Warranty on Ford Battery? 2016 Exp Sport

[Shawn_Kelly]

Hi All!

I'm definitely a rookie compared to everyone here, but I had a question I'm sure someone knows the answer.

Last May, went out to my Explorer and it was dead in the garage. Being it was under warranty (bought Oct 15), we had AAA tow it to the Ford dealer to figure out what's going on. They said the car was registering that the back lift gate was open, thus draining the battery. The sensor was bad, they replaced it and gave me a new battery.

Fast forward to Friday. Took it in for an oil change (free at the dealer) and they said I needed a new battery. It was pulling 510 when it should pull in the 600's. I said wait a minute, last year I just had Ford put in a new battery. Isn't there a warranty on their parts/repairs?

Dude picks up the phone and starts calling until he gets someone on the phone. His explanation was the battery was replaced under my 3/36 warranty. Now that my car is out of warranty, the battery that was replaced doesn't have any warranty anymore. I said - I can go to AutoZone and they'd prorate the battery. He said once my car hit the 3 year mark, that battery lost whatever warranty it had. But if I were to buy a new battery, it would have a 100 month warranty.

We're getting ready to move to CA from MD (hubby is military) and I'm concerned. We're going to replace the battery at AutoZone, but it makes me wonder if these Explorers eat batteries? They offered to test it, let it sit for like 4 hours and then test what's drawing on the battery, but at this point I'm like, I really kinda don't trust this dealership if this is how they handle their repairs (meaning no warranty).

A friend of mine has an 18 that had a dead battery. I'm going on the 3rd battery in 3 years on this car. Just wondering if this is this model's "thing" and I'll be replacing batteries more often than normal. Anyone else experience this with their Explorer? Any thoughts on the battery warranty??

Thanks in advance!
Shawn

 

[blwnsmoke]

A warranty repair/replacement follows the original manufacturers warranty of the vehicle. If you were to buy a battery, it would come with a NEW warranty on it.

The only exception to this is that all repairs (battery replacment) are covered for a 1yr/12k warranty.

Example, my trans goes out at 57,000 miles and my warranty covers the repair. At 60k I lose my warranty but the trans repair is covered for the 12 months from the date of repair or 69,000 miles.

So it is a matter of did you drive more then 12k or has it been more then 12 months since the battery replacement?

 

[thefranchise713]

My Explorer murdered two batteries and was on the third when I let it go. That said, battery quality across the board has been poor lately, not just with Explorer let alone Ford. The charging strategy probably isn't doing the battery any favors mind you, but this isn't really an Explorer specific issue, rest assured.

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum Shawn.
I haven't had an OEM battery die on me yet but because I don't drive that much I have had many warning messages of a low battery. I just put the charger on it and I'm good to go until the next time. This applies to my 3 last vehicles.

Peter

 

[Odrapnew]

thefranchise hit it right on.
It's not specific to one brand.

Example:
5 years, ~81k miles on my original battery and still going
A little weak on those -20F days, but never failed to start, though I do plan to replace the battery this summer due to that.

 

[KayGee]

Not looking to rehash this all the time, but I generally get 7+ yrs out of batteries. I have had a few bad ones over the last 20-30 years, but can pretty much count them on one hand. I don't do a lot of short drives or run radio or other loads while engine off and so on. If one of my vehicles will be sitting for more than a few days unused, it gets connected to a trickle charger.

3 batteries in 3 years is a problem that should be addressed. It sounds like a problem with the vehicle or the drive/usage cycle that isn't allowing the battery to charge properly/fully.

I would get the current battery prorated at another store and have the charging system checked out at the least.

 

[Adrian Gitch]

I’ve never had any luck with Ford batteries. They don’t last for me compared to my other non-ford vehicles. When needed I replace with a different brand.

 

[KayGee]

I’ve never had any luck with Ford batteries. They don’t last for me compared to my other non-ford vehicles. When needed I replace with a different brand.

What's the different brand you choose instead?

 

[Adrian Gitch]

Exide. But, the explorer actually has a Advanced Auto battery in it. Factory battery crapped out on the wife on a Sunday across the street from one so convenience made me choose that. So far so good, it’s my first from them. There’s a Rural King close to us whose batteries are made by Exide. They’re prices are pretty competitive.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Not looking to rehash this all the time, but I generally get 7+ yrs out of batteries. I have had a few bad ones over the last 20-30 years, but can pretty much count them on one hand. I don't do a lot of short drives or run radio or other loads while engine off and so on. If one of my vehicles will be sitting for more than a few days unused, it gets connected to a trickle charger.

3 batteries in 3 years is a problem that should be addressed. It sounds like a problem with the vehicle or the drive/usage cycle that isn't allowing the battery to charge properly/fully.

I would get the current battery prorated at another store and have the charging system checked out at the least.

Your batteries only last that long because they are being band aided by tickle charging. A “good” battery will sit for 2-3 weeks with zero issues. Most of the batteries people replace would be fine if always connected to a trickle charger. If a battery can’t sit 2 weeks it’s junk as far as I’m concerned.

 

[KayGee]

Your batteries only last that long because they are being band aided by tickle charging. A “good” battery will sit for 2-3 weeks with zero issues. Most of the batteries people replace would be fine if always connected to a trickle charger. If a battery can’t sit 2 weeks it’s junk as far as I’m concerned.

