Don't wait to replace the 12v battery at 3 years - just do it

[RKinWA]

I recently took my '22 in to replace the battery. He reported the SOH was 95% and if I wanted to change it I would have to pay $450

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[Kamuelaflyer]

I recently took my '22 in to replace the battery. He reported the SOH was 95% and if I wanted to change it I would have to pay $450

Unless the battery has actually failed or is verifiably about to while under warranty you’re going to be paying out of pocket. Besides, It’s not hard to replace on your own. You’ll need to look up the bms reset procedure on this forum though.

 

[fkyct]

Batteries that pass all tests can fail suddenly.

That happens all the time. Before retiring I managed a Field Engineer team. We had 200 company cars that the techs used and took home. We kept them for 3 years before having them replaced. The majority of the vehicles had sudden battery failures before the 3 years were up. This was in South Florida so maybe the heat had something to do with it. Sudden battery failures was costly and very disruptive. We had to pay overtime for techs or we lost them off the street for almost a full day.

I instituted mandatory battery replacement at the first scheduled maintenance after the 2 year mark. The battery failures no longer became an issue.

 

[jefftuck]

So, stupid question here, you are saying that it doesn’t matter how many miles you have on the car, just replace it after 3 years? I will do it now if that’s the case! Thanks for the advice!

Not a stupid question. But, yes, time is probably the biggest enemy of 12V batteries. Maybe charging cycles, too, but that may not relate to miles that much. I think the three year replacement is a good idea. Mine comes up next summer.

 

[Blue highway]

So, stupid question here, you are saying that it doesn’t matter how many miles you have on the car, just replace it after 3 years? I will do it now if that’s the case! Thanks for the advice!

usage probably has some effect, but when the battery goes, there is little to no warning... and it's not like its going to go many more years... so changing it at 3 years is a good investment in avoiding aggravation.

 

[GreaseMonkey]

Still going. I will replace when it dies no need to waste money if it hasn’t failed. ‘21 Premuim AWDX

That’s your call, but don’t come crying when it strands you! This time of year is when you know they died last summer. And you’re on borrowed time, my friend.

 

[ghaskins]

I have a tangential question:

I have a '22 GT that I bought in July of this year. The car was put into service in May of 22 so it was already over 3 years old when I bought it. I didnt think too much of the 12v battery until I started having problems with a specific OTA update that kept complaining that the 12v battery was too low. Not long after, I picked up an OBDII scanner so I could see that the 12v battery was fluctuating between 65% and 85% (but usually below the 80% that was needed for this particular OTA).

Both me and my local dealer tested the battery and it "passed", though I did note that the voltage was about 12.5v after charging with my external charger to 100% instead of the more expected 12.85v. When I coupled the stuggle to get over 80%, the lower voltage, and the "3 year" warnings Ive seen here on the forum, I had it in the back of my mind that the battery was probably not long for this world.

Fast forward to last week: I went to turn the car on and the red battery MIL was on on the dash. So I figured "today's the day" and I replaced the battery without really diagnosing the problem (had the dealer do it, too busy atm to tackle myself).

Since its been replaced, Ive been noting some weird SOC reports from OBDII. When I got home from the 20 minute ride home from the dealer, the SOC was about 75%, which at the time I was a little surprised it wasnt closer to 90+ but I chaulked up to recent BMS reset, short drive, whatever. However, I have been noting that it seems to just be depleting without ever charging. It got down to about 50% before I decided to set my EVSE to 6A and let the car charge over night.

In the morning, after maybe 18 hours on the L2 at 6A, the 12v battery was still only in the mid 70s SOC, and it continues with the "I lose 5% ish each time I drive it" behavior. I'm now back down into the 60s/50s. I know the battery takes a hit each time we start the car and it struggles to charge if you only drive short trips, but it feels like its not really charging at all.

I do see the OBDII reports that the voltage is 14.5v while the car is on, which implies the DC/DC inverter is working (though I should confirm with a multi-meter on the battery terminals directly).

My question is this? Does this sound normal? Or does it sound like perhaps I am having a DC/DC inverter issue. The car has been driving fine, and no dash MILs are illuminated, so part of me is thinking that the car is just adjusting to the reset BMS and it will be fine eventually. I.e. the only reason I am suspicious is because I am watching the SOC. But the other part of me is wondering if I just let it go im going to find myself stranded with a dead 12v system.

