Wow my 20 year old daughter completed the recharge to her brother's 2009 FEH following your video. I watched your video after the fact and wanted to thank you for sharing your experience and solution. So to those who came across this same video and think they can't do it, you can since my 20 year old non mechanic daughter did it herself. Thanks again.
@@mattgatlin1918what is the Name and Address to purchase that charger. I'm having the same issue with my 2010 Hybrid escape, I looked at a plug right at the back seat and wondered if that was where to charge this vehicle. Then I came across your video and watched it, when you showed that same prong and it wasn't connected to anything and the plugs was zip tied on the side! I said WTF was those engineers thinking when that was disconnected and why was it discontinued? Then after you went through the steps of removal it started to make sense why they did that. I'll keep my opinion to myself on those thoughts 🤣🤣🤣. Now if you would not mind, I'd like to know where I can get that charging device and install it as well. I have an idea but I'd rather talk in person or by phone with someone who has a better understanding of Electrical devices then my self, after looking at that charger something else came to mind, it is the positive and negative wires that aren't being used to charge the system but can be used to charge the system the way it was meant to be used, just my thoughts running after you showed those two wires connected to the Charger you then connected a 3 prong to connect to a wall plug or outside battery charger. Did you use AC or DC or can we use both if necessary depending where we're at and the circumstances...
This is a timely video for me. I will be recharging my 2009 Excape hybrid this week. It has been a couple years since I last charged it so I needed TH-cam to refresh my memory. I was stunned by how easy your method was. Can't wait to configure this permanent solution. The only additions I think I will add is a covered RV inlet male plug, plus maybe an easy access point to check the current voltage manually. Last thing, if I remember correctly that charger gets pretty hot, I will monitor the temp the first time I charge. Thanks again for saving me a bunch of time.
Good luck with the job! I didn’t have the issue of the charger getting hot, but that might be because I didn’t need to have it charging very long. When you don’t remove the hybrid battery and disrupt its circuitry, you don’t have to leave it on the charger that long. By having the charger plugged in when you go to start the car, it will register enough voltage for the car to start, even though the battery may not be actually up to that voltage- if that makes sense. Once it’s started, you can just let the engine complete the battery charging. Anyway, hope it goes well for you!
This video saved my 2009 Escape Hybrid from the junk yard! I had two mechanics tell me that it was a lost cause and I should sell it for parts. Turns out the hybrid battery had fallen just a little below 300v, so after a few hours of work and less than a hundred bucks in parts and tools, it only took a few minutes of charging to get my FEH up and running again. I can’t even begin to guess how you figured this out but it really works and in my case it was truly a life saver. Thanks Matt!
Glad to hear it worked out for you! If you can, definitely look into getting ForScan and doing a battery reconditioning. It’s all free except for the little connector adapter that goes from your laptop to the car’s OBD connection. There’s lots of info out there about how to use ForScan.
Superb video, Matt., and thanks for the acknowledgement. S.Keith and a great thread on the Electric-Vehicle forum was the source for a lot of my info. FEH owners: This is THE WAY to do this, ignore the other videos that have you remove your HVTB/ prop it up and/or remove the relay, BCM, etc. on the passenger side of the HVTB. It sucked that Ford removed the '05 to '08 charger and circuitry, but leaving those cables with the gray and black connectors partially made up for it. In an abundance of caution, I installed diodes on my charging cables when I built my charger. I also replaced those PIA side screws with regular bolts.
Thank YOU for the time-saving comment on a couple of the other videos I'd seen! I almost made the mistake of taking out the whole battery and futzing around with the high-voltage circuitry on the passenger side. I'm glad I didn't. I only made this video to get your advice/method out there and hopefully save some people a lot of time, headache and potential danger. Seriously, if I hadn't read your comment/method, I might not have even attempted it. Thanks again! Matt
I just rebuilt my HVTB with all new sticks from MaxPower. That was a project. Again, great job with this. You will save a lot of people a lot of time and a lot of frustration. @@mattgatlin1918
@@Lee-sv3so There’s a link in the description below the video if you expand the “more”- This is it: www.amazon.com/HLG-120H-C350A-150-5W-Single-Output-Switching/dp/B073ZCRJ5P
Thank you for making and posting this video. I bought a completely dead 2009 Mercury Mariner on auction hoping this would work. The biggest issue was waiting to get the charger from Amazon. The first one was lost in customs so I had to order a second one. I cut down the Torx bit with an angle grinder and used a ratcheting box end wrench with a little Teflon tape to keep in place. This worked well to removed the side screws. Thanks again, my daughter is very happy with the car.
Man this was a life saver. I appreciate the video so much. I just got my battery open, and the little screws on the side will go in the trash. I checked my battery with volt meter 292v. I left the key on for like 5 hours and the car won’t start. I will order the power supply shortly but it will take a few days to get to me. I have a 2009 with 310k on the odometer. I’ve had this car for 7 years. We are not ready to part with it yet.
Congrats! Getting the side screws off is the hardest part of the job 😜. Amazing that you’ve got so many miles on it and it’s still going strong. I bought mine used and it was previously a lifeguard vehicle in L.A., so it’s only got 40k on it now, 11k is what I put on it in 14 months. Looking forward to getting many more miles out of it!
310k miles??? Mine's at 86k. Have had more issues than I would have liked and it supposed to be fairly bulletproof. At what mileage do you recall doing shocks/struts? I think mine are trashed; Michigan roads are atrocious.
Thank you for your excellent video Matt. I was able to get my 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid running using your detailed instructions. I should add that there was also a Torx T40 bolt on each side of my battery, in addition to those difficult T30 screws. These were nowhere near as difficult to remove, but they did have to come out to get the top off the battery compartment. I really appreciate you taking the time to make this video, and the details you included to make this job as painless as possible.
Dude. Cannot thank you enough. Anyone reading has this problem, just do it. Local Ford dealership said "$175" and I would have had to tow it. The one constructive suggestion for Matt/other viewers who WILL benefit from this tutorial: Matt notes that you don't have to wire in the additional small plastic box connector that he rightly used to plug into multimeter to see if the battery charger was working; I think this is a must--otherwise, how would you know if the charger is upping the voltage on the battery? I can tell you when I plugged in the cord after having reconnected the safety disconnect, it was like Christmas Day in 1980 as my car has been sitting for months (and it took me three times to order the charger/Amazon screwed up twice). Matt, you sir, are The Everyman Hero.
Glad it worked out for you. I definitely agree that it would be handy to have extended testing leads to measure voltage outside the battery compartment. If you have Forscan, I believe that can give you a HV battery voltage reading as well.
This is awesome I’m gonna have to do this to my wife’s escape just got back from a 5day vacation first time the car sat that long without use and this morning we found out her battery is low Im pretty sure this is the fix and thanks for all the links 🤙🏻
From everything I’ve read online, the battery should be able to go for at least a month of non-use before it gets too discharged to start. Then again, if you’ve got a 2009 like me, it could be that the battery is showing its age.
Great video, after 15 minutes trying to get the bolt on the side I took the cutting wheel and removed it all together. Also just removed the one side where the charger goes and bent the other one up like a hinge. Worked great, thank-you!
Thank you so much for this! I previously had my 09 sitting for close to 10 months due to some very overly complicated videos which essentially did this but removing most of the insides of the car. They made this seem impossible to a DIYer, so thank you for the down to earth solid explanation. Cheers! 🎉
Thank you so much for this! Do you have a Dunks? Because I will get you a gift card for saving me from removing the battery. I’d already been following a different path for using the charger & how to proceed before you had this posted and only found this today at the point of removal. It was very clear and I laughed and agree about those ridiculous allen screws on the side And I’m for real about the gift card, this was a great walk thru
That’s exactly how I felt when I saw the comment from @urntwrthyZ on another video and he talked about how to do it this way. It was his idea and he deserves the credit- I’m just paying it forward- Happy New Year!
