[murcod]

I will however, put my batteries on a trickle charger over night to ensure the battery is in top condition

I've got mine on a float charger all the time now. It made a big difference to the battery's health- as indicated by the SOC checked reading via ForScan. It used to get driven about once a week, but that's now dropped off to more like once every 3-4 weeks.

 

[Kenshin X]

@Kenshin X....appreciate that info and looking forward to anything further you discover re BMS.

As I said earlier I can almost bet my local Ford dealer has never heard of BMS. Probably thinks it is a condition some women suffer from...

Lol... BMS... PMS...

I can definitely say if you don't drive the car too often and also have a dashcam installed (like I do, Blackvue with magic pro hardwired) it would be best to leave the car plugged in a trickle charger over night on a weekend to keep the battery in top condition for many years.

Just ensure you connect the negative to the dedicated chassis negative point (near the LHS strut rather than straight on th negative terminal on the battery. Although I would seriously doubt you could connect it directly to the negative terminal as it sits deep in the battery plastic surrounding.

My focus battery only lasted less than 3 years. The problem started when the dash brought up the message to start the car via push button when it was in the middle of the stop start cycle at the lights.

Ford recommend a replacement battery for $450 dollars plus $75 dollars BMS reset.

I will keep charging it this way until the battery completely dies as it starts up on cold mornings quite well. Then I'll change it to a century when outside warranty

 

[Kly]

Only reset the sensor if the battery was replaced.

Vehicles without rear fog light key:

Perform steps 1-3 within 10 seconds

1. Ignition ON, Engine OFF
2. Activate the headlight flasher 5 times.
3. Fully depress the brake pedal 3 times.
4. If the battery charge indicator lamp in the instrument cluster flashes 3 times in 15 seconds,
then the reset was successful.

This did work for my 2015 Escape, in the US. One note to clarify the above though, I hit the headlight flasher 5 times which only turns on the high beams 3 times, on off on off on, then step 3. Just in case anyone tries to turn the high beams ON 5 times like I did at first

 

[HayaiKuruma]

This did work for my 2015 Escape, in the US. One note to clarify the above though, I hit the headlight flasher 5 times which only turns on the high beams 3 times, on off on off on, then step 3. Just in case anyone tries to turn the high beams ON 5 times like I did at first

When you say “I hit the headlight flasher” do you mean the stalk on the steering column or the round knob on the dash to the left of the steering column that controls the lights? Also, if your ending #2 in the “on” position, does that mean your holding the stalk, or leaving the round knob in the on position?

 

[Kly]

Hi, good point. I used the stalk on the steering column, push forward 5 times and let go on the 5th.

 

[HayaiKuruma]

Hi, good point. I used the stalk on the steering column, push forward 5 times and let go on the 5th.

I don’t mean to bust your balls, but damn your confusing. Here’s a quote from YOU in post #183.
“ I hit the headlight flasher 5 times which only turns on the high beams 3 times, on off on off on, then step 3”.

That is not pushing forward on the stalk 5 times. That is pushing forward on the stalk 3 times.

But hey, thank you for your efforts.

 

[Kly]

I don’t mean to bust your balls, but damn your confusing. Here’s a quote from YOU in post #183.
“ I hit the headlight flasher 5 times which only turns on the high beams 3 times, on off on off on, then step 3”.

That is not pushing forward on the stalk 5 times. That is pushing forward on the stalk 3 times.

But hey, thank you for your efforts.

No, please don't get confused. Pushing the stalk forward once turns on the brights. Pushing it forward again turns them off. If you push it forward 5 times, that is an odd number and the brights are on again.

 

[Stew]

the Ford dealer is always able to do the Reset!

To save yourself around 150 bucks for a 1 minute job, do this as it worked on my 2013 Escape SEL 2 litre. First make sure all windows doors/hatchs are closed Then turn ignition switch to on (Dont start car) Wait 10 seconds, Then flash your highbeams 5-7 times, Then press your brake pedal 3 times, Wait for battery light to flash. Thats it, I found this after much research and dealerships will never tell you this method as it takes money out of their greedy hands, they charge around 150 bucks to do this 1 minute procedure. It might be a good idea to do this after you park your car for the night to let the BCM learn the new battery's charge state and recalibrate accordingly. Not sure about this last part but cant hurt right !

