WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted April 2, 2015 Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 Believe it or not, there have been several instances of the Motorcraft battery going bad early or right from the start, perhaps you were a victim! But ignoring that for a second, the usual culprits have been loose battery terminals, a bad BCM, transmission sensor, or skipping CD/bad APIM draining power from the battery. They cause a parasitic draw on the battery, which can be established by standard electrical diagnostics. Do you drive sufficient distances every day to keep the battery charged? Shouldn't go dead in 3 days without that parasitic draw though. If the alternator is not doing its' job, then maybe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rwf78155 Posted April 2, 2015 Report Share Posted April 2, 2015 I had a Z06 Corvette that went through 4 GM batteries and would still find it dead in the garage after sitting for a week. On my own and out of my pocket I installed an Optima Red Top battery and never had another problem ....... just sayin ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ls973800 Posted April 3, 2015 Report Share Posted April 3, 2015 Believe it or not, there have been several instances of the Motorcraft battery going bad early or right from the start, perhaps you were a victim! But ignoring that for a second, the usual culprits have been loose battery terminals, a bad BCM, transmission sensor, or skipping CD/bad APIM draining power from the battery. They cause a parasitic draw on the battery, which can be established by standard electrical diagnostics. Do you drive sufficient distances every day to keep the battery charged? Shouldn't go dead in 3 days without that parasitic draw though. If the alternator is not doing its' job, then maybe. I believe there have been owner's who had a problem with the shift linkage not operating properly. The car would show it was in Park, but the module was still "awake" because it thought it wasn't. Only fix from what I recall was to replace that shift mechanism. Owner's were finding dead batteries until it was replaced. Don't know if this is what was referenced in the quote above for transmission sensor, but I believe so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted April 3, 2015 Report Share Posted April 3, 2015 Yep, that was it. The fix was a new shifter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted April 3, 2015 Report Share Posted April 3, 2015 Egads, typo forced by spellcheck, shoulda checked the spellchecker. Thanks for the correction! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnraymonda Posted April 28, 2015 Report Share Posted April 28, 2015 I am having the same intermittent battery problem. It has gone on for two years now. The service manager was a total dick to me when I brought it in again today. So I took it home, and need to find a different dealer. One who knows the problem and can actually fix it. I am in the greater syracuse ny area. Has anyone come upon what the problem actually is. I see no actual successful repair mentioned in this forum. Please help. I actually need to use my vehicle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnraymonda Posted April 28, 2015 Report Share Posted April 28, 2015 Forgot to mention it is a 2011 with 40k miles or so. Battery has been replaced. Two dealers have never found a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnraymonda Posted April 28, 2015 Report Share Posted April 28, 2015 Saw an 800 number in the forum and called it. Ford seems to kow they have this problem, but do not have a repair for it. My case is being escalated to a regional service manager. But if they have no repair, or service bulletin, and no luck in several years with engineers looking at these vehicles, I am not sure why they are bothering to escalate it. I personally think it is the ignition switch. The face of it is loose and I feel as though it turns to far when starting the car sometimes. And based on ignition switch issues in the news, its my bet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VNT Posted May 16, 2015 Report Share Posted May 16, 2015 Last night ,Ford Road-assist had to tow my Ford Edge 2013, ( 17000 Km, bought Feb 2014) after my car engine failed to start: Reason a dead battery. 2 Weeks back , I faced another issue with my Car failing to Start, Error on Panel, :NO KEY DETECTED. I had called Ford Road assist then as well, they inserted the Key in the Emergency Key Slot, it worked. I am waiting on a call from Ford today, will let all know how it went! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted May 16, 2015 Report Share Posted May 16, 2015 Good luck, hope you weren't stranded too long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimlmac2 Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 Have been looking through this forum as my 2013 Edge (78K miles) also has a dead battery issue. It started about two weeks ago on a weekend. I took battery to Auto Zone and they suggested the battery was less than good so I replaced the battery. Lasted 3 days and car was dead again. Called local Ford dealer and took it in. They diagnosed alternator issues so one was ordered and installed. Had to go on a short trip about 150 miles and when we shut off the car and tried to restart it was dead. Had a set of jumper cables (as a backup) so got it jumped and took off for home. Drove about half way had to take a break and turned off the car and it again was dead when we tried to restart it. Again got a jump from a kind young man and took it home. Called the Ford service dealer and as of today Ford has instructed them to keep putting in alternators until the problem is fixed. Ford claims they have had a bad batch of alternators. I doubt this is the issue but I can only hope. You can put a meter on the battery and watch the voltage drain down slowly. All diags indicate the alternator but none of the replacement (last I heard was three) replacement alternators act any different. The dealer is in touch with Ford but they say Ford hasn't seen this issue and this forum clearly refutes that claim. Since I am past the warranty millage I don't have the leverage on Ford that others may have. But I have had 18 new Fords since 1967 and this is the first with any issue like this. I am going to let Ford have their stab at the issue but not much longer. Has anyone had any sucess other than vehicle replacement? