last 2 weeks without any luck until this morning at 5:30 AM to help my wife get ready for work. I went to the front door to remote start my wife's car and noticed the brake lights were activated on the 2010 Dodge Journey SXT so I went outside and yes the battery was dead again. I checked a few websites and this is a known problem with Journeys and the brake switch staying on after turning it off. I would never have noticed it if I would not have gotten up at 5:30 AM with my wife. Thank you honey! Now replacing my brake light switch. I will let you know if that solves it but I am 99.9% sure that is the issue. GLAD you took the time to post this for other journey owners,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,most posters after they get it fixed fail to report back on what they did Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Canuck Posted January 27, 2021 Report Share Posted January 27, 2021 My daughter has been driving the vehicle for the last week with no issues. Temperatures at night around - 17C. Battery drain issued fixed. I hope this help someone else electrical issues in older vehicles can be a real nightmare. I am thankful it was just the brake light switch and not the computer. 2late4u 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spektyr Posted May 7, 2022 Report Share Posted May 7, 2022 (edited) I ran into a Bluetooth issue on my 2013 SE (it completely stopped connecting even after a power reset) and changed out the module. It's a real dog of a job on that vehicle and required the removal of the brake pedal assembly, if I remember correctly. Now yesterday I found the battery in my 2018 GT drained to the point that the info display was dimming out and the fob wasn't being detected. I jump started it and let it charge for a while. So far today it's kept the charge, but I want to have the local Advance Auto guy put his analyzer on the battery just to check. I'm assuming it's the original factory battery and it"s reaching the end of it's life. I can replace it myself but it's a pain-in-the-butt job and I'm not looking forward to I'm hoping it's the battery because I don't want to go through the nightmare of changing out another Bluetooth module. Dodge engineers couldn't find a more reasonable place to mount that thing? SHEEESH! Note: I drove it a couple of days before this battery issue and all was okay then. I'll post an update after I have the battery checked. Edited May 7, 2022 by Spektyr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Mad Duck Posted January 7, 2023 Report Share Posted January 7, 2023 A Question What Fuse # Powers the Bluetooth. My 2010 Journey is Starting to Kill the Battery Slowly when I Let Sit for a Couple of Days. My Next Project to to Start Pulling 1 Fuse at a Time and seeing what the Offending Circuit Is. Has Anyone found a Circuit the Kills the Battery ? ? ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted January 7, 2023 Report Share Posted January 7, 2023 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John/Horace Posted January 8, 2023 Report Share Posted January 8, 2023 F131 in passenger front fuse panel shuts down blue tooth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EazyE Posted March 6 Report Share Posted March 6 2017 DJ GT having intermittent battery draining issues. I bought it used 2yo & within the 1st yr it died a couple times on my son when he drove it to work & it sat for maybe 8 to 10hrs. Jump started it & it was find. Figured it needed a new battery but thought I'll keep going for a while. Finally replaced the battery 11/23. Drove it about 700 miles to visit family, it sat for 3 days, we go to leave & it's dead. Charged it up & it was fine again. Noticed some sluggish starting over the past month. I go to leave for work & it sat for maybe a day & half & it was dead again. Took it to be tested & the battery, alternator, & starter all check out fine. I have noticed off & on for the past yr or so that when I get home from work I may sit in my car for a few & catch up on emails & the car will be turned off but the dash will light up & then turn off & this will go on for a few times & then stop. So I thought well maybe I'm touching the car with the key fob on me & that's doing something. I made sure the key was in the house last week & walked outside to check on the car & the dash was lighting up & turning off a couple minutes go by & it would do it again. It's been acting weird ever since I had the fuel injectors replaced & a tuneup done on it. Check engine light sporadically turns on, now my remote start doesn't work & says the hood is ajar, elec throttle control light comes on, P0123, P0562, & P0128 codes have all come up. I'm pretty sure it's possessed at this point & anyone I take it to all tell me nothing is wrong with it. My next stop is the dreaded dealership. Any suggestions?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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