Forscan, might've messed up.

[Outlaw]

Pic for attention

I have a 2017 gt and probably a good year or 2 ago now I installed a xs power d4700 agm battery trying to solve a constant drain I was having. During the install I change multiple forscan settings from change, state of charge (or something similar) and another one relating to max charge and maybe some more. It's been a long time and I had really no idea what I was doing but I had forscan open/running for various other things (sync 3 upgrade). Is anyone knowledgeable about forscan who might be able to help me? I've been fighting dead battery/system off message on the screen for YEARS now. I'm at a point again where I think this battery has died so much it's damaged as it dies almost every day or every other or it will start and I'll drive for a bit, park it and it's dead as can be and needs a jump. Please someone help because I have no clue what I'm doing and don't want to mess anything else up.

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[ORRadtech]

If you saved the factory as built settings you might still have that file stored somewhere.
Or perhaps someone on here has theirs from a similar car.
Also, have you checked the "mods" section of the forum? I'm pretty sure there is an extensive Forscan thread or three here somewhere.

 

[Outlaw]

If you saved the factory as built settings you might still have that file stored somewhere.
Or perhaps someone on here has theirs from a similar car.
Also, have you checked the "mods" section of the forum? I'm pretty sure there is an extensive Forscan thread or three here somewhere.

I have not checked the mods section yet, I'm still a novice at navigating this sub lol. As for the as built, I took a few pictures previously but at this point I have no clue with they are pictures time for or if they are veen the default settings, I think I would take one before a change just in case but deleted alot of them. As for the battery I think I read stuff on it as I changed it but I recall vaguely that I could never find a definitive source for what I had to change for the battery just pieces together info from Google searches but not super accurate

For anyone who might have a similar car for comparisons, it came stock as a 2017 gt base model, performance pack. It has a sync 3 now so quite a few forscan changes related to that.

 

[G.T.]

From what I understand, you can get a copy of your as-built data by entering your VIN somewhere on the Motorcraft website?

EDIT: IIRC it's here:
https://www.motorcraftservice.com/SetCountry?returnUrl=/AsBuilt

 

[Vlad Soare]

As I was saying here, the battery settings in the BCM are hit and miss. It's best not to touch them.

I was about to suggest the above website to get your original as-built file, but Glenn beat me to it. Enter your VIN, download the original file for your vehicle, and use ForScan to override all the BCM settings with those from the file.
Take note of any other changes that you may have made to the BCM besides the battery, so you can make them again afterwards, once you are satisfied that the charging system is fixed.

 

[Skye]

It reads as though the battery swap and FORScan changes occurred as part of or in concert with the Sync3 upgrade. I'm assuming the root problem was happening before the Sync upgrade.

It might simplify t-shooting these problems by reverting back to a traditional, Flooded Lead Acid (FLA) battery. I realize some of the FORScan settings might have been lost. Maybe we can help with that. Enclosed is some reference information I have.

There are three FORScan fields I'm aware of: Battery Technology, State of Charge and Case Size.

1. Battery Technology: Flooded Lead Acid or Absorbent Glass Mat (AGM).

2. State of Charge: the factory setting is 80%.

3. Case Size:

- If the factory battery, select, "BXT-96R-590"

- If an AGM, the closest comparable I can think of is, "AGM 70ah 600CCA H6 case". This is if an AGM was selected that most closely matches the factory battery. If you've installed something else, select the option which most closely matches that.

There is an additional setting, "Rate of Charge". Several references I found mention it's set at the factory, 80%.

https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/threads/battery-saver-message-on-a-new-battery.224209/

https://antigravitybatteries.com/he...FU_y0RvhbAvcWOjo9bdzx4DYkI5whYQ-2jDuLfecTTCQP

https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/thr...hanging-battery-charge-rate-in-forscan.21552/

As to parasitic losses, the only method I'm aware of to t-shoot is pulling fuses. Using an induction meter to measure the amount of current being discharged, pull one fuse, confirm if there have been any meaningful changes, re-insert fuse before going on to the next.

The 6G does have multiple processes that occur when the car is shut off. Even as those continue to work in the background, they should allow the car to be started as late as two weeks after last shutdown.

