Electrical System Drain Service Required Warning

[StevenC56]

We have a 2025 GT that we took delivery of on June 5th. It only has 888 miles as we don't drive it much. This morning I went to back it out of the garage and this warning keeps popping up. Is this just the LVB not charged up enough because we don't use the car as much as our other vehicle? If so, what's the best way you guys have found to use a maintenance charger periodically on the LVB to keep the charge up on it.? I know it's under the Frunk trim on the left side. Does the LVB get any charge from the system when a L2 charger is connected, or only when you are driving?

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[Brent@ANParts]

The LVB should be getting charged, regardless of whether you're driving or not. EVs are known for taking a toll on 12v batteries but yours is pretty new, I would ask the dealer.

 

[AZMMESTAR]

Check for unsuspected 12V usage!
Perhaps the dealer left a tracker on it.

 

[StevenC56]

The LVB should be getting charged, regardless of whether you're driving or not. EVs are known for taking a toll on 12v batteries but yours is pretty new, I would ask the dealer.

Then how would anyone's battery ever even run down if it's charging it all the time?

 

[StevenC56]

Check for unsuspected 12V usage!
Perhaps the dealer left a tracker on it.

Not likely. They don't use any kind of tracking devices.

 

[Tosh]

Then how would anyone's battery ever even run down if it's charging it all the time?

My understanding is that the battery is NOT being charged when the car is turned off and not connected to a charger. If it's turned an, being driven, or on a charger, then the 12 battery should be charging.

I agree that the warning you are seeing should be checked by the dealer. My 2024, which is almost 1 year old now (sat on a dealer lot for several months), is driven about 3 or 4 times a week, only gets charged about once a month, and has not had any issues.

 

[AZMMESTAR]

Other trackers include: Your insurance carrier or your electrical provider.
Also, dash cams, etc.

 

[StevenC56]

Other trackers include: Your insurance carrier or your electrical provider.
Also, dash cams, etc.

Lol. Yeah, I don't think PG&E that doesn't even know what cars we own is doing anything. I'm pretty sure my insurance carrier would have to disclose anything like that as well, and they haven't.

 

[Schmedlack]

This maintains the 12V battery charge when the car is not used.......

1. I connected a 12V "charger plug" to the LV battery connections in the car. Positive goes to the battery cable and Negative goes to the ground stud. For safety, a 10A fuse is in line with the positive wire.

2. When the car is sits for more than a week, a 12V 3A charger is connected to the "chager plug".

3. The battery charger is then connected to a TP Link smart plug which is set to power the charger 20 minutes a day. This has always been sufficient.

4. However, in the event that the battery needs more charging, FordPass sends a smart phone message. Then, I will use the TP Link Casa app on my phone to activate the charger for a longer duration, providing more charging power.

Everything came from Walmart, except for the little plastic fasteners which hold the "beauty covers" in place. As always, these flew all over the garage, so the replacements came from Ford.

 

[Sikkun]

It charges when on.
It charges when charging.
It should wake up and charge if the battery gets too low, but that one has been the most hit or miss for people.

 

[A-A-Ron]

Not likely. They don't use any kind of tracking devices.

Many dealers put one on the OBD port to track vehicles stolen from the lot or on test drives. It’s often a way to reduce their insurance costs. Sometimes they forget to remove them prior to delivery. I’d double check your OBD port first. Many of them are pass through (they have a port on them) so you’ll need to inspect it closely

 

[ChrisO]

Not only do they put tracking devices on your car, but it might also be illegal to remove them.

If you are financing the car, the financer is a co-owner of your car until you pay it off.

 

[Snakebitten]

Dashcam?
OBD adapter using Carscanner?

Or anything else you might have "plugged in"to the car somewhere?

 

[StevenC56]

No dashcam, no aftermarket accessories, nothing in the OBD port. I think it's just that we haven't driven it much but walking past it many times with my PAK and my wife's fob in her purse may have been the culprit over the last 2-3 weeks. Also, the SOC was not updating on either of our phones or even my online Ford account even after charging from 70-90% today. The warning hasn't come back after charging plus driving 20+ miles. I had to reset the modem by removing the 2 fuses #19&21 to get the modem working again, which was probably due to the low voltage on the 12V battery. Looks like we need to drive it more and also long term I'll be installing a pigtail on the 12V battery so I can periodically use a maintenance charger on it.

 

[Schmedlack]

No dashcam, no aftermarket accessories, nothing in the OBD port. I think it's just that we haven't driven it much but walking past it many times with my PAK and my wife's fob in her purse may have been the culprit over the last 2-3 weeks. Also, the SOC was not updating on either of our phones or even my online Ford account even after charging from 70-90% today. The warning hasn't come back after charging plus driving 20+ miles. I had to reset the modem by removing the 2 fuses #19&21 to get the modem working again, which was probably due to the low voltage on the 12V battery. Looks like we need to drive it more and also long term I'll be installing a pigtail on the 12V battery so I can periodically use a maintenance charger on it.

You have just described what I experienced 4 years ago with my '21. The remedy was to turn off PAAK and store the keyfobs in an empty soup can in a nearby indoor closet. The can provides RF shielding like the Faraday bags. No problems since then.

For the 12V pigtail connection mentioned earlier..... For the + side I fabricated a "spade connector" which fits inside of the MME 12V battery cable "push on" connector. The red pigtail wire is soldered on to a small piece of sheetmetal which goes on the inside of that connection. The negative connection is simply a small battery charger clip hooked to the ground post. As stated earlier a 10A fuse is also used in the +12V connection.

For Service visits, the charging pigtail can be quickly removed without tools. This prevents receiving a ration of BS for having an unauthorized modification.

All of this may seem complicated, but if you look at it on your car, it really isn't.

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