Battery Monitoring System, BMS, settings in ForeScan...

[Packer Bill]

With the DCDC is capable of outputting up to 265 amps to the 12-volt battery, how long should it take to charge the battery from 11.8v to 12.6v?

I think the battery does not get charged at all (or very little) during short trips (less than 10-15 minutes). The BMS needs to be reconfigured. I wished someone could hacked the BMS and change this. I don't think Ford will ever do this for us.

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[23grayXLT84]

I think the battery does not get charged at all (or very little) during short trips (less than 10-15 minutes). The BMS needs to be reconfigured. I wished someone could hacked the BMS and change this. I don't think Ford will ever do this for us.

What is interesting is that the sensor is part of the cable and if you look for a replacement part all websites say that "C" version replaces "B".

I am guessing something had to change though I couldn't tell you when that revision took place on the hybrid (looks like this cable applies to escape as well.

Hope someone with a 22 or 23 looks at theirs and reports what part they actually have. Child seats are a pain to remove for me.

https://www.fordoempartsdirect.com/...le-lx6z10c679c?c=az0xJnE9TFg2Wi0xMEM2NzktQg==

Could this be a fix to all of our (or most) issues ?

 

[Kenny]

Oh I agree. Only problem is you drop the vehicle off for the entire day and hope it gets looked at in time. If not the next day. That's even if they'll replace it, as it tests good for the State of Health...Best guess is they're gonna blame the hardwired dashcam .

That's what happened to me. I had my 22 EB in to the dealer three times, overnight at least twice. I was having to jump start nearly every morning. They kept telling me my battery was good and couldn't find anything wrong. Finally they blamed my radar detector, which was unplugged. After that I took matters in to my own hands. Charged the battery overnight and found it would not hold more than 11.75 volts, so replaced it with an AC-Delco battery. Dropped the dead OE battery off with the dealer and the SM tried to tell me in some technical terms I never heard before that 11.75 volts is still a good battery according to Ford. I cut him off and said I don't want to hear their excuses and walked out. So much for dealer support.

 

[Waterick]

I think the battery does not get charged at all (or very little) during short trips (less than 10-15 minutes). The BMS needs to be reconfigured. I wished someone could hacked the BMS and change this. I don't think Ford will ever do this for us.

I think the reason Ford won't (or can't) change the BMS set up, is because then all the EPA fuel mileage ratings will be invalid and get worse. Perhaps something can be done aftermarket. Hopefully, Ford will do something to fix these problems on the '25 update. They have had several years to fix these problems throughout their model lineup and have not done it, probably to improve their CAFE (Corporate Fuel Economy) ratings. So, I don't anticipate much help from Ford. From what I've read, even some other makes are sacrificing battery charge levels over MPG ratings.

 

[Kenny]

I think the reason Ford won't (or can't) change the BMS set up, is because then all the EPA fuel mileage ratings will be invalid and get worse. . . They have had several years to fix these problems throughout their model lineup and have not done it, probably to improve their CAFE (Corporate Fuel Economy) ratings. So, I don't anticipate much help from Ford. From what I've read, even some other makes are sacrificing battery charge levels over MPG ratings.

This seems as bad to me as the VW and Cummins diesel scandals. And the Auto Start Stop feature, while increasing fuel economy, puts wear and tear on your starter. Ways to improve fuel economy numbers without actually improving fuel consumption.

 

[Waterick]

This seems as bad to me as the VW and Cummins diesel scandals. And the Auto Start Stop feature, while increasing fuel economy, puts wear and tear on your starter. Ways to improve fuel economy numbers without actually improving fuel consumption.

Still waiting for for the EPA to see thru it too!

 

[mcluvin]

Well I bit the bullet and bought an AGM battery from Costco, $300 Canadian after taxes. The BCM seems to be more happy with it as if you leave it overnight it might drop 5% in SoC (as per Forscan). Needs more testing/data.

Something to note. I've had the BCM set for a 95% target for a while now. All SoC percentages below are what Forscan states.

