Update on my 2021 OB after battery and non start issues

[Broncoette]

Update to the trials and tribulations of the failures of my 2021 Outer Banks. Short recap, awesome car for first 2+ years, 23,500+ miles. Out of the clear blue it completely failed at a red stop light, went into auto stop, then completely shut down. My portable battery jump got me home and then again another battery jump to get to the dealer another day. They installed a new AGM battery and I was on my way. Exactly one week later, my car was completely dead in my garage, would not take a jump, nothing. It was towed to the dealer.

Fast forward to today after sitting at the dealer for 11 days waiting for someone to look at it. The problem was a loose body ground wire. Hopefully this is the last of my troubles with this car.

My faith in Ford and my car is really low right now. I'll continue to drive it for a while but I'm leaning towards trading it for another vehicle (not a Ford!) prior to the warranty period expiring in 7 months. Driving my car now is unsettling wondering what will happen next.

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[RSH]

I wonder if this time your trouble was caused by the dealer when they replaced your battery. Quality and attention to detail are hard to find these days.
Hopefully you'll have a much better experience.

 

[Broncoette]

I wonder if this time your trouble was caused by the dealer when they replaced your battery. Quality and attention to detail are hard to find these days.
Hopefully you'll have a much better experience.

I thought the same thing. The sad part is that my car sat on their lot for 11 days waiting for the diagnosis. Fortunately, they gave me a loaner car and I'm grateful for that however my overall experience has left me annoyed.

 

[Major Kong]

I thought the same thing. The sad part is that my car sat on their lot for 11 days waiting for the diagnosis. Fortunately, they gave me a loaner car and I'm grateful for that however my overall experience has left me annoyed.

sounds like the mechanics failed more than the vehicle itself
may have been an issue with the grounding connection from the get go
swapped out the battery leaving a poor ground
new battery craps out
seems there have been other "poor ground" posts in the past
fingers crossed your issue is resolved

 

[Mark S.]

They installed a new AGM battery and I was on my way. Exactly one week later, my car was completely dead in my garage, would not take a jump, nothing. It was towed to the dealer.

Fast forward to today after sitting at the dealer for 11 days waiting for someone to look at it. The problem was a loose body ground wire. Hopefully this is the last of my troubles with this car.

In case it makes you feel any better, this story makes sense. The alternator provides power with the engine running to recharge the battery after you start it. A loose ground wire can certainly interfere with recharging the battery. It makes perfect sense your battery would fail after a week of starts with incomplete charging in between.

 

[sajohnson]

Update to the trials and tribulations of the failures of my 2021 Outer Banks. Short recap, awesome car for first 2+ years, 23,500+ miles. Out of the clear blue it completely failed at a red stop light, went into auto stop, then completely shut down. My portable battery jump got me home and then again another battery jump to get to the dealer another day. They installed a new AGM battery and I was on my way. Exactly one week later, my car was completely dead in my garage, would not take a jump, nothing. It was towed to the dealer.

Fast forward to today after sitting at the dealer for 11 days waiting for someone to look at it. The problem was a loose body ground wire. Hopefully this is the last of my troubles with this car.

My faith in Ford and my car is really low right now. I'll continue to drive it for a while but I'm leaning towards trading it for another vehicle (not a Ford!) prior to the warranty period expiring in 7 months. Driving my car now is unsettling wondering what will happen next.

Just curious, do you know which ground connection they were referring to?

Depending on where the loose connection was, it may not have been the tech's fault. If it was the connection at the battery neg(-) terminal, then yes, that's on whoever installed the AGM battery -- however, in addition to the neg(-) battery cable connection to the body, most vehicles have at least one grounding wire to ensure continuity between the engine and the body. If one of those connections was loose, that is almost certainly the factory's fault (a tech would typically have no reason to touch them).

 

[Broncoette]

Just curious, do you know which ground connection they were referring to?

Depending on where the loose connection was, it may not have been the tech's fault. If it was the connection at the battery neg(-) terminal, then yes, that's on whoever installed the AGM battery -- however, in addition to the neg(-) battery cable connection to the body, most vehicles have at least one grounding wire to ensure continuity between the engine and the body. If one of those connections was loose, that is almost certainly the factory's fault (a tech would typically have no reason to touch them).

No I don't, this is above my paygrade . The paperwork says "Found chassis ground backed off from body, resecured ground, vehicle started. Cleared codes and tested functionality."

I'm suspicious due to this happening one week after new battery installed but it could be a coincidence.

 

[sajohnson]

No I don't, this is above my paygrade . The paperwork says "Found chassis ground backed off from body, resecured ground, vehicle started. Cleared codes and tested functionality."

I'm suspicious due to this happening one week after new battery installed but it could be a coincidence.

Sounds like a factory mistake -- one that may explain some other battery issues.

 

[Canuck]

Sounds like a factory mistake -- one that may explain some other battery issues.

All vehicles take the same batteries.
Can’t say all Bronco Sports are crap just because of this. Your next vehicle could have the same issue

 

[sajohnson]

All vehicles take the same batteries.
Can’t say all Bronco Sports are crap just because of this. Your next vehicle could have the same issue

Sigh...

The comment I replied to says, in part:

"The paperwork says "Found chassis ground backed off from body, resecured ground, vehicle started. Cleared codes and tested functionality."

For example, see red arrow:

BTW -- where did I say, "all Bronco Sports are crap"?

What I wrote was, "Sounds like a factory mistake -- one that may explain some other battery issues."

I stand by that. I sounds like a mistake -- it basically has to be unless there's more to the story and someone loosened that connection after the BS was delivered.

Often , when a mistake/defect like that is discovered, there may be more. If that is the case here, it may explain some other battery issues.

If you somehow get, "all Bronco Sports are crap" out of that, it's on you.

 

[Canuck]

Sigh...

The comment I replied to says, in part:

"The paperwork says "Found chassis ground backed off from body, resecured ground, vehicle started. Cleared codes and tested functionality."

For example, see red arrow:

BTW -- where did I say, "all Bronco Sports are crap"?

What I wrote was, "Sounds like a factory mistake -- one that may explain some other battery issues."

I stand by that. I sounds like a mistake -- it basically has to be unless there's more to the story and someone loosened that connection after the BS was delivered.

Often , when a mistake/defect like that is discovered, there may be more. If that is the case here, it may explain some other battery issues.

If you somehow get, "all Bronco Sports are crap" out of that, it's on you.

My faith in Ford and my car is really low right now. I'll continue to drive it for a while but I'm leaning towards trading it for another vehicle (not a Ford!) prior to the warranty period expiring in 7 months. Driving my car now is unsettling wondering what will happen next.

 

[Mark S.]

Driving my car now is unsettling wondering what will happen next.

Definitely time to trade. I wouldn't own a car I didn't trust.

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