 

[GreaseMonkey]

If you work in machinery and equipment dependent industries, you wouldn’t consider replacing an item pre-failure a weird concept. We, in manufacturing, refer to it as preventative maintenance. It’s no different than you all replacing your tires when they get to the wear line. The tire did not fail and you could arguably drive the car a couple ‘000 miles. But you don’t. You just replace it. Same thing here. No need to be a hero over $5/ month. If you want to gamble, go buy a lottery ticket.

 

[Space_Pony]

I recently took my '22 in to replace the battery. He reported the SOH was 95% and if I wanted to change it I would have to pay $450

What was the price of the battery? $102.89 without core swap at Rockauto

 

[RKinWA]

What was the price of the battery? $102.89 without core swap at Rockauto

Yep

 

[WR221]

The peace of mind was worth the $115 battery price and 45 minutes of my time to install. I did spend prep time on the forum and YouTube getting clear on the process. My wife's EV6 had a dead 12V at 3 years and 3 months, but it's a trivial 10-minute process to replace the EV6 battery and you don't get locked out when it dies. I don't know if EVs are hard on 12v batteries or they just install really cheap ones because we don't need the cold cranking amps.

 

[DYohn]

Well, as in most things, it depends... I got the Ford Pass warning so I replaced the OEM battery on my 2021 at 4 years, even though the shop told me it was at 90%, because I bought new tires at the same time and got a discount. Why not, I figured.

 

[Billyk24]

What was the price of the battery? $102.89 without core swap at Rockauto

i WAS charged $132.00 AT A Ford Dealership this month when I took mine in the 12V battery/door lock recall.

 

[JohnFoxeSheets]

I have a tangential question:

I have a '22 GT that I bought in July of this year. The car was put into service in May of 22 so it was already over 3 years old when I bought it. I didnt think too much of the 12v battery until I started having problems with a specific OTA update that kept complaining that the 12v battery was too low. Not long after, I picked up an OBDII scanner so I could see that the 12v battery was fluctuating between 65% and 85% (but usually below the 80% that was needed for this particular OTA).

Both me and my local dealer tested the battery and it "passed", though I did note that the voltage was about 12.5v after charging with my external charger to 100% instead of the more expected 12.85v. When I coupled the stuggle to get over 80%, the lower voltage, and the "3 year" warnings Ive seen here on the forum, I had it in the back of my mind that the battery was probably not long for this world.

Fast forward to last week: I went to turn the car on and the red battery MIL was on on the dash. So I figured "today's the day" and I replaced the battery without really diagnosing the problem (had the dealer do it, too busy atm to tackle myself).

Since its been replaced, Ive been noting some weird SOC reports from OBDII. When I got home from the 20 minute ride home from the dealer, the SOC was about 75%, which at the time I was a little surprised it wasnt closer to 90+ but I chaulked up to recent BMS reset, short drive, whatever. However, I have been noting that it seems to just be depleting without ever charging. It got down to about 50% before I decided to set my EVSE to 6A and let the car charge over night.

In the morning, after maybe 18 hours on the L2 at 6A, the 12v battery was still only in the mid 70s SOC, and it continues with the "I lose 5% ish each time I drive it" behavior. I'm now back down into the 60s/50s. I know the battery takes a hit each time we start the car and it struggles to charge if you only drive short trips, but it feels like its not really charging at all.

I do see the OBDII reports that the voltage is 14.5v while the car is on, which implies the DC/DC inverter is working (though I should confirm with a multi-meter on the battery terminals directly).

My question is this? Does this sound normal? Or does it sound like perhaps I am having a DC/DC inverter issue. The car has been driving fine, and no dash MILs are illuminated, so part of me is thinking that the car is just adjusting to the reset BMS and it will be fine eventually. I.e. the only reason I am suspicious is because I am watching the SOC. But the other part of me is wondering if I just let it go im going to find myself stranded with a dead 12v system.

I’m no expert (paging @Mach-Lee), but that doesn’t sound normal. S my understanding that it takes the BMS some time to recalibrate after being reset, but I’d have thought it would have done that by now. Do you know for certain that the dealer actually reset it?

 

[ChrisO]

Still going. I will replace when it dies no need to waste money if it hasn’t failed. ‘21 Premuim AWDX

Just depends on if one doesn't mind getting stuck somewhere if it fails.

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