Electrical Problems

[Nelson Hall]

A few days ago I I went to start the explorer and found the battery was drained. Got a boost and it started no problem. After driving a distance it started again but after it sitting a few hours no start again. Thinking it was the battery started it the next day with a boost but after driving it 10 minutes the dash display went dark came back the wipers stopped then came back on. The engine service light came on but no other light has come on. Turned around at this point and was able to drive home. The only thing that had changed before all this was I had placed a !2v usb charger in the outlet. Taking the vehicle for service but looking for anyone having a common experience and the reason for it.

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum Nelson.
My guess would be a bad battery. A defective or low battery can cause several unusual things to happen. Were you able to see if any trouble codes were registered? Was the charger charging anything? There have been multiple reports that an item left plugged in will affect remote start.

Peter

 

[seville009]

Had a 2013 Taurus that had wacky electrical issues that I traced to an iphone usb cable that had crimped wires in it.

I’d at least remove that usb charger and see what happens

 

[Ntrain]

The wackiness on the drive home makes me think alternator.

Had the exact same situation with a windstar we used to own. Same symptoms as well.

Unfortunately it's a bit harder to swap the alt on our explorers.