As I indicated in my original post on this video, my info came from a thread entitled "HV Battery Jump" by S.Keith on the Electric-Vehicle forum. I posted the comments you saw on several videos doing it the "other" way. You would be disappointed by how many were removed. I guess it was more important to get views than let people know there was a far superior way to do it, this way. @@mattgatlin1918
Thank you for this video tutorial.. Harbor freight sells a little icon ratchet set with torx bit and miniature ratchet. I used it when i was replacing my inlet manifold gasket, too loosen one bolt that was hard to reach. Its a super awesome set to own and i can tell it would work great for these torx where you had to use the wrench with tape.
Good to know, and thanks for the tip. The right tool is always a great time saver! I checked out the Harbor Freight website and saw one like you described for just under 3 bucks.
Great video. I am wondering if you could also charge the HV battery using a big orange plug from the junkyard that has some wire left to connect to the charger. I got one from the junkyard but haven't tried it yet. Your method is simple enough, but maybe it could be done without even removing the cover. Any thoughts?
🤔 Interesting, and I thought about that seeing the large orange high voltage plugs - I’ve seen one in the engine compartment and another by the hybrid battery. I don’t really know anything about these plugs, but my gut feeling is that they’re carrying a lot of amperage given the size/gauge of the terminals, so I’d be wary of them. Maybe someone with more knowledge could jump in on this.
Hmmm interesting to hear that the 12v starter battery is not connected to the hybrid battery. They are in my daughter’s 2008. As hybrid batteries age they will lose capacity and balance. Does the battery charger you installed as an accessory have the ability to balance the different cells in the hybrid battery rack? If not you may want to look into one that does rebalancing.
I think the connection was discontinued with the 2009 model year. As far as balancing the hybrid cells, I use Forscan on a PC laptop to reset the hybrid battery control module and to do a cell rebalancing.
Thanks for the nice video Matt, I did this a few years back but didnt have such a great video to go on. BTW, you don;'t have to remvoe the side panels and remove those T30 screws on the sides if you just cut the top with an occulating tool, saved me a lot of headache.
Thank you for making this video. I've got a 2008 FEH and had to tow it to a garage for an HV battery recharge a couple times in the past few years. I've figured there must be a DIY solution, so I'm glad to see this coming to light. I need to determine how to work around the still-existing charging circuitry in the 2008 battery (unlike your 2009 where it has been removed). But overall this gives me great insight into the process.
I put off digging into this process for a while but once I finally rolled up my sleeves and went for it, I was surprised at how easy and quickly everything went. Good luck with your 2008!
I don’t think you need to do this with a 2008. FEH before 2009 have a button behind a small panel on the driver’s side of the dashboard. If the traction battery gets low, you just pop that panel off and press the button. I think it is an 8 min cycle, and sometimes you have to do it more than once. Search on TH-cam, there are a few videos.
@@dswanso4 Thanks, and correct - generally that is the case, with 2008 having an advantage by having that recharge button. I've used my recharge button four times in the past, and twice it worked, but twice it didn't, because the HV battery was so depleted that the 12V battery was unable to get it to its engine-starting threshold. (I also suspect that the recharge button function is not that healthy for the 12V battery either.) Those two times it didn't start I still had to tow it to a garage for a professional recharge, which is why I am planning to build my own charging device now. Overall seems like a more reliable approach.
Pull off the little cover on the left side of the dash board after you open the door. 01-08 has the recharge button which send the power from the 12v under the hood to the drive battery in back. When the green light turns on, start the car. Hope that helps.
@@MikeSenese You do not need to modify anything. If you put a battery charger on your 12v battery under the hood, and then press the button on the side of the dash, you've basically done the same thing as your modification. You may have to press the button a couple of times, but within 20 minutes or so, your car will start. The issue you mentioned is that your 12v battery may be weak, or not have enough juice to bring the battery pack over the 300v minimum. Using a front charger will pass through your 12v battery to your hybrid pack. More than enough voltage to get your charge above threshhold. I have had to do this with my 2008. Works every time.
You're the only person I've found that mentions those charge ports. I was happy to find a set in my 2010 in the same place you mentioned. My HV died in the cold snap this year and i was dreading tearing apart the battery again. Your solution had her running in less than an hour! Leaving the charger inside the battery is genius because what else am I gonna use it for?
Thanks for the comment. Glad it worked for you. I thought the same thing- “what else am I gonna use it for?” -LOL Once I saw that empty space I figured why not just leave it in there? I also think that once it’s wired into the system like that, you don’t actually need to fully charge the hybrid battery, the voltage coming off the charger is enough to “trick” the engine to start, and then the gas engine is a much faster hybrid battery charger (more amps).
@@mattgatlin1918 just had to reference your video again, this time I took your advice and only had it charging for a few minutes before she was able to start on her own. Thanks again, haha!
I was actually able to start my FEH after only about 5-10 minutes of being on the charger but I still had the charger plugged in and the orange safety plug installed when I went to start it. I think the voltage coming from the charger was enough to make the car computer enable the starter.
So, update, I recommend grinding the torx bit at the 1/4 inch end by 1/2 the length of the not torx part to get it to fit in there with the recommended tool. Made all the difference. Took time to grind it then grind the corners to fit into the socket that was recommended , but it made the process way easier to get those torx screws out.
I have the similar Mercury Mariner 2008 and discovered there is a push switch that will charge the hybrid battery from the 12 volt car battery however this may not work if the car has been stored for a long time. The switch is either behind the access on the driver side dashboard when the door is open you can see a tab or under the steering wheel on the left. It will glow when depressed and will take 5-10 minutes. I had the triangle error pop on the dashboard and not start when the vehicle sat for a week or longer, once in the hot desert after 4 days of not starting the engine and pushing the switch for about 10seconds started the charge to the hybrid battery
You may have been lucky with the 09 not having the charger. At 10:14 all the smaller color wiring that is held together and then goes right and under the cells, some of those go through the 08 charging unit. Not sure if they are integrated into the charging unit so bypassing with another charger is questionable. But same problem with letting it sit
Just curious, why not just install the oem charger and connect all the plugs? Then add the button where it should go? And finally, install a votage display to monitor it in real time?
I suppose you could install a converter/inverter like the ones installed in the 2005-2008 FEH, but I see no indication that the wiring for the inverter charging circuit exists in the 2009 outside of the HV battery casing, so you’d probably be doing some additional wiring to install a button and connect it to the 12v battery to make it work like a 2005-2008 FEH. 🤔 IDK if you can get a new OEM converter/ inverter- I’ve only ever seen used ones.
Thanks this really helped me and brought my car that’s been sitting for 3 years back to life. A few things you missed. There are actually (4) bolts total on the sides, the two you showed that were recessed and 2 that are not. These are easy to access but difficult to take off. I needed a breakaway bar to crack them loose. It took me 10 minutes for the right side and 8HOURS for the left side. Then it was like 20 min to finish everything else. The pentameter doesn’t seem to work on this charger it’s delivers a straight 440v I would imagine that might damage the battery. You also did t mention how long to leave the charger on for? All night? A few hours? Do you adjust the comrade somehow? Either way I did a lot of guessing and left it in for a few hours and was able to get it started. 🎉
Glad this got you up and running again! My 2009 FEH only had the two recessed torx screws on the sides (1 on each side). Also battery chargers need to output more voltage than the battery’s normal operating voltage in order to work. For reference, a battery charger for a 12 battery outputs a little more than 14v and can go up to 16v (1.3x the battery’s normal operating voltage) without issue. As for the charging time, that all depends on how depleted your battery is. I’ve read that some people need up to 8 hours to get up to operational level. For me, I only had it on the charger for about 5 minutes and when I tried starting it while it was still connected to the charger, it started up. I think the output voltage of the charger was enough to fool the system into starting by showing more than 300v in the circuit even though the battery voltage was still below 300. After it started, I let the car’s charging system do the rest since it has much higher amperage than the paltry 350mA of the MeanWell charger.
