This post is mainly about the Ford Fiesta but links into the Focus too, apologies if it is in the wrong section. 

So my dad's 2013 1.0 Ford Fiesta has a dead battery from not been started for months, doesnt start and central locking doesnt work. He is ill and now no longer drives so the car will be sold eventually, but we do need to get it started again. So what is the best way for this. I've heard jump starting is fine but if it has smart charging, could damage the electronics. Also my car is a 2020 Ford Focus ST 2.3 petrol, would that be fine to jump start the Fiesta?

The other thing I've been thinking about is battery charging, is this a safer way to go about it? Might be easier as I won't have to push the car off the drive to jump start it. This is where my ST links into it. I do a lot of very short journeys and if I got a battery charger for the Fiesta, then I could use it to keep my ST charged up. Would the same battery charger do the job for both cars and could someone link to a decent one. 

Thanks in advance.

I was told by a neighbour who is a retired mechanic to use the donor car just as a portable battery. Have the donor car engine off, only start it once the the flat car is running and the cables have all been disconnected. That way it never sees a big spike in voltage from two alternators or from having a flat battery disconnected from its circuit.

 

Same charger will work on both batteries. Usually a Maypole gets recommended on here. 

@StephenFord is your man.

5 minutes ago, mjt said:

@StephenFord is your man.

LOL, now, the MayPole will work only if the battery hasn't dropped below 6v, once that threshold has been reached, you'll need to jump start the car. Accepted practice is to connect working car battery to flat car battery using the jumper cables. (red leads first, then black). Keep the running car to about 3000RPM, then twist the key in the dead car and she should fire right up.

The MayPole is an inexpensive smart charger, that will charge the flat battery to completion, though for 1st time you use it, it could take 12 hours+ so it won't be quick.

2 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

LOL, now, the MayPole will work only if the battery hasn't dropped below 6v, once that threshold has been reached, you'll need to jump start the car. Accepted practice is to connect working car battery to flat car battery using the jumper cables. (red leads first, then black). Keep the running car to about 3000RPM, then twist the key in the dead car and she should fire right up.

The MayPole is an inexpensive smart charger, that will charge the flat battery to completion, though for 1st time you use it, it could take 12 hours+ so it won't be quick.

Would you suggest trying the battery charger first? How would I know if its dropped below 6v? I'm guessing that Maypole is ok to use on both vehicles?

Just now, shawty1984 said:

Would you suggest trying the battery charger first? How would I know if its dropped below 6v? I'm guessing that Maypole is ok to use on both vehicles?

Yes it's fine, if you try to charge it and it's below the threshold of smart charging, you'll get an appropriate error message on the charger. With some Christmas money, treat yourself to a multimeter. If all you ever use it for in life is to check voltage of batteries, it'll still be worth it!

 

 

2 minutes ago, shawty1984 said:

I'm guessing that Maypole is ok to use on both vehicles?

Suitable for most batteries and cars.

When connecting the battery charger make sure you connect the positive lead directly to the battery terminal. Then connect the negative lead to the chassis earth point, NOT to the battery terminal.

4 minutes ago, unofix said:

Suitable for most batteries and cars.

When connecting the battery charger make sure you connect the positive lead directly to the battery terminal. Then connect the negative lead to the chassis earth point, NOT to the battery terminal.

Is it possible to close the hood to using this battery charger as its on a drive, not in a garage.

Just now, shawty1984 said:

it possible to close the hood

No, but it is quite possible to close the bonnet on the UK models 🤣

Just now, unofix said:

No, but it is quite possible to close the bonnet on the UK models 🤣

Haha, I knew I was using the American version but for the life of me couldn't think of bonnet 😂 so it's save to have the bonnet down while it's charging?

Quite safe, I charge mine like that all the time.

Thanks everyone, I'll go down the route of the battery charging first, to see if that works.

hi

having lot of battery problems with new fiesta active x.been garage three times,they say no problem with battery.the car is always in battery saving mode even after good run and showing 12.7 volts.car been laid up for 7 days so checked battery,it was only showing 11.6 and only just started.i do not cover a lot of miles,and some times it is laid up for up to a week due to wifes ill heath.i am thinking of buying a battery booster and battery charger just for peace of mind,not wondering if it will start or not.can some one please recommend a good charger and booster.thanks.   turbocat

never ever had battery problems like this before.car 11 month old with 3000 on clock

3 minutes ago, turbocat said:

am thinking of buying a battery booster and battery charger just for peace of mind,not wondering if it will start or not.can some one please recommend a good charger and booster.thanks. 

Well, the economical option (Maypole) has already been mentioned in this thread, the more expensive options are C-tek MX5 and Noco Genius 5. Both the latter charge a little faster and have a few more features, but double the price. 

 

6 minutes ago, turbocat said:

never ever had battery problems like this before.car 11 month old with 3000 on clock

No, me neither until buying my first Mk 8 Fiesta 5 years ago. I've just got used to it being the "new normal" and check/charge the battery regularly. Other makes forums have similar threads so I'd say it's a new car problem, not just Ford, mainly stemming from efforts to reduce emissions.

21 minutes ago, Eric Bloodaxe said:

.... I've just got used to it being the "new normal" and check/charge the battery regularly.

How many folk do we think would quite happily give up the multitude of toys now fitted to cars for the simple practice of getting into your car and have it start reliably first twist of the key? (or button press!)