I have daily drivers/beaters that get driven and almost never trickle charged that go 7+ years. My current daily driver is a 2014 fusion on it's oem battery for almost 6 years with close to 100k (built 9/13). I have only trickle charged it once in it's lifetime for about a month.

I typically only do it when vehicles sit and have a drain on them to keep the battery from dying and keep it topped off. I take care of my stuff and it typically treats me very well.

 

[Mlarv5]

My battery went bad in My Shelby after two years. I did a lot of research and fond the Advanced Auto Gold was the best to use a a replacement for it. It sits on a trickle charger all winter. At the time I was driving it 70 miles a day to and from work.

To the OP if the battery has low cranking amps, but still starts the EX, then I would not worry about it. You will be driving on a major interstate in the spring or summer so the cold weather won't hurt the starting power. If you feel it needs to be replaced I would use the Advanced Auto Gold. Register on their site and they will send you a 25% off coupon.

Mike

 

[chartquist]

I had to get mine replaced under warranty at about 2 years of service. My theory is that it's a heat-related problem as much as anything. The battery sits up pretty high in the engine bay. Interestingly, the Ford dealer that replaced mine didn't re-install the mat around it (the replacement battery is a different part than the OEM battery) and I've wondered if I'm going to get even poorer performance out of the replacement since it doesn't have the mat to protect it from the heat. So far so good, but I've taken to putting a battery tender on it if it's gonna sit more than a few days.

 

[Mbrooks420]

The mat likely doesn’t help anything. Cars are hot enough of the time that the blanket would hold the heat in as much as it’d keep it out.

 

[thefranchise713]

I had to get mine replaced under warranty at about 2 years of service. My theory is that it's a heat-related problem as much as anything. The battery sits up pretty high in the engine bay. Interestingly, the Ford dealer that replaced mine didn't re-install the mat around it (the replacement battery is a different part than the OEM battery) and I've wondered if I'm going to get even poorer performance out of the replacement since it doesn't have the mat to protect it from the heat. So far so good, but I've taken to putting a battery tender on it if it's gonna sit more than a few days.

I have to wonder if the mat is to keep away the heat, or to keep some warmth in the battery in cold climates?

Beyond, for whatever feel good it provides, on the Prius forum I now frequent they're also seeing 12v battery failures. That said, I'm not sure if it has as an aggressive (for MPG) charging strategy for the battery as the Explorer. Explorer will in certain circumstances dump into the 12s for charging voltage, can't confirm if my current ride also goes that low.

 

[peterk9]

I have to wonder if the mat is to keep away the heat, or to keep some warmth in the battery in cold climates?

.......

Back in the early 60's my mother's car had a battery blanket much like the ones in our Explorers that ran off the battery itself. You just connected two leads for overnight to keep it warm. That's when batteries lasted for many years.

Peter

 

[KayGee]

The mat likely doesn’t help anything. Cars are hot enough of the time that the blanket would hold the heat in as much as it’d keep it out.

GM has used a foam insulator and has issued tsbs about making sure it is reinstalled in new batteries.

This forum and the threads here reminds me a lot of the red green show...

 

[Mbrooks420]

GM has used a foam insulator and has issued tsbs about making sure it is reinstalled in new batteries.

This forum and the threads here reminds me a lot of the red green show...

And that has what to do with his Explorer? Insulation *might* make sense in certain situations where an abnormal heat source is present. If insulation was such a great battery saver the high end batteries would come equipped with it built in as cheap insurance.

If you aren’t happy with the quality of the forum, or the content I suggest you either mute specific members, or take a hike.

 

[KayGee]

And that has what to do with his Explorer? Insulation *might* make sense in certain situations where an abnormal heat source is present. If insulation was such a great battery saver the high end batteries would come equipped with it built in as cheap insurance.

If you aren’t happy with the quality of the forum, or the content I suggest you either mute specific members, or take a hike.

It has nothing to do with the explorer, but it has to do with batteries and various "coverings/insulations/foam" that the OEMs may choose to put on or around them. If it serves no legitimate purpose, why wouldn't an oem get rid of it to save a few pennies? I work in automotive and with the way many companies pinch pennies, I'm amazed they can unclench their buttocks long enough to relieve themselves of their poo. Then again, maybe pinching one out is good practice for pinching pennies?

As far as the forum, why should I mute people or leave? Maybe you should take your own advice. I happen to think the red green show is funny and so is this forum. I get at least a dozen or so laughs from here each day. Plus, it beats therapy and helps keep the voices in my head at bay for a little while each day.

Now back to batteries and how crappy the explorer is with them so everyone can share their story and others can agree or disagree some more...

 

[Shawn_Kelly]

A warranty repair/replacement follows the original manufacturers warranty of the vehicle. If you were to buy a battery, it would come with a NEW warranty on it.

The only exception to this is that all repairs (battery replacment) are covered for a 1yr/12k warranty.

Example, my trans goes out at 57,000 miles and my warranty covers the repair. At 60k I lose my warranty but the trans repair is covered for the 12 months from the date of repair or 69,000 miles.

So it is a matter of did you drive more then 12k or has it been more then 12 months since the battery replacement?

Thanks for this!

However, the repair was done May 28th of last year. So it didn't even hit the 1 year mark. I have no idea how many miles were on it at that time. It has 38k miles on it now. I don't quite average 1k a month, so it can't be that either. So my car is covered out to 5 years with the extended warranty, but he specifically said they treat the first 3/36 warranty differently in that whole period.

So my thing was, shouldn't they have at least had a warranty on this battery as a product?