Tangledfeet
Think outside, no box required.
- Messages
- 3,102
- Location
- Top of a hill above St Andrews, Fife
I bought a new Ford Focus Active MHEV 155PS last April and I'm pleased with it... bar the wee niggles I'm having with the cars' electrics and seemingly the battery's ability to maintain a proper charge - the car battery, not the hybrid battery.
Last year I found that the car would regularly stop unlocking using the fingers around the door handle system (I'm sure there's a proper name for it) and I queried it with the Ford dealer. I was told by the Service Manager that I do what he considers is low daily mileage (around sixteen miles each way to and from work) and the battery isn't getting a full enough charge so the car starts sacrificing what it considers non-vital electrics, and that giving the car an overnight trickle charge would resolve the issue - and it did.
Now its winter and I'm leaving home/work in the dark I'm more frustrated by the courtesy lights doing the same - although the locks are now fine!
I bought a NOCO GENIUS2 charger / maintainer after his previous advice and gave the battery all day attached it on Sunday and, sure enough, the courtesy lights were fine yesterday and this morning - but threw in the towel when I got home this evening and opened the door in the dark So, three sixteen mile trips and they stop working.
Naturally, I'll of course be reporting this and ask them to look at it as I don't consider this 'normal' for an eighteen month old car - and find myself increasingly reluctant to be fobbed off with the low mileage excuse.
Is it possible I have a less than effective battery - or alternator? I'm wondering if just getting a new and better (AGM?) battery might be a simple solution, but then I'd hope that the battery fitted would be covered under warranty.
Does the low mileage excuse hold water..?
Last year I found that the car would regularly stop unlocking using the fingers around the door handle system (I'm sure there's a proper name for it) and I queried it with the Ford dealer. I was told by the Service Manager that I do what he considers is low daily mileage (around sixteen miles each way to and from work) and the battery isn't getting a full enough charge so the car starts sacrificing what it considers non-vital electrics, and that giving the car an overnight trickle charge would resolve the issue - and it did.
Now its winter and I'm leaving home/work in the dark I'm more frustrated by the courtesy lights doing the same - although the locks are now fine!
I bought a NOCO GENIUS2 charger / maintainer after his previous advice and gave the battery all day attached it on Sunday and, sure enough, the courtesy lights were fine yesterday and this morning - but threw in the towel when I got home this evening and opened the door in the dark So, three sixteen mile trips and they stop working.
Naturally, I'll of course be reporting this and ask them to look at it as I don't consider this 'normal' for an eighteen month old car - and find myself increasingly reluctant to be fobbed off with the low mileage excuse.
Is it possible I have a less than effective battery - or alternator? I'm wondering if just getting a new and better (AGM?) battery might be a simple solution, but then I'd hope that the battery fitted would be covered under warranty.
Does the low mileage excuse hold water..?