Everything went perfectly (Thank You) I'm getting forescan to double check hv batt... Started with around 260, went up, then down, then was slowly going up.. 2hrs later 280, 4hrs later 200... Doesn't seem to want to go above 200.. heard there's a regen thing in the forescan app.. will try that.. (Everything else with opening & wiring went perfectly, again Thank You) this was an inheritance that sat for about 6mos
Cool- good luck. Did you try starting it while the charger was charging it? Also one of the other commenters on here suggested running the Forscan HV battery reconditioning multiple times. He said he got the best results after 3 cycles I believe.
Thanks, I didn't either and it's been functioning fine for 2mo. I haven't even needed to use it since the initial install. The car has been starting fine since, even after sitting a long weekend in sub freezing temps.
I tried checking voltage and when I turned my volt meter on, something in the battery went BANG and flashed somewhere I couldn't tell where it happened. Now I try to check voltage it doesn't read anything. Volt meter is fine. What happened???
😳Yikes. That sounds weird. The volt meter is just a passive instrument and has its own internal protective fuse. Sounds like your battery has other issues. Hopefully you didn’t accidentally drop a tool or something down inside it 😬
I wonder how difficult it would be to add the OEM charging system from older model years to these cars. Seems like you could buy the parts pretty cheap from a junkyard.
Great video thanks Matt! Long story SHORT, I think I might have hooked up the charger to the battery leads in reverse polarity (long day, should have waited). Now the battery reads 0.3V and goes down to zero if I measure it long enough. I can't find a fuse that is blown, and I can't find any other information to help. Any suggestions?
Hey Matt, Know its been a while since you posted. But, was a solution ever found if charging leads (orange) were found to be without voltage? Am at that step, no power via meter on the lines that fed to the original charger. I read through comments, but didn't find anything. Thanks for your time!
Not sure what the problem could be. A couple of things to check would be to make sure the orange safety disconnect plug is in place (won’t show any voltage if the plug is out, if I’m remembering correctly). Also make sure your electrical meter is set to DC not AC. The charger converts AC in to DC out, so everything downstream of the charger will be DC. Other than that, I’m not sure. Maybe someone else has an idea 🤔
I put a small pair of vice grips on those 2 hateful screws and tapped with a hammer to loosen. I would have had to remove the plastic side panel which is a real hassle on my 2008 ford escape to even attempt to remove them with a allen. Mine were allen and not torx. My built in charging system is not working as it did previously so I am planning to remove it and put in the unit like you did. Any comments?Thanks for the great video.
Hi Matt, I have a question, when the battery was lower then 300VDC, did you had a message Stop Safely Now? That is the message I have on my car and cannot start anymore, when I scan shows battery is low, but my scan cannot ready the volts. Thanks for the video, very good!!!
Hi Marcio, yes I had the Stop Safely Now message. (The only other time I had that message was when I was driving and it was about 110 degrees outside and the battery was overheating.)
@@mattgatlin1918, thank you, I already order the tor bit, I'll receive on Monday, your video was the best I found with all information, as soon I finished I'll post again.
@@mattgatlin1918 There was a recall for the cooling fan module in the battery. Mine failed just before my 100K warranty expired and ford could not figure it out. Luckily I found a article that exposed the fan issue and the dealer replaced it. I now have over 220k miles and still going strong except for the ignition switch issue which is annoying to have to push in while the key is turned to start the vehicle. I like to think that it is added security measure lol
This happened to my wifes car unexpectedly this week. We stored it with in laws and they tried running it every week for us but ended up draining the HV. Is there a way to set this instal up to make the connectors easy access to check voltage of the HV without removing the entire top of the chassis?
I guess you could install a voltmeter or protected leads to a voltmeter on the DC wires that get connected to the DC output of the “charger” before you close the case back up. You could also use Forscan app or software to read the HV battery voltage.
The voltage gauge on the dash has the needle straight up so I’m thinking it may be my starter or something else. The button for “jump start” on the left had no effect. Any way to check voltage with multi meter? I take it the authors charger is 12 volts?
I wound up cutting the tab off on the driver's side with a Dremel. Got the cover off, hooked up the charger, and watched the meter go up to about 340 v. Still no start; at first the dash would light up, but no start. Now nothing lights. There are ticking sounds coming from three different sources; presumably control modules. I tried disconnecting the 12v battery, thinking the control module(s) might need to reset from lockdown mode. Had to let the car sit without working on it for three days because it was raining. Today, 0v at the HV battery before plugging the power supply in. Upon plugging in, it goes directly to 439.9v and stays there. Reconnected the 12v battery, and same thing - no lights, no start.
Sounds like you’ve got issues other than just the HV battery. I’m pretty sure that most of the 12v components such as the lights are fed from the 12v battery under the hood.
Would there be any reason why I’m reading 0 volts on the meter? The car did sit for a year so that could have drained it all the way I’m guessing. When I plug in the extension cord, it immediately trips my breaker. I think it might because I used a tv 3 prong cord that I spliced onto the charger end as opposed to the one you linked. Trying to go get a plug that is similar tonight and hope that works. If anyone has any ideas I’d greatly appreciate it.
Maybe the voltage is zero because it’s fully drained like you said, or maybe you’re not getting good contact on the leads. Also double check that your meter is set to DC and not AC. If you’re tripping a breaker with your AC plug, it’s not wired correctly or it has a short in it somewhere.
Hey Matt, So I have the 2008 hybrid battery out of my daughter’s wrecked car on a table in my shop. It has the charger you were talking about. Unfortunately I didn’t take the button out before it went to the scrapper. Can I use the 6 pin plug to put 12v so the charger inside the case will start charging? Thanks
Good alternative but not recommended it as the ballast inside overheats when using it( True that you will not have to leave the AC cord plug in all day) but for experience is better to extend the inside + and - terminals to outside so the ballast can be seating outside and only be used when need it. I did extend the cables outside and left a AC Female outlet and for the ballast (+ & -) an AC male plug so the polarity will match
Anything electrical should generate heat to some degree. If a component is “overheating” it is likely faulty. You can certainly keep the charger outside of the housing if you’re worried about it being faulty, but I would advise against using an AC connector on a DC circuit because of the risk involved with misuse by a person who doesn’t know about the custom setup. If you do add a connector for an externally connected charger, use a DC connector and label the positive and negative sides along with the voltage.
Was thinking that the male prongs on your power cord will be HOT. Would be a good idea to plug a female cord end, with no wires, on to the plug, to prevent any danger there.
Hmmm. Maybe. IDK if the setup is allowing current to flow backward and make those prongs hot, but I’ll definitely check them with a tester to see. Thanks!
I checked and didn’t show any current at the male plug ends. Probably because the AC to DC and voltage conversion in the charger unit isn’t made to run in reverse…?
@@mattgatlin1918 Thanks for checking that. I was mainly concerned, as some of that type of electronics isn't always safely engineered. I have one Escape, at work, that is close to needing charging, but I think it's issue is going to be the ignition switch.
Thanks for this. This just happened to me today. Does your hybrid escape have issues with aircpn when it is in electric mode? When on gas and going over 40 mph air con works but other than that it doesn't. This is an issue I've had to deal with for the longest time with no solution.
I’ve had issues with my air conditioning not blowing cold enough especially when it’s very hot outside. I read somewhere that the AC works to cool the hybrid battery, but I don’t see anything other than a pair of fans in the hybrid battery casing. I did have problems with the hybrid battery getting too hot on hot days even to the point of disabling the car. I haven’t had this problem since reconditioning the hybrid battery with ForScan, but I also haven’t driven it in the extreme heat that much yet.
@@mattgatlin1918 for some reason my does not cool well if the fan is on full speed. I have heard some gear clicking from time to time but never figured out what it was. It always happens when the settings for the heater and ac are changed.
A customer of mine brought me your video and wants me to do it on his Escape. Is there some checks to do on the battery first to make sure it is a good candidate for this mod? Is it possible that a damaged battery could lead to the same issue and if so, could installing this charger on a damaged battery lead to a car fire? Just want to make sure that i have a full grasp on the condition of the vehicle first. This would be my first time messing with a hybrid electrical system.
