Totemus Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 I need to disconnect the negative battery cable. Found out and was disappointed how hard it is to get to the battery in DJ. Does anybody know an easy way to get to the negative cable to disconnect it with minimum efforts? Thanks for any advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTSGUY Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 It sounds harder than it really is. A couple weeks ago when I installed my audio system in my Journey I thought the same thing as you did but when I went to do it I turned the wheel all the way to the right and removed the plastic inner fender and the battery is right there. Its really not that hard to do. Its just awkward in placement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkeaton Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Isnt there a neg terminal in the engine compartment for when you have to jump it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTSGUY Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Isnt there a neg terminal in the engine compartment for when you have to jump it? Yes there is. If you disconnect it I don't believe its a complete disconnect from the whole system like it is direct from the battery. I could be wrong on this though. It would be nice to know this answer for sure on both the positive and negative terminals that are in the engine compartment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totemus Posted April 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Yes there is. If you disconnect it I don't believe its a complete disconnect from the whole system like it is direct from the battery. I could be wrong on this though. It would be nice to know this answer for sure on both the positive and negative terminals that are in the engine compartment. I agree - there are terminals available, but if you disconnect them the battery will still be plugged. DTSGUY 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totemus Posted April 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 It sounds harder than it really is. A couple weeks ago when I installed my audio system in my Journey I thought the same thing as you did but when I went to do it I turned the wheel all the way to the right and removed the plastic inner fender and the battery is right there. Its really not that hard to do. Its just awkward in placement. How do you cope with the clips? I tried to extract one and broke it... How do you unplug them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTSGUY Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 I know exactly what you mean, those clips SUCK!! The bad thing is that those clips are all over the Journey and holds lots of things together. I used a small flat head screwdriver to get the center part to come up then I used needle nose pliers to grab the center stick and pull up. Once you pull it all the way up then the whole clip comes out. I broke a few myself. I went to a local body shop and got replacements from them. Im sure you could get some from your local body shop also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Journeyman425 Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 It appears that the electrical system will be shut down if you simply disconnect the negative jump terminal under the hood. From the manual: 08 - Electrical/8F - Engine Systems/Battery System/BATTERY/Removal REMOVAL WARNING: To protect the hands from battery acid, a suitable pair of heavy duty rubber gloves should be worn when removing or servicing a battery. Safety glasses also should be worn. WARNING: Remove metallic jewelry to avoid injury by accidental arcing of battery current. CAUTION: The negative battery cable remote terminal (2) must be disconnected and isolated from the remote battery post (1) prior to service of the vehicle electrical systems. The negative battery cable remote terminal can be isolated by using the supplied isolation hole (3) in the terminal casing. Disconnect and isolate the negative battery cable remote terminal from the remote battery post. Totemus and Addicted to Dodge 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totemus Posted April 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 It appears that the electrical system will be shut down if you simply disconnect the negative jump terminal under the hood. From the manual:08 - Electrical/8F - Engine Systems/Battery System/BATTERY/Removal REMOVAL WARNING:To protect the hands from battery acid, a suitable pair of heavy duty rubber gloves should be worn when removing or servicing a battery. Safety glasses also should be worn. WARNING:Remove metallic jewelry to avoid injury by accidental arcing of battery current. CAUTION:The negative battery cable remote terminal (2) must be disconnected and isolated from the remote battery post (1) prior to service of the vehicle electrical systems. The negative battery cable remote terminal can be isolated by using the supplied isolation hole (3) in the terminal casing. Disconnect and isolate the negative battery cable remote terminal from the remote battery post. Thanks. It sounds like you are right, but I prefer to be extra cautious Without reading the manual I can't say if negative post removal is just the first step and should be followed by negative cable removal from the battery or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkeaton Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 That cable is a jumper from the neg terminal on the battery to the post in the engine compartment, so disconnecting that cable from the post isolates the battery. It is connected to nothing else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bramfrank Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 While I haven't actually looked at the clips in question and I am too lazy to actually go into the garage and check before writing this, they sound like the same ones Yamaha uses on my Motorcycle. If they are, you press the center pin IN to the clip past the head and it will 'click' into place, releasing tension on the ears that hold the clip in place - you can then simply remove the clip by carefully twisting the head while pulling it back. You reset the clip by pressing the pin back into the clip so it extends past the head, again releasing the tension. Insert the clip by carefully inserting the ears so that they go past the two surfaces being mated and then press the pin so that it is again flush with the head. Very simple; Quite elegant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkpaw Posted April 21, 2014 Report Share Posted April 21, 2014 [...]If they are, you press the center pin IN to the clip past the head and it will 'click' into place, releasing tension on the ears that hold the clip in place - you can then simply remove the clip by carefully twisting the head while pulling it back. [...] Nope, it's the opposite. You need to pry the middle part OUT with a flat-head screwdriver. You may find it easier but kind of alternating from one side of the pin to the other. It sucks, but that's the only way to get them out. Be careful when doing the ones on the edge of the bumper cover, as I made a small mark in mine when pulling the pins yesterday (due to carelessness in watching where the screwdriver was when moving it). Ugh...brand new vehicle. In reference to the other part about the cable, nothing to be careful about...pulling the top cable disconnects it, period. I've taken dozens of pictures of my "gutting" while modding this weekend, and will post pics on it hopefully by Wednesday (if I can get it completed by then). The negative is a single cable, from the strut tower directly to the battery. Disconnecting this at the strut tower disconnects the battery. The positive is a single cable that goes to the PDU in the engine bay. There is also a temperature sensor on the negative side of the battery, you'll need to disconnect this and remove it if you ever replace the battery. I had to pull the battery because I installed a "battery warmer" (basically, an electric blanket for a car battery), because it REALLY helps when doing starts when it's down below -20. It took me probably over an hour to get that whole thing out...what an awful job that was. On the plus side, the battery is really secured in there quite strongly (huge piece of steel holding the top down, with a plastic part for what is probably anti-vibration under it). Totemus 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totemus Posted April 23, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 I'm not going to do anything with the battery, but plan to remove the steering wheel cover. I read that negative should be disconnected (and wait 3-10 minutes) to prevent the airbag discharge. So it sounds like disconnecting the end on the strut tower will disconnect the battery, which is encouraging as I don't have to deal with those clips Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lobitz68 Posted April 23, 2014 Report Share Posted April 23, 2014 All of the newer Dodge's are this way. Negative on the strut tower is the disconnect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkpaw Posted April 24, 2014 Report Share Posted April 24, 2014 I'm not going to do anything with the battery, but plan to remove the steering wheel cover. I read that negative should be disconnected (and wait 3-10 minutes) to prevent the airbag discharge. So it sounds like disconnecting the end on the strut tower will disconnect the battery, which is encouraging as I don't have to deal with those clips Just an FYI, but airbags can deploy even without power to them. They appear to hold charge in probably some kind of large capacitor, so to still be able to deploy in the event power is disconnected on a collision. Not sure how long you would need to wait for them to discharge, but I'm thinking 3-5 minutes wouldn't be nearly enough time... That piece you are looking to take off has 2 bolts at the bottom of it, and there are 6 or 7 metal clips. Pull STRAIGHT OUT from the dash area to release it, don't pull down on an angle. Totemus 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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