12V Battery FAQ

[dimes4slim]

What did it cost to return the old battery for core refund?

I haven't done it yet, but may see if I come out ahead by just getting a credit at Auto Zone or Advance versus the shipping cost. I will follow up next week.

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[dimes4slim]

What did it cost to return the old battery for core refund?

UPS would charge about $51 to NC from CA, and USPS would be $90. No brainer to get a $10 credit from a local auto parts store.

 

[dimes4slim]

What did it cost to return the old battery for core refund?

UPS would charge about $51 to NC from CA, and USPS would be $90. No brainer to get a $10 credit from a local auto parts store.

 

[flyingdutchman]

Was this through Rockauto using their " Discounted" return core shipping label or on your own? Hard to believe Rockauto can sell and ship a battery for around $120

 

[Lite2]

Was this through Rockauto using their " Discounted" return core shipping label or on your own? Hard to believe Rockauto can sell and ship a battery for around $120

I was wondering that too, wouldn't show the final price till ya bought it though.

 

[dimes4slim]

Was this through Rockauto using their " Discounted" return core shipping label or on your own? Hard to believe Rockauto can sell and ship a battery for around $120

I didn't know the had a discounted core return shipping label. Where would I find that?

 

[flyingdutchman]

https://www.rockauto.com/help/?page=4#ARRRET

Scroll down left side of page

 

[dimes4slim]

https://www.rockauto.com/help/?page=4#ARRRET

Scroll down left side of page

A link for buying and printing a return label did not exist when I thoroughly explored their site, and phone support does not exist, so I ended up getting a $10 core credit at AutoZone.

 

[HughJazzol]

What should I do if I don’t drive a lot? Or take short trips?

... For example, drive the car below 50% before recharging to 90%, which will result in a long charging session. Another suggestion is to use a 120V L1 EVSE instead of L2 if you don’t drive much, this means longer charging times which is good for the 12V battery. Or if you have a smart EVSE, reduce the amp setting as low as you can.

Another approach is to just leave the car on in the garage once a week. Disable auto shutdown timer, shut off HVAC, and leave the car on for about 2 hours.

I've read through a few pages of this awesome post, and I ask about the paragraph above which can be misread or misinterpreted, like I might have done.

I don't drive a lot, and I want to do this, but I simply reiterate that in the paragraph before this one, it states that simply connecting a charger to the car WILL NOT charge the 12v battery.
Therefore, in order for the 12v battery to charge, the car MUST be on with auto shutdown disabled as stated above. And the longer the session, the better. Correct?
Unfortunately, I don't have a way to read that battery's voltage other than with a voltmeter to the battery terminals.

Thank you

 

[Maquis]

I've read through a few pages of this awesome post, and I ask about the paragraph above which can be misread or misinterpreted, like I might have done.

I don't drive a lot, and I want to do this, but I simply reiterate that in the paragraph before this one, it states that simply connecting a charger to the car WILL NOT charge the 12v battery.
Therefore, in order for the 12v battery to charge, the car MUST be on with auto shutdown disabled as stated above. And the longer the session, the better. Correct?
Unfortunately, I don't have a way to read that battery's voltage other than with a voltmeter to the battery terminals.

Thank you

If you have the latest software updates that affect 12V battery charging, you probably don’t need to do anything special.
Can you quantify what “don’t drive a lot” means?

 

[dimes4slim]

I've read through a few pages of this awesome post, and I ask about the paragraph above which can be misread or misinterpreted, like I might have done.

I don't drive a lot, and I want to do this, but I simply reiterate that in the paragraph before this one, it states that simply connecting a charger to the car WILL NOT charge the 12v battery.
Therefore, in order for the 12v battery to charge, the car MUST be on with auto shutdown disabled as stated above. And the longer the session, the better. Correct?
Unfortunately, I don't have a way to read that battery's voltage other than with a voltmeter to the battery terminals.

Thank you

When connecting the charger, it will only charge the LV battery if the high voltage battery is also charging. Plugging in alone does not guarantee a charge to the LV battery. Leaving the car on will also charge the battery without the HV battery requiring a charge. I only drive 600 miles a month, so I charge at 6 amps at 240V in my garage which seems to be adequate because of the slow charge rate allowing plenty of time to also charge the 12V battery.

 

[HughJazzol]

If you have the latest software updates that affect 12V battery charging, you probably don’t need to do anything special.
Can you quantify what “don’t drive a lot” means?

Thanks Dave
On average 20-22 miles a day, 4 days a week.

EDIT - and what update is that? All of us are all over the place eith our updates, or so it seems from posts.

 

[HughJazzol]

When connecting the charger, it will only charge the LV battery if the high voltage battery is also charging. Plugging in alone does not guarantee a charge to the LV battery. Leaving the car on will also charge the battery without the HV battery requiring a charge. I only drive 600 miles a month, so I charge at 6 amps at 240V in my garage which seems to be adequate because of the slow charge rate allowing plenty of time to also charge the 12V battery.

Thank you dimes
Yes, simply plugging a charger does nothing, I understand that.
But you say above that charging the hv will also charge the lv, but the op negates that statement. So I simply want to clarify.

 

[Maquis]

Thanks Dave
On average 20-22 miles a day, 4 days a week.

EDIT - and what update is that? All of us are all over the place eith our updates, or so it seems from posts.

Here is a thread about the latest one.

FWIW, I drive my Lightning about the same as you - it has 9500 miles in 27 months. I don’t do anything special and haven’t had any 12V issues.

 

[Just Lurking]

I don't drive a lot, and I want to do this, but I simply reiterate that in the paragraph before this one, it states that simply connecting a charger to the car WILL NOT charge the 12v battery.
Therefore, in order for the 12v battery to charge, the car MUST be on with auto shutdown disabled as stated above. And the longer the session, the better. Correct?

No, this is not correct. The 12V battery is charged in the following situations:

1. When the car is ON (fully ON, accessories mode doesn't count)
2. While the HV battery is being charged
3. When the on-board computer determines the 12V battery has dropped below a certain threshold and the high voltage battery is not itself very low in charge (above 15%, as a rough approximation)

So this implies three more things. If you think your 12V battery needs to be charged more, you can:

1. Leave your car ON for longer, even if you're not driving it (i.e. by leaving it in a secure location like a garage while ON and auto-off disabled)
2. Slow down your charging - i.e. if instead of charging at 48 amps you can charge at lower speeds with a programmable EVSE (EV supply equipment) or even using the 120V Ford mobile charger
3. Take steps to make sure you have received recent software updates which makes the car maintain the 12V at a more robust voltage.

There's also a fourth option, if you are so inclined - you could pop off the plastic frunk covers and use a 12V battery charger directly, though this is probably overkill in almost all situations.

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