I have a 2009 Mercury Mariner hybrid that I bought in FL around June with about 167,000 miles. I’ve since moved to NC and have put about another 10,000 miles on the vehicle.

When I first got this car the orange wrench would come on periodically. Usually driving 75 MPH on a hot day, it would come on. Then while driving back and forth between FL and NC on a hot day, going up hill, the light seemed to come on.

I settled in NC and the light seemed to be coming on less. Maybe it was in my head, but I attributed it to the milder weather.

Well now we’re getting weather below freezing, and it seems to be acting up. The battery meter display will drop to just 1 bar over night. When I let it idle, the bars come back super quick- so quick that I think the battery isn’t actually discharged, but rather just needs to warm up. A couple times, the orange wrench has come on while just idling in my driveway.

If I don’t let the car idle and warm up, I get the orange wrench and sometimes SSN before I get out of my neighborhood.

The other night I turned it on, didn’t idle, and tried to back out my driveway. I got SSN while backing down the driveway. I restarted, let it idle, and drove off without issue until we got to our destination. I was backing into a parking spot (on a slight incline) and while reversing up the hill, I again got SSN.

I hope the summary of all my experiences is useful. I’m sure the Forscan info will be more valuable. I’ll attach screenshots of the stored codes.

Any insights for this first time hybrid owner would be greatly appreciated!