How long did your original C-max battery last?

[fbov]

Time to time the time-out, it appears. Still on the original battery here, and trip length is way down so perhaps I'll see an effect. 

Frank

[Chuckles37]

After reading all the discussions on the 12V battery, I decided at the 59 month point to change it out today.  The old one tested fine, but for peace of mind, It is gone.  Oh by the way, you got to read the $99 coupon closely.  The one I had was for the PLUS battery and all they had in stock was the MAX battery, so it did not apply.   

[Louder North]

Just replaced the battery on our 2013 C Max SEL on the weekend (needed a boost to get it started). It was still the original; we have 45,000 km on the car.

 

Replacement was the BXT 67R ($170 CAN) at the local Ford dealer.

[fbov]

Time to time the time-out, it appears. Still on the original battery here, and trip length is way down so perhaps I'll see an effect. 

Frank

I'm in the 2.5 minute bunch, albeit with an original battery in a max-life part of the country. Considering alternatives to battery replacement...

Frank

[markd]

I'm at 38 months and counting.

[joe]

Update:  I bought a new 12v battery in Jan 2017 (decided to be proactive and replace the 4 year old battery before it died by itself).  Came out this morning and the car was dead electrically.  I used my lithium battery starter I got from Costco.  Car immediately started and ran for almost 10 minutes before the engine shut down.  Drove around the neighborhood.  Everything seems to work OK.  I had to reset "my view" menu.   Will need to see if it starts tomorrow. 

 

Car is garaged and although the temps have been in the teens, the garage doesn't get below 35 degrees.  If battery fails again, I'll return to Ford for a replacement.

[homestead]

I think its more likely that something in the car discharged the battery than the battery being bad.

[joe]

UPDATE 2:  It's been about 2 weeks since I had to jump start the car.  Car has started up with no problems.  We've driven and parked the car when we've had temperatures in the single digits and it still starts OK.  I have to assume that the battery is OK.  Weird behavior.

[jestevens]

I'm going to Ford Service this afternoon to replace mine.  In the cold weather I had to use the emergency key 3 times to unlock the door.  I think maybe I just wasn't making a good ground connection since I was wearing thick soled hikers on snow when I tried to open the door but it's time - the battery is the original battery from the factory and the car was built May 2012 according to the VIN check.  I suspect I need the Motorcraft "MAX" battery which is on special for $129, not the other one for $99.

[homestead]

Does your key fob have a fresh battery?

I tried getting the $99 battery but they said it didn't exist even though the ad stated C-max in the fine print.

You can also ask them to connect a charger to the battery posts under the hood so you don't lose any stored data.

Also make sure they reset the battery management system.

[jestevens]

Yes thanks, I changed the FOB I use the most about 2 months ago, and I changed the batteries in both FOBs last night.  That was a weird experience, the dealer shop replaced the battery and glued the loose carpet strips in the back with some double sided tape but when I went to leave touching the front door handles locked the car and touching the back handles unlocked it.  The FOB buttons work as expected.  The Advisor offered to have the car reprogrammed but I was there late and all of her techs went home already.  I'm guess I'm taking it back in to get flashed tomorrow at no charge.  I drove it to a restaurant for dinner and when I came back out the car seemed to work as expected, then when I got home I tested things and it was like the driver's door was alternately hypersensitive to putting your hand anywhere near the lock pad on the front door handles, if I grabbed it ONLY on the front part of the handle it would unlock - sometimes  it wouldn't respond at all for a few seconds.  The BCM seemed to be acting slowly..

 

So I'm not exactly sure what is failing - the antenna?  the BCM?  Bad settings?   I don't know for sure.  I guess I'm glad I have the new battery anyway, it might have lasted one more year if I was lucky probably.  The dealer didn't want to change it because it tested good.  They thought I would be mad if it didn't solve the problem.

 

They apparently have a "hybrid specialist" that only works certain days for $105/hr  .. I guess sort of like how some shops bring in a specialist for transmissions?  They wanted to have that person do a diagnostic.  I guess if the re-flash doesn't work maybe I will.  This is a presidential award winning dealer that does work for miles around.  and I'm glad they are trying to help me but It's funny that the shop where I bought the car at a little country dealer seemed to know more about hybrids.

