2025 Hybrid - Potential Battery Drain?

[HeyBales]

I have wondered whether the vehicle to vehicle variation in experience is due either the 12v battery sensor part tolerance or even PCM internal A/D conversion of the battery voltage is the cause. Not sure of the lighter outlet or other 12v points are directly across the 12v battery, or rather upstream across the DC-DC converter; i.e. some posts say they see 15v+ at those points. I doubt the 12v battery terminal voltage ever gets that high.

I don't have detailed electrical diagrams for the hybrid to understand where the sensor(s) are, and whether the sensor is cheap to replace, or if it can be "fooled".

Hanging right on the negative terminal, easy to get to.

Several pics of batteries shows it the same model/part# on the hybrid - been curious if the same on EB, or hybrid Edge or other Fords?

When the power ports read 15V, a multimeter does indeed read that at the battery posts.

I think it is interesting that the circuit to the battery - for use or recharging, seems to be distinct as there are values for it's V and A - and yet the whole 12V system fed those 15V, but not the amp current.

I need to get the amp clamp on it while it's running - see if it agrees with what the BCM is claiming is battery amps for charging.

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[Darryl]

Hanging right on the negative terminal, easy to get to.

Several pics of batteries shows it the same model/part# on the hybrid - been curious if the same on EB, or hybrid Edge or other Fords?

When the power ports read 15V, a multimeter does indeed read that at the battery posts.

I think it is interesting that the circuit to the battery - for use or recharging, seems to be distinct as there are values for it's V and A - and yet the whole 12V system fed those 15V, but not the amp current.

I need to get the amp clamp on it while it's running - see if it agrees with what the BCM is claiming is battery amps for charging.

If you get the available updates , have a good battery, and that doesn’t fix it, it’s NOT a charging issue. It is a Drain issue. That much has been determined. So if anyone wants to give suggestions to Ford or help themselves, give ideas on what’s causing the Drain. If the battery wasn’t being drained, excessively, the charging rate would not be an issue.

 

[KenE]

There's an update for that if it's a 2025 It's either a tsb or an SSM . It also involves updating the air condition control module. So it may be worth having the update performed. If you are fortunate, it may solve the issues

Darryl we all value your expertise, thank you. I have 25MY Lariet Hybrid, purchased April 25. I am not having 12v battery or sleep problems. Q. How can I tell if ACCM update has been preformed in my truck? Or any other module firmware updates? For reference, my truck has only been back to dealer once for the passenger airbag placard recall. Thanks.

 

[MakinDoForNow]

I have wondered whether the vehicle to vehicle variation in experience is due either the 12v battery sensor part tolerance or even PCM internal A/D conversion of the battery voltage is the cause. Not sure of the lighter outlet or other 12v points are directly across the 12v battery, or rather upstream across the DC-DC converter; i.e. some posts say they see 15v+ at those points. I doubt the 12v battery terminal voltage ever gets that high.

I don't have detailed electrical diagrams for the hybrid to understand where the sensor(s) are, and whether the sensor is cheap to replace, or if it can be "fooled".

The lighter outlet reads less than the voltage across the jump pins. I take that to be the battery voltage without any draws. If you open the doors to take readings at battery posts there will be things turned on and 0.1-0.2v reduction in battery. You have to have hood already up over an hour for things to all turn off and check jump posts with key fob resting away from truck. I can see up to 12.8-12.9v on OEM battery. Maybe 12.9 is +/- reading resolution???

 

[Robot-Wrangler]

Ya - OBD turns off when power ports do, or sooner.
I've never tried to observe on the rare occasion I had full 12VB, but for sure when the battery saver functions are kicking in - those goes off when interior lights go off on door close.
They can go longer.
But my OBD goes to 3 mA sleep mode after 20 min of no activity on the data lines. So that beats the 75 min max to sleep mode for rest the truck.

Check your scan tool error logs for modules. My ACCM will get one frequently about failure to communicate with ECM. Not sure if it's trying when everything else has gone to sleep and it should have also. Or on startup when things are busy and it was just a timing issue.
My PID for sleeping current still shows around 60 mA average on many occasions, so 10 more than it should be - but that should hardly cause a fast enough drain in 1/2 day to cause a concern.

Yeah, it has codes. I just picked it up from Swope Ford. They say there's nothing wrong.
That is two Ford dealer's that struck out. I'm thinking of upgrading to a 900cca deep cycle battery and telling Ford to piss off, lol.

 

[Darryl]

Darryl we all value your expertise, thank you. I have 25MY Lariet Hybrid, purchased April 25. I am not having 12v battery or sleep problems. Q. How can I tell if ACCM update has been preformed in my truck? Or any other module firmware updates? For reference, my truck has only been back to dealer once for the passenger airbag placard recall. Thanks.

Unless you've had a problem and specifically mentioned it, then it hasn't. The only time software is generally updated is for a complaint, a recall, as part of a repair, or when Ford sends an over the air update. I recommend allowing the vehicle to receive all over the air updates because Ford has determined they're needed for one reason or another. But I generally don't recommend getting the other updates unless there's problem especially since Ford will not reimburse the dealership for performing an update unless the customer has a symptom or complaint that the update addresses.