I would run Forscan on the car and rebalance the hybrid battery (HVB). There are forums about Forscan and how to use it to run diagnostics on a hybrid battery system, so I would recommend looking at some of those forums first. I don’t see anything inherently dangerous about having the led driver/“charger” integrated into the low amperage part of the system, but I’m not an expert. I would think that any sort of work around any sort of battery will always carry some degree of risk, and doing this procedure on someone else’s car would be a liability I personally wouldn’t be willing to risk.
Hello I have a 2007 and you said the charger and was built into the models before 2009 any chance you know how to put those to use? Your mod has a 120v plug in attached to it so do I need to get 120v to the charger in my 2007? Thanks
I’m not sure, but I think there’s a switch or button near the driver’s side under dash. I believe it uses electricity from the lead acid battery to boost the hybrid battery enough to start the car. Maybe someone with a pre-2009 can verify the details.
Matt is correct, there is a black pushbutton switch that glows when depressed for 10 seconds and starts to charge the Hybird battery from the 12 volts. Mine is behind a cover on the side dash when you open the driver door and some are under the steering wheel by your left side
Fuses #8, 15, 25 & 26 in the engine compartment fuse panel all relate to the “traction battery”. You can find a diagram at: www.startmycar.com/us/ford/escape-hybrid/info/fusebox/2009 Did you have the orange safety switch installed when you checked the voltage?
Also I have a questions for you, Are you familiar with forscan & if so did you do anything with that on the escape before or after charging the battery? I’m familiar with that software for my F150 but reading there is useful stuff for the hybrid when it comes to HV battery issues
@@mattgatlin1918 well if your a weekend warrior your type and have a ford you should definitely check it out, can’t say for the escape as I haven’t played around with it on my wife’s car. For my F150 it’s crazy the amount of stuff you can do (everything besides powertrain enhancements as like in a tuner/programmer) but it’s a software that allows you to customize and make changes to almost any Ford vehicle & Doesn’t void warranty
@@mattgatlin1918 ayyye ! No problem man, you can get a free trial subscription or for like $10 have a whole year. Just watch a couple videos , do a couple searches on your vehicle many ppl have already made google docs showing exactly what to change to get what you want. But Most importantly first thing you do before you Make a change to any module is save your factory one so if you ever wanna go back or change something you don’t have to go down that rabbit hole… ask me how I know 😅
Hey @tellis17 - I just ran Forscan on my FEH and it’s pretty cool. I ran all the diagnostics on the hybrid battery control module (BCM), did a module reset and rebalanced all the cells. As an added bonus I also disabled my tire sensor warning (TPMS) since it’s been nonstop chiming at me for no reason for the past two years. Thanks again for the tip!
I doubt it. For starters, you’d have to replace the entire battery with a much larger battery in order to get the electric-only range that a PHEV gets.
Do you mean that instead of making it have a 120v /110 wall outlet, you would install the adaptor that you see at the charging stations ? . I wondered this to but figured the standard plug would be more efficient and effective
There’s a link in the description for all the stuff I used. I got the charger from Amazon www.amazon.com/HLG-120H-C350A-150-5W-Single-Output-Switching/dp/B073ZCRJ5P
Click on “more” in the description just below the video. Click on “more” again until it shows you the entire description which includes the stuff I used.
It was a Los Angeles County Lifeguard vehicle before I bought it in December of 2021. It had 23k on it. I think it was probably only driven for short distances on the beach, mainly during the summer.
OK, so it probably took me two hours alone just to remove those two %&@*ing inaccessible screws, but otherwise I'm completely happy. Thank you, it worked! But does anybody know if it's dangerous to leave it plugged in too long? (This is now my son's car at college, where it might be left for periods of time and I'm not sure if he just needs to try starting the car every half hour after plugging in ... and I didn't wire it with an easy ability to check the voltage.) By the way, I was able to start those screws by holding the Torx T30 bit sideways in a vice grip. But once it started coming out on one side, there was no longer enough room for the bit. So I did have to saw off an appropriately-sized allen wrench to finish the job, just like the video suggested. Anyway, just wanted to repeat my appreciation for this video!
Glad it worked for you. IDK about leaving it plugged in too long, but several other videos with these DIY charging setups talk about leaving the charger plugged in for six to eight hours. I’d recommend only leaving it plugged in enough to get the car started.
It works, thank you for the video, there are other methods on youtube, but this is way way easier. Like you said the hardest part was taking out the t30 torx bolt. I only removed the one the right side (passenger) and propped the cover up.
Awesome! I’m glad it worked for you. If you haven’t already tried it, I would definitely recommend using Forscan to check and rebalance the battery system.
Great video. Another example of Ford doing their customers a disservice. Why not keep the charging button on the side of the dash like like the previous models? I can work on my own cars but the orange wires scare me as they are very dangerous and high voltage.
Thanks. I was also cautious about the orange high voltage wires, which is why I really liked this method over the others I’d seen that were working with the circuitry on the passenger side of the battery ⚡️🫣
Not bad. Missed a couple points: 1) Seal the hole. This battery is hermetically sealed for a reason. 2) Charge for at least two hours. It's not about voltage, it's about state of charge. A battery at 1V/cell may have excessive internal resistance and may spike the voltage very quickly. You need to use math. The first 300-500mAh input is needed to restore the proper chemistry phases at the terminals and reduce internal resistance. After that, you're getting legitimate charge. Two hours at 350mA means you're only putting about 200-400mAh usable capacity into the cells. That's 3.6 - 7.3% SoC. Failing to restore the proper phase will 1) fail to start or 2) start but slam a bunch of current into the cells in a high resistance state and damage them.
Thanks for the comments. I wouldn’t call the HV battery case “hermetically sealed”, especially since it has a barely filtered airflow system that keeps it from overheating by circulating outside air through the case. As for the state of charge, I was only using this setup to get the engine to start. Once started, I let the factory engineered system take over to fully charge the HV battery, and ran Forscan on it to run the maintenance cycles on the HV battery.
@@mattgatlin1918"Hermetically" is indeed a strong term, but it conveys intent. The only intentional opening in the battery is the inlet/outlet at the driver's side rear. Everywhere else is "hermetically" sealed. When the blend door is closed, it very nearly meets the "hermetically sealed" definition. Leaks in the case, even small ones compromise the cooling system. Why compromise the one part of the system that is most key in pack longevity when a dab of sealant or foam fixes it? I prefer to drill a 1/4" hole and use a sealing grommet around the power cord. Super fast and effective. Again, it's not about voltage, it's about state of charge and proper cell chemistry. I must not have conveyed this sufficiently. The "factory engineered system" does not take into account the conditions needed by deeply discharged cells to prevent damage. Rushing the recharge further exacerbates the self-discharge conditions already present. Observing ~350V (1.4V/cell) after a few minutes of charging positively confirms that your cells were in a high resistance state. Pushing ~15A into them via the vehicle's charging system is not good for them. Charging in a high resistance state should be done at no more than about 0.2C. Keep in mind these are the same "factory engineers" that designed a system that can discharge a completely healthy battery if left sitting for 30 days and will void your warranty (when these cars were young enough to still have warranties). Toyotas have sat for years without this happening. Furthermore, these are the same people that chose to 1) remove the factory jump starter because "it has never been needed" and 2) removed the battery A/C cooling system in the 2010+ years. If your goal is a lasting repair that does not degrade the cells, patience is warranted. A two hour charge ensures the cells are in a state suitable to receive the charging system's current. I've been doing this for 8 years, and I have a lot of experience with it (documented this process on a website 8 years ago). I've done this to dozens of FEH/MMH, and I have substantial experience with NiMH hybrids having serviced hundreds and personally owned 14 NiMH based hybrids. Charge for two hours if you want to improve the outcome. My charger is 1.4A, and I still do it for 30 minutes before I attempt start.