 

Oh, the new battery with tax, labor etc. was about a $200 charge.  I remember how much fun I had changing the battery in the Prius and the C-MAX looked to be about just as much fun so I guess it was worth it.  By the time I would have bought all the deep sockets or whatever, and it's cold out this time of year I guess I would have spent about the same amount.  Amazon wanted $140 for the battery + $26 for shipping.  Some of the online Ford dealers were selling it for about $90.

Edited January 11, 2018 by jestevens

[stolenmoment]

I originally took my 2013 Energi to a local (non-Ford) shop to get the battery replaced.  They worked on it for an hour or so, got scared by the bright orange cables, and gave up.  At least they didn't charge me anything!

[jestevens]

The car ended up being fine, within 24-48 hours after the change it now operates normally and the dealer tested it, found proper operation and didn't reprogram anything.  I guess maybe when I went to grab the front door handles maybe I inadvertently touched the lock pad or for the first day or so between the new 12V battery and brand new FOB batteries everything was hypersensitive.

Edited January 18, 2018 by jestevens

[plus 3 golfer]

I finally looked at ForScan Windows beta FREE version to see if the 12 V Battery Reset function was enabled in the Beta version.  It is and I was able to reset the age of my 12 V battery.  Now it shows 0 months old. :)   SOC was 63%.  I'll continue to monitor SOC with the battery age now at 0 months. 

 

Forgot to mention, the timeout of the audio system was 10 minutes (almost to the second) after I turned the car off.  Prior, it was around 2 1/2 minutes.  So, perhaps battery age is also used in determing how long one has to listen to the radio after shutting the car off.

Edited February 26, 2018 by Plus 3 Golfer

[homestead]

 

Forgot to mention, the timeout of the audio system was 10 minutes (almost to the second) after I turned the car off.  Prior, it was around 2 1/2 minutes.  So, perhaps battery age is also used in determing how long one has to listen to the radio after shutting the car off.

 

Yes, look at my post #34 on this thread. Same results!

Edited February 27, 2018 by homestead

[plus 3 golfer]

Yes, look at my post #34 on this thread. Same results!

When I timed it and got exactly 10 minutes, I did recall somewhere reading the 10 minutes after battery age reset.   Just couldn't recall where.  This confirms age matters. :)

[pianewman]

Purchased our 2013CMax SEL use, 41k miles, in August, 2016. I have for many years installed a battery hookup to use a BatteryTender Plus for occasional use (during long periods when car is stored/garaged). I installed the BTP lugs directly to the bolts on the battery cable lugs.

 

After purchase, noticed that the BatteryTender could NOT fully charge the OEM battery, after several days on trickle charge. Dealer replaced the battery, no cost...UNKNOWN whether or not they performed a reset, but I'll assume they didn't.

 

Fast-forward to last week (17 months on replacement battery): Entertainment and Nav went dark. Reset both by pulling fuse #79. Heard a loud "pop" when I removed the fuse, no sound when I replaced it. Both Entertainment and Nav came back to life, and continue to function.

 

Several questions:

 

1) I connected the BatteryTenderPlus cables directly to the bolts on the battery clamps. Should I put them somewhere else?

2) Does the Entertainment and Nav going dark indicate a weak battery?

 

As soon as the car returns home (it's away at son's college), I'll plug the battery tender in, see how long it takes to charge. Also, will perform the timed "ignition off/radio on" function.

 

Thanks in advance. Still learning about hybrid/elec drivetrains, owning a 2014 Toyota Avalon Hybrid and a 2015 Nissan Leaf. BTW, the reason I've used BatteryTenders for many years is years of boating/camping...deep cycles batteries. Also, VW CRTDI ownership, which are power hogs. I never want the inconvenience of battery failure.

 

Ed in Ft. Worth, TX

[stolenmoment]

1) That's about as good as it gets, although the lugs under the hood are easier to get to for most.

2) Not as far as I can tell.  My battery died a year ago Christmas, my Entertainment went dark in the coldest part of this past winter.

