Confusion: 12v Battery Connections Under the Hybrid Hood

[JimParker256]

I doubt this a Ford or Maverick specific thing. All modern cars are so packed with tech, sensors and connectivity hardware (generally a good thing in my opinion), that they'll apparently use a decent amount of battery power even just sitting there. Eventually, the battery will run down and you have to recharge it if you're not driving regularly.

Not a big deal, as I suspect the vast majority of owners aren't letting their cars sit unused for weeks at a time. Those that do can just buy a cheap battery maintainer.

I saw a statement the other day that the average car today has over a mile of wiring... Even the gasoline-only cars run on electricity! LOL

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[JimParker256]

I don't know Ecoboost battery type but Hybrid has sealed, vented, flooded "enhanced" (to apparently charge more like a deep cycle) battery and is not an agm battery. (Always confirm your battery type before charging!).

There have been several hybrid owners reporting that their vehicle came with an AGM 12V battery. I suspect it's luck of the draw in these "supply constrained" times...

I would NOT buy a battery maintainer that couldn't handle AGM batteries.

 

[JimParker256]

I'm in a similar situation with my Maverick and considered the battery maintainer to the point of purchasing one. I haven't used it yet since lately the Maverick has been a workhorse of moving from one house to another. Not that it matters apparently. Drove 30 miles to and from my daughter's choir practice and still got the deep sleep blues.
I have a 07 C -class same Ford E450 in storage and while I have a solar battery maintainer for it, one has to have a fully charged battery for it to be effective. Still haven't found the time to jump it and drive it around for an hour or so to charge it up. Just another project in the wings.

I've also got a Class C MH, but mine is on the Chevy E450 chassis. I put a 12V solar charger on the "house" battery because it has more parasitic drain the the "truck chassis" battery... But I also have a Trik-L-Charge that will use any excess power from the solar charger to top off the chassis battery.

That said, I also make a point to go to the storage lot at least once a month, and run both the truck engine and the onboard generator for 30 minutes (with some kind of load on the generator - either a heater or the house A/C). With that routine, I've had zero issues with either battery, and no problem at all starting the onboard generator.

 

[JimParker256]

Exactly what happened to my truck. Came back from a short trip - less than 4 days - and my Maverick was going into deep sleep instantly after ignition off. (Related: wife's Bronco didn't do this. Both are '22 and I assume have similar Battery Monitoring Systems.) I checked the voltage numerous times over 3 days and was annoyed and frustrated, but then I reset the BMS which takes 10-15 seconds, and it's been fine for 3 weeks.

12.5V off is very strong. Somewhere around 12.0 - 11.8 is acceptable as a low range for a normal 12V battery when off.

Actually, both of those values seem a tad high. Maybe .2 to .3V higher than I'd expect. What did you use to measure?

Here's a chart that reflectgs industry-standard data for 12V batteries and state of charge. It appears to indicate that 11.8-12.0 is about 35%-50% state of charge.

 

[huunvubu]

I have had my Maverick Hybrid for over 16 months and have had the Deep Sleep problem reoccur about every 3-4 months.

I have an ANCEL BST100 12V Battery Load Tester. It is available for less than $30 at Walmart, Ebay etc

https://www.anceltech.com/product/detail?id=1087239878128693248

The first time I had a Deep Sleep message on my FordPass app I tested the battery to see what the condition of charge was. The result was a charge of only 29% at 12.09 volts.

Then for 30 minutes readied the Maverick as in just turning the key to on with the Maverick parked. After 30 minutes I again tested to see what the charge now was.

The result was a charge of 75% at 12.55 volts.

The ICE engine never came on over the 30 minutes so the HV Battery charged the 12V battery via the DC-to-DC converter just fine.

The next day I took a long round trip of about 40 miles and again measured the battery condition.
It read as 51% at 12.31 volts.

Then three days later I again checked the battery condition.
It read as 36% at 12.16 volts.

It appears that for some reason the software in the Maverick is not properly charging the battery as I see no reason for the charge to drop from 75% to 36% in three days even with the Maverick being driven a long time.

Even scarier on January 25, 2023 I got the Deep Sleep message and the charge was 0% at 11.77 volts

Whenever I get the Deep Sleep message I use my trusty Kmart charger to get the battery to full charge.

I then do the reset of the Maverick Battery Module (BMS) to relearn how to properly charge the battery.

This works for about 3-4 months when again I get another Deep Sleep message.

My Maverick is scheduled tomorrow for two recalls and the "Grabby Brakes" software fix. I believe that fix brings all modules up to date and there is a software upgrade to the battery (BMS) module so I hope that fixes the issue going forward.

I will also have them test the 12V battery to make sure it isn't the issue.