A few more maybe silly questions. I've asked if the bonnet can be closed when charging but is there a way to close it completely, maybe run the cables underneath the car or is it just closed but not latched? Would it be ok to charge in parts, like a bit Friday, a bit Sunday and a bit Monday or does it need an initial overnight charge if its dead? I haven't looked yet but is it easy where to find were to put the negative battery clips as I know this doesn't attach to the battery.

Would it be advisable to get an outdoor extension lead too or just try to cover the normal extension lead?

11 hours ago, shawty1984 said:

A few more maybe silly questions. I've asked if the bonnet can be closed when charging but is there a way to close it completely, maybe run the cables underneath the car or is it just closed but not latched? Would it be ok to charge in parts, like a bit Friday, a bit Sunday and a bit Monday or does it need an initial overnight charge if its dead? I haven't looked yet but is it easy where to find were to put the negative battery clips as I know this doesn't attach to the battery.

Would it be advisable to get an outdoor extension lead too or just try to cover the normal extension lead?

Really think you're overthinking this! An ordinary extension lead will be fine, I just cover the end socket bit as it sits tucked in front of car with an old bucket so if it rains it's not sitting in the wet. Do it in one go & plan to leave it overnight. The negative clip can be placed on any 'naked' bolt/nut within the engine bay, should be multiple locations to choose from. As for closing the bonnet, on my Mk2 I can close it (panel gap is wide enough and rubber seal allows such, you'll just have to check on your car). If you want to crawl on ground and feed the cables up through the engine bay, well, that's up to you...

On the Mk4 Focus, the bonnet latches to the first click no matter how careful you are when lowering it.  So it can't be opened without opening the door if you're concerned about security.  On the Fiesta, you can try to close it completely but may need to reposition the clips a few times.

The wires for the charger are so thin they can be run over the rubber scuttle seal without risking damage.  Just make sure they're not too close to the hinges where they could get pinched.  I put the charger on the dashboard, then feed the wires outside around the A pillar then down into the engine bay from the top of the bonnet.  You can also put the extension lead hub inside the car as long as the door seal has enough give to close over the cable.  Once clips are set, bonnet is closed and door is closed/locked.  Double check the charger is charging through the windscreen.  I wasted a couple of hours one time not realising I'd knocked the clips off when closing the bonnet! 🤦‍♂️

It's not OK to charge in sections.  Firstly, the charger b*ggers around for an hour slowly ramping up the charge, so you're wasting an hour or more every time it's connected before it reaches max charge rate.  Secondly, you'll lose more charge overnight than you've put in it for just an hour or two during the day.  And thirdly it'll never reach the reconditioning stage if you keep switching it on & off.  It also gets disturbed by any electrical action like opening doors or locking & unlocking.  As Stephen says, do it in one go and just leave it for the duration.  Another reason having it on the dash board is useful, so you can see the charge state without opening doors which knocks the reading out.  (Just don't inadvertently unlock out of habit lol) 

Both Mk7 Fiesta & Mk4 Focus have a clear chassis earth point on the suspension turret, as do most other modern Fords.

2 hours ago, StephenFord said:

Really think you're overthinking this! An ordinary extension lead will be fine, I just cover the end socket bit as it sits tucked in front of car with an old bucket so if it rains it's not sitting in the wet. Do it in one go & plan to leave it overnight. The negative clip can be placed on any 'naked' bolt/nut within the engine bay, should be multiple locations to choose from. As for closing the bonnet, on my Mk2 I can close it (panel gap is wide enough and rubber seal allows such, you'll just have to check on your car). If you want to crawl on ground and feed the cables up through the engine bay, well, that's up to you...

When you haven't done anything like this before, I'd rather over think than not. The reason I asked about the extension cable is moisture because of winter. If needed though, can it be done in stages? I was reading about the BMS, putting it on any bolt/nut won't affect this will it? 

 

The above answers charging in stages.

3 hours ago, shawty1984 said:

... I was reading about the BMS, putting it on any bolt/nut won't affect this will it?

The reason to attach it to a bolt is because of the BMS! If you connect it directly to the -ve on the battery, it will bypass your BMS & it will have no idea the battery has been touched/charged, not the result you want...

3 hours ago, shawty1984 said:

The reason I asked about the extension cable is moisture because of winter. 

Though I have off road parking, it's awkwardly placed relative to the nearest socket, and my easiest option is to run an extension lead through the front door letterbox out to the car and into the engine bay. I put the charger in the engine bay, connect up and leave the bonnet on latch, so everythings covered by the bonnet apart from the lead running out and through the letterbox.

Done that for years, left it all day in the rain without a problem.

Connected it but it's charging at 6v std, is that normal? I thought it would be 12v straight away.

24 minutes ago, shawty1984 said:

Connected it but it's charging at 6v std, is that normal? I thought it would be 12v straight away.

Assuming it's a Maypole you are using, if you read the actual instructions, entirely normal...

2 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

Assuming it's a Maypole you are using

Do other brands exist ? 🤣

3 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

Assuming it's a Maypole you are using, if you read the actual instructions, entirely normal...

From my understanding of that, it's detected it as a 6v battery and is no good? 

 

It keeps climbing to 5.7v and dropping to 4.4 then climbing again.