Battery trouble

Logic + ford = dividing by zero

Knackered? Or Just Dead as a Doornail?

Battery problems are not isolated to small islands.

Here...we got'em too!

Battery dead @ 30 months. Bad cell. Same symptoms...if it sat for 5 days, it would crank but not start.

It only got worse as the Fall faded away. New battery installed today. Will check glove box door (boot? hamper?) to make sure it closes tight enough to turn off the light (torch?).

CVCashmere

SpArKy said:

thanks. AA guy this time (different guy) said the battery was knackered and not accepting the right current/voltage (whatever) for a charge. he followed me to Ford to get it checked out/replaced. :(

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SpArKy said:

so ford just rang and said the battery is faulty, and they don't have any in stock and Ford don't know when they'll be in stock. He kept saying "after christmas"!!!! :frusty::frusty::frusty:

won't give me a courtesy car or anything.

suggested i buy my own battery but they won't be able to pay for it under warranty if i do that.... rac say they have them in stock and will install tomorrow.

this stinks

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Tossers, that's pathetic. These knobs need putting back in their box.

Confirm back to them (dealership manager) in writing what they told you and tell them you will replace at their expense if they can't, or you need a replacement vehicle at their expense. Then buy one from Halfords or RAC (they can't complain at the cost) and claim from Ford. When they refuse; small claims court; easy to do, you will win.

slowhand99 said:

Tossers, that's pathetic. These knobs need putting back in their box.

Confirm back to them (dealership manager) in writing what they told you and tell them you will replace at their expense if they can't, or you need a replacement vehicle at their expense. Then buy one from Halfords or RAC (they can't complain at the cost) and claim from Ford. When they refuse; small claims court; easy to do, you will win.

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The lady at the desk as much as admitted it was shoddy and suggested (and gave me the number for) to contact Ford directly and complain.

I managed to get a lift and bought a yuasa from Halfords and then took it to ford to fit yesterday.

I haven't had a chance to contact Ford yet.

At first they actually suggested I take the car away and trickle charge the battery every night until they had stock!!!

Well, said I'd update on my return, and I'm now back from my hols and car's been sitting unused for 19 days. Unlocked with keyless without issue, battery voltage showing 11.3V at accessory power-on, fired up straight away on first crank with charge voltage showing 14.7V at engine power-on. Third time car has sat for this period and never any problem!

Any battery that runs out from leaving the doors open for just 30 mins is undoubtedly f*%ked... and any 'expert' (especially an AA guy) that says otherwise should get a slap!

My GT has been in the garage since last Saturday and at 3:30 this am I got an alert from my tracker advising low voltage, dead this am and have a maintainer bringing it back to life. My wife drove it last so it’s her fault will check the glove compartment light, monitor it and get Ford Assist out if it persists and go from there. Sounds like I could have a faulty one though.

forgot to say, i got Fords central customer care involved and in the end they persuaded the dealership to refund me for the battery i had to purchase. so happy ending in the end

Pressed the button to almost nothing, however it fired. Problem was only 20 miles left in the tank and no desire to have it not start on the forecourt so went for a 15 mile drive
Battery showed 14.4 immediately on startup and 14.6 just before parking. I guess this tells me nothing?

SteveS said:

Pressed the button to almost nothing, however it fired. Problem was only 20 miles left in the tank and no desire to have it not start on the forecourt so went for a 15 mile drive
Battery showed 14.4 immediately on startup and 14.6 just before parking. I guess this tells me nothing?

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Tells you it’s charging I guess, but not whether it’s holding.

Over my European summer tour, it the "Engine Info" display would show 14.4v after starting and then it would rapidly drop to around 11.something - this would be correct as the S550 along with most other modern cards has a smart charge system that only charges the battery when needed, to avoid knackering it.

However on my 150mile round trip to the BIL's birthday bash yesterday, it was alternating from 14.8 to 15v for the whole time

From doing a bit of research online and speaking to a friend who is a mechanic.

If you pop a multi-meter on the Battery (with everything off, and the engine having not been run for 30 mins)

Charge Life
12.6v 100%
12.4v 75%
12.2v 50%
12.0v 25%
Less Replace

Mine is hovering at 12.25v - so i guess a new one will be needed soon :(

My battery voltage was always between 13.8/14.5 v (display)
After my battery died after not using it for 2 weeks i noticed it 14.5/15v

My battery gave up just before Christmas, to be honest it had been on its way for a year giving me silly electrical issues. The Sync screen would flash up with a message saying battery saver, turn system off or something to that effect, even after locking the car that message still kept popping up on the screen. I persevered with it, Ford wanted the car for 3 days to do a drop test on it .... no thanks.
Anyway it eventually died a few weeks ago, car struggled to start and when it did it sounded like someone had thrown a bunch of spanners into the engine, it struggled to keep going.
Took it out and my mate who runs a local autoparts store recommended a Yuasa 5027, £66 cost price for one of those & no more issues
Put the Ford battery on charge for 36 hours, it showed fully charged but the viewing eye was red - dead cell is my guess. Spoke to dealer to see what they could do, again insisted on having the car & battery for 2 days to do a drop and charge test.
For £66 its not worth the hassle of trying to warrenty the Motocraft piece of crap, quick test outside shop it was struggling to hold 10v

TheArcher said:

Just a thought - I drive mine quite infrequently and was finding that the battery was low/dead after maybe 5 or 6 days. I've now figured out that the glove compartment light wasn't switching off and I believe stays on permanently if not switched off by its switch.

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Unless you've got something odd going on with your car, this shouldn't be the issue. If you sit in the car for 5 mins or so after having switched off the ignition (don't open the door/get out) you'll find that the glove compartment light illuminates whenever you open it ONLY until such time that the Sync screen switches off and the steering lock activates, after which it doesn't work again until you press the unlock on the key fob (or at least that's how it happens on my MY2017).