This is the results after charging the battery from the Kmart charger: 100% at 13.11 volts

 

[Dad]

I've also got a Class C MH, but mine is on the Chevy E450 chassis. I put a 12V solar charger on the "house" battery because it has more parasitic drain the the "truck chassis" battery... But I also have a Trik-L-Charge that will use any excess power from the solar charger to top off the chassis battery.

That said, I also make a point to go to the storage lot at least once a month, and run both the truck engine and the onboard generator for 30 minutes (with some kind of load on the generator - either a heater or the house A/C). With that routine, I've had zero issues with either battery, and no problem at all starting the onboard generator.

Excellent advice. Yeah, I see the point of a charger on the house batteries - they can be used as an auxiliary start-up for the engine. Before our house fire, I made sure I went to the storage yard to run the engine and the generator, but I've been swamped with dealing with construction issues on the restoration of our house. Pretty much a full-time job. I do appreciate the suggestions in your post.

 

[LadyMav]

I'm thinking of purchasing the NOCO Direct Mount On Board Battery Maintainer for my hybrid and so popped the hood to see if it would be a good fit. For those who might not be familiar with the hybrids, while the 12v battery itself is located under the rear seat, there are terminals located under the hood (see photo). The confusion I mentioned comes into play when looking at the terminal covers. They are appropriately colored red and black, however, both covers have a PLUS + mark embedded. The question is which is truly positive and which one is truly negative? I suppose I could run a meter probe to one of the terminals and ground the other one. Why did I just think of that now? Wife wants something, so I will do that later. In the meantime, feel free to lob in your thoughts.

Hey all, I need your advice. My battery died again, went to jump start and slide the red cap down on the positive terminal (which I have done before) and the entire cap popped off and fell down. I can’t even see it. Do you think I should try and pull the left front fender well liner to see if I can find the red plastic cap?

 

[colinl]

Hey all, I need your advice. My battery died again, went to jump start and slide the red cap down on the positive terminal (which I have done before) and the entire cap popped off and fell down. I can’t even see it. Do you think I should try and pull the left front fender well liner to see if I can find the red plastic cap?

that stinks. yes, you would need to remove any plastic trays under the truck to find the cap. It may not necessarily be in the fender well liner, it could have fallen down in the belly pan splash guard (which is way bigger, and lower to the ground so things might end up there).

If you don't care about the cap rattling around down there, you can probably get a new cover at an autoparts store.

Actually. You also mentioned 'battery dying again'. That's probably something you ought to have looked at? There are a couple of TSBs for hybrid charging issues and once a battery gets too weak to start, it's probably going to permanently lose capacity. This happens easily with a flooded battery, and AGM batteries can sustain a deeper discharge without issue.

 

[svogt302]

From a thread a few weeks ago

Here are the 2.5 Hybrid Maverick jump start locations | MaverickTruckClub - 2022+ Ford Maverick Pickup Forum, News, Owners, Discussions

Anyone know the size of the screw and thread? I was to attach a harness for my Ctek battery tender.
Thanks

 

[BlueSpec1]

Anyone know the size of the screw and thread? I was to attach a harness for my Ctek battery tender.
Thanks

5/16-18. I would have thought metric.

 

[SLINGSHOT]

5/16-18. I would have thought metric.

I tried a metric nut, but it would start and then lock. I kept trying until I hit a SAE 5/16 18. The ground stud has no threads.

 

[BlueSpec1]

I tried a metric nut, but it would start and then lock. I kept trying until I hit a SAE 5/16 18. The ground stud has no threads.

I did the same, tried metric and then found a 5/16-18 nut fit so used 2 nuts to jam the ring terminal onto the post.

 

[svogt302]

5/16-18. I would have thought metric.

Thank you! I figured metric as well!

 

[SLINGSHOT]

I did the same, tried metric and then found a 5/16-18 nut fit so used 2 nuts to jam the ring terminal onto the post.

I threaded one nut down quite a way, put the Battery Tender Jr ring terminal on the stud and put on another 5/16 nut. Solid connection.

 

[cyberdog]

If you're having battery issues, including Deep-Sleep, just get the battery replaced. The factory setting is for an AGM Battery, only most of the Hybrid models shipped with an Enhanced Flood Cell. AGM batteries tend to last longer under cycling, recover better from a discharge, and tend to have higher voltage levels than their flooded cell brethren. Add to that the diminutive size of the factory battery, and shall we say aren't perhaps the highest quality battery.

Haven't had a no-lights or deep-sleep since replacing mine, and my truck even sat for about a full week while I recovered from COVID earlier this month. SoC (State of Charge) as of a few minutes ago was 98%, as reported by the BT Battery Monitor I left attached when replacing mine.

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