During hot weather above 90 deg. or so if I put a load on the engine I get high revs (it red lines) and no power. While this is inconvient passing logging trucks on a hill it's particularly unpleasant merging onto freeways in cities when you must get up to highway speed immediately. It is as if you have a clutch slipping in a manual transmission car. I was told by the dealer that it is not a transmission problem and that Ford doesn't know what the problem is. They will eventually put a computer on the the car to record the occurance when they get it back from another vehicle. Ford also states that this is normal; Bupkus!

Rather than this I love my FEH and drive it on dirt roads and in the snow. It gets great gas mileage when I'm not flyin' down I-5 in the central valley (CA).

Anyone experiencing this problem and know what's going on?

 

When you say "no power", what exactly do you mean? Does it accelerate to highway speed slower than at lower temps? Or does the high RPM concern you?

These vehicles definitely behave differently than regular automatic transmission cars. Has the behavior changed over when you first got it? Is the check engine light on at all? You can access trouble codes by holding in the button for the trip odometer select while you start the car - toggle through and see if there are any codes coming up. Do a search on here and you will be able to find the exact procedure.

Good Luck

 

Can you get cool air from the air conditioner? It sounds similar to the issue someone else had where the battery was overheating due to no AC. If that were the case, you would have no hybrid assist and you would be limited to accelerating on the ICE only.

 

I'm going to respond to both above posts.

nitramjr-I am fully aware that the transmission is not a normal transmission and yes this is a new problem. I didn't have this problem last year. I have over 38,000 mi. on the thing. I'm worried that I get high revs and there is no acceleration. Put a normal car in neutral hit the gas really hard you can redline w/no power. This is pretty much what is happening. When it's not hot I get normal acceleration no matter what. The check engine light does not come on. There is no code on my computer or when the dealer checked it out with their in shop computer.

WScottCross-Interesting. When I have the cab air conditioner on max, it never really gets "cold". It'll keep me comfortable but nothing like some new cars where you need a parka because the A/C is soooo cold. They did change my AC filter (for power conversion) at the 30,000 mi check up. I mentioned that it seemed like I was getting no battery assist to the tech who also experience the problem in my car and he said the filter shouldn't have anything to do with it. Can you point me in the direction of the post you are refering? I'll do some double checking with the dealer. So to understand you correctly there is an air conditioner for the batteries or does it have to do with the power conversion?

Thanks for the help!
Brandy

 

He's refering to this thread:

https://www.greenhybrid.com/discuss/...48.html?page=1

Where we learned that if the AC fails, the Hybrid electrics stop functioning. As the batteries charge and discharge, they heat up. With an AC failure, there's nothing to cool them, and when the batteries get too hot, the programming stops using them, making electric assist and charging impossible in order to protect the battery.

Without the electric assists, you have reduced power and a greater strain on the ICE.

 

Thanks! I'm doing the work for my dealer. Taking it on Thursday to have them look at the cooling system.
Brandy

 

Hi Brandy

Scott has the solution I think. It seems with the cabin A/C on, the battery outside vent door closes. If the A/C is low on R-14 refrig, the battery A/C may not keep up with the cooling demand. If this happens, the Traction Battery Control Module (TBCM) will prevent battery use.

Try shutting off the cabin A/C so the outside vent will open and release heat and take in some cooler air to the battery. If the A/C is not producing enough cooling power, it will never be able to stop the heat build up in the closed system. Shutting off the cabin A/C will let the vent open if the outside temp is cool enough. If the outside air is not cool enough, the TBCM will request the PCM to turn on the compressor for needed cooling. With low refrig, your back to the battery getting to hot and no electric asist.

Now, you stated you have 38,000 miles on your FEH, so the 36/36,000 mile waranty is up. The fact that none of us could order the FEH without A/C is evidence the A/C system is required for the Hybrid system. All hybrid related systems are covered under the 8yr/100,000 or better waranty. I'd tell your dealer to fix the problem under the hybrid waranty. That is the system not working properly and I would take that issue to the top of Ford if they refuse to honor that waranty. Keep us informed!

GaryG

 

Actually Gary, that would be nice, but is NOT true.

I very VERY specifically asked, and very VERY specifically got in writing that 3, and only 3 components are covered under the 8 year warranty.

1. HV Battery Pack
2. HV DC to low voltage DC converter
3. the eCVT

That's it.

Air conditioning is for sure not part of that deal. However, if it is something like mine, a $0.10 O-ring that leaked, they'd probably fix that for free, as this is a well known problem, even in other Ford models.

-John

 

I got it in writing too (as did every other owner). It's on page 7 of the 2005 Ford Escape Hybrid Warranty Guide. Spells it out pretty clearly.

 

The high voltage battery is covered and that is the component that is not functioning properly. The A/C is a component of the functioning battery system which uses fans internal to the battery unit. The HV battery cannot function properly without the designed cooling system, therefore it is part of the unique hybrid components.

If the HV battery did not require the A/C to operate properly, I would agree. Without the A/C, the hybrid system which includes the battery is defective. A defect in factory-supplied materials or workmanship is covered for at least eight years or 100,000 miles.

I would not give up so easy John and Ray!

GaryG