The battery has been in that location for years in the JGC...it's not "new" just to the MY14 EcoDiesel.

 

I could note that British sports cars put them inside behind the driver way back in the early 60s... but somehow knowing this would not make me any more comfortable.
Lucas, prince of darkness

Any sulfur smell from a battery indicates there is a severe problem...

 

It’s not new for batteries to be contained within the vehicle. I know many have then in the boot area.

 

Wow! Like I said before, I'm new to the Jeep Family. Thanks for the history.

 

It’s not just a Jeep thing. Many modern cars have them, as I said earlier I know of a few GM and Euro cars that have them in their boot.

 

The AGM batteries are truly sealed batteries.


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What you are cramming a lot of stuff under the hood, sometimes you need to put some things elsewhere! The battery isn't a horrible choice since you get it out of the weather into "conditioned" space and you really don't need to physically access it until it needs replaced. (There are jump-lugs under the hood on the passenger side) Today's no-maintenance batteries are also pretty stable...doubtful they would ever cause an odor problem, especially since they are not exposed to the weather in the JGC.

 

good points. Thanks.

 

My 1960 VW Bug had the battery under the rear seat.

 

See. Nothing new. In all honesty i think its a better location to have it in lets say the truck or under the rear seats then to have it in the engine bay.

 

I wouldn’t go that far, it can be a pain in the ass when trying to jump start someone compared to just popping the hood; not that it can’t provide its own issues too.

One reason it gets moved to the boot in a lot of cars, is that it’s an easy way to shift more weight rearward .

 

Yeah Commodore utes have had them in the cab for a while

 

<P>I am sure that BMW fanbois will swear that the trunk location for the battery adds to the ultimate sex machine driving pleasures. But it is horrendous to change it out on an M3. Weight distribution bullshit.</P>

 

So, do you know the reason for sure, or just blowing off steam?



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I had the Miata when it first came out in 1990. It also had the battery in the trunk.

 

Batteries in the right rear quarter sections on my Z06 and CTS-V (both vented)

 

Having the battery out of the engine bay also increases its usable life by quite a margin.
There is a rule of thumb that for every 2 degrees centigrade rise above 30 degrees you can reduce the battery life by 6 months all things being equal.
Engine bays get very hot and of course a great lump of lead like a battery absorbs this heat with relish, and fried onions!!!!!:lol:

 

But putting it under the passenger's seat if said passenger also relishes relish and fried onions, could subject it to excess air pollution...

 

Hell I didn't think of that. But its under the drivers seat down under and as everyone knows this kind of diet does not effect us males (non sexist label I assure you) to the same extent.

 

Unless tacobell is involved lol. I assure you no battery is safe.

 

It's not only weight distribution from a front to rear thing, it also allows it to be slightly lower. Having an 860 lb (I'd like to throw it out there, but it's too bloody heavy) battery rear and low can be helpful.

 

Obvious sarcasm is obvious

 

Corvette's have had the battery in the cab from day dot.

 

The battery in my G8 GT is in the trunk on the driver side. Little bit of a pain to get out, but not too bad. Just changed it out and put in an AGM battery. It still has vent holes in the top to vent some gasses incase of overcharging. There is a vent tube in the car that runs out to the rear wheel well to vent outside the car.

 

Here is something interesting about WHY having our battery under the seat may be a good idea. I saw this on the RAM 1500 EcoDiesel forum:

The batteries in our trucks are agm (absorbed glass mat) & are highly susceptible to damage from moderate heat. Forum members are probably going to tire of hearing me repeat this so often but I feel it's noteworthy. Lab tests showed damage with temps as low as 104 degrees. One manufacturer recommends the recharge process be halted if exposed to temps in excess of 120. These batteries were designed for rv house batt use, marine, golf cart & light aviation use but NEVER designed as a cold cranking battery. This battery has inherently lower internal resistance. They use this fact to erroneously calculate a higher cca. With this "higher rating" they are trying to use this single batt rather than dual batteries. As I understand this is a borrowed practice from Mercedes Benz who are having similar batt problems. I foresee this as an ongoing problem that is only going to snowball!

So our AGM battery has the extra cold cranking amps needed for diesel starting. Being kept away from under hood temperatures may prevent the failures the Ram 1500 and Mercedes diesel folks are experiencing.

 

So many vehicles keep the batteries under the passenger seats. It goes way back to before the late 80s when I was looking at used 928S and was shocked by it. Crowded engine compartments take most of the blame. It's awkward at best. I always wonder if my battery goes full dead, hoping that never happens, but then how to get the seat moved to remove the old battery other than pulling the full front seat unit. Again I hope that never happens like timing chain snaps vs slow stretches.

 

All you should have to do is jump the dead battery from the engine compartment in order to move the seat.

 

My 2000 Cady had it under the back seat. Original battery lasted 9 years and I only chanced it as a precaution.

 

I recently had every idiot light come on in my GC Summit..I had no odometer...dealer did the “cruise control” recall and reset everything and all was ok. I have had people tell me if it was to happen again and I was not near a dealer just disconnect the battery and hook back up again...would i do this under the hood or under the seat?

 

Move the passenger seat all the way forward, pop the lid on the compartment, and proceed as you normally would.

The same compartment is on the drivers side as well. If you don't have quadralift it's empty and can be used to store....goods.

Just a fun fact...I used to own a Saab 9-3 with a 2.8 Turbo. In their infinite wisdom they mounted the turbo right next to the battery. I would get 2-3 years out of a battery before it would completely die. No warning, not able to jump. Just dead. Fun car, huge power when tuned, pain in the butt.

 

Since the battery is under the seat I’d suspect that’s your answer.

 

Resurrecting an old thread, but I discovered the battery under the passenger seat in my 2011 GC after returning from a Moab trip. Unloading the Jeep I couldn't get the floor panel under the seat to pop back into place. I realized there is no skid plate under there, and a rock had pushed the battery and tray 2-3" up into the cabin. Oops? Had to remove the battery and use a hammer and some steel pipe to get the tray close to original shape/position.

 

Check your rubber body plugs for that compartment, too. I lost mine in a similar situation. Needed to be replaced to avoid water intrusion and road noise.