Sponsored

etmccaus86

Base
Well-Known Member
First Name
Evan
Joined
Sep 26, 2020
Threads
8
Messages
901
Reaction score
1,649
Location
Motor City
Vehicle(s)
'22 BaseSquatch
Your Bronco Model
Base
Clubs
 
So...while this is interesting information, I have to wonder about it.

I previously hard-wired a lead for my battery tender/ charger to the nut used to secure the negative lead to the battery terminal.

All seemed to be fine - battery charged, and voltmeter on Bronco showed alternator output varying depending on engine/ battery management, as one would expect.

But I moved it last night to the position noted here...and now the voltmeter is showing the alternator is running at 15V, constantly.

Seems odd to me. I think I might move it back to where it was.
Sponsored

 

redone17

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
First Name
Chris
Joined
Mar 6, 2021
Threads
60
Messages
3,828
Reaction score
4,329
Location
Cold Spring, NY
Vehicle(s)
2021 Bronco, 2020 Ranger
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
This is interesting to me because my commute is about a mile and a half. I was already planning on installing a block heater this year to alleviate some stress on the system on the 7MT w/o a remote start.

@37’s Rule the Wasteland - why are you charging the battery regularly? Short commute or other reasons?
 

BroncoAZ

Badlands
Well-Known Member
First Name
Mitch
Joined
Mar 11, 2021
Threads
26
Messages
2,308
Reaction score
4,009
Location
Cape Cod, MA, formerly Flagstaff, AZ
Vehicle(s)
2021 2 Door Badlands manual, 2021 Tacoma TRD OR
Your Bronco Model
Badlands
So my takeaway from the video is that you can connect things like he suggests, or not and the failsafe he discusses will allow the truck to reevaluate the battery after the truck isn’t driven for 6-8 hours. Seems like this info is more critical for loads that draw while driving, like my ARB fridge or an amplifier.
 

JB1901

Badlands
Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 18, 2021
Threads
2
Messages
100
Reaction score
107
Location
KS
Vehicle(s)
'21 Badlands Sasquatch Lux
Your Bronco Model
Badlands
Long video, but this is all you need to know:

NEVER ATTACH ANYTHING DIRECLY TO THE BATTERY NEGATIVE TERMINAL. Not a jump starter, not a charger, nothing.
Ehhh, not quite. You can connect it anywhere you want, it'll just be 'best' to attach things on the other side of the battery monitoring system. Especially with items that draw amps while driving like an amp, air compressor, etc. At the end of the day the vehicle is still going to evaluate the voltage even if it didn't know how amps went in or out earlier in the day. 'Best practice' is different than 'NEVER EVER'.
 

Sponsored

etmccaus86

Base
Well-Known Member
First Name
Evan
Joined
Sep 26, 2020
Threads
8
Messages
901
Reaction score
1,649
Location
Motor City
Vehicle(s)
'22 BaseSquatch
Your Bronco Model
Base
Clubs
 
Last edited:

etmccaus86

Base
Well-Known Member
First Name
Evan
Joined
Sep 26, 2020
Threads
8
Messages
901
Reaction score
1,649
Location
Motor City
Vehicle(s)
'22 BaseSquatch
Your Bronco Model
Base
Clubs
 

etmccaus86

Base
Well-Known Member
First Name
Evan
Joined
Sep 26, 2020
Threads
8
Messages
901
Reaction score
1,649
Location
Motor City
Vehicle(s)
'22 BaseSquatch
Your Bronco Model
Base
Clubs
 
Same way now, or same way before
You said it went to 15 after the change
This is after the change, which was to move to how you have yours installed.
It stayed at 15 for the day and is now settled at 14.6 during driving.
Gone is the variation in alternator output. Gonna return to my original setup and see if it behaves as it did pre-charger.
 

Arokcrwlr

Wildtrak
Well-Known Member
First Name
Kraig
Joined
Jun 2, 2021
Threads
25
Messages
565
Reaction score
1,067
Location
US - Alabama
Vehicle(s)
2014 F150, 2014 Focus, 1973 Bronco
Your Bronco Model
Wildtrak
Clubs
 
If I don't drive my 2014 F150 for a few weeks without a battery tender connected, the battery will be dead. I normally only drive it short distances and it behaves just like explained in the vid... I always connect the battery tender to chassis ground.
 