 

[KenE]

Unless you've had a problem and specifically mentioned it, then it hasn't. The only time software is generally updated is for a complaint, a recall, as part of a repair, or when Ford sends an over the air update. I recommend allowing the vehicle to receive all over the air updates because Ford has determined they're needed for one reason or another. But I generally don't recommend getting the other updates unless there's problem especially since Ford will not reimburse the dealership for performing an update unless the customer has a symptom or complaint that the update addresses.

Thanks for that. I mostly subscribe to the "if it ain't broke dont try to fix it" theory. Except I did 1st oil/filter change @ 1.1k miles and PTU + RDU fluid changes at 2k miles, precautionary maintenance. At age 79 I'm slower but enjoy maintaining my vehicles. I have OTA updates Enabled.

 

[Randy C]

The lighter outlet reads less than the voltage across the jump pins. I take that to be the battery voltage without any draws. If you open the doors to take readings at battery posts there will be things turned on and 0.1-0.2v reduction in battery. You have to have hood already up over an hour for things to all turn off and check jump posts with key fob resting away from truck. I can see up to 12.8-12.9v on OEM battery. Maybe 12.9 is +/- reading resolution???

I agree. The cig lighter port reads .2 less than at the battery. Why would that be?

 

[HeyBales]

I agree. The cig lighter port reads .2 less than at the battery. Why would that be?

Measured at the power port by same multimeter as the battery?
Mine reads the same.
My plug in adapter reads 0.1 to 0.2 V higher though.

But they are different circuits, probably straight from the DCDC Converter - I'll need to check a wiring diagram. So probably fed differently.

 

[MakinDoForNow]

I agree. The cig lighter port reads .2 less than at the battery. Why would that be?

There is something drawing that much current between the battery and the cig lighter port. Take voltage readings in 1/100 volts at main breaker or closest plug and at the farthest breaker panel or plug in your home. You will see a voltage drop due to load factors. In heavy use periods I can see 118v-123v. (I am on a one phase 28k(?) transmission circuit which is much better than the 14k volt that was upgraded couple years ago).

 

[Darryl]

I agree. The cig lighter port reads .2 less than at the battery. Why would that be?

Normal acceptable tolerance. The resistance of and other components before it gets to the outlet

 

[Randy C]

There is something drawing that much current between the battery and the cig lighter port. Take voltage readings in 1/100 volts at main breaker or closest plug and at the farthest breaker panel or plug in your home. You will see a voltage drop due to load factors. In heavy use periods I can see 118v-123v. (I am on a one phase 28k(?) transmission circuit which is much better than the 14k volt that was upgraded couple years ago).

It makes me think the cig power point isn't reliable as a voltage test point... which is what I have been watching for over a year. I recently installed a Scan Gauge lll which seems more accurate. My issue with the Scan Gaige is that it doesn't stay on all the time. I returned the first one assuming it was faulty but the replacement does the same thing. It plugs into the OBD2 port. It acts like there is a short and comes on and off at will. That has me stumped!

 

[HeyBales]

It makes me think the cig power point isn't reliable as a voltage test point... which is what I have been watching for over a year. I recently installed a Scan Gauge lll which seems more accurate. My issue with the Scan Gaige is that it doesn't stay on all the time. I returned the first one assuming it was faulty but the replacement does the same thing. It plugs into the OBD2 port. It acts like there is a short and comes on and off at will. That has me stumped!

Even if not Reliable due to a Volts reading on power adapter, or slight differences - it's still Valuable as a trending indicator and personal reminder if doing your own recharging.

Just notice the difference between readings, pick a value, charge when needed.

The system PID's in a scanner aren't always accurate either I've noticed - as they rely on that battery sensor which may have upwards of 10% inaccuracy range it appears. Or my multimeter is off! Entirely possible too.
But at least the PID tells you what the system thinks it's dealing with.
Still couldn't find a 12VB PID for what temp it sees - found one that references the fact it has one it uses for the EB and the auto-start/stop system, so I know it's there.

Interesting issue for OBD port - have you looked at the wiring behind the port to discover if any extra included?
Like location tracker hardware?
Some dealerships installed in case they got financing - and it all went bad on payments.
Since that would be receiving power too - I could see a power glitch to the SG3 there.

 

[Randy C]

Even if not Reliable due to a Volts reading on power adapter, or slight differences - it's still Valuable as a trending indicator and personal reminder if doing your own recharging.

Just notice the difference between readings, pick a value, charge when needed.

The system PID's in a scanner aren't always accurate either I've noticed - as they rely on that battery sensor which may have upwards of 10% inaccuracy range it appears. Or my multimeter is off! Entirely possible too.
But at least the PID tells you what the system thinks it's dealing with.
Still couldn't find a 12VB PID for what temp it sees - found one that references the fact it has one it uses for the EB and the auto-start/stop system, so I know it's there.

Interesting issue for OBD port - have you looked at the wiring behind the port to discover if any extra included?
Like location tracker hardware?
Some dealerships installed in case they got financing - and it all went bad on payments.
Since that would be receiving power too - I could see a power glitch to the SG3 there.

No location tracker... I pay cash! LOL

 

[HeyBales]

No location tracker... I pay cash! LOL

Don't think that does mean it wasn't installed.

I phrased my comment that way because posters HAVE found ones installed even when they paid cash or financing NOT with dealer.
Dealer just auto installed them - perhaps for test drive purposes too.

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