IDK. A specialized dealer-service procedure that potentially makes them several hundreds of dollars for simply charging a depleted battery? 🤑🪫 Such a scheme would only work if they could somehow make it so the ICE can’t start like a normal ICE 😂
Wow my 20 year old daughter completed the recharge to her brother's 2009 FEH following your video. I watched your video after the fact and wanted to thank you for sharing your experience and solution. So to those who came across this same video and think they can't do it, you can since my 20 year old non mechanic daughter did it herself. Thanks again.
That’s great, I’m glad it helped! I wish TH-cam had been around when I was 20 - lol !
Your Right 😂
@@mattgatlin1918what is the Name and Address to purchase that charger. I'm having the same issue with my 2010 Hybrid escape, I looked at a plug right at the back seat and wondered if that was where to charge this vehicle. Then I came across your video and watched it, when you showed that same prong and it wasn't connected to anything and the plugs was zip tied on the side! I said WTF was those engineers thinking when that was disconnected and why was it discontinued?
Then after you went through the steps of removal it started to make sense why they did that. I'll keep my opinion to myself on those thoughts 🤣🤣🤣.
Now if you would not mind, I'd like to know where I can get that charging device and install it as well.
I have an idea but I'd rather talk in person or by phone with someone who has a better understanding of Electrical devices then my self, after looking at that charger something else came to mind, it is the positive and negative wires that aren't being used to charge the system but can be used to charge the system the way it was meant to be used, just my thoughts running after you showed those two wires connected to the Charger you then connected a 3 prong to connect to a wall plug or outside battery charger. Did you use AC or DC or can we use both if necessary depending where we're at and the circumstances...
That charger and all the other stuff I used is listed in the description under the video- I put links to all the stuff there.
This is a timely video for me. I will be recharging my 2009 Excape hybrid this week. It has been a couple years since I last charged it so I needed TH-cam to refresh my memory. I was stunned by how easy your method was. Can't wait to configure this permanent solution. The only additions I think I will add is a covered RV inlet male plug, plus maybe an easy access point to check the current voltage manually. Last thing, if I remember correctly that charger gets pretty hot, I will monitor the temp the first time I charge. Thanks again for saving me a bunch of time.
Good luck with the job! I didn’t have the issue of the charger getting hot, but that might be because I didn’t need to have it charging very long. When you don’t remove the hybrid battery and disrupt its circuitry, you don’t have to leave it on the charger that long. By having the charger plugged in when you go to start the car, it will register enough voltage for the car to start, even though the battery may not be actually up to that voltage- if that makes sense. Once it’s started, you can just let the engine complete the battery charging. Anyway, hope it goes well for you!
This video saved my 2009 Escape Hybrid from the junk yard! I had two mechanics tell me that it was a lost cause and I should sell it for parts. Turns out the hybrid battery had fallen just a little below 300v, so after a few hours of work and less than a hundred bucks in parts and tools, it only took a few minutes of charging to get my FEH up and running again. I can’t even begin to guess how you figured this out but it really works and in my case it was truly a life saver. Thanks Matt!
Glad to hear it worked out for you! If you can, definitely look into getting ForScan and doing a battery reconditioning. It’s all free except for the little connector adapter that goes from your laptop to the car’s OBD connection. There’s lots of info out there about how to use ForScan.
Superb video, Matt., and thanks for the acknowledgement. S.Keith and a great thread on the Electric-Vehicle forum was the source for a lot of my info.
FEH owners: This is THE WAY to do this, ignore the other videos that have you remove your HVTB/ prop it up and/or remove the relay, BCM, etc. on the passenger side of the HVTB.
It sucked that Ford removed the '05 to '08 charger and circuitry, but leaving those cables with the gray and black connectors partially made up for it.
In an abundance of caution, I installed diodes on my charging cables when I built my charger. I also replaced those PIA side screws with regular bolts.
Thank YOU for the time-saving comment on a couple of the other videos I'd seen!
I almost made the mistake of taking out the whole battery and futzing around with the high-voltage circuitry on the passenger side. I'm glad I didn't.
I only made this video to get your advice/method out there and hopefully save some people a lot of time, headache and potential danger.
Seriously, if I hadn't read your comment/method, I might not have even attempted it.
Thanks again!
Matt
I just rebuilt my HVTB with all new sticks from MaxPower. That was a project. Again, great job with this. You will save a lot of people a lot of time and a lot of frustration. @@mattgatlin1918
That sounds like a huge project! My 2009 only has 40K original miles on it so I’m hoping I won’t need to rebuild the entire battery for a while.
@@mattgatlin1918what charger did you use and where can I get one, thanks
@@Lee-sv3so There’s a link in the description below the video if you expand the “more”-
This is it:
www.amazon.com/HLG-120H-C350A-150-5W-Single-Output-Switching/dp/B073ZCRJ5P
Worked great, thanks. Took about 8 hours to go from 142v to 347v, cleared the codes and it fired right up. 2011 awd FEH
Nice work! That’s the best feeling when you turn the key and it fires up like nothing was ever wrong with it 🤩
Thank you for making and posting this video. I bought a completely dead 2009 Mercury Mariner on auction hoping this would work. The biggest issue was waiting to get the charger from Amazon. The first one was lost in customs so I had to order a second one. I cut down the Torx bit with an angle grinder and used a ratcheting box end wrench with a little Teflon tape to keep in place. This worked well to removed the side screws. Thanks again, my daughter is very happy with the car.
I’m glad it worked out for you!
Man this was a life saver. I appreciate the video so much. I just got my battery open, and the little screws on the side will go in the trash. I checked my battery with volt meter 292v. I left the key on for like 5 hours and the car won’t start. I will order the power supply shortly but it will take a few days to get to me. I have a 2009 with 310k on the odometer. I’ve had this car for 7 years. We are not ready to part with it yet.
Congrats! Getting the side screws off is the hardest part of the job 😜. Amazing that you’ve got so many miles on it and it’s still going strong. I bought mine used and it was previously a lifeguard vehicle in L.A., so it’s only got 40k on it now, 11k is what I put on it in 14 months. Looking forward to getting many more miles out of it!
310k miles??? Mine's at 86k. Have had more issues than I would have liked and it supposed to be fairly bulletproof. At what mileage do you recall doing shocks/struts? I think mine are trashed; Michigan roads are atrocious.
Going to do this over the weekend. Great video, thanks for being a great community member!!
Good luck with it! Lemme know how it goes 🔧
Thank you for your excellent video Matt. I was able to get my 2009 Ford Escape Hybrid running using your detailed instructions. I should add that there was also a Torx T40 bolt on each side of my battery, in addition to those difficult T30 screws. These were nowhere near as difficult to remove, but they did have to come out to get the top off the battery compartment. I really appreciate you taking the time to make this video, and the details you included to make this job as painless as possible.
Glad it worked out for you - thanks for sharing that detail about the T40 bolts!
Dude. Cannot thank you enough. Anyone reading has this problem, just do it. Local Ford dealership said "$175" and I would have had to tow it. The one constructive suggestion for Matt/other viewers who WILL benefit from this tutorial: Matt notes that you don't have to wire in the additional small plastic box connector that he rightly used to plug into multimeter to see if the battery charger was working; I think this is a must--otherwise, how would you know if the charger is upping the voltage on the battery? I can tell you when I plugged in the cord after having reconnected the safety disconnect, it was like Christmas Day in 1980 as my car has been sitting for months (and it took me three times to order the charger/Amazon screwed up twice). Matt, you sir, are The Everyman Hero.
Glad it worked out for you. I definitely agree that it would be handy to have extended testing leads to measure voltage outside the battery compartment. If you have Forscan, I believe that can give you a HV battery voltage reading as well.
This is awesome I’m gonna have to do this to my wife’s escape just got back from a 5day vacation first time the car sat that long without use and this morning we found out her battery is low Im pretty sure this is the fix and thanks for all the links 🤙🏻
From everything I’ve read online, the battery should be able to go for at least a month of non-use before it gets too discharged to start. Then again, if you’ve got a 2009 like me, it could be that the battery is showing its age.
