erwhitham Posted January 20, 2013 Report Share Posted January 20, 2013 My husband and I just returned from an 8 day vacation. My CMax was outside in Chicago weather-not freezing but cold-for the whole time and started up immediately with remote start. Major hurdle accomplished as all the reports of 12 volt problems had me worried. I'm very relieved and thought some of you posters might appreciate a positive report. Tdefny and RachelnLa 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtorres Posted January 20, 2013 Report Share Posted January 20, 2013 I think the issue may not be so much the car just sitting for prolonged periods. It's more prolonged periods of very short trips where the battery doesn't have enough time to recharge properly. My only dead battery occurred after two to three weeks of nothing but short 2 to 3 mile round trips once or twice per day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNCGeek Posted January 20, 2013 Report Share Posted January 20, 2013 I'd not worry too much about the 12v problems at this point. If anything just being aware that the battery is small and can be discharged easier than you think should be enough to prevent the problems unrelated to defective 12v batteries. FWIW, my battery went dead around 2800 miles of mostly being driven 15-25 miles a day in several trips. I did pick up a portable booster however, which I'd of bought sooner or later anyway since I've jump started many vehicles before I had my C-max. If you do get a portable booster for your c-max (if it concerns you), you probably don't need a big one - when I jumped my c-max, it was ready to go as soon as I hooked up the booster - basically the car woke up, and I could start it without the booster attached. I think all that is needed is enough juice to start the computer and energize some relays - after that the dc-dc converter and the HV pack probably take over and get the engine started. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erwhitham Posted January 20, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2013 I posted before that for the years I had my Priuses my driving consisted of very short mileage-2 to 3 miles at most. I can't believe that a warning for CMax hybrid owners should be "don't buy if you make short trips and have a portable charger just in case." I'm not trying to make light of the 12 volt issue in any way, merely stating that the problem exists somewhere else, perhaps that relay switch, and needs to be resolved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNCGeek Posted January 27, 2013 Report Share Posted January 27, 2013 I posted before that for the years I had my Priuses my driving consisted of very short mileage-2 to 3 miles at most. I can't believe that a warning for CMax hybrid owners should be "don't buy if you make short trips and have a portable charger just in case." I'm not trying to make light of the 12 volt issue in any way, merely stating that the problem exists somewhere else, perhaps that relay switch, and needs to be resolved.I agree, a dead battery sucks, but I doubt it is something that will plague most owners. I also forgot to mention that Ford did swap my 12V battery which was found to be bad. I suspect (and hope) the bulk of 12v problems are due to failed 12v batteries which is an easy fix. The dealer told me the 12v battery has a 3 year warranty. erwhitham 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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