Doug Milliken

My 245/50R20 Pirelli Scorpions are down to 3/32" after 43,500 miles in 5 years. Between my wife (primary driver of this car) and myself we are a 3 driving aggressiveness. Dry, warm California climate. I'm shopping for replacements now. Looking at Michelin, Bridgestone and BF Goodrich. Anybody have any experience with any of these? Recommendations for replacements?

The dealer has full diagnostic capabilioty that I don't have, and they say they have run all the checks and find no defects or anything causing an improper drain on my battery. So they deny there is any issue with my ignition or my shift linkage. Of course they cannot recreate the intermittent issues I have had and reported. These things are never recreated for dealer mechanics. Never.

enigma-2, I appreciate your opinion, but I seriously doubt that my car is not eating batteries. I have lived in the same region with the same weather and the same driving habits for over 40 years. During this period I can't count how many cars I have owned. All kinds. And my 2013 Ford Edge is the first one that is on its 3rd battery in less than 45K miles. Never anything even approaching that horrible record. Garaged next to my Edge is a 2006 Chrysler 300 with 96K miles on it that got its first battery replacement after 7 years and 85,000 miles. So I reject the notion that my Edge battery problems are because I don't maintain my battery properly. Everybody has their theories and their beliefs, but I live with my car, and it eats batteries, as others have reported on this forum. By the way, I just bought an Optima D400 charger which is probably similar to the one you gave a link to. Getting pro-active. Thanks for your input.

I have a battery drain problem similar to a lot of the posts on this Forum. I bought my 2013 Edge 3.5L V6 in October 2012. 2 years and 10 months and 23,400 miles later the battery failed. Ken Grody Ford in Buena Park replaced the battery with a Motorcraft BXT-59 lead acid battery (540 cold cranking amps) with a 36 month free replacement warranty. That battery has now failed after another 2 years and 1 month and 20,400 miles. I added distilled water to the cells and charged it, but it doesn't seem to want to hold a charge.

 

We have always had an intermittent issue when the ignition is turned off and the key removed, but the computer display indicates all is not shut off, with the "FORD" emblem showing. To get the display to turn off, we can re-start the car and shut it off again until it shuts off properly with a dark display. We discovered that it is not always necessary to re-start the car, but just re-insert the key and turn it hard CCW against the stop and then remove it, and this time maybe the display will shut off.

 

Also intermittently when shutting off the ignition the car will sometimes ding as I open the car door as if I had left the keys in the ignition, but they are in my hand. To stop the dinging it is necessary to re-start the car and shut it off again, or sometimes just insert the key and turn it hard CCW against the stop.

 

I suspect that somehow something is left on and draining the battery even when the key has been removed and the display is dark. Faulty ignition switch? (body computer module does not know the key has been removed). Faulty shift mechanism? (body computer module does not know the shift lever is in park). Faulty body computer module/software? I don't know.

 

The second dead battery happened yesterday, right after 2 weeks of non-use while we were on vacation. This indicates to me that something may be causing a slow drain on the battery even when the car is in the garage and shut off. Monday it goes back to the dealer for another diagnostic check.

 

 

Oct 17, 2017 UPDATE. I took the Edge to the dealer who confirmed that the Motorcraft BXT-59 lead-acid replacement battery that they installed on warranty is in fact dead after an additional 20,400 miles and 2 yrs 1 month. Yes, a 3 yr warranted Motorcraft battery dead after 2 yrs. But no warranty for me because I didn't pay for the battery. Positive terminal was severely corroded. I purchased an Interstate 850 CCA size group 65 battery at Costco for $98 and had the Ford dealer install it. They had to replace positive terminal connection hardware which is a rather complex piece. Cost $180. They ran diagnostics and said there was no problem of any kind. Alternator good, no drains, no defects.

 

My conclusion now is that these cars just eat batteries for lunch and it is characteristic of the Edge electronics, get used to it. My recommendation is to purchase a premium sealed (maintenance free) battery outside of Ford dealer with the longest full replacement warranty available. 2013 Edge comes with a Size Group 59 battery, but Size Group 65 fits and is 2 inches longer giving more capacity. My local Costco recommended an Interstate Size Group 65 with 850 CCA (cold cranking amps). The Ford Motorcraft replacement battery was only 540 CCA. So I have a bigger, stronger sealed battery with a 42 month free replacement warranty. If my Edge burns it out in less than the 3 1/2 yr warranty I get a new one. The other thing I have done is purchased a good smart charger. I plan to hook it up several times a week just to monitor the voltage. When I put it on trickle charge in the evening it will bring the battery up to 100% charge and then shut itself off. I'm going to keep a spreadsheet of voltage condition to see what conditions seem to draw down the battery. And when I go on another 2 week plus vacation with the car garaged, it will be interesting to see how far down the voltage drains just sitting idle. Then when I get home I will check voltage and charge before driving anywhere. That's it. My car eats batteries. Get used to it.

 

I have a battery drain problem similar to a lot of the posts on this Forum. I bought my 2013 Edge 3.5L V6 in October 2012. 2 years and 10 months and 23,400 miles later the battery failed. Ken Grody Ford in Buena Park replaced the battery with a Motorcraft BXT-59 lead acid battery (540 cold cranking amps) with a 36 month free replacement warranty. That battery has now failed after another 2 years and 1 month and 20,400 miles. I added distilled water to the cells and charged it, but it doesn't seem to want to hold a charge.

We have always had an intermittent issue when the ignition is turned off and the key removed, but the computer display indicates all is not shut off, with the "FORD" emblem showing. To get the display to turn off, we can re-start the car and shut it off again until it shuts off properly with a dark display. We discovered that it is not always necessary to re-start the car, but just re-insert the key and turn it hard CCW against the stop and then remove it, and this time maybe the display will shut off.

Also intermittently when shutting off the ignition the car will sometimes ding as I open the car door as if I had left the keys in the ignition, but they are in my hand. To stop the dinging it is necessary to re-start the car and shut it off again, or sometimes just insert the key and turn it hard CCW against the stop.

I suspect that somehow something is left on and draining the battery even when the key has been removed and the display is dark. Faulty ignition switch? (body computer module does not know the key has been removed). Faulty shift mechanism? (body computer module does not know the shift lever is in park). Faulty body computer module/software? I don't know.

The second dead battery happened yesterday, right after 2 weeks of non-use while we were on vacation. This indicates to me that something may be causing a slow drain on the battery even when the car is in the garage and shut off. Monday it goes back to the dealer for another diagnostic check.