Great video, after 15 minutes trying to get the bolt on the side I took the cutting wheel and removed it all together. Also just removed the one side where the charger goes and bent the other one up like a hinge. Worked great, thank-you!
Gotta love it! The cutting wheel is quite possibly the greatest tool ever invented 🤣
Thank you so much for this! I previously had my 09 sitting for close to 10 months due to some very overly complicated videos which essentially did this but removing most of the insides of the car. They made this seem impossible to a DIYer, so thank you for the down to earth solid explanation. Cheers! 🎉
I know what you mean, some of those videos are nuts!
Thank you so much for this! Do you have a Dunks? Because I will get you a gift card for saving me from removing the battery. I’d already been following a different path for using the charger & how to proceed before you had this posted and only found this today at the point of removal. It was very clear and I laughed and agree about those ridiculous allen screws on the side
And I’m for real about the gift card, this was a great walk thru
That’s exactly how I felt when I saw the comment from @urntwrthyZ on another video and he talked about how to do it this way. It was his idea and he deserves the credit- I’m just paying it forward- Happy New Year!
As I indicated in my original post on this video, my info came from a thread entitled "HV Battery Jump" by S.Keith on the Electric-Vehicle forum. I posted the comments you saw on several videos doing it the "other" way. You would be disappointed by how many were removed. I guess it was more important to get views than let people know there was a far superior way to do it, this way. @@mattgatlin1918
Thank you for this video tutorial.. Harbor freight sells a little icon ratchet set with torx bit and miniature ratchet. I used it when i was replacing my inlet manifold gasket, too loosen one bolt that was hard to reach. Its a super awesome set to own and i can tell it would work great for these torx where you had to use the wrench with tape.
Good to know, and thanks for the tip. The right tool is always a great time saver! I checked out the Harbor Freight website and saw one like you described for just under 3 bucks.
Yes they got a few different ones.. i got the set that is $39.99
Great video. I am wondering if you could also charge the HV battery using a big orange plug from the junkyard that has some wire left to connect to the charger. I got one from the junkyard but haven't tried it yet. Your method is simple enough, but maybe it could be done without even removing the cover. Any thoughts?
🤔 Interesting, and I thought about that seeing the large orange high voltage plugs - I’ve seen one in the engine compartment and another by the hybrid battery. I don’t really know anything about these plugs, but my gut feeling is that they’re carrying a lot of amperage given the size/gauge of the terminals, so I’d be wary of them.
Maybe someone with more knowledge could jump in on this.
Hmmm interesting to hear that the 12v starter battery is not connected to the hybrid battery. They are in my daughter’s 2008.
As hybrid batteries age they will lose capacity and balance. Does the battery charger you installed as an accessory have the ability to balance the different cells in the hybrid battery rack? If not you may want to look into one that does rebalancing.
I think the connection was discontinued with the 2009 model year. As far as balancing the hybrid cells, I use Forscan on a PC laptop to reset the hybrid battery control module and to do a cell rebalancing.
Correct. The charging system was in place 2005 through 2008. Ford removed it from the 2009-2012 models claiming it wasn't necessary. @@mattgatlin1918
Thanks for the nice video Matt, I did this a few years back but didnt have such a great video to go on. BTW, you don;'t have to remvoe the side panels and remove those T30 screws on the sides if you just cut the top with an occulating tool, saved me a lot of headache.
Thank you for making this video. I've got a 2008 FEH and had to tow it to a garage for an HV battery recharge a couple times in the past few years. I've figured there must be a DIY solution, so I'm glad to see this coming to light. I need to determine how to work around the still-existing charging circuitry in the 2008 battery (unlike your 2009 where it has been removed). But overall this gives me great insight into the process.
I put off digging into this process for a while but once I finally rolled up my sleeves and went for it, I was surprised at how easy and quickly everything went. Good luck with your 2008!
I don’t think you need to do this with a 2008. FEH before 2009 have a button behind a small panel on the driver’s side of the dashboard. If the traction battery gets low, you just pop that panel off and press the button. I think it is an 8 min cycle, and sometimes you have to do it more than once. Search on TH-cam, there are a few videos.
@@dswanso4 Thanks, and correct - generally that is the case, with 2008 having an advantage by having that recharge button. I've used my recharge button four times in the past, and twice it worked, but twice it didn't, because the HV battery was so depleted that the 12V battery was unable to get it to its engine-starting threshold. (I also suspect that the recharge button function is not that healthy for the 12V battery either.) Those two times it didn't start I still had to tow it to a garage for a professional recharge, which is why I am planning to build my own charging device now. Overall seems like a more reliable approach.
Pull off the little cover on the left side of the dash board after you open the door. 01-08 has the recharge button which send the power from the 12v under the hood to the drive battery in back. When the green light turns on, start the car. Hope that helps.
@@MikeSenese You do not need to modify anything. If you put a battery charger on your 12v battery under the hood, and then press the button on the side of the dash, you've basically done the same thing as your modification. You may have to press the button a couple of times, but within 20 minutes or so, your car will start. The issue you mentioned is that your 12v battery may be weak, or not have enough juice to bring the battery pack over the 300v minimum. Using a front charger will pass through your 12v battery to your hybrid pack. More than enough voltage to get your charge above threshhold. I have had to do this with my 2008. Works every time.
You're the only person I've found that mentions those charge ports. I was happy to find a set in my 2010 in the same place you mentioned. My HV died in the cold snap this year and i was dreading tearing apart the battery again. Your solution had her running in less than an hour! Leaving the charger inside the battery is genius because what else am I gonna use it for?
Thanks for the comment. Glad it worked for you. I thought the same thing- “what else am I gonna use it for?” -LOL Once I saw that empty space I figured why not just leave it in there? I also think that once it’s wired into the system like that, you don’t actually need to fully charge the hybrid battery, the voltage coming off the charger is enough to “trick” the engine to start, and then the gas engine is a much faster hybrid battery charger (more amps).
@@mattgatlin1918 just had to reference your video again, this time I took your advice and only had it charging for a few minutes before she was able to start on her own. Thanks again, haha!
Nice 👍
Ordered everything exactly. Hooked everything up exactly, stuck at 268v. Tested the charger and it’s pushing right at 430v. I’m stuck. Please help
Nice video,going to attempt this on my daughter’s Escape. Ty
I was actually able to start my FEH after only about 5-10 minutes of being on the charger but I still had the charger plugged in and the orange safety plug installed when I went to start it. I think the voltage coming from the charger was enough to make the car computer enable the starter.
You saved me hundreds if not thousands. I owe you a beer.
Thanks- I’m glad it worked out for you!
So, update, I recommend grinding the torx bit at the 1/4 inch end by 1/2 the length of the not torx part to get it to fit in there with the recommended tool. Made all the difference. Took time to grind it then grind the corners to fit into the socket that was recommended , but it made the process way easier to get those torx screws out.
Nice tip 😉. That would definitely help!
I have the similar Mercury Mariner 2008 and discovered there is a push switch that will charge the hybrid battery from the 12 volt car battery however this may not work if the car has been stored for a long time.
The switch is either behind the access on the driver side dashboard when the door is open you can see a tab or under the steering wheel on the left. It will glow when depressed and will take 5-10 minutes. I had the triangle error pop on the dashboard and not start when the vehicle sat for a week or longer, once in the hot desert after 4 days of not starting the engine and pushing the switch for about 10seconds started the charge to the hybrid battery
Unfortunately, 2008 was the last year they included that charging system. It was discontinued starting in 2009.
Thanks so much. Great video with clear easy instructions. Worked like a charm. And you were right, the two small side screws were a bugger!!!
Glad it worked for you! My favorite part was throwing those side screws away 😂
You may have been lucky with the 09 not having the charger. At 10:14 all the smaller color wiring that is held together and then goes right and under the cells, some of those go through the 08 charging unit. Not sure if they are integrated into the charging unit so bypassing with another charger is questionable. But same problem with letting it sit
Did you see this video of a guy charging a 2008?
th-cam.com/video/1wHTyMJoqDg/w-d-xo.htmlsi=zU3BvxMYJLVvr8hq
Just curious, why not just install the oem charger and connect all the plugs? Then add the button where it should go? And finally, install a votage display to monitor it in real time?