- BCM battery State of Charge measurements
- PCM emissions evaporation canister checks
- Door proximity sensors and contacts
- Trunk proximity sensors and contacts
- Hood ajar sensor
- Door ajar sensors
- Trunk ajar sensor
- Telematics modem and vehicle cellular system
- Bluetooth (802.15) interfaces (if enabled)
- Wireless (802.11) interfaces (if enabled)
- BCM background functions
- PCM background functions
- Interior motion detectors
- Vehicle movement detection
- Vehicle slope change detection
- Remote Transceiver Module (Intelligent Access)
- Engine Immobilizer (Passive Anti-Theft System (PATS))
- Driver-installed ancillary devices

Given that, I'd limit any draws as much as possible, as part of the t-shooting process:

- Remove, at least temporarily, any non-factory items (radar detectors, cameras, etc.)
- If an aftermarket amplifiers and sub-woofer is involved, disconnect those
- Within Sync, turn off all external interfaces (Wi-Fi, bluetooth, phone pairing, etc.)
- Remove the fob and lock the car when not in use. Keep the fob at least 10 feet from the doors and trunk
- Confirm interior lights are off and remain off
- Confirm hood, doors and trunk close well

There's the chance that, while you were and possibly continuing to deal with a parasitic loss, without knowing all the FORScan changes, the car might not be charging the system back to it's full potential. I'd at least confirm the batt settings I pointed out. Other Members might provide more still.

It would also help to confirm the state of the existing battery. A parts store can do a load test. IDK if they'd have a charging service, where you could drop it off for an overnight top-up.

 

[Outlaw]

As I was saying here, the battery settings in the BCM are hit and miss. It's best not to touch them.

I was about to suggest the above website to get your original as-built file, but Glenn beat me to it. Enter your VIN, download the original file for your vehicle, and use ForScan to override all the BCM settings with those from the file.
Take note of any other changes that you may have made to the BCM besides the battery, so you can make them again afterwards, once you are satisfied that the charging system is fixed.

I'm wondering if there's additional issues now, before is always get the save power message thing on the screen but now it's just leaving me stranded. Just drive it and had it running for over 1 hr. Turn it off and go to start it not even 10 min later and it's straight dead. Not a drop left

 

[Vlad Soare]

The battery could be dead, after having got incorrectly charged for two years. It may have spent the best part of those two years in a discharged or almost discharged state, which is bound to damage it.
There are inexpensive testers like this one, which will show the state of health of the battery. One of these will be more accurate than a simple voltmeter, because an aging battery can show full voltage with no load, but succumb as soon as a load is applied. A voltmeter can give you a clue, but a tester is better.

 

[Outlaw]

The battery could be dead, after having got incorrectly charged for two years. It may have spent the best part of those two years in a discharged or almost discharged state, which is bound to damage it.
There are inexpensive testers like this one, which will show the state of health of the battery. One of these will be more accurate than a simple voltmeter, because an aging battery can show a full voltage with no load, but succumb as soon as a load is applied. A voltmeter can give you a clue, but a tester is better.

I thought agm didn't really get damaged from being drained low? Either way I'ma go see what 2015 Dodge Rams come stock with because my coworkers on his original battery with 280k miles and it's over 10 years old now and it's been jumped and drained a shit ton. I need that kinda battery

 

[Vlad Soare]

All lead-based batteries dislike being discharged too deeply, or for too long a time.
By the way, when you replaced the battery two years ago, did you reset the BMS? If not, that might account for the battery not being charged properly.

 

[Skye]

It's another variable and I failed to mention it earlier: the alternator.

There's the assumption the alternator is working correctly. Some of the settings in FORScan will affect the alternator output and how it is charging. I'd consider updating the settings as best you can, get the car started, then take somewhere where state of the battery and alternator operation can be confirmed.

Discuss with them the history and what's happened. They might want to charge the battery for several hours or overnight to ensure it's peaked-up, before testing.

Checking those bits might not fix the problem, but it should give you some quantifiable data as to where to look next. If the alternator looks good, great. If not, maybe it's bad or FORScan settings, but at least you know that needs to be fixed before you consider another battery.

 

[ORRadtech]

Just to throw this out there.
The "charging system" in automobiles is not, and never has been, meant to fully charge a dead battery. It's purpose is to provide power for the car to run on during normal operation and to top off the bit of charge used to start the engine.
To accurately check a battery it needs to be fully charged by a stand alone charger that plugs into the wall.
If you're jump starting a dead battery and hoping that driving will charge it (even for an hour or more) you're going to be very disappointed.
If you plan on doing any test you need to start with a fully charged battery that has been charged by a dedicated battery charger.

 

[G.T.]

Yes test the battery, and check the alternator is charging.

If the battery is bad (and even if it isnt) IMO go back to a standard FLA battery and set all BMS and related setting back to stock.

This will go a long way in determining if your car really has a charging system problem or it was a battery and/or system settings problem.

When you get it working right on stock settings, move forward from there. IIRC I've seen some pretty experienced people on here warning about and talking about experiencing unexpected behavior when changing the settings and/or the battery type, enough so that I'm with Vlad and the above with not touching this without a compelling reason and a lot of research.

 

[G.T.]

Parasitic drain is a whole 'nother kettle of aquatic life.

Youtube has a lot of nice videos on how to find these. I personally enjoy DiagnoseDan's, full of info and easy to follow.

I doubt the drain you are looking for is caused by any settings of the car's systems.

 

[rickytan05]

did you check your positive and negative connected to your battery??? Do you have a secure connection on both positive and negative???

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