Corroded Battery Terminal / Cable | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

  • Register Today It's free!

xder345

Member
Joined
May 14, 2013
Messages
42
Reaction score
1
City, State
Durham, NC
Year, Model & Trim Level
2013 Explorer Limited 4WD
Hello all,

So on Friday night, we discovered that our Explorer's battery leaked and pretty much destroyed the positive battery terminal and assembly that fits over it. We had to buy a replacement, but that only seems to come as the whole assembly.

DB5Z-14300-A. It's msrp $300. All I needed was everything under the red cap.

So, if anybody needs this part, minus the + end distribution block, please let me know.
 



Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.





Your dealer should have been aware that they sell this as a separate item and have done so for some time.
 






If this is a 2015, Wouldn't this be covered under warranty?
 






If this is a 2015, Wouldn't this be covered under warranty?
My thought as well. Their profile says 2013. Maybe a typo?

The proverbial cow is out of the barn here, but if I was faced with someone who said $350 to fix it, I'd have just replaced the assembly with an aftermarket cable/terminal.

Autozone sells one for about $16 that has connectors to bolt on. It doesn't have the 100 amp inline fuse, but that can be easily added for a few more $$ if you wish.
 






My thought as well. Their profile says 2013. Maybe a typo?

The proverbial cow is out of the barn here, but if I was faced with someone who said $350 to fix it, I'd have just replaced the assembly with an aftermarket cable/terminal.

Autozone sells one for about $16 that has connectors to bolt on. It doesn't have the 100 amp inline fuse, but that can be easily added for a few more $$ if you wish.
Sent OP a PM and he advised it is for a 2013 Explorer and that although it is still under warranty (27k miles) his dealer wouldn't accept the warranty work.

Peter
 






Sent OP a PM and he advised it is for a 2013 Explorer and that although it is still under warranty (27k miles) his dealer wouldn't accept the warranty work.

Peter

Odd story. Why would a dealer do that? I'm quite familiar with that part of NC and there are a lot of Ford dealers in what's known as the "Triangle" (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill).
 






Odd story. Why would a dealer do that? I'm quite familiar with that part of NC and there are a lot of Ford dealers in what's known as the "Triangle" (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill).

Really is an odd story. Another question is why did the OP or his service dept let it corrode that bad? That didn't just happen overnight.
 






Sorry, been away for a while....to address some points:

1) It IS a 2013 Explorer, my bad.
2) I was told that You had to buy the entire cable assembly, and that you couldn't get just the positive terminal.
3) I checked with Advance Auto and they don't sell a replacement terminal. Maybe I should have checked with Auto Zone as well. Oh well.
4) It happened rather quickly (after an oil change that took place 2 months ago).
5) I checked with one local dealer and they said they wouldn't repair it under warranty. There are several dealers in the Triangle, yes. Honestly, it wasn't worth my time to try to get somebody to accept the warranty claim over a $300 part. Now if the tranny goes, then I'll create a fuss.

I was also treated VERY generously by Ford in the past when we had a 2005 Freestyle, so they have built up some equity with me. We were at Disney World at the time, and on the day that we were leaving, the Freestyle wouldn't start. It turns out the Restraint Control Module had fried itself. It took three days for them to sort it out. Ford covered our hotel and vacation extension for 3 days, and provided rentals while were in Florida.
 






Glad you got it sorted.

Just so it's in this thread, the cable I was referring to from Autozone is this one

It's a universal kind of cable. It has a lug that you mate with the original cable. The one I linked has two taps. There is also a version with one tap.
 






Glad you got it sorted.

Just so it's in this thread, the cable I was referring to from Autozone is this one

It's a universal kind of cable. It has a lug that you mate with the original cable. The one I linked has two taps. There is also a version with one tap.

Thanks for the link!

I looked at one of those, and the wife didn't feel it would do the job adequately. If you look at the block that had to be replaced, there are 2 connections that are bolted on, one 100A fuse, and two connections that use a harness-type connection. Maybe in another 30k miles I'll think differently, but for now, the OEM part was what kept her happy.

And as they say, happy wife, happy life.
 






And as they say, happy wife, happy life.
Lol. Indeed. And you are lucky, a friend who just bought a 3/4 million dollar home, which is kinda expensive around here, said exactly the same thing to me. :D

You got off for a couple hundred!
 






Lol. Indeed. And you are lucky, a friend who just bought a 3/4 million dollar home, which is kinda expensive around here, said exactly the same thing to me. :D

You got off for a couple hundred!

Indeed.
 






The positive battery terminal corroded completely off at an inopportune time. Well, just replace the battery terminal, what could be so hard? About $350 from Ford as they must sell the entire wire set with it. Got an OEM from another source for $162. We'll see how that goes. Stay tuned. BATTERY CABLE - Ford (DB5Z-14300-A) You gotta be kidding . . . .
 






If your dealer knew anything, they would be aware ford sells the terminal only now.
 






SSM 44895 - 2011-2015 Explorer, 2013-2015 Taurus and MKS Vehicles - Battery Junction Box
For 2011-2015 Explorer, 2013-2015 Taurus and MKS vehicles the battery junction box (circuit breaker assembly) is now available as a lower level service part. It is no longer necessary to order the complete battery cable assembly (14300). Use part number DA8Z-14526-A (Circuit Breaker Assembly). Refer to Workshop Manualsection 414-01 for proper battery cable torque specifications.

  • Effective Jan 15 2015
 






Thx for the info. Definitely was not offered at my dealership
 






The positive battery terminal corroded completely off at an inopportune time. Well, just replace the battery terminal, what could be so hard? About $350 from Ford as they must sell the entire wire set with it. Got an OEM from another source for $162. We'll see how that goes. Stay tuned. BATTERY CABLE - Ford (DB5Z-14300-A) You gotta be kidding . . . .
Welcome to the Forum.:wave:

Peter
 






How does something like that happen??
 






How does something like that happen??
The positive terminal is fully covered with a RED plastic cover, so unless you proactively remove the cover and inspect, you can't see the damage.
 



Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.





Seems to me to be a very bad acid leak from the battery. The clamp should last for many many years.
 






Back
Top