2021 FORD BRONCO SPORT ISSUE SPURS NHTSA INVESTIGATION - Battery Failures

[Dude]

https://fordauthority.com/2024/02/2021-ford-bronco-sport-issue-spurs-nhtsa-investigation/

In my opinion, investigation should be expanded for all ‘21-‘24 models and for any of the factory installed batteries (perhaps even after-market batteries too). The failure in the NHTSA investigation has occurred for these models. Not all owners experience the issue.

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[rocks]

That should help to bring down resale value even more.

 

[Bt_okst]

Just got supplied with bad batteries. Recall them, replace them, and move on. This won't be the first or last time they've gotten a bad batch of batteries supplied to them.

 

[RSH]

Happened to my Badlands, battery replaced under warranty no electrical issues since.

 

[coopny]

Just got supplied with bad batteries. Recall them, replace them, and move on. This won't be the first or last time they've gotten a bad batch of batteries supplied to them.

This doesn't seem to be limited to the 2021 BS however - I've heard reports from 2022 owners with the same complaint. NHTSA got enough directly on the 21 MY to investigate, but the problem is more widespread.

I don't even know if it's a "bad batch" - instead if the Motorcraft EFBs are generally crap, or if the way that the BS' battery management system, electrical load, and auto start/stop work is the issue that an EFB can't cope.

Hearing that people who did have issues generally had them go away when replacing with an AGM (and that the dealers are replacing EFBs with AGM in warranty) makes me think this is a problem Ford knows about, but has been trying to kick the can down the road to the 3yr/36k mile bumper-to-bumper to out-wait if possible.

A mitigating factor is probably that people who drive daily (and don't have frequent stops) are probably less likely to encounter the issue as the alternator likely keeps the battery better charged. (Obviously people using a battery tender are less likely to have issues too, but I'd put these people in the extreme minority of owners.)

 

[Brucek]

Happened to my Badlands, battery replaced under warranty no electrical issues since.

How many miles did it have when it failed?

 

[Captain Trips]

I had my battery fail at about 14,000 miles. It could be jump started, but had weird electrical issues until it was replaced under warranty, and have had no problems since.

 

[Bt_okst]

This doesn't seem to be limited to the 2021 BS however - I've heard reports from 2022 owners with the same complaint. NHTSA got enough directly on the 21 MY to investigate, but the problem is more widespread.

I don't even know if it's a "bad batch" - instead if the Motorcraft EFBs are generally crap, or if the way that the BS' battery management system, electrical load, and auto start/stop work is the issue that an EFB can't cope.

Hearing that people who did have issues generally had them go away when replacing with an AGM (and that the dealers are replacing EFBs with AGM in warranty) makes me think this is a problem Ford knows about, but has been trying to kick the can down the road to the 3yr/36k mile bumper-to-bumper to out-wait if possible.

A mitigating factor is probably that people who drive daily (and don't have frequent stops) are probably less likely to encounter the issue as the alternator likely keeps the battery better charged. (Obviously people using a battery tender are less likely to have issues too, but I'd put these people in the extreme minority of owners.)

Sadly a battery issue is not new. When we owned our Ford dealership, if we didn't drive each car on the lot at least a couple times a weal, especially in hot or cold weather, we'd lose about 5% of the batteries each time.

There is so much draw on the batteries now and they seem to not hold up at all well sitting idle now. I don't understand how that all works, but I do know it's been an issue for years and as more electronics are put on the cars over time it seems to only make this matter worse.

At our cabin we had to either run a trickle charger or completely disconnect the batteries in our jeeps when we were gone or they'd all often fail upon our return.

I do agree this stupid auto start stop can't help the situation especially in a situation where one lives abd drives in many start stop situations a day. I absolutely turn it off when I'm driving now.

 

[rocks]

I would think a bigger capacity battery and an alternator that puts out more would help if not solve the problem.

 

[Dude]

These are all great comments however the NHTSA investigation scope states:
“loss of engine power accompanied by complete electrical system failure” … “vehicles lost power while .. driving”.

comments such as these don’t align with the scope of the NHTSA investigation:
‘supplied with bad batteries. Recall them, replace them’: this does not solve the issue but it’s all that an owner can do. There is no report the cause of the Bronco Sport to die while being driven is bad batteries or a batch of bad batteries.

‘..auto start/stop is the issue that an EFB can't cope’: currently there is no factual evidence that auto start/stop is a cause of battery failure. More likely (also without proof) is auto start/stop that stops working is an early indication the battery is going bad. And both EFB Batteries and AGM batteries are implicated in owners reports their vehicle dies dead while driving. By turning off auto start/stop you may actually be losing an early indicator of battery failure.

‘..we owned our Ford dealership.. if we didn't drive each car on the lot at least a couple times a week .. we'd lose about 5% of the batteries’: yes that’s true however how many new vehicles on your lot that someone test drove and on the drive the vehicle died dead? The NHTSA investigation includes vehicles dying while being driven.

it’s not acceptable for a statistically significant number of Bronco Sports to die while being driven .. obviously 31 reports out of 95,305 Ford Bronco Sport ‘21 models was enough for the NHTSA to launch their investigation.

rocks stated: ‘bigger capacity battery and an alternator that puts out more would help if not solve the problem’ and/or BMS updates or other vehicle programming updates likely all factor into a solution where the Bronco Sport would at least enter limp mode to avoid the vehicle dying while being driven.

perhaps an FMEA on the battery and charging system would help Ford find an acceptable solution.

