Paully Posted October 20, 2017 Report Share Posted October 20, 2017 Had to replace the battery and found 2 surprises ., 1) Batt. is located on a shelf in front of the left front wheel ! 2)The cheap stamped shelf was almost rotted away when i replaced the battery . Note : If this shelf lets go and the battery falls , it will fall directly in front of the left wheel !!!! This is the stupidest design i have seen in a while and will surely cost lives ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bramfrank Posted October 20, 2017 Report Share Posted October 20, 2017 I'd like to see the battery out back the way the Magnum the Pontiac G5, to name a couple, had them. They stayed clean and warm that way. But Chrysler (and others) have been putting batteries up front like this in certain models for many years (my first Chrysler built like that was a Y2K LHS). As far as I can tell, even if the shelf rotted completely away the battery would not be under the front wheel for a couple of reasons, not the least of which are very large battery cables that have no slack. It is a lot less of a pain than one night imagine, as long as you can work indoors during winter months. OhareFred and 2late4u 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkeaton Posted October 22, 2017 Report Share Posted October 22, 2017 Cost lives?? Lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmoore1436 Posted October 23, 2017 Report Share Posted October 23, 2017 The DJ was designed pre-pentastar engine, and that was the best place to place the battery with the new engine. However, if your DJ is a 2011, in the last 6 years of maintenance (especially is you went to a Dodge dealership), if it was a true risk to anyones life they would have let you know. One of the steps that they have to take when performing regular maintenance is an inspection of the battery and the housing. You should also be inspecting this area yourself occasionally. jkeaton and 2late4u 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paully Posted April 20, 2018 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2018 This has got to be the strangest and most dangerous way to mount a battery , that i for one have ever seen. In reply to imoore1436 . Are you kidding ... this vehicle was purchased by my wife and came with all the dealership hooks including all oil changes , check ups ,etc. It was in for other recall work also . After all that , not one person advised anything about a battery pan . As stated , i found this rotted out mess while changing out the battery myself . If anyone disagrees that a battery falling down in front of a front wheel will not cause an out of control condition , i suggest you try it by running over a friggen battery at 60 mph.?! As for the battery cables holding the battery up because they have no slack ... are you kidding ??? The 50 cent stamped pan cost me $200.00 because its not available in aftermarket ! I just dont get this . jkeaton 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhareFred Posted April 20, 2018 Report Share Posted April 20, 2018 Batteries have been put in odd locations for years. Chrysler chose in front of the drivers wheel. GM has them under the rear seat inside the car. I live in Chicago, where during the winter there is more salt then snow, and the battery tray on my 04 Sebring is fine, as is the battery tray on my 09 Journey. I do inspect my cars when I do brakes, etc. every few years but I don’t lose sleep over it. If it falls out due to a defect, sue them. No different then any other part of the car. Just my 2 cents.... jkeaton 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmoore1436 Posted April 22, 2018 Report Share Posted April 22, 2018 On 4/20/2018 at 4:22 PM, Paully said: This has got to be the strangest and most dangerous way to mount a battery , that i for one have ever seen. In reply to imoore1436 . Are you kidding ... this vehicle was purchased by my wife and came with all the dealership hooks including all oil changes , check ups ,etc. It was in for other recall work also . After all that , not one person advised anything about a battery pan . As stated , i found this rotted out mess while changing out the battery myself . If anyone disagrees that a battery falling down in front of a front wheel will not cause an out of control condition , i suggest you try it by running over a friggen battery at 60 mph.?! As for the battery cables holding the battery up because they have no slack ... are you kidding ??? The 50 cent stamped pan cost me $200.00 because its not available in aftermarket ! I just dont get this . I certainly wasn't kidding... You didn't give much context to when you found out, circumstances, etc. When I take my DJ to the dealer to get an oil change I'm given a sheet with the inspection information on it. If i fact it was rotted, and you had recently taken it to the dealership where they performed an oil change and inspection and they marked it as in good condition have them replace it. I also agree that it would cause an out of control motion, however it hasn't come up as an issue before (other than being an annoyance). This picture is of a 2011 DJ battery, and the shelf looks like it is in perfect condition. If there was rot, rusting or corrosion on yours it should have been noticed a while ago and you should have mentioned it to the dealer. You are also supposed to check on the battery yourself, as it is your vehicle and ultimately your responsibility. Also, I find it hard to believe that this 2011 shelf is in perfectly good condition but yours was about to cost your life. Are there any extreme weather circumstances? Here is a video showing a 2009 battery that was changed and still looks to be in great condition. Was your splash guard in place when you changed your battery? That is what prevents moisture from accumulating. jkeaton and mechanical-idiot 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2late4u Posted April 22, 2018 Report Share Posted April 22, 2018 to be honest i wouldn't want the battery inside the car or under the seat just in case it leaked or went bad since it has acid in them. but that is just me i guess OhareFred 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmoore1436 Posted April 22, 2018 Report Share Posted April 22, 2018 3 hours ago, 2late4u said: to be honest i wouldn't want the battery inside the car or under the seat just in case it leaked or went bad since it has acid in them. but that is just me i guess Me either... He didn't mention if he had changed the battery since he purchased the vehicle, but if not then it could have been corroded from an acid leak. OhareFred 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paully Posted April 24, 2018 Author Report Share Posted April 24, 2018 On 4/22/2018 at 9:28 AM, lmoore1436 said: I certainly wasn't kidding... You didn't give much context to when you found out, circumstances, etc. When I take my DJ to the dealer to get an oil change I'm given a sheet with the inspection information on it. If i fact it was rotted, and you had recently taken it to the dealership where they performed an oil change and inspection and they marked it as in good condition have them replace it. I also agree that it would cause an out of control motion, however it hasn't come up as an issue before (other than being an annoyance). This picture is of a 2011 DJ battery, and the shelf looks like it is in perfect condition. If there was rot, rusting or corrosion on yours it should have been noticed a while ago and you should have mentioned it to the dealer. You are also supposed to check on the battery yourself, as it is your vehicle and ultimately your responsibility. Also, I find it hard to believe that this 2011 shelf is in perfectly good condition but yours was about to cost your life. Are there any extreme weather circumstances? Here is a video showing a 2009 battery that was changed and still looks to be in great condition. Was your splash guard in place when you changed your battery? That is what prevents moisture from accumulating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paully Posted April 24, 2018 Author Report Share Posted April 24, 2018 Thank You ., I cant make believe that the battery shelf had rotted away !? I can only advise that this has happened with me ! You can all do what you want to do with this .?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkeaton Posted April 25, 2018 Report Share Posted April 25, 2018 13 hours ago, Paully said: Thank You ., I cant make believe that the battery shelf had rotted away !? I can only advise that this has happened with me ! You can all do what you want to do with this .?! Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7one8 Posted May 21, 2018 Report Share Posted May 21, 2018 (edited) You can add me to the list as well. I noticed my tray has corroded while changing my fog light bulbs not too long ago. Definitely one of the most idiotic locations for a battery in a vehicle with this much cargo space. Edited May 21, 2018 by 7one8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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