Sponsored

redone17

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
First Name
Chris
Joined
Mar 6, 2021
Threads
60
Messages
3,828
Reaction score
4,329
Location
Cold Spring, NY
Vehicle(s)
2021 Bronco, 2020 Ranger
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
I recently started testing out using a tender in the evenings at home. Since my commute is only 1.5 miles each way. It’s certainly charging a bit, but topped off within an hour.

Is the gauge reading the actual battery voltage?
 

etmccaus86

Base
Well-Known Member
First Name
Evan
Joined
Sep 26, 2020
Threads
8
Messages
901
Reaction score
1,649
Location
Motor City
Vehicle(s)
'22 BaseSquatch
Your Bronco Model
Base
Clubs
 
Well, I'm eating my hat. After moving my charging lead back to the terminal stud, the past few days I've seen cluster readings of 14.5v and higher while driving about town...the variation was gone. Moved it back to behind the BMS shunt and it's behaving normally again.

Will note, if you're using the lug immediately behind the shunt, make sure to keep downward pressure on that grounding strap secured beneath the nut...mine naturally wanted to rise and it did some, uh, strange things (kinda nifty being without a gauge cluster for 10-15 minutes...).
 

XirallicBolts

Outer Banks
Well-Known Member
First Name
Paul
Joined
Sep 27, 2020
Threads
11
Messages
848
Reaction score
1,531
Location
Wisconsin, USA
Vehicle(s)
2016 Flex EcoBoost, 2010 Milan
Your Bronco Model
Outer Banks
People mention short trips, but what defines a short trip? My wife drives about 20 miles round-trip every day, we run errands on weekends, and it's going into Deep Sleep every night. Temperatures are above freezing and it's stored in an insulated garage. Only load is a dashcam. Start-stop never kicks in and it's been increasingly using the IPC for chimes (normal behavior when battery is low)

Maybe we'll just have to make routine charging once a week a standard practice for it. I'm a big fan of these permanent under-hood chargers -- I have one on my Flex and lawn tractor because both may sit for months at a time.

Ford Bronco Ford BMS Battery Monitoring System: How it Works, How to Properly Charge, How to Power Accessories image_search_1674048346041
 

redone17

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
First Name
Chris
Joined
Mar 6, 2021
Threads
60
Messages
3,828
Reaction score
4,329
Location
Cold Spring, NY
Vehicle(s)
2021 Bronco, 2020 Ranger
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
@XirallicBolts - that nightly deep sleep doesn’t seem right to me.

I’m just learning that the longer PowerPoint Timeout settings have been maxed out by Ford via an update at one point. I used to have it on infinity. Never once had a deep sleep in the first 12 months of ownership (1.5 mile commute each way to work). Assuming the update from June switched it back to stock.

I recently changed it to the new max which is 18 hours and got a notification of deep sleep for the first time the other day.

I’m running a tender on super cold nights, but it certainly wasn’t that cold the other day when I got that notification. I’m not sure if the message from Ford Pass was delayed and it went into deep sleep a couple of days prior when it sat at the dealer for over 24 hours.
 

redone17

Black Diamond
Well-Known Member
First Name
Chris
Joined
Mar 6, 2021
Threads
60
Messages
3,828
Reaction score
4,329
Location
Cold Spring, NY
Vehicle(s)
2021 Bronco, 2020 Ranger
Your Bronco Model
Black Diamond
Ok, after a couple of weeks messing with a battery tender - I’m bringing this up again. Someone at one point mentioned the battery gauge isn’t reading the battery itself, but the voltage the alternator is sending to the battery.

Can anyone confirm or deny this?

It seems on the mornings that I didn’t have it charging overnight the gauge reads around 15v upon starting up. The nights that I did have it charging and the green light is solid on the tender - the gauge on the cluster is around 13v.

I haven’t tested/confirmed anything with a voltmeter yet.
Sponsored

 
 


Top