 

[Jill]

Happened to my Badlands, battery replaced under warranty no electrical issues since.

Same here. 21 Badlands.

 

[coopny]

‘..auto start/stop is the issue that an EFB can't cope’: currently there is no factual evidence that auto start/stop is a cause of battery failure. More likely (also without proof) is auto start/stop that stops working is an early indication the battery is going bad. And both EFB Batteries and AGM batteries are implicated in owners reports their vehicle dies dead while driving. By turning off auto start/stop you may actually be losing an early indicator of battery failure.

Herein lies the problem.

The NHTSA is reporting failures of the vehicle's power "while driving". There's two possible interpretations of this:

1. That you're cruising along at whatever speed (or stopped) and the engine is at an idle, and suddenly dies.
2. That you pull up to a stop light/sign, engine auto stop engages, and then the car won't restart.

Both are dangerous, because you're in a lane of moving traffic and the car is immobile. (#1 is more dangerous due to potential loss of safety systems, power steering, etc.).

It could be both, because in my experience, with the radio on and the engine idling as I replaced a rear dashcam wire in my 23 BS BL - 30 minutes of engine on idling resulted in battery discharge to the point where the radio displayed "system off to save battery" on the next start - which means even with the engine on, it's possible for the battery to net discharge if the alternator is not supplying enough power.

An example report where the driver (ostensibly) said it happened while in motion:

Slowing down at a red light, getting into a left hand turning lane there was a "thud" sound and then the car completely shut off. Nothing worked, screens went blank, no hazards, no lights. We were stuck in the middle of the road with no way to even get the car out of the way. Every once in a while the green would come on or an alarm would go off but quickly went back to black. Tow truck was able to jump it to get it on the truck but half way through the ride the engine died once more. There was no warning at all. If this would have happened on the highway, it would have been catastrophic. After learning about this happening to others and hearing that it may happen again, I will not feel safe in this car moving forward: car is a 2021 Bronco Sport, 52,000 miles. Please do something!!!

That's while driving as it sounds (they said that while they were moving to a left hand turning lane a sound occurred and engine died), whether or not auto start/stop was a factor can't be determined by this, but the fact that the vehicle could be jumped but then died without warning again to me makes me wonder if there's an alternator issue (or the EFBs are not able to charge adequately).

The one cited in the Ford Authority email says it's while driving but is hazier:

On 2 occasions, 7/30/23 and 8/13/23, my 2021 Bronco suddenly stopped working with no warning whatsoever. I had no way to put on any Emergency Flashers because there was no power. The same day as the first incident, the car was brought to my local Ford Dealer and they couldn't find any problem. When they inspected it the next morning, it started right up.I had been driving the car for 2 weeks and it happened while I was driving again on 8/13/23. It died the exact same way, with no warning and no way for me to alert other drivers around me. My vehicle is currently at the Ford Service Department and they are trying to find the problem.

The vehicle may have been in drive on the transmission, but was it actually "driving" as in died in motion?

Most other reports explicitly report that the vehicle briefly stopped, either in heavy traffic or on city streets at traffic control devices (signs, lights, etc.)

It's possible that there's some other underlying fault that the NHTSA may find, but almost all of the reports mention that it happened at an intersection (where the electrical demand would be greatest on an auto start after an auto stop).

I'm not dismissing the importance to be open minded either, we all deserve safe vehicles, but the reports are not saying "I was hurtling 65mph down the interstate when my car shut off" either.

EDIT: Some reports do mention motion at speed, most do not. The ones that mention motion at speed rather than being either ambiguous to what "driving" means (in traffic, shifter in drive) generally either do not confirm a cause of diagnosis or give other information (smoke/fire, engine issues, etc.)... some are also water pump failures lumped into the lack of coolant causing engine shutdown. A minimum of one electrical system report (also fuel/propulsion and engine) seems to indicate what is probably a cracked fuel injector issue that resulted in a fire Feb 2022.

This doesn't vindicate the "it's the battery" theory, although AGMs are able to charge much faster and provide reliable starting power at far lower discharge rates, which may be a way to compensate for alternator issues...

 

[magicbus]

I think it is important that this stuff gets investigated, but I have a 2021 BSBL that for 6 months a year is lucky to see 2 miles on any given day, and the other 6 months 16 miles 3 days a week when I commute to my summer job. The only issues I see after 3 years are my auto stop/start doesn't work (hard to express how happy I am about this ) and I can't control my BS via the app, which really doesn't matter since I have to carry my FOB anyway because, unlike my wife's R1T, my BS doesn't treat me like a king when I walk up to it with my phone in my pocket.

 

[rocks]

I think it is important that this stuff gets investigated, but I have a 2021 BSBL that for 6 months a year is lucky to see 2 miles on any given day, and the other 6 months 16 miles 3 days a week when I commute to my summer job. The only issues I see after 3 years are my auto stop/start doesn't work (hard to express how happy I am about this ) and I can't control my BS via the app, which really doesn't matter since I have to carry my FOB anyway because, unlike my wife's R1T, my BS doesn't treat me like a king when I walk up to it with my phone in my pocket.

There is a button under the screen that shuts off stop/start. I use it every time I drive the BS. It's automatic for me.

 

[magicbus]

There is a button under the screen that shuts off stop/start. I use it every time I drive the BS. It's automatic for me.

Yeah, but I don’t have to hit the button!

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