Auto start stop

[Stophere]

I have a focus vignale the auto start stop has been at dealer three times and they say the battery is only 50% charged they now want to charge me to charge battery I have asked them what is wrong with battery or alternator and they said both are working fine  can any one help with what it do next  car 18 months old  thanks for all suggestions 

[Eric Bloodaxe]

All sorts of battery problems being reported on here with Mk 4 Focuses and Mk 8 Fiestas, particularly during lockdown. If the dealer insists there's no underlying fault with your car and wants to charge it up at your expense, you may as well buy a charger (assuming you don't already have one) and do it yourself.

Lots of recommendations on here for smart chargers such as the Ctec MXS-5 or Noco Genius 5. My Fiesta kept misbehaving - low battery warning, some locking functions acting up, mirrors not folding, etc. (Can't comment on start stop as I always disable it anyway!) I have put the car on a smart charger for the full cycle a couple of times during lockdown and have had no further symptoms, even though I'm still only doing a few miles a week.

[DaveG1975]

I have a 19 plate Focus Vignale and my battery doesn’t hold the charge either it’s gone flat twice mine is a Diesel been to the dealers twice and they say nothing wrong with battery or alternator I’m in the same position stop start never works I was thinking of just getting a new battery and see if that solves the problem currently have Varta battery fitted

[Comares2001]

All down to the way the battery charging/management works now on cars that's being highlighted during lockdown for many. Loads of historic posts on the subject here. In most cases there's nothing wrong its just the way it works. Stop start is no loss anyway I also disable mine most of the time.

[DaveG1975]

Don’t need to disable my stop start it never works lol

[steved99]

I know this is no help, but I have had a focus Vignale for 18 months and the stop/start stopped working after a few months. The info reason just says 'charging'. Recently, the passenger and 2 rear doors keyless entry  and also the rear and front window heaters (during the cold days) have been erratic also i.e sometimes they work and sometimes they don't.... I'm sure its all to do with the poor battery on these cars.

[DaveG1975]

That’s what I think poor battery that’s why I’m thing of replacing my it will be at cost though don’t know what to do

[Eric Bloodaxe]

14 hours ago, DaveG1975 said:

That’s what I think poor battery that’s why I’m thing of replacing my it will be at cost though don’t know what to do

 

There are some very good explanations as to the workings of the "intelligent" charging system on other threads, and I incline to the view that the issues are more to do with this than Ford suddenly fitting rubbish batteries.  Using a smart battery charger as I mentioned earlier certainly seems to have worked in my case, and for other members also. It's worth a try before going to the expense and trouble of swapping the battery. If you have to buy one, both the brands mentioned are available from the usual online sources for £65-£75 or so, if it doesn't cure the problem at worst you've still got an up to date charger in your toolkit for future use.

[south_bound]

Has anyone used a small solar panel to keep their battery topped up when not using the car regularly?  I see you can get them with 12v plugs that go into the normal docket inside the car and rest the solar panel on the dashboard.  Just wondering if they are any good.

[billyboy]

My socket goes through the ignition unfortunately so I can't use it.

[DaveT70]

I wouldn't be suprised if TVM have put a cheaper/lower spec battery on the cars to save money and it's causing loads of problems.

[Alex.S]

I’d rather buy a new battery than have to charge the original one. 
I don’t know if anyone on here has changed battery? And what the result was? 

[Ennvoqation]

Get a Yuasa or a Bosch battery, they're pretty solid for stop/start systems. Not sure if you have a EFB or AGM but they're usually interchangeable and I've been previously advised if you're changing batteries installing a AGM is generally recommended route as they hold a charge better and usually have a longer duty cycle. The main downside of a AGM battery apart from cost is the size as they're a bit bigger than a EFB but Fords should be able to handle both since AGM is used when you have a lot of high draw systems/electronics.

The best option before splashing cash would be to get a battery test done, and you need a specialist battery checker that can do charge/discharge cycles to vet it due to the differences from a traditional battery.

