club.liberty.asn.au

Hey Guys,

Just throwing this out to get some feedback / suggestions on my other car:

MODEL:
Ford Territory SY TS 2006 4SPD traveled 122,000km's

PROBLEM:
Car is hard to start after about 2+ days of not using...and also battery virtually goes almost flat just after 4+ days of not using it, but sometimes I can go a week+ and it will start no problem....farking weird!

When I measure voltage after a run it's charged at about 12v+- and while the car is running it's charging to about 13v+- ( so yes the alternator is working ).
On the odd occasion I measure before starting the car and it drops down to about 11v+-....so something is still on when I turn the car off, grounded or shorting out?......Since I've bought the car I've had 3 batteries go through it....HD century battery currently sits in it

now I haven't really given it to a auto elect or properly mentioned it to the mechanics.....thats cause it hasn't really been a big problem until lately.....seems to be getting worse?.....thats why I'm concerned more about it now....but it's intermittent which makes it more frustrating.......

WHAT I ALREADY KNOW:
Seems to be a issue on some territory's....on other forums I've been looking at they say it could be
-interior light in glove compartment ( taken it out )
-electric drivers seat
-ICC console
-ecu firmware was updated through ford

OPTIONS ON THE CAR WHICH I SUSPECT:
- added alarm through ford ( disabled )
- parrot bluetooth
- Sequential Vapour LPG system
- X3 Flash box tuned by pit lane performance ( great workshop! ) tuned on lpg and petrol LPG 173.00kw atw / PETROL 95 180kw atw
- solenoid on starter ( or starter itself )
- alternator

YOU SAY:
Fark it off and get another car, I wish....I tried trading it in for a forester....but the best price I could get is $12,000-$14,000!!!!!!!!! thats farked considering I've got all the options and misc things add on it...
Private sale......well......really cbf.....and besides this problem....the car is a good "i know it's a ford"....but seriously.....has good power, heaps of room, parts are cheap, duel fuel, on a full tank of gas I get est. 400km+ on a 70ltr usable donut tank.

SHORT TERM FIXES:
-Ctek battery charger M5.0
-Portable car jumper to get me going when it dies

SUGGESTIONS / DIAGNOSTIC METHODS TO TRY?

jaydece wrote:When I measure voltage after a run it's charged at about 12v+- and while the car is running it's charging to about 13v+- ( so yes the alternator is working ).
...

That seems a bit low. With the engine running, the voltage should be just below 14V.
Soon after stopping it, should be around 12.5V
If it's 11V with everything off, then you're battery is damaged.

You should also be checking how much current is being drawn out of the battery with everything off.
This can be difficult with a plain multimeter, the 10/20A range isn't sensitive enough, and the 200mA range might blow a fuse in the meter when you first connect it.

As Ric just pointed out, sounds like maybe the cells have deteriorated in the battery.

How old is the battery??? I think most manufacturers claim a 4 year life span.

Ric wrote:

jaydece wrote:When I measure voltage after a run it's charged at about 12v+- and while the car is running it's charging to about 13v+- ( so yes the alternator is working ).
...

That seems a bit low. With the engine running, the voltage should be just below 14V.
Soon after stopping it, should be around 12.5V
If it's 11V with everything off, then you're battery is damaged.

You should also be checking how much current is being drawn out of the battery with everything off.
This can be difficult with a plain multimeter, the 10/20A range isn't sensitive enough, and the 200mA range might blow a fuse in the meter when you first connect it.

battery - less than a year old....

well the numbers I gave are guestimations only.....I cant remember the last results taken....might do that today and post it up...

current being drawn: noted ric, thanks! now....got to find a multimeter.... i know we got a bad ass fluke one sitting around somewhere.....

jaydece wrote:
SUGGESTIONS / DIAGNOSTIC METHODS TO TRY?

i find hitting something with a hard blunt object is always a good way to make the f**ker work

but id check out a mechanic or auto elec at the least

Hey mate,
I had a 2007 Ford Focus LX and the electrics in that were diabolical. Even worse than what you described... flat battery if left alone for a few days, battery light would come on when driving, the car would then shudder and I would have to turn off the stereo, AC or stop charging stuff from the cigarette lighter to ensure the car kept moving.

Took it to Ford several times under warranty and they never rectified it (that is if they even checked it). What I did notice though is that the power to the cig lighter kept on flowing even when the ignition was completely turned off. You might want to take it to an auto electrician and have that examined (along with your glove compartment, electric drivers seat et al) .

Thanks for the above suggestions guys.....even with the physical advice with a blunt object......*trust me it has come close to it...*

while car is on charging: 14.3V
when car is off after run: 12.2V

tomorrow I'll take a reading before I start her and see what the result is....mean while...will research around to find a autoelect around berwick....

Corsair wrote:Hey mate,
I had a 2007 Ford Focus LX and the electrics in that were diabolical. Even worse than what you described... flat battery if left alone for a few days, battery light would come on when driving, the car would then shudder and I would have to turn off the stereo, AC or stop charging stuff from the cigarette lighter to ensure the car kept moving.

Took it to Ford several times under warranty and they never rectified it (that is if they even checked it). What I did notice though is that the power to the cig lighter kept on flowing even when the ignition was completely turned off. You might want to take it to an auto electrician and have that examined (along with your glove compartment, electric drivers seat et al) .

good god....that must of been torture.....

Measure what the battery reads when you are actually starting it. If it drops below 10v it's time for a new battery.

Have you also checked the water levals in the battery?

HoFF wrote:Measure what the battery reads when you are actually starting it. If it drops below 10v it's time for a new battery.

Have you also checked the water levals in the battery?

Thanks for the tips!

Will try the measuring while starting

water levels are all good and checked

I have a ford territory titanium only 3 years old, had to put a new battery in after 3 years and went away for 3 weeks to find that the new battery was flat. Apparently it draws a small current to maintain certain computer settings. Never heard of anything like this before! My wife Holden Cruz doesn't go flat and it also has complex computer settings, same age, but 3 year old battery.

It only takes a few milliamps to maintain computer settings, so a healthy battery should last for months.

If you install LED type lights- DIODE (especially rear lights?), the ground is actually in the same line as the infotainment and transmission from memory?

It sends feedback to the unit and keeps it on, even after you lock the car and have the car off...you may see the LED light(s) slightly flicking or slightly ON.....

Conclusion: Dont put LED type lights in a FORD territory.....