 

[ralph7up]

Lol... BMS... PMS...

I can definitely say if you don't drive the car too often and also have a dashcam installed (like I do, Blackvue with magic pro hardwired) it would be best to leave the car plugged in a trickle charger over night on a weekend to keep the battery in top condition for many years.

Just ensure you connect the negative to the dedicated chassis negative point (near the LHS strut rather than straight on th negative terminal on the battery. Although I would seriously doubt you could connect it directly to the negative terminal as it sits deep in the battery plastic surrounding.

My focus battery only lasted less than 3 years. The problem started when the dash brought up the message to start the car via push button when it was in the middle of the stop start cycle at the lights.

Ford recommend a replacement battery for $450 dollars plus $75 dollars BMS reset.

I will keep charging it this way until the battery completely dies as it starts up on cold mornings quite well. Then I'll change it to a century when outside warranty

Your dealer is ripping you off. Mine quoted $170.00 for a new battery and BMS reset.

 

[ralph7up]

To save yourself around 150 bucks for a 1 minute job, do this as it worked on my 2013 Escape SEL 2 litre. First make sure all windows doors/hatchs are closed Then turn ignition switch to on (Dont start car) Wait 10 seconds, Then flash your highbeams 5-7 times, Then press your brake pedal 3 times, Wait for battery light to flash. Thats it, I found this after much research and dealerships will never tell you this method as it takes money out of their greedy hands, they charge around 150 bucks to do this 1 minute procedure. It might be a good idea to do this after you park your car for the night to let the BCM learn the new battery's charge state and recalibrate accordingly. Not sure about this last part but cant hurt right !

Is that documented anywhere?

 

[Stew]

BMS = Battery Monitoring System, the suite of sensors, electronic modules and computer program that determine battery condition and provide data to other systems which manage the charging rate and load-shedding (battery saver) features in the '13+ Escape.

Hopefully the "diagnostic and labour" charge you incurred included the requisite BMS reset, IMHO very likely if your replacement was done by a (competent) Ford dealer.

Clipped from the workshop manual:

Battery Replacement

If the vehicle battery is replaced, it is very important to perform the battery monitoring system reset using the scan tool. If the battery monitoring system reset is not carried out, it holds the old battery parameters and time in service counter in memory. Additionally it tells the system the battery is in an aged state and the (sic) may limit the Electrical Energy Management system functions.

^^ In that context "scan tool" refers to the genuine Ford diagnostics device used by dealers. The BMS data is held in non-volatile memory (it is retained even when the battery is disconnected) and cannot be reset by any means other than use of an appropriate tool plugged into the diagnostics port on the car to send the correct 'BMS reset' command-code to the Body Control Module (BCM).

Well there actually is a way to reset your BMS module after a battery replacement without spending a dime. This method worked on my 2013 Escape SEL 2 liter. First make sure all windows are up doors and hatch's closed, Turn ignition switch to on (Don't start car) wait 10 seconds, then flash your high beams 5-7 times, then press brake pedal 3 times, wait for battery light to flash, Done ! This is for North American made vehicles only. It might also be a good idea to do this procedure when you park your vehicle for the night to let the BMS module learn the true state of your new battery's charge and recalibrate accordingly, Not sure about this last step but with all the research I have done about this stupid BMS Ford uses, There was an article I came across that said to let it sit untouched for around 8 hours, So up to you. I think its criminal for Ford to charge you around 150 bucks to reset this module which takes less than a minute to do, After buying a new OEM battery from them !

 

[ralph7up]

Well there actually is a way to reset your BMS module after a battery replacement without spending a dime. This method worked on my 2013 Escape SEL 2 liter. First make sure all windows are up doors and hatch's closed, Turn ignition switch to on (Don't start car) wait 10 seconds, then flash your high beams 5-7 times, then press brake pedal 3 times, wait for battery light to flash, Done ! This is for North American made vehicles only. It might also be a good idea to do this procedure when you park your vehicle for the night to let the BMS module learn the true state of your new battery's charge and recalibrate accordingly, Not sure about this last step but with all the research I have done about this stupid BMS Ford uses, There was an article I came across that said to let it sit untouched for around 8 hours, So up to you. I think its criminal for Ford to charge you around 150 bucks to reset this module which takes less than a minute to do, After buying a new OEM battery from them !

