Dead Battery...Twice!

[MountainGoat]

A first for me: I got a notification on my FordPass app last week that certain features on my Ranger Lariat related to connectivity and remote entry were being suspended due to the battery running low. In the winter I primarily drive my Ranger at least once a week when going skiing or running errands, but due to the extremely cold weather and work commitments I hadn't driven it for over two weeks. It's parked in the garage where the temperature typically hovers between the high 40s and low 50s. When I was ready to drive it again, it fired right up without hesitation.

So I'm curious if you got any warnings about your battery's condition on your app.

Nope. The only thing I got was a low washer fluid notice once.

It would be nice if I could check the battery charge though.

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[humanprimate]

I had the same issue. There was some issue with the trucks modem. It was stuck "on" and was sending ford a bunch of junk data. They reset the modem at the dealer and the problem was solved.

 

[Markubis]

A first for me: I got a notification on my FordPass app last week that certain features on my Ranger Lariat related to connectivity and remote entry were being suspended due to the battery running low. In the winter I primarily drive my Ranger at least once a week when going skiing or running errands, but due to the extremely cold weather and work commitments I hadn't driven it for over two weeks. It's parked in the garage where the temperature typically hovers between the high 40s and low 50s. When I was ready to drive it again, it fired right up without hesitation.

So I'm curious if you got any warnings about your battery's condition on your app.

I just got this same message over the weekend. My wife tells me about the notification and I looked at her funny because i literally had the truck idling in the driveway to warm up while I was shoveling the driveway.
weird....

 

[Montana Ranger]

It would be nice if I could check the battery charge though.

Indeed. Unlike cars of the past where once you pulled the key there was nothing drawing power from the battery except for perhaps a clock, a battery level display and/or alert on the app is at least as critical as remotely knowing the fuel level or tire pressure.

 

[MountainGoat]

Indeed. Unlike cars of the past where once you pulled the key there was nothing drawing power from the battery except for perhaps a clock, a battery level display and/or alert on the app is at least as critical as remotely knowing the fuel level or tire pressure.

Maybe it'll come with some update in the future. For as much as they hype the fordpass app it doesn't really provide much info.

 

[ryyck]

I put a good 300 miles on it since then.

I considered starting and idling the truck the last few days to charge the battery, but that's bad for engine in super cold temps so I decided not to.

My son had an Acura that went through 2 batteries in a month. I got sick of taking it back to Acura for free batteries - I asked the service guys to check for a power drain. They found one of his seats had a short. They fixed it, replaced the battery, and my trips to Acura ceased.

 

[MountainGoat]

They just told me it looks like the new battery is bad too. So getting another one.

Spec for amp draw is .2 to .5 amps and I am drawing .1, so the truck isnt killing the battery if that's correct.

 

[OWSportninja]

I've seen a lot of these batteries fail at my dealership and it is not related to just the Rangers. They use these AGM batteries in anything that has start/stop technology and the batteries have been on back order for some time. Im thinking they got a bad batch and are switching manufacturers now but this is just my best guess.

 

[Langwilliams]

so having the auto stop start switched off in my tune might be a good thing in this regard.

 

[Leftcoast]

Indeed. Unlike cars of the past where once you pulled the key there was nothing drawing power from the battery except for perhaps a clock, a battery level display and/or alert on the app is at least as critical as remotely knowing the fuel level or tire pressure.

No shittake. Mine sounds like R2D2 when I look at it funny.

 

[MountainGoat]

I've seen a lot of these batteries fail at my dealership and it is not related to just the Rangers. They use these AGM batteries in anything that has start/stop technology and the batteries have been on back order for some time. Im thinking they got a bad batch and are switching manufacturers now but this is just my best guess.

I never liked the start/stop and I always disable it now. If it's a battery issue that's really the best outcome. Better than electrical gremlins, alternator or something else.

 

[Jimmy07]

I never liked the start/stop and I always disable it now. If it's a battery issue that's really the best outcome. Better than electrical gremlins, alternator or something else.

Battery was replaced 5 months ago and the auto start/stop stopped working. Didn't bother going back to dealer, since I was planning to disable the feature anyway.

 

[Tracy Bowman]

Nope! there is a procedure that I cannot seem to find at the moment but essentially as I posted previous when you change the battery yourself you are to let the truck sit for 10 or 12 hours untouched and it will reset itself. It's somewhere in the battery/electrical technical bulletins part of the forum

Well, that’s good to know!

 

[mustang marty]

Well, that’s good to know!

Same here dealer disconnected battery to reset computer because of crazy problems . Could not pair phone and saw many crazy symbols on screen . Next day all was back to normel after truck sat overnight .

 

[gbritt89]

Same here dealer disconnected battery to reset computer because of crazy problems . Could not pair phone and saw many crazy symbols on screen . Next day all was back to normel after truck sat overnight .

I could be wrong 100% but I think if the same battery is going back on there's nothing to worry about as it would probably take into consideration that nothing had changed opposed to a fresh battery being installed. There's definitely lot to learn in the technical manuals within the forum... and while I try to be thorough I definitely wasn't able to memorize everything.

I did the TPMS reset procedure once after a tire rotation at home, complete waste of time for just a simple rotation with no new sensors. Added a few extra minutes to a job when all that needed to be done was driving the truck to get the sensors to mate back with their new positions receivers LOL

There is plenty of misinformation and horrible opinions as far as safety equipment on this site, but some very good writeups and articles from enthusiasts. Just have to figure out what is BS and what's not (which can be the hardest thing)

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