I have a 2008 Escape Hybrid and am currently down in tropical Mexico near Cancun. They never sold this car down here nor will they service it at any Ford dealerships.. over the last year I have found out many things about this SUV and why the Hybrid battery can have issues. I had to replace the MECS pump which was needed, the fuel pump which also needed, the 12v battery (of course) due to too many "jump starts" while trouble shooting and killing the 12v beyond being able to recharge fully, I have replaced the Hybrid battery and even had one sent down here, which was no small task sneaking it through Tijuana and then having a Mexican shipping company get it to Cancun..
I feel almost like I truly understand how these cars work now.. but here is my current dilemma, the hybrid battery I am currently using seems to be performing well, getting 30 mpg, which is good considering this heat and humidity, but it won't hold enough charge over night to allow me to start in the morning with out the "yellow wrench" lighting up due to not enough charge in the hybrid battery to cycle properly, which also means it won't allow itself to use the ICE and regenerative braking unless I use the "jump button" and clear the codes. Doing this daily is a pain in the butt to say the least. here is my question.. can I try to do a deep cycle charge to the hybrid battery by doing the "jump start" process several times? its an 8 minute process, but if I just kept repeating it while I have my 12V plugged into my charger, could I get a deeper charge on this battery after 10 or 20 of these cycles in a row? I just want the thing to stay charged for 20 hours in between start ups. Or are the cells in my "new" (refurbished) battery just not gonna hold a charge in this heat.. battery is about 2 years old now, but not used much. also, when the Hybrid battery kicks on and in Full EV mode, am I to assume that it is fully charged, or can there be a deeper charge possible. It does go into EV mode quite quickly after driving it several hundred yards. Or could it be a different issue that is pulling charge over night. Like I said, when it's running, it is behaving very efficiently.

thanks.
Keith

 

No. The jumpstarter doesn't get it anywhere near 100%. After even a few uses, it doesn't do anything. It's voltage based, and it just stops trying after a certain voltage.

Have you tried:
1) disconnecting your 12V?
2) disconnecting the data cable to the HV battery?
3) disconnecting the main power cable to the HV battery?

In some cases, the car itself is draining the battery. I don't recall the specific reason, but I think it was ignition switch related. If it doesn't drain the battery in one or more of the above cases, then it's likely not the battery itself.

 

Thanks for the prompt response S Keith

I had a feeling the jump button wasn't designed to get a really deep cycle charge, but I was hoping. So, other than hooking up a charger directly to the upper and lower cells, whats the best way to get a good charge? Maybe driving it a few hundred miles? I don't drive the car a lot, and not much more than 50 miles at a time once a week or so.. maybe I just need to take a good long road trip,

as far as your suggestions

1) Brand new 12V battery as of a few days ago, so that has been disconnected and reconnected

2) Not sure which data cable you are referring to. This HV battery has a Low Voltage and a High Voltage connector, which was connected within the last couple weeks when I put a new HV battery in. ( keep in mind that this battery sat unused for several moths, in the heat, so very possible it just needs to get a deeper charge)

3) Main power cable? would that be the Low and High Volt connectors? I can go back here and just double check these are all secure. perhaps unplug and replug? I think they are properly fitted because the battery seems to be charging and assisting the ICE normally.

could it be as simple that I am just not driving it enough? Get a really good several hundred miles and solve the issue? hmm..

 

The context was being unable to retain charge overnight. 1, 2 and 3 were to be conducted overnight, i.e., disconnect one or more of them overnight and see if it retains a charge.

If you can't figure out what is meant by 2 and 3, maybe just give up.

 

Give up huh!?

I can see why you have disabled your PM's and emailing.. you don't seem like a decent person.. please do not offer me any other help. You do not have a battery like mine and are not familiar with it, but you offer advice as if you are a guru.. you are not. I have a feeling you are not well liked on this forum.

 

LOL. With regards to familiarity, you've clearly made conclusions based on zero research and complete and total ignorance. If you're okay living your life that way, you be you.

With regards to your feelings or me not being well liked on this forum, both are completely irrelevant.

Once someone starts arguing for argument's sake, or they demonstrate seemingly deliberate inability to interpret basic information, I have no more time for them.

It's people like you that make me question why I bother trying to help total strangers... Then I remember that there aren't many like you, and I forget about you and carry on.

 

thank you for sharing you brilliance with the world.. you clearly make it a better place for all!

such a gift that you tolerate us dummies so well!! kudos to you! keep shining your light and selflessly helping people.. you are a true gem.

everyone who has read this post PLEASE chime in and show your support for this man's unwavering commitment to help!!

thanks for sharing your brilliance witht his world

 

Indeed, his (and others) info from the jump start thread were invaluable to me when my 2009 FEH would not start after sitting a couple of days. I had recently purchased it for my daughter after her 08 escape ICE lost a transmission. I now have a plug-in way of getting back on the road.

 

Thanks for your reply, sorry for the delay, I was actually testing out doing a deep cycle charge with the jump button.. I had posted to see if anyone had information about this.. some S Keith dude chimed in a said it wasn't possible to do this, and then had some condescending things to say when I was just trying to get some help.. well, turns out this guy was totally wrong. You can trickle charge the HV battery with the jump start button. I attached my battery charger to the 12V and did the jump cycle several times (probably 9 or so) and then let the car sit over night as usual. In the morning it started fine and did not throw the low voltage code. I drove it as normal, which is only about 5 miles and then again parked and let sit over night. Today it fired up and had plenty of charge to cycle and charge during driving. So basically the jump button functions just like the work around you did.. you just have to make sure your 12V is on a charger so you don't completely discharge it and keep going out to push the button every 10 minutes. I imagine if I really wanted to give it a good deep charge I could put my charger on 3V and do a trickle charge over a day or so.

This is good info for those who have the 05-08 Escape with the Jump Button feature.

I have also done many other repairs that fix the HV battery codes that come up. Willing to share with anyone that has issues with their Escape Hybrid.. maybe S Keith will read this and learn something new or perhaps he can "just give up"..

 

Chiming in per your invitation. You are obviously suffering from hurtpheelioma. S Keith is an invaluable resource on this board, please do not antagonize him.