My first Error Code

[WXman]

If the 12V battery gets weak, these trucks seem to throw codes.
With cold weather now here, the 12V batteries are probably showing signs of weakness (slower chemical reactions internally).
I keep mine on a trickle charger in AGM mode when not driving.

The acceleration is the most troubling to me.
There have been one or two other posts about sudden acceleration for no apparent reason, at least one resulted in an accident - rear ended the car in front of them.

NHTSA is investigating Bluecruise in Mach-e's.

I believe the other Lightning owners who had that acceleration reported it to NHTSA, which you should too.

https://www.nhtsa.gov/report-a-safety-problem

I don't recall the details but I seem to remember one of them might have been using one-pedal driving. I don;t think Bluecruise was involved.

Yeah that's the only time the random acceleration has happened to me. If it happens again I most certainly will report it so that it's on record.

This issue could very well end up being the 12v battery I guess. But if so that's pretty terrible. 6 months and 4,400 miles isn't a very good lifespan for a battery, especially when I drive the truck several times each week.

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[Adventureboy]

Yeah that's the only time the random acceleration has happened to me. If it happens again I most certainly will report it so that it's on record.

This issue could very well end up being the 12v battery I guess. But if so that's pretty terrible. 6 months and 4,400 miles isn't a very good lifespan for a battery, especially when I drive the truck several times each week.

You should report it anyway. @Ford Motor Company needs to know this happened and track it. Random acceleration is not ok. The only way they can find intermittent safety issues is by tracking every incident and the conditions that led up to it. They may not find your issue right away, and it may never happen again, but if they gather the data across all folks who have experienced this, they have a much better chance of finding the culprit.

Make sure you note that the cruise was completely off - this eliminates your case from the list of potential accidental cruise-enabled group.

Glad you were on your game.

 

[chl]

Yeah that's the only time the random acceleration has happened to me. If it happens again I most certainly will report it so that it's on record.

This issue could very well end up being the 12v battery I guess. But if so that's pretty terrible. 6 months and 4,400 miles isn't a very good lifespan for a battery, especially when I drive the truck several times each week.

I think you should report the acceleration issue even if it does not come back - it is definitely a safety issue. If you do that and bring it to the attention of Ford as well, if you were unable to stop the next time, at least there would be a record that would prove it was not your negligence that caused the accident.

It is somewhat ironic, but a lot of EVs have a problem with the 12v battery because they rely on so much more electronics I suppose. But you'd think with a HV battery with 98kWhs of energy, some of it could be used to keep the 12v topped off more effectively.

My 2012 Nissan Leaf 12v got depleted when I went on vacation soon after I got it because the charging timers were running, apparently that was enough draw to cause a problem when not driving for a couple weeks. It has been on a trickle charger ever since - still going strong 14 years later.

All 12v batteries will last a lot longer if kept at or near 100% state of charge, something I learned my first year in engineering school, so a trickle charger is a must have in my book. A lot cheaper than a new battery too.

The Lightnings' 12v battery maintaining strategy does not seem to be designed for long life of the 12v battery. Letting these AGM batteries get deeply discharged will shorten their lifespan. Some owners have reported measuring very high charging currents - when a 12v battery is allowed to get deeply discharged, recharging it without current limiting control will result in high currents, which are also not good for longevity.

There seem to be quite a few 12v battery warranty replacements reported here and elsewhere and that's no wonder with this design.

The solution is to keep the battery on a trickle charger with an AGM mode when idle, or plan on replacing the battery frequently. It will keep the AGM topped off without subjecting it to very high currents.

 

[MountainAlive]

When hooking up a trickle charger to the Lightning 12v, what is the optimal location? Directly to the battery or somewhere upstream before the 12v BMS?

 

[chl]

When hooking up a trickle charger to the Lightning 12v, what is the optimal location? Directly to the battery or somewhere upstream before the 12v BMS?

Negative would be downstream of the 12v BMS...see pic:

If you are not downstream of the BMS, the system won't know that you charged the battery.