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 I just bought a solar battery tester and ctek charger/conditioner so I can tell exactly what's going on with the battery in these new vehicles. If the voltage is dropping while the vehicle is running that certainly points to the alternator. Maybe it's the wiring/connection from the alternator to the battery? I assume the new battery was retested as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimlmac2 Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 Battery was tested connections check and tested everything the Dealer and Ford can think of including the software upgrads and diags. Ford still contends that its and alternator issue. Even with the the alternator disconnected the drain is still there. All voltages check with what ford says they should be but still it will not hold a charge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 Any shifting issues or error messages relating to that? Seems to be a popular reason for battery drain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 But no drain like that would drain the battery while it's being driven. That's why it sounds like the alternator or connection from the alternator to the battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimlmac2 Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 No shifting issues, no error codes, battery drain is significant if headlights are being used even when being driven. Charging voltage drops to 11.4 volts and lower at idel speeds. With no load (lights off just maintaining normal operations on radio, nav or other option being used) voltage starts at 13.5 after full battery charge but then drops below 12 volts within 10 minutes even with car running at idel. As a check with battery disconnected it maintains its charge so the drain is from the car. I am very frustrated that there appears to be no logical way to isolate the source of the power drain. I have put a volt meter on the battery while it is running setting in the dealers shop and you can watch the voltage drop rather rapidly, a few tenths of a volt every few seconds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 The BCM should also be looked at. Hopefully it IS the alternator or related cabling, like akirby said. But if needs must, one fuse/relay should be pulled at a time until the source of the drain is isolated. Sometimes being smart is not enough, you HAVE to do the grunt work too! A Lincoln dealership instead perhaps? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimlmac2 Posted May 29, 2015 Report Share Posted May 29, 2015 Thanks for the suggestion but I think I will stay with the local dealer for a while longer. These guys are going out of their way to help figure this out especially since this is not a warranty project. BCM checked, diags ran and showed nothing out of the ordinary. Dealer pulled several of the differnet system fuses and no changes noted. I am told that some of the system fuses can not be pulled as this could cause damage to other systems. As of this afternoon alternator 4 change made no difference and the Ford folks are rethinking their approach. Guess there is always hope for tomorrow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted May 30, 2015 Report Share Posted May 30, 2015 Could be the PCM not instructing the alternator to put out enough power. You should be above 14 volts with the engine running no matter what accessory is on or the state of the battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WWWPerfA_ZN0W Posted May 31, 2015 Report Share Posted May 31, 2015 Do you think resetting the KeepAliveMemory would help here, akirby? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omar302 Posted May 31, 2015 Report Share Posted May 31, 2015 Could be the PCM not instructing the alternator to put out enough power. You should be above 14 volts with the engine running no matter what accessory is on or the state of the battery. Please correct me if I'm wrong, my understanding with "Smart Charging" is that if the battery does not need charging (or if the system detects so), then the charging system would NOT charge the battery. If that's the case, wouldn't the voltage drop? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted May 31, 2015 Report Share Posted May 31, 2015 Please correct me if I'm wrong, my understanding with "Smart Charging" is that if the battery does not need charging (or if the system detects so), then the charging system would NOT charge the battery. If that's the case, wouldn't the voltage drop? That's what I'm saying - if the PCM is reading the voltage incorrectly it may be reducing the alternator output. Which would explain why replacing the alternator doesn't fix it. I don't think erasing the memory would help - in this case it would have to be a faulty sensor, wiring or a bad PCM. Could still be the alternator or wiring. A good electrical tech should be able to pinpoint it with the right test equipment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimlmac2 Posted June 2, 2015 Report Share Posted June 2, 2015 Still no answers from Ford. Seems they have bigger fish to fry. As for PCM I suggested that it might need to be looked at again to the Dealer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimlmac2 Posted June 5, 2015 Report Share Posted June 5, 2015 We may have my issue fixed. The local dealer has identified the module that controls the defrost/air-conditioning system as having a short to ground. The short is active while the car is running as well as when it is turned off. They found the rear defroster is still active even when the care is off. A new module has been ordered but won’t be here until Monday. Good news is that with the module unplugged the battery maintains its charge. Keeping my fingers crossed that this is the problem 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimlmac2 Posted June 9, 2015 Report Share Posted June 9, 2015 (edited) Pickup my car this morning good news is that the battery is holding its charge. Replacing the AC/deftrost control module appears to have fix the issue for now. Charging is at 14.7v even with all loads present. The not so good news is that Ford working with the local dealer was still insisting that it was a charging system issue unrelated to any of the other system and was on the verge of sending out another alternator. Fortunately for me the technicians at the dealership (Carpino Ford in Columbus, KS) got fed-up with the response from Ford and began to look for everything or anything beyond just the charging system. I don't know if Ford doesn't have confidence in the technical abilities of their dealerships or if they are just to busy to spend the time to look at issues like this. I don't know if the other folks on this forum had or still have the exact same issue but if so give this information to your technican and see if it helps. Edited June 9, 2015 by jimlmac2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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