[Mark-UK]

Either the batteries ford are using are too small/rubbish or the intelligent charging just does not work . There are far far too many issues with low charged batteries. My stop start hasn't worked for nearly 12 months. I drove 150 miles parked the up for 3 days drove 150 miles home and stop start worked ONCE at the very end of the trip, after another long drive again it work once, there just never seems to be enough charge for multiple starts. Thing is when I first got the car it worked fine for a couple of months, I never changed my driving pattern and it just will not work anymore. Another time I did not use the car for 6 days and the auto door locks stopped working on all but the drivers door., drove it maybe 30 miles and all was fine with the doors

[Midgeman]

I cannot dispute if Yuasa or Bosch are better than the Varta Batteries that Ford are fitting but what I do know is that when you have invested a large amount of money in a vehicle that is less than twelve months old you should not have to get your Debit Card out to pay for a new battery to try and fix a manufacturer fault.

On a personal note I cannot understand what the big deal is regarding STOP/START I think it should be in the optional extras section of the Brochure so people like me could pay a little extra not to have it say £100 like the crap Wireless Charging Pad.

[TomsFocus]

Fitting a new battery won't help long term, there's clearly an electronics issue with these particular models.  Either the variable charging isn't charging enough, or there's a battery drain from one or more modules with the ignition off.  Just because Ford say there's no issue, doesn't mean it's true...

Start stop isn't a problem in itself, I've been averaging 7 miles a week since lockdown and it still works perfectly on my Golf, battery must be at least 3 years old but could even be original!

[Ennvoqation]

13 minutes ago, Midgeman said:

On a personal note I cannot understand what the big deal is regarding STOP/START I think it should be in the optional extras section of the Brochure so people like me could pay a little extra not to have it say £100 like the crap Wireless Charging Pad.

Most of the tech like Stop/Start, speed recognition, etc are because of EU and Emissions Regulations. So we're stuck with it.

[Comares2001]

Exactly its a balancing act for Ford and other manufacturers between keeping the battery charge high enough and meeting the emissions target figures. If you don't use the car enough or under the right conditions then you can have problems. As already stated fitting a new battery will only make a difference in the short term.Others on here have already tried that.

[Midgeman]

I agree that most of the tech stuff is all to do with getting emissions that will satisfy those in Brussels who always seem to be riding round in Limousines but the problem with Ford at the moment is they don't seem able to fix the problems that are being experienced by the owners of these vehicles.

As far as being (stuck with it) in relation to START/STOP I would disagree as I have disabled mine and since doing so I have not had any battery problems.

[SamRick]

I agree with most of the posts here;  the low voltage problems reported cannot be due to a battery being duff after only a year or two from new, unless it has been ruined by incorrect charging levels while running. This again seems unlikely, unless Ford really have got their wires twisted with these models - maybe too many power-draining bells and whistles?

It may also be that irregular driving time over shorter distances than usual during lockdown has failed to keep the battery up to full charge. The stop/start function will demand a temporarily very high drain of amps to power the starter motor, maybe several times in a journey. Perhaps that's why some people who are 'lucky enough' to have this function in their systems end up disabling it, but only if they're mechanically savvy.

I have just sold a 58 plate Fiesta 1.6 TDCi (without start/stop) at 83000 miles - one of the first of the latest Fiesta profile - and never had any battery charging issues until the winter of 2018, when I had the battery checked, and it was reported as needing replacement. I accepted this, as 10 years for a battery's lifetime isn't bad - they don't last forever.

The 61 plate Focus Titanium X I bought to replace the Fiesta doesn't have stop/start incorporated, which I was initially disappointed with, but after reading these posts (thank you!) I realise I'm better off without it.  At least I retain control of how often I stop and start the engine - it's easy enough with keyless ignition.

[Wino]

If you do replace the battery on the mk 4 you will also have to reset the bounce back on all four windows and the total closure/ opening function too. Ive found oneof thesehave come in handy to keep an eye on things... 

 

[Iceberg]

Question related to battery charging:

Can the mk4 Focus be trickle charged via the 12v port inside the car, or does it require direct connection to the battery terminals please?

[Comares2001]

No socket switches off after a while whether car locked or not. You need to charge via +ve battery terminal and eth point on n/s inner wing

[Wino]

45 minutes ago, Iceberg said:

Question related to battery charging:

Can the mk4 Focus be trickle charged via the 12v port inside the car, or does it require direct connection to the battery terminals please?

If you can find a trickle charger that will charge through the OBD port then it will charge without direct connection to the battery terminals. 

[VFR800]

I wouldn't try charging via a 12V port, you don't know where or how it’s routed, and intelligent chargers don't just supply a constant current or voltage.

It sounds like the best way to damage an ECU or aux module!