Can you tell me exactly what your readings were both before and after for the following: "Days in Sevice", "Battery State of Charge."

 

[Stew]

When you say “I hit the headlight flasher” do you mean the stalk on the steering column or the round knob on the dash to the left of the steering column that controls the lights? Also, if your ending #2 in the “on” position, does that mean your holding the stalk, or leaving the round knob in the on position?

This worked on my 2013 Escape SEL 2 liter, North American made only vehicle, He means turn ignition on wait 10 seconds, then flash you High beams 5-7 times (stalk) then press brake pedal 3 times, wait for battery light to flash, Done.

Look at bottom reply in comment section to video as video is unimportant.

 

[Kenshin X]

Your dealer is ripping you off. Mine quoted $170.00 for a new battery and BMS reset.

Yeah mate, 100% ripping me off.

I tried the push forward on high beam procedure but it still did not work. I would thought the rear fog light would have worked. My escape was built in Spain.

I have sort of given up, even my mate who worked for ford said they just hook up the scan tool for some cars.

When it's time to replace I'll just hook it up on a float charger overnight with the car locked for at least 8 hours that should help the BMS learn that a new battery is in there.

Ask long as the stop start function works, the BMS is reading all parameters are met. Right?

 

[ralph7up]

Yeah mate, 100% ripping me off.

I tried the push forward on high beam procedure but it still did not work. I would thought the rear fog light would have worked. My escape was built in Spain.

I have sort of given up, even my mate who worked for ford said they just hook up the scan tool for some cars.

When it's time to replace I'll just hook it up on a float charger overnight with the car locked for at least 8 hours that should help the BMS learn that a new battery is in there.

Ask long as the stop start function works, the BMS is reading all parameters are met. Right?

That is my understanding of S/S. As far as I know the only way to reset BMS is dealer or use of Forscan. I am unaware of any other method. That is pretty much what WSM says.

 

[wiz043]

I don't know whether the fact that the S/S system is working has anything to do with the BMS being successfully reset. That is more to do with the battery being fully recharged.

I am not saying it cannot be done but this method of resetting the BMS has been discussed before many times on other forums here but doesn't seem to work for everyone. Does anything appear on the digital display on the dash to tell you the BMS is reset after this method? If not how do you know if it is actually reset?

Also leaving the car overnight for 8 hours or whatever after the battery change does not actually reset the BMS according to previous threads and Ford technicians. Apparently all that does is recalibrate the battery which is different to resetting the BMS.

As @ralph7up says the only way to reset it properly is with the dealer or do it yourself with Forscan which will confirm it has actually been reset.

 

[Kenshin X]

I reckon when the time comes to replace it, I'll just buy the forscan tool. In any case, it's cheaper to get a good aftermarket battery + purchasing the tool rather than going to ford and getting them to do it.

 

[wiz043]

This is another method that seems to work according to the video reviews but who knows...

The only thing I am not so sure about with both these video 'methods' is that the battery amber light on the dash display flashes 3 times at the end supposedly to indicate that the BMS has been reset correctly. How do we know that is what it indicates...it could mean anything???

 

[wiz043]

That is my understanding of S/S. As far as I know the only way to reset BMS is dealer or use of Forscan. I am unaware of any other method. That is pretty much what WSM says.

I do not have a laptop. Do you know if you can plug the OBD tool into an Android mobile phone or tablet with the Forscan app loaded?

 

[ralph7up]

I do not have a laptop. Do you know if you can plug the OBD tool into an Android mobile phone or tablet with the Forscan app loaded?

ASAIK, only Forscan and maybe Foccus. I have Forscan and purchased the ELM reader. I decided that I did not want to chance messing up the car’s computers so I defaulted to the dealer. Their prices are competitive and at my age I am not up doing all that work to get the battery in and out.