Long term storage

[Jim’s electricMustang]

I just got a Mustang Mach-E this month. I had one on order however they kept kicking the can and it went into 2022. I bought one off the lot in order to take advantage of the tax credit. I own a home here in Green Bay and one in Florida. I’ve learned a lot about charging in the last week. I will be in Florida for three months what should I do with the electric car left in Green Bay as far as charging, starting, and anything else important? I had the Ford 240/50 charger installed running it at 40 amps to be cautious.

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[SnBGC]

The Owners Manual recommends a 50% charge when parked for extended periods. You can accomplish this by driving the car enough to deplete the battery to something less than 50%. Then set up a charge location (usually your home) and then a charge schedule.

Set your schedule to anytime and charge limit to 50%. Then plug the car in and enjoy the sun in Florida!

 

[Jim’s electricMustang]

Thanks

How about starting every 15days?

Happy Holidays!

 

[bshaw]

Thanks

How about starting every 15days?

Happy Holidays!

No, that wouldn’t be necessary. Just follow the steps outlined above.

 

[SnBGC]

Thanks

How about starting every 15days?

Happy Holidays!

Not a bad idea. Turn off the HVAC if you are going to do that. If the car is in a secure place such as your garage then you should be able to wake it up by unlocking remotely via the app. Then lock it back up again. That should do the trick.

You shouldn't need to do anything really. The car is supposed to maintain the LVB without you being involved but there are many reports where owners have returned to their vehicles after an extended absence to find a dead 12v battery. So it is your call on how much effort you want to spend to make sure the car is awake often enough to perform as desired.

 

[OAcres]

I just got back from a 7 week trip and left my Mach-E in my garage with the 12v battery connected, the HVB at 50% and the charger un-plugged. I walked up to the car yesterday with the key FOB and the doors immediately opened, the HVB was at 48% and everything worked normal. I was pleasantly surprised. I drove the car around the block with the key FOB and then parked it briefly, left the key FOB in the house and restarted it with PAAK and everything still worked normal.

I was planning on disconnecting the 12v battery before leaving but ran out of time and figured it would be a good test since I do this trip every year.

I live on the Jersey Shore and I left on January 25th so it sat during the coldest part of winter but my garage doesn't go below 40F. I checked FordPass exactly at 30 days and got this message.

I was thinking about trying to start the car via FordPass every 2 weeks or so but decided just to leave it be and see how it worked out.

My Mach-E has a March 2021 build date.

 

[Flashgolfer]

I am confused about the long term storage process. Ford says to disconnect the LVB and leave it at a SOC of 50%. But I don't see comments on leaving the car connected to a charger to maintain the 50% LOC and receive updates. So, do I disconnect the LVB and connect my charger to the HVB? Or do I not worry about the LVB and just leave the car connected (at 50% SOC). I want to be able to receive any updates during the 90 days of storage.

 

[RickMachE]

I am confused about the long term storage process. Ford says to disconnect the LVB and leave it at a SOC of 50%. But I don't see comments on leaving the car connected to a charger to maintain the 50% LOC and receive updates. So, do I disconnect the LVB and connect my charger to the HVB? Or do I not worry about the LVB and just leave the car connected (at 50% SOC). I want to be able to receive any updates during the 90 days of storage.

You do NOT connect it to the charger. Where did you read that you need to be connected to a charger to receive updates?

 

[megtrs]

I just got a Mustang Mach-E this month. I had one on order however they kept kicking the can and it went into 2022. I bought one off the lot in order to take advantage of the tax credit. I own a home here in Green Bay and one in Florida. I’ve learned a lot about charging in the last week. I will be in Florida for three months what should I do with the electric car left in Green Bay as far as charging, starting, and anything else important? I had the Ford 240/50 charger installed running it at 40 amps to be cautious.

You should not worry about leaving it a few months. I am in the same situation where i drive it for a bit every 2-3 months. It stays in a garage between 50%and 80% charged and no issues.

 

[Flashgolfer]

Ok- thanks for the feedback...as far as I can tell....best practice for a three month storage is to 1) estabish the HVB at a 50% SOC, 2)disconnect the LVB, and 3) do not plug in the charger for the HVB. Updates, if any, will occur via the WiFi connection. That is what I'll do and comment on the results in April when I return home.

 

[bshaw]

If you disconnect the LVB, you will not be getting any updates as the car will be completely off. Everything in the car except the drivetrain runs off the 12V system. I don't think you need to worry about updates because they don't happen very often and the car should catchup with missed updates in the spring.

After disconnecting your LVB, you may consider putting that 12V battery on a trickle charger all winter. If your storage area is not heated, the winter temps will be hard on the 12V battery. If possible, put the 12V somewhere inside the house that stays warmer.

 

[Flashgolfer]

March 31 update- I have now returned after three months and two weeks. As noted, before departing I ran the HVB down to 51% and disconnected the LVB negative terminal. I did not remove the LVB and left it in the garage near Boston for the duration. I returned today and reconnected the LVB. The car woke right up and still had the original 51% charge on the HVB. We'll see what happens in the coming weeks as I believe there may have been a power up update during the last nearly four months and I want to see when that will be pushed to my MME. I am so excited to be back to drive this awesome car.

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