A few of questions for the Gurus

[Jseis]

My 12V issue was the the battery monitor sensor, what we used call a voltage regulator. That led to error messages galore, inability to receive over the air updates, status updates on the 12V charge level dropping (the lowest I ever saw was 45.%). I got to where I’d turn the truck on while parked to get it to charge as a failed 12V battery (and software that thinks it “failed”.leads to a lot of other issues.

The BMS was an inexpensive part. Once replaced by dealer.., all back to normal.

EV ownership is like buying a new smartphone. Sometimes you just want to scream and blow it up, drive into the ocean, off a cliff, set it on fire, pound the dash to pulp thinking it will reset itself, or find some 16 year old computer whizz to “restart my truck” lol.

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[chl]

As everyone knows, wires connect point A to point B electrically with low resistance.

So the jump terminals thereby electrically connect to the battery via wire in some low resistance manner and that manner for the negative terminal is downstream of the BMS as shown in this picture by the blue circles.

If the jump terminals did not connect to the 12v battery electrically (the negative terminal being downstream of the BMS), there would be no 12V voltage on them would there?

There is nothing 'magical' about the jump terminals connection to the blue circled points in the picture. It is a low resistance electrical connection. (The negative ground terminal of the battery downstream of the BMS and the negative jump terminal are also grounded/electrically connected to the chassis/body of the truck so the negative connection could be made to the chassis/body.)

You will find the jump terminals are electrically connected directly to the blue circled points with low resistance (near zero).

@RLXXI There is no reason you cannot connect a charger to the blue circles without any harm. Electrically it is the same as connecting to the jump terminals.

Do NOT connect a charger to the red X's. If you did that you would 'screw up' the BMS and it would have to be recalibrated.

BTW, based on some posts about Ford mobile services, remarkably, some Ford tech do not know where to connect their battery chargers to the Lightning and go with the red X locations. (Some updates require the battery be on a charger correctly connected.)

Pulling the cover off the battery compartment in the Frunk is a lot less hassle than unscrewing all those plastic connectors and pulling off the passenger side Frunk cover to access the jump terminals.

But to each his own.

 

[chl]

That is NOT the only reason. Apparently you weren't aware that SLA batteries produce hydrogen gas (highly explosive) and all it takes is one spark at the battery connecting charger or jumper cables to end your dreams.

Because the Lightning LV batteries are sealed AGM batteries - they should not leak unless extremely overcharged (causing the safety valve to open and vent) or physically damaged.

During nomal charging they are designed to be recombinant and NOT release the gases produced during charging.

So the chances of a gas leak are very low....but safety first.

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Q: Has anyone ever smelled hydrogen gas coming from the Lightning AGM sealed OEM battery?

I did a search and did not find any reports of that, but maybe someone has seen that and not reported it. From what I've read it seems that an AGM battery leaking gas generally would only happen if it is being/has been overcharged/overheated, damaged, poorly manufatured or maybe at the end of its useful life.

Nearly all AGM batteries are "recombinant" - what that means is that the Oxygen and Hydrogen recombine INSIDE the battery. These use gas phase transfer of oxygen to the negative plates to recombine them back into water while charging and prevent the loss of water through electrolysis. The recombining is typically 99+% efficient, so almost no water is lost.... AGMs ... even under severe overcharge conditions hydrogen emission is far below the 4% max specified for aircraft and enclosed spaces.

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The Lightning should not overcharge the LV battery - the opposite seems to be the problem we've been experiencing.

A good battery charger should not overcharge the LV battery either.

So leaking gas seems very unlikely... but sure, safety first.

If concerned about leaking gas, then make the negative charging connection to a ground point on the chassis away from the battery as show below. The chassis is downstream of the BMS so not issue there.

Since LV battery issues seem to be a common problem, one might want to have a quality battery charger handy and follow the directions for use.

BTW, good battery chargers do not even produce a spark since they do not keep any charge on the terminals when they are off and not charging. So in that case, the worry about gasses can be put aside.

They are often advertised as "spark free" or "spark proof" and often protect against reverse polarity connections as well. See the NOCO GENIUS1: 1A 6V/12V Smart Battery Charger on Amazon for example:

" *Safety Features*: Overcharge protection, spark-proof technology, and reverse polarity protection ensure safe operation."

