Forum Discussion

familyman5's avatar
familyman5
Explorer
Jun 07, 2017

Help, Ford Explore battery dies when flat towing

I have a 2014 Ford Explorer that is supposed to be able to Flat tow without pulling any fuses but the battery dies and less than four hours. I purchased this vehicle to tow behind our motorhome because it is supposed to be able to go six hours before needing to run the car engine for five minutes to recharge the battery. I just towed the vehicle on our first trip and after four hours the battery was completely dead. I followed the owners manual that said to put the key in the accessory position. Note that I am not using a braking system that requires any battery power and I had the battery checked at an auto parts store and it was fine. Can anyone help with this?
  • mowermech's avatar
    mowermech
    Explorer
    Jun 07, 2017
    Is there a steering lock? If so, you have to have the ignition switch in the ON or ACC position to deactivate the lock. (The engineers, in their infinite wisdom, eliminated the "OFF, not locked" position from the switches in about 2007.)
    If there is no steering lock, there should be no need to have the switch on or the key in the ignition.
    If the switch must be ON or in the ACC position to unlock the steering, your only option is to pull a fuse or disconnect the battery cable (or install a battery disconnect switch).
  • traveylin's avatar
    traveylin
    Explorer
    Jun 07, 2017
    "run the engine for 5 minutes to recharge the battery". A std 600 amp hr battery would take a 7200 amp output car charger/alternator. You missed it by a factor of 100 and need to reset your expectation.
  • CA_Traveler's avatar
    CA_Traveler
    Explorer III
    Jun 07, 2017
    Options:
    1. Larger battery
    2. Pull battery cable or install a switch. Some vehicles require that the vehicle have power for towing
    3. Install a charge line from the MH
  • B-goat's avatar
    B-goat
    Explorer
    Jun 07, 2017
    I'm following this, as I'm going to be towing a 2015 Explorer. In the limited research I've done, I think Ford has revised the instructions to include removing the negative cable from the battery also. As I said that's limited research, so I don't know for sure.
  • familyman5's avatar
    familyman5
    Explorer
    Jun 07, 2017
    traveylin wrote:
    "run the engine for 5 minutes to recharge the battery". A std 600 amp hr battery would take a 7200 amp output car charger/alternator. You missed it by a factor of 100 and need to reset your expectation.


    Makes sense to me but this is what his stated both in the towing dingy guide and the owners manual. That's why this is so confusing can they be that far off?
  • familyman5's avatar
    familyman5
    Explorer
    Jun 07, 2017
    CA Traveler wrote:
    Options:
    1. Larger battery
    2. Pull battery cable or install a switch. Some vehicles require that the vehicle have power for towing
    3. Install a charge line from the MH


    Thanks for the options. Someone commented on another blog that they don't think that the battery should be disconnected as it can affect all the computerized stuff if the battery is disconnected for a long period of time.

    Does anyone have experience towing a newer explorer that has tried any of these options listed?
  • YC_1's avatar
    YC_1
    Nomad
    Jun 07, 2017
    If it is a three year old original battery it is worn out. It may pass the basic tests but they lose capacity at the end of their life.

    If you have keyless ignition and adaptive cruise the procedure for towing may leave some things alive. I can actually hear my adaptive cruise sender singing so know it is alive.
  • familyman5's avatar
    familyman5
    Explorer
    Jun 07, 2017
    YC 1 wrote:
    If it is a three year old original battery it is worn out. It may pass the basic tests but they lose capacity at the end of their life.

    If you have keyless ignition and adaptive cruise the procedure for towing may leave some things alive. I can actually hear my adaptive cruise sender singing so know it is alive.


    That is a good idea and I can try replacing the battery before trying one of the three options listed above. Other than testing the battery I guess there is no way to know for sure until the battery is replaced, right? Note that I do not have a keyless Ignition.

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