Any help please - new purchase flat bettery issues

[dakotadevils]

Hi everyone,

Just joined the forum and am hoping someone can help as Im having a nightmare after buying a 2nd hand Focus last Saturday. (Focus estate style diesel 1.8)

Everything checked out ok (FSH, online history all checks and test drive etc etc)   Started perfect from cold - all tied in with comprehensive advert etc.

The morning after I picked up the car I went to start and the battery was completely dead, rang the seller etc and said just charge the battery as I could have left the stereo overnight -aftermarket fitted(after a bit of research found out this has happened on other Focus due to not being wired to ignition correctly). Charged the car for the day and went for an hour or so drive -all ok(disconnected the stereo just in case)

Started fin the next day for the work commute (Wednesday) but noticed the area where mileage / mpg is displayed  etc was lit up as i got in the car? Though it was jus me.

Car started ok in the evening after shift and got home, but i noticed the red dash display was still on - researched this and found it can take upto 45 mins - so left it at that.

Went to car this am, dead as a dodo and the dash was still lit up in the mileage area etc.  Currently charging the battery again - but not happy as the car was advertised starts and runs perfect every time etc. have spoke to the seller several times now and all he has said as has never had any problems and to stop stressing him out!

Apart from proceeding things with him, any suggestions ? Ive seen various things but thought it may have been the incorrectly wired stereo, but no idea why that part of the dash is staying lit up.

2 out of 3 days the car has been dead and I'm just not of sure what to do, spent my redundancy money on it 😞

Kind regards

Mark

 

 

 

 

[WES180]

I was a member of another forum a few years back and a guy had this problem with his C-max, he changed the cluster, gem, battery etc and it ended up being the aftermarket stereo incorrectly fitted that caused it. Just been reading on another site the same symptoms and after the same hardware changes for him too it was also his aftermarket stereo causing the fault.

https://www.justanswer.com/uk-car/8bipu-max-instrument-cluster-light-not-going-ford-focus.html

When you disconnected your stereo did you just pull the plug out of the stereo or split it where it connects into the original wiring loom?

 

[dakotadevils]

19 minutes ago, WES180 said:

I was a member of another forum a few years back and a guy had this problem with his C-max, he changed the cluster, gem, battery etc and it ended up being the aftermarket stereo incorrectly fitted that caused it. Just been reading on another site the same symptoms and after the same hardware changes for him too it was also his aftermarket stereo causing the fault.

https://www.justanswer.com/uk-car/8bipu-max-instrument-cluster-light-not-going-ford-focus.html

 

Thanks , I did read this elsewhere which is why i disconnected the stereo but still see the odometer light on and battery flat again in 2 days. (battery is fine its been checked)

[WES180]

I edited my post sorry as you were typing yours, how did you disconnect the stereo to try it?

[dakotadevils]

9 minutes ago, WES180 said:

I edited my post sorry as you were typing yours, how did you disconnect the stereo to try it?

Just unplugged the connections at the back of the stereo) it was one of these aftermarket android things a-sure. The seller said I must have left it turned on (but the screen off) and made sense as i just assumed it went off with the ignition (text book mistake)

[WES180]

Try disconnecting it where it connects into the factory fitted loom then as that's where the fault was created on the other guys as 2 wires were connected that shouldn't have been which caused the same problem as yours for both of them.

[dakotadevils]

44 minutes ago, WES180 said:

Try disconnecting it where it connects into the factory fitted loom then as that's where the fault was created on the other guys as 2 wires were connected that shouldn't have been which caused the same problem as yours for both of them.

will do tomorrow now, thank you and will report back. Much appreciated.

[nazsky786]

You would need to completely remove any aftermarket stereo which includes any can bus boxes,  as WES has said. 

You normally get battery drain on car either keyless or aftermarket stereo,  or failed modules keeping the bus alive.  

You should be left with just the quad lock connector,  and Ariel.  

 

[dakotadevils]

Thank you, fully deconnectd the stereo and charged the battery through today until full. Put the key in the ignition, dash lit up and car completely died!

Going to have another look in daylight tomorrow and a then a friends recommended a local mechanic - not a word from seller !

 

 

 

 

[Ned_Mk2_1.8tdci]

Some details on the battery, like how old, Ah, CCA, filling plugs on the top....sound strange that battery goes flat overnight?!

[andypsp]

maybe batt is no good anymore as if it`s the original batt it`s nearly 10yrs old. could be time to invest in a new to see if it solves your problems 😉

[isetta]

the batteries in those diesel Focus cars are pretty hefty (if it has the right one in it). so if charged right up it should last a while with something inadvertently left on.

batteries can die suddenly, particularly when the weather suddenly goes cold (the cold slows down the chemical reaction inside the battery so a below par battery can be hanging on in not too cold weather and then all of a sudden go completely useless when the weather goes colder).

He might have stitched you up , knowing the car had a problem.

It might just be coincidence that something has happened.

My brother bought a 1.8tdci focus (2009 estate 115bhp also) about three weeks ago. Stayed at a friend's new year's eve, new years day he had to phone aa/rac as battery flat 25 miles from home.

aa/rac said battery is OK (Varta, looks fairly new, huge thing). They did various tests and said alternator no good. So perhaps the seller had problems, thought it was battery, bought new battery, found it still had problems and sold it rather than tackle the issue. We will never know. He is now waiting for a 2nd hand alternator to arrive from eBay. £25 including postage. So cost of part not an issue. Not easy to fit though, me and/or him have the capability but we don't have a garage to do it in and it's a bit cold and dark a lot of the time. lets hope that cures it. If it is just that then I suppose we should feel lucky it was not worse.  Buying a 2nd hand car privately is a total lottery and however careful you are, you can't check everything .

[FatHead1979]

I'm sure I saw a thread on here at some point where someone had fitted an aftermarket head unit but had this issue because the original head unit also had the Ford bluetooth module fitted and the module hadn't been disconnected when the aftermarket stereo was fitted (maybe I just imagined it?).

[nazsky786]

That could be right.  The bluetooth module is also part of the can bus and the signal for shutdown is never received from the headunit, both work together.  

But does depend if the car even had bluetooth. 

Check battery,  and alternator if charging.  

 

[michaelburrows]

i had to get battery changed a few weeks back. one day fine next day dead.  suppose it just reached that point in its life. o ly 6 yrs old.  but new battery been good as gold