And if you follow the charger instructions (does anyone besides me read them? I hope so) you would connect the charger to the battery BEFORE plugging it into the wall, which is extra protection against producing a spark.

If you don't have a "spark-free" or "spark proof" charger and are worried about a spark, before connecting it to charge the Lightning battery (blue circles), and before plugging it in, touch the pos and neg clamps together and see if there is any spark. Use a resistor to discharge any residual charge that could be producing a spark from the terminals. Then connect it to the battery, and then plug it into the wall outlet.

If you are using another vehicle to charge the Lightning LV battery, and you want to watch out for a spark, use the safe step by step process for connection, generally: 1) Pos to pos then
2) Neg to chassis/body ground of the vehicle being charged.

But the chances that a seal AGM battery is going to leak gas are very low.

Q: Has anyone ever smelled hydrogen gas from the Lightning AGM sealed OEM battery? Hope not.

 

[chl]

I've personally have had the battery explode 4 times in my life, two of those times was my own vehicle. The other two were customer cars. I went to school for automotive technology in college and 40+ years in the profession has taught me they knew what they were teaching.

Like I told another uninformed user, you do you, I'll do it the right way.

P.S. Since we all know how Ford will pinch a penny to save a dime, you should call them and explain to their engineers how they can save even more by eliminating those useless connection points under the access panel, I'm sure they'd love you for that.

A sealed AGM battery?

 

[TaxmanHog]

Better safer than sorry, I'm in the @RLXXI camp, ya'll do what ya want....................

 

[Tired Lizard]

A lot of the automotive batteries look like they have vents on both ends.
A vent tube connects to outside on some of my vehicles with the battery that are inside the cabin.

 

[chl]

Better safer than sorry, I'm in the @RLXXI camp, ya'll do what ya want....................

Anything is possible...despite the odds.

Even winning the lottery.

 

[chl]

A lot of the automotive batteries look like they have vents on both ends.
A vent tube connects to outside on some of my vehicles with the battery that are inside the cabin.

Yes, they ALL have vents...so they won't explode if there is a major defect or extremely overcharged.

Under normal conditions, the gasses get recombined and very little is vented (1% they say).

Still want to know if any Lightning owners have noticed a hydrogen smell from their sealed AGM OEM battery - so far 0% say they have.

 

[TaxmanHog]

Disregarding safety protocols is negligence.

 

[TaxmanHog]

The TONE of recent posts 'imply' little risk.

 

[TaxmanHog]

 

[htobin]

I ended up checking my battery, using the accessory side terminals on the passenger side in the Frunk. It was pretty easy taking it off although a couple of the connectors broke in the process. Not sure if they can be replaced, but tape seems to be holding ithe cover in place. Incidentally, my battery showed to be fully charged yet. I still keep getting messages saying that I need battery maintenance. I guess I'll get the dealer to check it

 

[RickLightning]

I ended up checking my battery, using the accessory side terminals on the passenger side in the Frunk. It was pretty easy taking it off although a couple of the connectors broke in the process. Not sure if they can be replaced, but tape seems to be holding ithe cover in place. Incidentally, my battery showed to be fully charged yet. I still keep getting messages saying that I need battery maintenance. I guess I'll get the dealer to check it

You cannot check the battery that way, unless you wait 30 minutes after waking up the truck, and approach without fob or PaaK to wake it up again.

What you read is voltage, not state of charge.

 

[srspring551]

Just did a quick Perplexity "ask" for resetting 12V BMS. AI is nice but any real human here disagree (or have extra suggestions) with these steps?:
• Ensure the truck is parked safely and the 12V battery is connected.
• Press the Start/Power button without pressing the brake pedal to put the vehicle in accessory mode (cluster and electronics on, but not “Ready to Drive”).
• Within 10 seconds, flash the high beams 5 times using the headlight stalk.
• Immediately after, press the brake pedal firmly 3 times.
• Watch for the red battery icon on the instrument panel; it should flash three times, which confirms the reset was successful.
• Press the Start/Power button again to turn the truck off.
• The BMS has now been reset.

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