Is never charging to 100% bad for your battery?

[drdoug75]

Hello all! I am owner of a 2021 MME GT PE, and my wife's 2021 MME premium. I was thinking the other day about my RC car Lipo batteries and balanced charging. In RC lipo batteries you often need to "balance charge" to get all the cells at the same voltage. So they recommend that you do take time to "balance" charge every 4-5 charging of the battery.

I drive my MME GT PE around town, and occasionally 70 miles to a second home. I basically, never have to charge >90%. But, I started to wonder if that is actually bad for the battery, and should I actually occasionally bring it to the 100% mark to "balance" charge. I might be crazy and maybe lipo RC batteries are different than the Lipo technology in a car.

But thought I would ask on this forum as many have so much knowledge. I never need to go to 100% but should I for battery health....?

Thanks everyone! This is a great forum!

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[RickMachE]

No. But for a 70 mile trip, why wouldn't you?

 

[drdoug75]

No. But for a 70 mile trip, why wouldn't you?

I guess, I just don't really feel the need to reset it in the FORD APP. I have it set to charge to 85% (I understand 90% from the manual). So I just tend to plug in. Takes it to 85%, and I can charge back to 80-90% at the house 70 miles away. No harm no foul. So I just really don't need to charge to 100%... And some seem to suggest that charging to 100% may decrease battery life over time. But I was wondering if the reverse is bad for battery health too. If it is, I certainly could press the button and take it to 100%.

Thanks

 

[SeaKayaker4Life]

No, Lithium-ion batteries don’t like to be at 100%, so if you never charge to full your battery will last longer. And the longer they’re at 100% the worse it is, so try to schedule your charge to complete shortly before your departure.

The only time I ever go to 100% is if I need it for that day’s travel, and I lowered the wattage on my home charger so it no longer finishes at 11pm and sits at 100% all night.

It‘s worth mentioning that when the Mach-E registers 100% charge it’s actually about 96% of the battery’s actual capacity (that’s why the usable battery size is lower than the total capacity). For that reason you should have no qualms about taking it to 100% when it’s needed.

I have 34k miles on my battery, and because I normally charge to 80% at home and only fast-charge on trips, I have lost zero battery capacity.

 

[SnBGC]

Hello all! I am owner of a 2021 MME GT PE, and my wife's 2021 MME premium. I was thinking the other day about my RC car Lipo batteries and balanced charging. In RC lipo batteries you often need to "balance charge" to get all the cells at the same voltage. So they recommend that you do take time to "balance" charge every 4-5 charging of the battery.

I drive my MME GT PE around town, and occasionally 70 miles to a second home. I basically, never have to charge >90%. But, I started to wonder if that is actually bad for the battery, and should I actually occasionally bring it to the 100% mark to "balance" charge. I might be crazy and maybe lipo RC batteries are different than the Lipo technology in a car.

But thought I would ask on this forum as many have so much knowledge. I never need to go to 100% but should I for battery health....?

Thanks everyone! This is a great forum!

No. What you are doing is fine as long as it meets your needs. Your car takes care of all the cell balancing etc behind the scenes. You don't have to give it much thought.

 

[Mach-Lee]

Hello all! I am owner of a 2021 MME GT PE, and my wife's 2021 MME premium. I was thinking the other day about my RC car Lipo batteries and balanced charging. In RC lipo batteries you often need to "balance charge" to get all the cells at the same voltage. So they recommend that you do take time to "balance" charge every 4-5 charging of the battery.

I drive my MME GT PE around town, and occasionally 70 miles to a second home. I basically, never have to charge >90%. But, I started to wonder if that is actually bad for the battery, and should I actually occasionally bring it to the 100% mark to "balance" charge. I might be crazy and maybe lipo RC batteries are different than the Lipo technology in a car.

But thought I would ask on this forum as many have so much knowledge. I never need to go to 100% but should I for battery health....?

Thanks everyone! This is a great forum!

Unlike a LiPo, the Mach-E battery BMS constantly balances the cells, even when the car is off. So the pack should always be in balance.

Not charging to 100% may affect the accuracy of your capacity and range meter (GOM). But it won't hurt the battery in any way. If you don't care what the GOM says, you never have to charge to 100% unless you need the extra range.

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