95% SoC Battery Target:

• With the old EFB battery, once it hits 88-90% SoC, the vehicle barely charges the battery -3A to 3/4A, it bounces so much it doesn't do much. A 15 min drive might get you 2-4% SoC increase.
• With the AGM battery, it appears the SoC increase in the approximate amount of driving gets you double the SoC return, 4-8%. The amperage being returned to the battery will drop to the same amount once you get to around 90%.
• Under the 95% target, the vehicle would trickle charge the battery once the vehicle came off the initial high idle.

120% SoC Battery Target (initial findings):

• AGM, out of curiosity I increased the SoC target to 120%, SoC before going to work was around 84%, when I adjusted the target SoC and checked it was around 70%, after sitting for 8 hours.
• However, what I did notice was unlike the previous setting, the vehicle was charging the battery at 10-20A from 70% up to 87-88% SoC. It then tapered off above 90%, but I was still getting 7-10A.
• Idling the vehicle for 10 mins, I was still getting double digit amperage output.

I'll have to do a more indepth look with a battery tester and compare. So far it has been an improvement. Time to collect more data from Forscan.

I do have some data recorded with Forscan that I'll have to compile into Excel when I get around to it.

So what is the verdict on 120% SOC? Are you still using that setting?

 

[Sagara]

Bah, trying to get some solid data was a pain in the ass. The charging strategy appears to change with the BMS figuring something out in the background after some time.

That's what happened to me. I had my 22 EB in to the dealer three times, overnight at least twice. I was having to jump start nearly every morning. They kept telling me my battery was good and couldn't find anything wrong. Finally they blamed my radar detector, which was unplugged. After that I took matters in to my own hands. Charged the battery overnight and found it would not hold more than 11.75 volts, so replaced it with an AC-Delco battery. Dropped the dead OE battery off with the dealer and the SM tried to tell me in some technical terms I never heard before that 11.75 volts is still a good battery according to Ford. I cut him off and said I don't want to hear their excuses and walked out. So much for dealer support.

I never asked my dealer about the battery issue as I was afraid of them giving me a run around, booking multiple appointments, shuttling around, and/or blaming something else. However, even changing to an AGM battery, if I use time-lapse in the winter the SOC drops quite dramatically. I've had the deep-sleep alert only come up once after changing to the AGM. I still top off the battery once a month on a charger.

So what is the verdict on 120% SOC? Are you still using that setting?

No, I think I adjusted it to 105% once the recall was done for the turn signals recently. But, the Auto-Start-Stop started working more frequently (at 105% & 120%), especially in the winter with the few days of -30 to -40C weather. The SOC is dependant if you have something running off the battery with the vehicle off.

 

[mcluvin]

No, I think I adjusted it to 105% once the recall was done for the turn signals recently. But, the Auto-Start-Stop started working more frequently (at 105% & 120%), especially in the winter with the few days of -30 to -40C weather. The SOC is dependant if you have something running off the battery with the vehicle off.

Thanks! I installed the Walmart H5 AGM and did a battery reset. It shows as AGM in Forscan but battery type was unknown. I've changed it to the 60 Amp H5 option that was the only available choice in that size. Does anyone know if that makes any difference? I'm worried that if left to unknown, it's going to assume the original battery size and trickle charge at less than 6 amps, which I understand to not be so good for larger AGM batteries.

 

[Kenny]

Thanks! I installed the Walmart H5 AGM and did a battery reset. It shows as AGM in Forscan but battery type was unknown. I've changed it to the 60 Amp H5 option that was the only available choice in that size. Does anyone know if that makes any difference? I'm worried that if left to unknown, it's going to assume the original battery size and trickle charge at less than 6 amps, which I understand to not be so good for larger AGM batteries.

Did you mean H6? That's the size specified in the OM. Also I wonder about specifying more details in Forscan what the battery is. I assumed since it showed AGM it was able to successfully evaluate my battery. Since installing my AGM battery I tried to charge it on 4a and 6a charger but couldn't get above something like 12.37 volts. Maybe I should set my charger to 2a.

Talk about setting the 105 to 120 percent has me confused. It seems like that would ruin the battery. I've been working on cars for 50 years and the more I learn about batteries it seems the less I know. They're not as simple as I had assumed, with both chemical and electrical characteristics.

