Hello Merlin and ScarySpider
Have a 2005 GV 2.8 CRD, with just the same flat battery problems as you and others have described, especially when it's used for shorter journeys. An Optima spiral red top battery went completely dead and was replaced under warranty with a Mopar. Whenever it goes flat I charge it up with a basic 'domestic' trickle charger.

I would like to improve this if possible, so with regard to your earlier posts:
ScarySpider: has your car been starting OK with the Varta E44 battery ?
Merlin: Would you still advise fitting the larger, conventional battery as a replacement ? I think you quoted a part number of A004 541 8601 26. Any other details on that one ? - whose part number is it ?

Thanks for any advice you can offer

 

Hi
That was a Merc battery part number but was having trouble getting warranty to pay so we now fit a Chrysler one that warranty does pay for. I'll look up the number for you tomorrow.

 

Hi djn

the car is still going strong with no more battery problems it averages 20-25 miles use a day, work and school runs tv's on and headlights in the evening coming back from work.

regards
Peter

 

Sorry forgot about this, fit a Chrysler one part number 05015420AB Warranty price is only £60 so I would hope your dealer would help you with this cost.

 

All,

I have a 2004 Grand Voyager 2.8. I have been having this battery problem for over 2 years now. Have had two Mopar battery. Had it checked for battery drain 5 times. Twice at the dealer and 3 times at various garage. No one could find any problem. I now replaced the battery with a top of the range BOSCH cell type. Still having problems at times.

I think the main problem is that I only do about 14 to 20 miles a day and the battery is not charging enough. I have been aslo advised to get a battery charger and charge it once in a while.

My question is, when you pay for a car like this, why do you have to do all these? They did not tell me when i bought the car that you have to drive long distance. Off the record, my dealer told me that they are aware of the problem but no solution. Chrysler would not admit to this. We all need to write straight to Chrysler.

I now also have a problem with central locking and the automatic doors. Merlin told me, to solve this, disconnect the battery for a short while and reconnect. This re-sets the onboard computer.

Merlin, Can this lock problem be solved?

Thanks

 

Yes dealer needs to do a software update for the BCM. There is a TSB for this the dealer should find it.

 

Guys,

I do have the same problem as mentioned here on my 2.8L Voyager 2004. In the UK the school run can be very short so the Red top Optima battery does not have the time to fully charge. Over time this degrades the battery. I thought of putting a Yellow top battery there but will still face the same issue (flat battery not able to start the car and needs to be jump started). So the alternative is to buy a charger. Prolem is I am not sure which battery charger to buy. I am not sure if a standard lead acid based battery charger would be fine.

Any help appreciated.

Thanks,
Mathias

 

Hi
fit the acid battery I posted about you should be fine. If not you can then use a normal charger on the acid battery.

 

Thanks Merlin.

Are you referring to he part number 05015420AB ? If that is the case I can't find it anywhere. The closest in power rating I could get is 278mm long which is just a little bit longer than the space allocated for the battery in the car. I ordered this http://www.ctek.com/EN-GB/consumer/mxs-4003.aspx to charge the battery - have not received it yet.

Mathias,

 

Hi
Yes it's a dealer battery part number that I fit to my customers cars with this issue. It is a lower rating the the red top battery but my customers never have any issues again. You do have to cut the battery tray to make it fit but just the front lip. The charger looks good and is almost the same as the dealer uses.