I suppose you could install a converter/inverter like the ones installed in the 2005-2008 FEH, but I see no indication that the wiring for the inverter charging circuit exists in the 2009 outside of the HV battery casing, so you’d probably be doing some additional wiring to install a button and connect it to the 12v battery to make it work like a 2005-2008 FEH. 🤔 IDK if you can get a new OEM converter/ inverter- I’ve only ever seen used ones.
Thanks this really helped me and brought my car that’s been sitting for 3 years back to life. A few things you missed. There are actually (4) bolts total on the sides, the two you showed that were recessed and 2 that are not. These are easy to access but difficult to take off. I needed a breakaway bar to crack them loose. It took me 10 minutes for the right side and 8HOURS for the left side. Then it was like 20 min to finish everything else. The pentameter doesn’t seem to work on this charger it’s delivers a straight 440v I would imagine that might damage the battery. You also did t mention how long to leave the charger on for? All night? A few hours? Do you adjust the comrade somehow? Either way I did a lot of guessing and left it in for a few hours and was able to get it started. 🎉
Glad this got you up and running again!
My 2009 FEH only had the two recessed torx screws on the sides (1 on each side). Also battery chargers need to output more voltage than the battery’s normal operating voltage in order to work. For reference, a battery charger for a 12 battery outputs a little more than 14v and can go up to 16v (1.3x the battery’s normal operating voltage) without issue.
As for the charging time, that all depends on how depleted your battery is. I’ve read that some people need up to 8 hours to get up to operational level. For me, I only had it on the charger for about 5 minutes and when I tried starting it while it was still connected to the charger, it started up. I think the output voltage of the charger was enough to fool the system into starting by showing more than 300v in the circuit even though the battery voltage was still below 300. After it started, I let the car’s charging system do the rest since it has much higher amperage than the paltry 350mA of the MeanWell charger.
Everything went perfectly (Thank You) I'm getting forescan to double check hv batt... Started with around 260, went up, then down, then was slowly going up.. 2hrs later 280, 4hrs later 200... Doesn't seem to want to go above 200.. heard there's a regen thing in the forescan app.. will try that..
(Everything else with opening & wiring went perfectly, again Thank You) this was an inheritance that sat for about 6mos
Cool- good luck. Did you try starting it while the charger was charging it? Also one of the other commenters on here suggested running the Forscan HV battery reconditioning multiple times. He said he got the best results after 3 cycles I believe.
Thanks for the video 👍👍👨🔧
I'm thinking of buying an Escape hybrid 2011
Did you put a diode on the DC positive lead to stop power back flowing into the charger?
No.
Isnt it necessary?
Thanks, I didn't either and it's been functioning fine for 2mo. I haven't even needed to use it since the initial install. The car has been starting fine since, even after sitting a long weekend in sub freezing temps.
I tried checking voltage and when I turned my volt meter on, something in the battery went BANG and flashed somewhere I couldn't tell where it happened. Now I try to check voltage it doesn't read anything. Volt meter is fine. What happened???
😳Yikes. That sounds weird. The volt meter is just a passive instrument and has its own internal protective fuse. Sounds like your battery has other issues. Hopefully you didn’t accidentally drop a tool or something down inside it 😬
For the torx bit, use a ratcheting side post battery wrench.. work's great, maybe some tape to hold bit.👍
Good tip! Thanks for sharing that.
I wonder how difficult it would be to add the OEM charging system from older model years to these cars. Seems like you could buy the parts pretty cheap from a junkyard.
That's a good question - I haven't done much research on that but it seems doable! I wonder if junkyards have to remove the HV batteries, though.
Great video thanks Matt! Long story SHORT, I think I might have hooked up the charger to the battery leads in reverse polarity (long day, should have waited). Now the battery reads 0.3V and goes down to zero if I measure it long enough. I can't find a fuse that is blown, and I can't find any other information to help. Any suggestions?
IDK. Maybe a defective or blown charger?
Hey Matt, Know its been a while since you posted. But, was a solution ever found if charging leads (orange) were found to be without voltage? Am at that step, no power via meter on the lines that fed to the original charger. I read through comments, but didn't find anything. Thanks for your time!
Not sure what the problem could be. A couple of things to check would be to make sure the orange safety disconnect plug is in place (won’t show any voltage if the plug is out, if I’m remembering correctly). Also make sure your electrical meter is set to DC not AC. The charger converts AC in to DC out, so everything downstream of the charger will be DC. Other than that, I’m not sure. Maybe someone else has an idea 🤔
The orange service disconnect has a fuse built into it.Check the fuse.
I put a small pair of vice grips on those 2 hateful screws and tapped with a hammer to loosen. I would have had to remove the plastic side panel which is a real hassle on my 2008 ford escape to even attempt to remove them with a allen. Mine were allen and not torx. My built in charging system is not working as it did previously so I am planning to remove it and put in the unit like you did. Any comments?Thanks for the great video.
Sounds good. Getting those $&@%# screws off is most of the work 😉
Hi Matt, I have a question, when the battery was lower then 300VDC, did you had a message Stop Safely Now? That is the message I have on my car and cannot start anymore, when I scan shows battery is low, but my scan cannot ready the volts. Thanks for the video, very good!!!
Hi Marcio, yes I had the Stop Safely Now message. (The only other time I had that message was when I was driving and it was about 110 degrees outside and the battery was overheating.)
@@mattgatlin1918, thank you, I already order the tor bit, I'll receive on Monday, your video was the best I found with all information, as soon I finished I'll post again.
@@mattgatlin1918 There was a recall for the cooling fan module in the battery. Mine failed just before my 100K warranty expired and ford could not figure it out. Luckily I found a article that exposed the fan issue and the dealer replaced it. I now have over 220k miles and still going strong except for the ignition switch issue which is annoying to have to push in while the key is turned to start the vehicle. I like to think that it is added security measure lol
This happened to my wifes car unexpectedly this week. We stored it with in laws and they tried running it every week for us but ended up draining the HV. Is there a way to set this instal up to make the connectors easy access to check voltage of the HV without removing the entire top of the chassis?
I guess you could install a voltmeter or protected leads to a voltmeter on the DC wires that get connected to the DC output of the “charger” before you close the case back up. You could also use Forscan app or software to read the HV battery voltage.
Where did you buy the charger
And thanks for the video
I got it from Amazon. There’s a link in the comments below the video (where it says “more…”)
The voltage gauge on the dash has the needle straight up so I’m thinking it may be my starter or something else. The button for “jump start” on the left had no effect. Any way to check voltage with multi meter? I take it the authors charger is 12 volts?
Sounds like you’ve got a 2008 or earlier. This charging workaround is intended for a 2009 or later.
@@mattgatlin1918 yes it is a 2008. Thanks
I wound up cutting the tab off on the driver's side with a Dremel. Got the cover off, hooked up the charger, and watched the meter go up to about 340 v. Still no start; at first the dash would light up, but no start. Now nothing lights. There are ticking sounds coming from three different sources; presumably control modules.
I tried disconnecting the 12v battery, thinking the control module(s) might need to reset from lockdown mode. Had to let the car sit without working on it for three days because it was raining. Today, 0v at the HV battery before plugging the power supply in. Upon plugging in, it goes directly to 439.9v and stays there. Reconnected the 12v battery, and same thing - no lights, no start.
Sounds like you’ve got issues other than just the HV battery. I’m pretty sure that most of the 12v components such as the lights are fed from the 12v battery under the hood.
Would there be any reason why I’m reading 0 volts on the meter? The car did sit for a year so that could have drained it all the way I’m guessing.
When I plug in the extension cord, it immediately trips my breaker. I think it might because I used a tv 3 prong cord that I spliced onto the charger end as opposed to the one you linked.
Trying to go get a plug that is similar tonight and hope that works.
If anyone has any ideas I’d greatly appreciate it.
