Battery & Air Issue

[arneycl]

I purchased a 2009 Expedition EL in July 2013 and it now has 72,000 miles. I have two issues I'm hoping someone might have answers on.

First, according to Carfax the battery was replaced in January 2013 at 58,000 miles. My Service Engine light came on for a couple of days and then went off. I took it to dealership, they hooked the computer up to it and didn't find anything. However, he checked the battery and it failed. The tech said that I had one whole cell that was not working in the battery. So I replaced the battery. Is this something that can happen to a one year old battery? Is something wrong with the vehicle to cause the battery to go bad?

Second, we keep the A/C or Heat in Auto mode. It always takes at least 5-10 minutes for the air to finally kick on. Is this normal? Other vehicles I've had it kicks in immediately. However, this is my first Ford vehicle.

Thank you all for your time. Love this forum.

 

[bedrck46]

what's to say that the battery wasn't switched even though the carfax says it was changed in Jan 2013. There is a code that is on the battery that would show a date of manufacture. Also a one year old battery should have some sort of warranty on it. Not sure how the 2009 model is but on my 2001 EB when in Auto it does take a bit of time for the fan to come on Check the Owners Manual as there should be something explaining this.

 

[911jason]

Go to Costco for the new battery... I did a lot of research last year when I needed one and found not only are they the cheapest, but they are the best and have a 3-year replacement policy that changes to prorated after the 3 years.

My HEAT usually takes a few minutes for the fan to kick in. I'm pretty sure it's just waiting for the engine to warm up and build to the appropriate temp to blow warm air. The AC usually blows from the start though.

 

[arneycl]

Thanks for the info. So I shouldn't be too concerned with the battery issue then? I was just concerned that maybe something was wrong with the vehicle which was making the battery go bad. But perhaps it was just a bad battery.

 

[Static54]

My 2013 takes awhile to kick in in auto air. I assume it has a delay to let the vehicle warm up.

 

[bedrck46]

My 2013 takes awhile to kick in in auto air. I assume it has a delay to let the vehicle warm up.

what happens when it isn't in auto mode??

 

[arneycl]

For me if we immediately want heat I turn up the fan to full blast and it comes on immediately. I'm guessing with heat it is waiting for the motor to warm up. I don't have any issues when using the A/C in Auto. It comes on immediately.

 

[bedrck46]

For me if we immediately want heat I turn up the fan to full blast and it comes on immediately. I'm guessing with heat it is waiting for the motor to warm up. I don't have any issues when using the A/C in Auto. It comes on immediately.

If I understand what you wrote Does that mean with a cold engine you get heat immediately when you turn the fan to full blast???? Or do you still have to wait for the engine to warm up?

 

[arneycl]

Yeah I should have explained that better. Sorry. When I turn on a cold engine in cold weather and I turn the fan up full blast I get air but it is cold air. Then after a few minutes it finally warms up. Same scenario but I leave it on Auto it takes 5-10 minutes to turn on air. But even then the air coming out isn't all that warm but finally does warm up. I'm guessing this is just how Ford vehicles work which is prefectly fine. Just making sure nothing is wrong with my vehicle.

 

[spotdog14]

Yeah I should have explained that better. Sorry. When I turn on a cold engine in cold weather and I turn the fan up full blast I get air but it is cold air. Then after a few minutes it finally warms up. Same scenario but I leave it on Auto it takes 5-10 minutes to turn on air. But even then the air coming out isn't all that warm but finally does warm up. I'm guessing this is just how Ford vehicles work which is prefectly fine. Just making sure nothing is wrong with my vehicle.

Sounds about right. If I start my Ex in the winter and leave it takes about a mile and a half down the road before any air starts blowing if I have it in the 'auto' position. My Fusion was like that as well.