Interesting, thanks.
Battery problem update
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What you describe sounds like a slow deplete of the 12V battery to the point it fails completely. You say you've not had the Charge System Service Now message, so that indicates either parasitic drain (eg dash cam) or your journeys are insufficient to replenish the amps consumed (first start, heated seats, heated screen etc).
To restore confidence in the car and maybe also diagnose a charging fault you can fit one of these volt meters to the cigarette light socket:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12V-24V-LED- ... Sw5PJbD8E1
14-15V is good and indicates charging. 12V and below indicates charge system fault and 12V battery is not being supported.
And no, the 48V battery will not pull current from the 12V battery. If the charge system faults, be it the generator/48V battery/DCDC, you've got whatever charge remains in the 12V battery till the car stops on the road.
To restore confidence in the car and maybe also diagnose a charging fault you can fit one of these volt meters to the cigarette light socket:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12V-24V-LED- ... Sw5PJbD8E1
14-15V is good and indicates charging. 12V and below indicates charge system fault and 12V battery is not being supported.
And no, the 48V battery will not pull current from the 12V battery. If the charge system faults, be it the generator/48V battery/DCDC, you've got whatever charge remains in the 12V battery till the car stops on the road.
Well car in for check today and I don’t think you guys will be surprised with results
Battery was at 25% which was why I was getting the messages every time I opened the door I never would have known that if they hadn’t told me
25% is far better than the 0% it had dropped down to before so there was clearly some charging going on but I suspect only because I have been driving in sport to minimise the use of the hybrid motor and the stop/start feature which kind of defeats the object of buying a hybrid. My theory is that if I minimise use of the 48v battery then it won’t steal from the 12v
They charged it back up to 100%, checked again after 4 hours and it had dropped to 90% which they said was normal
All battery checks were fine so the computer didn’t tell them to change the battery, so they said they couldn’t do that or contact Ford technical regarding the Romanian battery issue.
They suggested I wasn’t driving the car enough but were unable to say how far I needed to drive each day to avoid this happening again. I did point out that currently it is against the law to drive long journeys so does this mean puma not good car to have during lockdown. I also pointed out that I am driving this car more in this lockdown than I did the focus during the first lockdown but they couldn’t answer that one. They suggested I get a battery charger.
Have now approached Ford customer service who were much more helpful so let’s see what success I have there
Battery was at 25% which was why I was getting the messages every time I opened the door I never would have known that if they hadn’t told me
25% is far better than the 0% it had dropped down to before so there was clearly some charging going on but I suspect only because I have been driving in sport to minimise the use of the hybrid motor and the stop/start feature which kind of defeats the object of buying a hybrid. My theory is that if I minimise use of the 48v battery then it won’t steal from the 12vThey charged it back up to 100%, checked again after 4 hours and it had dropped to 90% which they said was normal
All battery checks were fine so the computer didn’t tell them to change the battery, so they said they couldn’t do that or contact Ford technical regarding the Romanian battery issue.
They suggested I wasn’t driving the car enough but were unable to say how far I needed to drive each day to avoid this happening again. I did point out that currently it is against the law to drive long journeys so does this mean puma not good car to have during lockdown. I also pointed out that I am driving this car more in this lockdown than I did the focus during the first lockdown but they couldn’t answer that one. They suggested I get a battery charger.
Have now approached Ford customer service who were much more helpful so let’s see what success I have there
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Deleted User 361
Has anyone with a non-hybrid had problems with the wombat or is this a hybrid only issue do we know?
I think your theory is wrong. I know from experience that the car needs to be driven in order to charge the system. Puma doesn't have an alternator as such. You should be aiming to regen the 48v system as much and as often as possible. During regeneration 48v is being sent mainly to the hybrid battery. Some of this energy is passed through the DC/DC converter and stepped down to 12v, for your 12v system.
The problem comes when trying to work out how well charged your system is. There is no gauge as such, just the fancy arc graphic or little battery symbol above the fuel gauge. I have learnt to regen by feel. You can tell how much the system is charging by how quickly the car slows when you come off the accelerator.
If you are not using your Puma for a while a decent trickle charger/maintainer would be a good investment.
I have found sport mode is the best for regen, the car thinks you're going to use full boost and harvest energy the quickest. Start/stop is also beneficial so that you are not wasting energy without making any. You know, stuck in a jam or at lights etc.
Remember the 12v circuit and 48v circuit are two different things. 12v may run lights, wipers, sync etc (working hard through winter) whilst 48v runs the motor for boost and HVAC system.
The more you charge the 48v system the more beneficial it is to the 12v system.
The problem comes when trying to work out how well charged your system is. There is no gauge as such, just the fancy arc graphic or little battery symbol above the fuel gauge. I have learnt to regen by feel. You can tell how much the system is charging by how quickly the car slows when you come off the accelerator.
If you are not using your Puma for a while a decent trickle charger/maintainer would be a good investment.
I have found sport mode is the best for regen, the car thinks you're going to use full boost and harvest energy the quickest. Start/stop is also beneficial so that you are not wasting energy without making any. You know, stuck in a jam or at lights etc.
Remember the 12v circuit and 48v circuit are two different things. 12v may run lights, wipers, sync etc (working hard through winter) whilst 48v runs the motor for boost and HVAC system.
The more you charge the 48v system the more beneficial it is to the 12v system.
I'll repeat myself, the 48V battery will not pull current from the 12V battery. Your driving style or mode selection has no bearing on 12V charging.
25% SoC on the 12V battery is poor. If you don't have any charging faults then the 12V battery is knackered, probably sulfated. Did the tech comment how many amps were being pushed into the 12V when that low? I would expect +50 amps for a good healthy battery when low.
25% SoC on the 12V battery is poor. If you don't have any charging faults then the 12V battery is knackered, probably sulfated. Did the tech comment how many amps were being pushed into the 12V when that low? I would expect +50 amps for a good healthy battery when low.