Another thought I've had in this topic, is prior to BMS, battery charge state has always been maintained by the voltage regulator, which is part of the alternator. I assume the Maverick still has that and that disconnecting the BMS wire it would default back to allowing the VR to regulate SOC. The BMS theoretically could allow the system to be more accurate in maintaining battery longevity. If Ford is programing the BMS NOT to fully charge the battery to achieve higher mpg, maybe it would be better to disconnect the BMS wire altogether and allow the alternator/VR to regulate battery state and forget about it.

 

[colinl]

Did you mean H6? That's the size specified in the OM. Also I wonder about specifying more details in Forscan what the battery is. I assumed since it showed AGM it was able to successfully evaluate my battery. Since installing my AGM battery I tried to charge it on 4a and 6a charger but couldn't get above something like 12.37 volts. Maybe I should set my charger to 2a.

Talk about setting the 105 to 120 percent has me confused. It seems like that would ruin the battery. I've been working on cars for 50 years and the more I learn about batteries it seems the less I know. They're not as simple as I had assumed, with both chemical and electrical characteristics.

Another thought I've had in this topic, is prior to BMS, battery charge state has always been maintained by the voltage regulator, which is part of the alternator. I assume the Maverick still has that and that disconnecting the BMS wire it would default back to allowing the VR to regulate SOC. The BMS theoretically could allow the system to be more accurate in maintaining battery longevity. If Ford is programing the BMS NOT to fully charge the battery to achieve higher mpg, maybe it would be better to disconnect the BMS wire altogether and allow the alternator/VR to regulate battery state and forget about it.

no, he has a hybrid and for them H5 is larger-than-stock but (usually?) can be made to fit. your profile says ecoboost so yes, we ecoboost owners use H6.

the BMS is far from perfect, but generally, all you should have to do is reset it and it will pick EF or AGM automatically.

 

[mcluvin]

the BMS is far from perfect, but generally, all you should have to do is reset it and it will pick EF or AGM automatically.

And it did pick AGM, but does it also identify minimum safe charging amps if it can't ID the battery? My understanding is that charging a 60 amp AGM at a 5 amp or less trickle charge is bad and will cook it. My own observation is that at a 2 amp trickle charge just trying to top off a new 60 amp AGM battery, it just sat at 100% for 3 hours but would never report fully charged. As soon as I bumped it to 12 amps trickle charge, the light turned green and it reported as fully charged.

 

[Packer Bill]

the BMS is far from perfect, but generally, all you should have to do is reset it and it will pick EF or AGM automatically

Before I purchase an AGM battery, I had AN EFB battery. Yet the settings in the BCM listed my battery as an AGM battery when I had the EFB battery...

 

[Kenny]

Before I purchase an AGM battery, I had AN EFB battery. Yet the settings in the BCM listed my battery as an AGM battery when I had the EFB battery...

I wondered about that, if my BMS had reset to AGM after I switched or if it was already set to AGM. More proof that Ford intended AGM batteries in all the EcoBoost Mavericks but cheaped out because of supply shortages. Even now my dealer, Western Slope Ford, refuses to pay to replace my battery and has acted dumb about it, wasting my time 3x having it in the shop, claiming they didn't know what it was and blaming it on me. I'll never buy another Ford from them.

 

[mcluvin]

Talk about setting the 105 to 120 percent has me confused. It seems like that would ruin the battery. I've been working on cars for 50 years and the more I learn about batteries it seems the less I know. They're not as simple as I had assumed, with both chemical and electrical characteristics.

I wondered about that, if my BMS had reset to AGM after I switched or if it was already set to AGM. More proof that Ford intended AGM batteries in all the EcoBoost Mavericks but cheaped out because of supply shortages. Even now my dealer, Western Slope Ford, refuses to pay to replace my battery and has acted dumb about it, wasting my time 3x having it in the shop, claiming they didn't know what it was and blaming it on me. I'll never buy another Ford from them.

Getting a warranty battery replacement can be a nightmare from any retailer. If you know the battery is probably gonna suck, just upgrade and save yourself the hassle. I sold my month old OEM battery for $75 and bought a larger AGM for ~$200 after taxes and fees. It's got a 4 year full replacement warranty. It may or may not be a hassle when or if I need to use that warranty, but I feel a lot better about this battery vs. the OEM battery.

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