Also...If replacing the battery, have to recalibrate the BMS:
LVB BMS reset

Make sure 12v battery is fully charged (drive an hour, or after an hour actively charging the HVB)
Start Accessory mode
flash high beams 5 times
step on brake pedal 3 times
red battery icon on dash should flash 3 times

If the dealer changes the 12v battery, they should do this, but they don't always. If they plan on keeping it overnight, there is a good chance they will - Just ask when you pick it up.

 

[WXman]

So the dealership says the heater assembly has failed. Parts are on order. I hope this isn't a sign of what's to come on this truck.

 

[TaxmanHog]

So the dealership says the heater assembly has failed. Parts are on order. I hope this isn't a sign of what's to come on this truck.

I had a gut suspicion that it or the diverter valve was the culprit, the forum has seen a few reports of either over the years, hope it's not much longer before your riding the Lightning again!

 

[WXman]

By "heater assembly" I assume she was referring to the electric grid heater portion of the system that's behind the dash? Would that be your assumption too? I asked for specifics but she couldn't really tell me. I wonder exactly how involved this repair is?

 

[TaxmanHog]

By "heater assembly" I assume she was referring to the electric grid heater portion of the system that's behind the dash? Would that be your assumption too? I asked for specifics but she couldn't really tell me. I wonder exactly how involved this repair is?

Lightnings do not have the electric grid heater (like a toaster element) found in older Ford products.

The PTC is an electric immersion heater, a part of the Lightnings original heating system (2022 & 2023).

I believe this component still exists on 2024 & 2025+ Heat Pump equipped trucks, though it's primary duty is to only boost heat requirements to the HVB in cold situations, while the heat pump warms you in the cabin.

Once the repairs are complete, look over the work report, for the parts used in the repair, post a sanitized copy if you can, I'd like to confirm what part they replaced.

 

[chl]

Lightnings do not have the electric grid heater (like a toaster element) found in older Ford products.

The PTC is an electric immersion heater, a part of the Lightnings original heating system (2022 & 2023).

I believe this component still exists on 2024 & 2025+ Heat Pump equipped trucks, though it's primary duty is to only boost heat requirements to the HVB in cold situations, while the heat pump warms you in the cabin.

Once the repairs are complete, look over the work report, for the parts used in the repair, post a sanitized copy if you can, I'd like to confirm what part they replaced.

It feels like the "toaster" is now in the heated seat...

 

[bmwhitetx]

Negative would be downstream of the 12v BMS...see pic:

You might link to my original post on this. Picture is much bigger:
https://www.f150lightningforum.com/forum/threads/charging-12v-battery.16979/

 

[RLXXI]

When hooking up a trickle charger to the Lightning 12v, what is the optimal location? Directly to the battery or somewhere upstream before the 12v BMS?

According to the people that designed and built your truck the ONLY place you should connect any kind of charger or jump starter is under the passenger side frunk panel.

They put that remote connection point in for safety reasons, hydrogen gas can escape form that 12v battery when charging so you want to stay away from it as far as possible when connecting these items as a spark could set off a reaction that's not conducive to the health of man or machine. See Pic below for proper 12v battery charging connection.

 

[El Duderino]

What is different about charging a lead acid battery in a Lightning versus any other 12 volt lead acid equipped vehicle?

 

[chriserx]

What is different about charging a lead acid battery in a Lightning versus any other 12 volt lead acid equipped vehicle?

Enclosed space, little to no ventilation.
Think Hindenburg. I myself am dubious, even after looking up how much hydrogen *could* be released, I'm still skeptical, but I also understand the abundance of caution. It's not like the frunk is hermetically sealed, hydrogen is light, opening the frunk is painfully slow, all of these combined makes the only risk an arc in the frunk with an extremely overcharging battery. With the outlet right there, it could happen.

 

[chl]

You might link to my original post on this. Picture is much bigger:
https://www.f150lightningforum.com/forum/threads/charging-12v-battery.16979/

Thanks, I'm saving the link now!

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