Hi All,

I am new to this forum but not new to Fords or cars and their mechanical workings.
I do however have a problem that has been with me since I bought my 2004 E350 SuperDuty XLT Van. Here is a little history.

Purchased: November 2004 10,000KM on it from a Ford Dealer
Battery died 7 months later and was replaced under warranty at a dealership
1 year later battery died again was also replaced under warranty at a dealership
1 year later battery died again took to dealership explained the history was told no drain on battery once again replaced under warranty
6 months later battery dead again once again despite my objections the dealer said no drain on battery and replaced it under warranty.
1 year later battery was dead again dealer once again despite my objections insisted there was no drain on the battery it was replaced partial warranty and I paid to upgrade to the best and biggest battery that would fit my vehicle I also suggested dual batteries and was told it wasn't required.
This time I contacted Ford of Canada explaining the ongoing problem and was told sorry it's out of warranty we feel bad that you are not satisfied but there is nothing we can do.
10 months later battery is dead into the dealership and this time they tell me they found a bad diode in the alternator (I disagreed having watched the voltage constantly charge at 14 volts or higher) they replaced the alternator and battery at a cost of $800.
1 year later yup the battery was dead again back to the dealer once again they insist there is no drain on the battery and replace it under warranty and tell me "at least you have 3 years of warranty o the battery".
I contact Ford of Canada once again and once again they tell me sorry you aren't happy but it's out of warranty. To which I respond explaining the issue has been there since I purchased the vehicle and has never been resolved. I have yet to hear back.

Any ideas what I can do to get this resolved? I am ready to park it outside the dealership with a lemon sign on it

 

Hi and welcome to the site.
Let's see what we can do to help you.
After all the battery replacements and one alt replacement and several hopefully accurate checks for drains It sounds like you have a poor connection in the cable(s).
Can you tell us if you do any of your own work or are you having someone else do it ?
Do you care to do some of your own detective work ?

 

I don't mind checking out a few things I have checked as much as I could think of so any ideas are very welcome.

I have for the most part had the dealership do the work though as I feel it should have been fixed long ago and under warranty.

 

It is possible they could have run up a fairly large bill and then there would possibly be some disagreement as to who should pay it. Anything is possible.
Maybe if we take one thing at a time we might get lucky.
The heavy gauge wire that goes from the alternator to the battery may have a junction where it is interrupted before it gets to the battery and could have some hidden corrosion at that junction which could play havoc with the alternator not always being able to charge the battery as much as required which over time will leave the battery in a run down state of charge. A tech with a good electrical background could check this out or you could do some of your own detective work and physically do the checking yourself. Many times connections look innocent enough ,but are nevertheless, faulty. The only sure cure is to remove them ,clean them, reassemble them and place a protective coating of dielectric grease on them to help prevent reoccurrence. Just keep in mind that , that wire is directly connected to the positive post of the battery and nothing should be allowed to touch that wire/connection and any other metal part of the vehicle. The safe way to do that is to disconnect the negative cable from the battery before working on it. Since the battery has been replaced several times you by this time are aware that the computer will require a few driving trips to relearn your driving habits.
Lets see what you find !

 

One other thing to check that most people (Hanky not included) don't think to check is the grounds on these. Make sure the ground is clean and tight on the engine, and that there is no voltage drop from the body, frame, or engine with the car running from any of the mentioned points to the neg. battery cable. This is very often overlooked and can easily cause this problem, and more.

 

Good advice greasemark ! Many times we look at a problem and think we see the solution completely ignoring the basics. Even when someone checked the charging system they could have overlooked the very basic , but highly important ground connections. Thanks greasemark, even I did it too!