 

BTW, the 12v battery should be charged from the alternator whenever you run the car.  It is pretty much only used to pull the relays that isolate the HVB from the rest of the works.

 

IMHO it's a design failure to neglect keeping the 12v battery charged while parked, at least while the HVB can still start the ICE.  This is doubly true for the Energi models.

[raadsel]

1) That's about as good as it gets, although the lugs under the hood are easier to get to for most.

2) Not as far as I can tell.  My battery died a year ago Christmas, my Entertainment went dark in the coldest part of this past winter.

 

BTW, the 12v battery should be charged from the alternator whenever you run the car.  It is pretty much only used to pull the relays that isolate the HVB from the rest of the works.

 

IMHO it's a design failure to neglect keeping the 12v battery charged while parked, at least while the HVB can still start the ICE.  This is doubly true for the Energi models.

 

Disconnecting the HVB while the car is off is a safety feature; it is meant to protect those that are servicing the car -- particularly emergency services if you are in an accident or have another issue. I do think this is something Hyundai/Kia got right in their Ioniq and Niro models, where they have a button that connects the HVB to charge the 12V battery in case the 12V has died.

[ptjones]

Our CMAX's  have generators in the trans and the Invertor.  I think you are right about charging the 12v batt. from under the hood. :)

 

Paul

[joe]

My one year old 12v battery apparently dropped below some level of charge and shut down everything.  Fortunately, I have a lithium charge kit to jump start.  This also occurred two months ago.  I'm not sure if it's worth taking to Ford.  Might take it in just to document the problem.  My C-Max original battery lasted over 4 years and never failed.  I replaced it only because of its age.

[pianewman]

joe: One year old failure? Yikes. Was it a "Ford" replacement, from a dealer?

 

I've come to the conclusion that battery QC is hit or miss. I've been a member over at TDIClub and Vortex since 2009, and it seems battery longevity varies greatly.

[stolenmoment]

Disconnecting the HVB while the car is off is a safety feature; it is meant to protect those that are servicing the car -- particularly emergency services if you are in an accident or have another issue. I do think this is something Hyundai/Kia got right in their Ioniq and Niro models, where they have a button that connects the HVB to charge the 12V battery in case the 12V has died.

I *do* understand the safety aspects of the disconnect.  I hope the Kia's recharge button is reachable; for us, the doors won't unlock when the 12v is dead.

[obob]

A button would have saved Ford a lot of towing fees but not the cost of the batteries when the battery was an issue and before they fixed it so battery would not discharge below an unsafe charge. And it would have had less damage to their reputation.  And it seems like the right thing to do.  I think it is a great idea.

 

On the other hand, they may sell more batteries without the button and answer less questions.  My sense is car manufacturers know that for some types of cars, generally the less geeky a car and the sexier it is, the more it sells.

 

I wonder what Kia calls that button.  Maybe the "Jump Start Button."

 

I wonder if that button is mechanical or something that is powered by a capacitor or separate long life battery.

 

 

 

 

Discussing uses for the high voltage battery, and with the trend of cars becoming so smart, perhaps there could be a taser button that locates and handles carjackers.

 

[ Though the liability of zapping the wrong people would be way to high. ]

 

 ( there's more - search for trunk monkey) Edited March 6, 2018 by obob

[plus 3 golfer]

According to C&D the button is like a simple connected jump start from the HVB applying 12V for a few seconds to the 12V battery. Also, C&D notes downsides to Hyundai's approach below.  Replacement cost of the 12V battery could be high as it's integrated into the HVB pack.  This also begs the question of battery degradation over time and warranty coverage of such degradation.

 

"If there’s a downside to this solution, it’s that there are no accessible 12-volt battery terminals—the battery is sealed under the rear seat—so the Ioniq Hybrid may also be the world’s first production car that can’t be used to jump-start another car.

Longevity is another reasonable concern. Hyundai warranties the entire battery pack, including the 12-volt battery, for the original owner’s lifetime, with no restriction on mileage. All subsequent owners are covered for up to 10 years or 100,000 miles. After that, we expect it will cost far more than $100 to replace a custom battery that isn’t designed for easy swapping."