Dead Ranger after 2 hr drive!!

[Cowboyflyer]

Hello All,
Truck started no problem this morning.
I had to make a 2 hr trip for a Dr. appointment. After returning to the truck after about 35 minutes... I could not open the door with the key fob! No response from the truck! (lights, door click! ect!) so I pop out the key and open the door manually (thinking it maybe battery in key fob). I notice the truck was totally dead as if the battery was disconnected! I know the battery is good as I tested it a month ago. The truck has been on a trickle charger for the last week parked up in the garage.
I popped the hood and check the battery connections and both were tight. I go back to the Dr. office to get out of the weather (temp 18) to call my wife and the Ford place. (Dealership where I purchased truck was only 2 mile down the road!) They told me I needed to call Ford Road service!
The nice receptionist offers to give me a boost, I told her I didn't think it was a battery problem but maybe the computer on the truck that regulates voltage. Well, at this point What the hell! I figure I would give it a try. As I came back to the truck and opened the unlocked door, Everything lite up and started dinging! I put the key in and started the truck!
I took it straight to the dealership and explained what happened and they told me to put it in the service garage and they would check the battery! I told them it's not the battery and could it be the low voltage control on my truck? The service guy sends me to the computer service guys office and
he looks up my truck on his computer and tells me that there are no check engines lights or any other malfunctions on his computer reported by my truck! He states that unless it does it again! that will be the only way to find out what is wrong!
I made it all the way back home with no other problems. I even stop-started it 3-4 times before coming back home with no issues!

I have to make a 3 1/2 hr trip next week and don't know if I can trust it!
Any help would be appreciated.

Only thing I can think of is maybe I hooked the trickle charge to the wrong side of the positive pole and the battery monitor.

23 Ford Ranger XLT 22.000 miles
Truck has been driven everyday up till last week.
Running tuner for 3 months with no problems till now! Don't think this would be the cause.

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[airline tech]

It’s this:

https://www.ranger5g.com/forum/threads/mysterious-no-start-magically-starts-issue.26553/

 

[Cowboyflyer]

Thank you sir!
Hats off to you! You are the man!

I guess that is exactly what happened.
Shame that the dealership cannot explain it you did sir...

Still hard to be at peace with this, As much as you pay for this truck it should not happen.
Ford should know this!

 

[subquark]

It’s this:

https://www.ranger5g.com/forum/threads/mysterious-no-start-magically-starts-issue.26553/

I can agree with this - I had this happen very much like you @Cowboyflyer .

I went in to the grocery store and came back to the exact same scenario in my XL (key start).

Fob wouldn't unlock doors or tailgate. Did open door with key and stuck key in ignition and cranked. Nothing.

Tried the unlock, but no love (wanted to put groceries in bed). Got out, went to tailgate and nothing.

Got back in Ranger, stuck key back in, and display came one, then engine started.

Only happened one time in two and a half years.

The link from Airline Tec is exactly it - unnerving and should not happen.

I do carry a jump starter thing but that would not have helped.

 

[Cowboyflyer]

subquark

Yes sir scary when you are 2 hours from home! For sure.
Mine came back on after about 10 mins of scrambling try to figure out what to do
or who to call? Felt helpless when you are that far from home!

At least Airline tech has given me a little comfort explaining the cause.
Also hearing experience from other members knowing that at least it will start back up
which is good to know. I did print a copy of his explanation to put in my truck for future reference if it should happen again! At least I will not feel so lost...

 

[RedlandRanger]

I also had this happen a few years ago - it happened ONCE - and it sounds exactly like what @airline tech described. After a few minutes everything worked just like normal. Never happened again since then. I'm coming up on 6 years of ownership and it only happened the one time. Weird, but I'm not going to lose any sleep over it.

 

[Langwilliams]

This happened to me once in four years of ownership. If it happened again I was going to try remote starting it from the app.

 

[Cowboyflyer]

In to big of a panic to think about trying the app.
I did think about it later but I figured if there is no power in the truck the app probably wouldn't have worked anyway.
Maybe It won't happen again! At least not when I am out of town...

 

[Blue Streak]

Happened to me once way back in 19 shortly after purchase. Never again. Still on original battery but it is on a battery maintainer.

 

[Cowboyflyer]

Blue streak
When it first happened, I knew it was not a battery issue. I thought i may have hooked the battery tender on the wrong side of the battery monitor and that may have caused my issue.

Airline tech has it explained in full detail.
Awesome fourm! Awesome members!
Glad I found this place.

 

[Kemo Sabe]

Hello All,
Truck started no problem this morning.
I had to make a 2 hr trip for a Dr. appointment. After returning to the truck after about 35 minutes... I could not open the door with the key fob! No response from the truck! (lights, door click! ect!) so I pop out the key and open the door manually (thinking it maybe battery in key fob). I notice the truck was totally dead as if the battery was disconnected! I know the battery is good as I tested it a month ago. The truck has been on a trickle charger for the last week parked up in the garage.
I popped the hood and check the battery connections and both were tight. I go back to the Dr. office to get out of the weather (temp 18) to call my wife and the Ford place. (Dealership where I purchased truck was only 2 mile down the road!) They told me I needed to call Ford Road service!
The nice receptionist offers to give me a boost, I told her I didn't think it was a battery problem but maybe the computer on the truck that regulates voltage. Well, at this point What the hell! I figure I would give it a try. As I came back to the truck and opened the unlocked door, Everything lite up and started dinging! I put the key in and started the truck!
I took it straight to the dealership and explained what happened and they told me to put it in the service garage and they would check the battery! I told them it's not the battery and could it be the low voltage control on my truck? The service guy sends me to the computer service guys office and
he looks up my truck on his computer and tells me that there are no check engines lights or any other malfunctions on his computer reported by my truck! He states that unless it does it again! that will be the only way to find out what is wrong!
I made it all the way back home with no other problems. I even stop-started it 3-4 times before coming back home with no issues!

I have to make a 3 1/2 hr trip next week and don't know if I can trust it!
Any help would be appreciated.

Only thing I can think of is maybe I hooked the trickle charge to the wrong side of the positive pole and the battery monitor.

23 Ford Ranger XLT 22.000 miles
Truck has been driven everyday up till last week.
Running tuner for 3 months with no problems till now! Don't think this would be the cause.

SOMETIMES, after trickle charging, mine does that.
But, I figured off my battery was good, why trickle it?? A good battery should be able to sit around a month, or longer, I’d think.
You might should have had battery checked when opportunity presented itself.
But, I wish you speedy solution!!!

 

[Msfitoy]

This has happened to me on a few occasions and it's not the battery...I'd be sitting in the truck with ACC on eating my lunch and to go start and nothing happens...try again nothing...take the key out/in, retry, it starts...

 

[Cowboyflyer]

This has happened to me on a few occasions and it's not the battery...I'd be sitting in the truck with ACC on eating my lunch and to go start and nothing happens...try again nothing...take the key out/in, retry, it starts...

I think your situation is different.
I tried to unlock the truck and it was dead.
I had to use the key to open the door and when I did get the door open, the whole truck was dead as if there was not a battery hook to it. NO lights, no bell, nothing!
I put the key in and try to start and nothing! Shut the door and left it about 5 mins and when I came back to boost it, I opened the door and everthing came back on as if nothing happened! cranked right up and so far been starting up normal.

 

[Cowboyflyer]

Well, it happened again! Did it at the school parking lot picking up my girl.
This time I started flipping switches and it woke right back up!
Cranked right up, guess its something I will just have to live with.

 

[got3fords]

This time I started flipping switches and it woke right back up!

What switches were you flipping?

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