2014 Ford Explorer charging system fault on cold start

[SamiAlnemri]

Did you ever figure out the issue. My 2014 is going the same thing except it takes about 2 minutes before the voltage from the alternator kicks in on a cold start. My battery is new and belt is new. I am being told if the alternator was bad it wouldn't be only on a cold start.

Hi, I did take my car to a Ford dealership for state inspection and asked them to troubleshoot the charging system fault (it cost me $140), I just wanted professional diagnostics. I kept the car overnight and asked them to test it first thing in the morning and they did and confirmed it was the alternator and said that the fault code comes from a diode inside the alternator. I am not 100% sure this is correct but this is Ford diagnostics.

I still did not change the alternator yet, I noticed last 2 weeks when the weather temp went up and we had a few warm days the fault did not come, however when the temp went down the fault came back again.

 

[peterk9]

Hi, I did take my car to a Ford dealership for state inspection and asked them to troubleshoot the charging system fault (it cost me $140), I just wanted professional diagnostics. I kept the car overnight and asked them to test it first thing in the morning and they did and confirmed it was the alternator and said that the fault code comes from a diode inside the alternator. I am not 100% sure this is correct but this is Ford diagnostics.

I still did not change the alternator yet, I noticed last 2 weeks when the weather temp went up and we had a few warm days the fault did not come, however when the temp went down the fault came back again.

If you do decide to change the alternator, make sure it is a Ford OE alternator. Many members have had issues with other aftermarket ones.
Diodes can be affected by temperature.

Peter

 

[NZuercher]

Did you change your alternator and did that fix the problem?

I have had the same problem, but it only happens once about every 3 months--always within the first 5 minutes after first starting up in the morning (regardless of outdoor temperature). When it does happen, the only way I can clear the "check charging system" message and get power steering back on is to turn off the ignition, wait for 60 seconds, and then restart.

I've had the battery and alternator tested a couple times, once at Ford and once at Autozone, and they say it is working just fine. They also say there are no stored codes related to the charging system or power steering.

A couple times it has happened while I've been driving down the road, a couple minutes from my house. Thankfully I've always been in a location where I could safely stop, and turn-off/restart the vehicle to get back going. But, my concern is if it happens while I'm on an interstate and lose steering then it could be a serious safety issue.

 

[J_C]

^ I hate to suggest that you keep driving it, because I wouldn't till the fault is clearly identified and fixed (not just a shop's parts cannon guess at the fault cause) but if you do continue driving it, you might put one of those voltage gauges in your cigarette/aux outlet so you can see the voltage while driving, or of course, a scan tool showing live data or better still, one that can log it.

I mean a voltmeter gauge like the following, though for more money there are several with more feature like temperature or USB charging,
Amazon product ASIN B00VL9JZ0K

 

[ponyski]

^ But would the system disable power to the steering in a low voltage state? Surely the steering should work at 12V and it seems like if the vehicle had a fault while driving, steering is one of the last things Ford would pick to disable itself because that could easily cause a wreck? That makes me suspect there is a fault in the steering, even if that fault turns out to be an indirect one like bad contact for battery +/- robbing the steering of current.

I believe it is power assist steering and you would be able to steer, but at slow speeds it is difficult.

 

[peterk9]

I believe it is power assist steering and you would be able to steer, but at slow speeds it is difficult.

Welcome to the Forum.
Correct. It is called EPAS (Electronic Power Assisted Steering).

Peter