Hooked battery tender up in reverse

[v10CodeMonkey]

Embarrassing to admit, but I stupidly hooked the battery tender up in reverse on my 08 coupe for the entire winter... Yesterday, I saw what I had done and tried to charge the battery but when I tried to connect the negative it kept sparking so I'm assuming it reversed the polarity on it. I went ahead and got a new battery (fully charged) and hooked it up but still no power to the car. Any idea what I messed up or where to look for issues?

[viperBase1]

I would hope the battery tender would account for the polarity change n' at the very least shut down.
You had the charger connected directly to the battery or to the points under the hood?

In the mean time, check all fuses... Reset the ECU..disconnect it for 30min or so..
If you got the stock ECU swap that one in..
That's all I Got right now.

Thinking....

[Old School]

Did you measure to old batteries voltage? Was it reverse polarity?

[Fatman2006]

I have nothing to add, except it should be interesting to see how this plays out.

[v10CodeMonkey]

I would hope the battery tender would account for the polarity change n' at the very least shut down.
You had the charger connected directly to the battery or to the points under the hood?

In the mean time, check all fuses... Reset the ECU..disconnect it for 30min or so..
If you got the stock ECU swap that one in..
That's all I Got right now.

Thinking....

I was using an older battery tender that I don't believe had any polarity protection and I had it connected to the points under the hood.

I do have the stock ECU to swap in, will try that next. All the fuses under the hood looked good. Possible the relays are bad?

[v10CodeMonkey]

Did you measure to old batteries voltage? Was it reverse polarity?

The old battery is under warranty thru Dodge, so it's at local dealership now, but they can't test it till Monday for some reason, so I won't know for sure till then.

[Steve-Indy]

"...no power to the car"

Is that ALL power...including such things as headlights or just ignition dependent power?

Agree, it will be interesting to hear outcome.

[v10CodeMonkey]

"...no power to the car"

Is that ALL power...including such things as headlights or just ignition dependent power?

Agree, it will be interesting to hear outcome.

So far, no power to open the doors (had to use the key to pop door/hatch open). No interior lights, no headlights/foglights/tailights. No power when the key turned to the "on" position.

[v10CodeMonkey]

So dealership called, they tested my old battery and found it was down to 10 amps, they were able to charge it up just fine so I guess it wasn't reverse polarized. Still doesn't explain what is wrong with the car though.

Also, swapping back to the stock PCM yielded no results.

[viperBase1]

Anybody know of any fusable links anywhere?

[Steve-Indy]

Thanks for no power explanation. Have you/they tested battery cable to connector integrity to see if outgassing has destroyed the wires hidden in the connector itself?

Did W you mean battery was at 10 volts instead of 10 amps ? Either way, I would be surprised if it lasted in spite of charging attempt and "apparent" success.It is always interesting to see what voltage and CCA are 30 minutes after battery is off charger. Battery warranty has gotten tough at CJDR.

Not sure about fusible links...will check Service Manual CD.

UPDATE: Fusible links are mentioned under PDC...but, no explanation or location could do far.

[viperBase1]

I'd start continuity testing.

Get yer ohm meter out and start testing.

E.g.
With battery disconnected.. Key in ignition and in ON position.. Check continuity at battery terminals.
Stuff like that.

[v10CodeMonkey]

Thanks for no power explanation. Have you/they tested battery cable to connector integrity to see if outgassing has destroyed the wires hidden in the connector itself?

Did W you mean battery was at 10 volts instead of 10 amps ? Either way, I would be surprised if it lasted in spite of charging attempt and "apparent" success.It is always interesting to see what voltage and CCA are 30 minutes after battery is off charger. Battery warranty has gotten tough at CJDR.

Not sure about fusible links...will check Service Manual CD.

UPDATE: Fusible links are mentioned under PDC...but, no explanation or location could do far.

Yeah, I meant 10 volts. I'm not counting on the old battery being reliable anymore either, I'll be sticking with the new one.

I haven't tested the connector integrity and not sure how to do that. If it requires getting under the car, I may have a problem. When I parked it for the winter I parked as close to the garage wall as possible to give me more room in the garage for the snowblower. Because of this, I can really only get the jack on one side (the passenger side)....

[Steve-Indy]

Call me...317-402-9013

There is one fusible link listed...between starter and "generator" ...BUT the diagram of location on the CD is "unavailable".

[repiV]

Blake - That orange pile has just given you way too much grief with this electrical problem. I will do you a favor and give you $40K cash for it so you don’t get too stressed about it. I might even go $42K if you deliver it AND I’ll loan you my trailer for the delivery down here....my trailer is still up there so it would be handy. WIN WIN!!!! :-). :-)

[viperBase1]

Blake - That orange pile has just given you way too much grief with this electrical problem. I will do you a favor and give you $40K cash for it so you don’t get too stressed about it. I might even go $42K if you deliver it AND I’ll loan you my trailer for the delivery down here....my trailer is still up there so it would be handy. WIN WIN!!!! :-). :-)

Good news, someone knows the fix.

C'mon repiV cough it up...

[v10CodeMonkey]

Blake - That orange pile has just given you way too much grief with this electrical problem. I will do you a favor and give you $40K cash for it so you don’t get too stressed about it. I might even go $42K if you deliver it AND I’ll loan you my trailer for the delivery down here....my trailer is still up there so it would be handy. WIN WIN!!!! :-). :-)

Lol, very generous of you Darl! Throw in a weekend at Universal Studios and it's yours!!

[v10CodeMonkey]

Update: It's fixed!! Had a buddy come over and start testing all the fuses (they were good), some wiring, and the fusible link (pictured below, connected to the alternator). They were all fine. Then he grounded out the post in the engine bay, swapped two relays with each other (Headlamps for Starter), reconnected battery and everything worked....We honestly don't know what fixed it. But, it works now!! Thanks to everyone for the help on here - except you Darl :)

Pic of fusible link:

37607

[Steve-Indy]

Thanks for update...and, CONGRATS on the fix !!

[Fatman2006]

Awesome glad you got it resolved!

[viperBase1]

Whew! That's a relief. congrats!

Now go buy a new battery tender with some built in smart tech!