Should I be worried?

[Goober96]

Just be prepared. Understand how to deal with the situation if it occurs whether a HVBJB issue or a flat. Have the Tow guide in your glove box, understand how to initiate Tow mode, understand how to ensure you do not drain your 12V battery. Then you are prepared for an issue that may happen near home or on the road.

Speaking of draining the 12V battery anytime the car is running the 12V is being charged right? I‘m going to have a doggy with me so there may be times on the trip when I leave him in the car and I’ll leave it running.

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[ripperAZ]

Err. Safer way is to have a wrecker that can slide you out of any parking situation should you go Hi Voltage brick. Bring a crew of two in the truck, both armed and youll get safely to Arkansas as well. It’s likely going to add cost to the trip.
Jes sayin. Life’s a crap shoot. Drive your electric pony.

 

[AKgrampy]

Speaking of draining the 12V battery anytime the car is running the 12V is being charged right? I‘m going to have a doggy with me so there may be times on the trip when I leave him in the car and I’ll leave it running.

I have read posts where owners have had the HVBJB issue and have had to wait a bit for a tow. If by some chance the battery was drained while waiting you would not be able to easily get back into the car or set it in tow mode (would need a jump). There is a great guide on this on one of the threads. My point is when you are prepared for things then you do not have to worry. I take tools, a spare tire, and a pump on all my mountain bike rides. I have almost never needed them and I have no worries if I do during my rides.

 

[HuntingPudel]

Speaking of draining the 12V battery anytime the car is running the 12V is being charged right? I‘m going to have a doggy with me so there may be times on the trip when I leave him in the car and I’ll leave it running.

Yes, the car will use the HV pack to charge the 12V if it is running or in Accessory mode. I did just that (leave car running) a couple of times on the way back from WA with my new dog when I stopped. ??

A note on letting the HV pack cool before or after DCFC: Leave the car running so that it can actively cool the pack. The pack will cool SO much more slowly if you turn it off. ??

 

[timbop]

Speaking of draining the 12V battery anytime the car is running the 12V is being charged right? I‘m going to have a doggy with me so there may be times on the trip when I leave him in the car and I’ll leave it running.

Yep. If you're going to leave it running for any length of time, be sure to disable the "auto shut off" feature. I took mine to a drive-in and found I had to leave the car on with that setting disabled. In accessory mode it would shut off anyway, but with car "on" and auto shutoff disabled it sat there for 3+ hours running the radio and it did keep the 12 volt topped off (I have a voltmeter plugged into the cigarette lighter).

However, be sure to tape a sign in the window that says the A/C is on - otherwise a good samaritan might break your window to rescue the dog.

 

[Goober96]

Yep. If you're going to leave it running for any length of time, be sure to disable the "auto shut off" feature. I took mine to a drive-in and found I had to leave the car on with that setting disabled. In accessory mode it would shut off anyway, but with car "on" and auto shutoff disabled it sat there for 3+ hours running the radio and it did keep the 12 volt topped off (I have a voltmeter plugged into the cigarette lighter).

However, be sure to tape a sign in the window that says the A/C is on - otherwise a good samaritan might break your window to rescue the dog.

Yeah the sign might be a good addition. I do have a sketch on the drawing app that I display when I leave him in there though.

 

[HuntingPudel]

Yeah the sign might be a good addition. I do have a sketch on the drawing app that I display when I leave him in there though.

Carry Post-its and write on the back side that the A/C is on. They come off the windows easier than tape does. ??

 

[Mach-Lee]

I recommend taking it easy for the 15 minutes before and after DCFC. If you are coming off the interstate, the contactors will already be warm, and DCFC only heats them up more. If you punch it to merge on the interstate right after DCFC that's going to get them really hot. Parking for 15 minutes after DCFC is complete with the ignition ON to allow cooldown would be best if you can wait.

 

[Goober96]

Great advice everyone. I really appreciate the feedback.

 

[timbop]

Carry Post-its and write on the back side that the A/C is on. They come off the windows easier than tape does. ??

I was thinking that you could just fold over the top inch or so of the paper, open the window, put the fold on the top of the glass with the paper inside, and then roll up the window again. The sign should then be reusable.

 

[PNW_Chris]

We have about 10K on our car. We did have the failure (while charging in our driveway) a few hundred miles back. Fortunately, we shut it down, stopped the charger and let it sit for awhile and it did not come back. Ford was quick to address it with a patch and haven't had the error again. With that said, newer cars should be addressed at the factory, with even less of a chance of failure. This is new technology and pretty much all EV makes have had some sort of a major issue. I'd have no hesitation about buying the car again.

 

[Goober96]

Just to follow up the trip went great. This is an awesome road trip car. No issues whatsoever with fast charging. I did get a BlueCruise update during the trip and BC acted a little strange afterwards. I had to reset the Sync system twice to get it working again after it just quit working. Minor inconvenience but if the update caused that maybe they should patch the update.

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