Maybe the voltage is zero because it’s fully drained like you said, or maybe you’re not getting good contact on the leads. Also double check that your meter is set to DC and not AC.
If you’re tripping a breaker with your AC plug, it’s not wired correctly or it has a short in it somewhere.
Hey Matt,
So I have the 2008 hybrid battery out of my daughter’s wrecked car on a table in my shop. It has the charger you were talking about. Unfortunately I didn’t take the button out before it went to the scrapper. Can I use the 6 pin plug to put 12v so the charger inside the case will start charging? Thanks
I don’t know about the 2008. Maybe someone familiar with that can comment…?
Did you see this video?
th-cam.com/video/1wHTyMJoqDg/w-d-xo.htmlsi=zU3BvxMYJLVvr8hq
Is there an alternative to the charger you recommended? They are sold out on Amazon...
As of right now 11-1-2024, Amazon has 18 in stock. You can also buy the HLG-120H-C350A from TRC Electronics.
Good alternative but not recommended it as the ballast inside overheats when using it( True that you will not have to leave the AC cord plug in all day) but for experience is better to extend the inside + and - terminals to outside so the ballast can be seating outside and only be used when need it.
I did extend the cables outside and left a AC Female outlet and for the ballast (+ & -) an AC male plug so the polarity will match
Anything electrical should generate heat to some degree. If a component is “overheating” it is likely faulty. You can certainly keep the charger outside of the housing if you’re worried about it being faulty, but I would advise against using an AC connector on a DC circuit because of the risk involved with misuse by a person who doesn’t know about the custom setup. If you do add a connector for an externally connected charger, use a DC connector and label the positive and negative sides along with the voltage.
That is quite a large heatsink the charger is being fastened to.
Was thinking that the male prongs on your power cord will be HOT. Would be a good idea to plug a female cord end, with no wires, on to the plug, to prevent any danger there.
Hmmm. Maybe. IDK if the setup is allowing current to flow backward and make those prongs hot, but I’ll definitely check them with a tester to see. Thanks!
@@mattgatlin1918 Good thing to double-check, with Chinese made power supplies. Sometimes not the most trust-worthy items.
I checked and didn’t show any current at the male plug ends. Probably because the AC to DC and voltage conversion in the charger unit isn’t made to run in reverse…?
@@mattgatlin1918 Thanks for checking that. I was mainly concerned, as some of that type of electronics isn't always safely engineered. I have one Escape, at work, that is close to needing charging, but I think it's issue is going to be the ignition switch.
Thanks for this. This just happened to me today. Does your hybrid escape have issues with aircpn when it is in electric mode? When on gas and going over 40 mph air con works but other than that it doesn't. This is an issue I've had to deal with for the longest time with no solution.
I’ve had issues with my air conditioning not blowing cold enough especially when it’s very hot outside. I read somewhere that the AC works to cool the hybrid battery, but I don’t see anything other than a pair of fans in the hybrid battery casing. I did have problems with the hybrid battery getting too hot on hot days even to the point of disabling the car. I haven’t had this problem since reconditioning the hybrid battery with ForScan, but I also haven’t driven it in the extreme heat that much yet.
@@mattgatlin1918 for some reason my does not cool well if the fan is on full speed. I have heard some gear clicking from time to time but never figured out what it was. It always happens when the settings for the heater and ac are changed.
Where did you get the charger that you installed.
I got it from Amazon. The links to everything I used are in the comments below the title/description ( click where it says “…more”)
Can this be a way to use a battery equalizer to balance the battery?
I’m not sure. I used Forscan to recondition the HV battery.
A customer of mine brought me your video and wants me to do it on his Escape. Is there some checks to do on the battery first to make sure it is a good candidate for this mod? Is it possible that a damaged battery could lead to the same issue and if so, could installing this charger on a damaged battery lead to a car fire? Just want to make sure that i have a full grasp on the condition of the vehicle first. This would be my first time messing with a hybrid electrical system.
I would run Forscan on the car and rebalance the hybrid battery (HVB). There are forums about Forscan and how to use it to run diagnostics on a hybrid battery system, so I would recommend looking at some of those forums first. I don’t see anything inherently dangerous about having the led driver/“charger” integrated into the low amperage part of the system, but I’m not an expert. I would think that any sort of work around any sort of battery will always carry some degree of risk, and doing this procedure on someone else’s car would be a liability I personally wouldn’t be willing to risk.
@@mattgatlin1918 Thanks alot for the response!
Hello I have a 2007 and you said the charger and was built into the models before 2009 any chance you know how to put those to use? Your mod has a 120v plug in attached to it so do I need to get 120v to the charger in my 2007? Thanks
I’m not sure, but I think there’s a switch or button near the driver’s side under dash. I believe it uses electricity from the lead acid battery to boost the hybrid battery enough to start the car. Maybe someone with a pre-2009 can verify the details.
Matt is correct, there is a black pushbutton switch that glows when depressed for 10 seconds and starts to charge the Hybird battery from the 12 volts. Mine is behind a cover on the side dash when you open the driver door and some are under the steering wheel by your left side
Where did you get the charger or is it already there from the factory?
I got it from Amazon. There’s a link in the comment/description under the video.
Anyone know if there's a fuse or relay to these wires? I was charging the battery but something happened and its not showing voltage on them anymore..
Fuses #8, 15, 25 & 26 in the engine compartment fuse panel all relate to the “traction battery”. You can find a diagram at:
www.startmycar.com/us/ford/escape-hybrid/info/fusebox/2009
Did you have the orange safety switch installed when you checked the voltage?
@@mattgatlin1918 thanks for info. Yeah the traction batt is still powered and working but there's no voltage at the legacy service wires anymore..
@timw1636 did you ever figure out the no voltage on these wires? I just had the same issue happen.
@@RalphSki2 no solution but from a battery disassemble video the wires seem to run to a simple pcb board within. Maybe a burnt trace?
There is a fuse on the orange service disconnect
Also I have a questions for you,
Are you familiar with forscan & if so did you do anything with that on the escape before or after charging the battery? I’m familiar with that software for my F150 but reading there is useful stuff for the hybrid when it comes to HV battery issues
I’m not familiar with forscan. The only diagnostic tool I have is a cheapo Bluetooth OBD scan module that I can read with a really limited free app.
@@mattgatlin1918 well if your a weekend warrior your type and have a ford you should definitely check it out, can’t say for the escape as I haven’t played around with it on my wife’s car. For my F150 it’s crazy the amount of stuff you can do (everything besides powertrain enhancements as like in a tuner/programmer) but it’s a software that allows you to customize and make changes to almost any Ford vehicle & Doesn’t void warranty
Cool. I just checked it out and bought a Forscan adapter for my laptop. I’ll definitely give it a go. Thanks for the tip!
@@mattgatlin1918 ayyye ! No problem man, you can get a free trial subscription or for like $10 have a whole year. Just watch a couple videos , do a couple searches on your vehicle many ppl have already made google docs showing exactly what to change to get what you want. But Most importantly first thing you do before you Make a change to any module is save your factory one so if you ever wanna go back or change something you don’t have to go down that rabbit hole… ask me how I know 😅
Hey @tellis17 - I just ran Forscan on my FEH and it’s pretty cool. I ran all the diagnostics on the hybrid battery control module (BCM), did a module reset and rebalanced all the cells. As an added bonus I also disabled my tire sensor warning (TPMS) since it’s been nonstop chiming at me for no reason for the past two years. Thanks again for the tip!
Hello Matt. Is there a way we can make this Escape HEV a PlugIn? Thanks
I doubt it. For starters, you’d have to replace the entire battery with a much larger battery in order to get the electric-only range that a PHEV gets.
Do you mean that instead of making it have a 120v /110 wall outlet, you would install the adaptor that you see at the charging stations ? . I wondered this to but figured the standard plug would be more efficient and effective
Yes that was my initial idea... so it can be charhed as well when parked
Trying mine this week. Great video thanks
Good luck and thanks!
Where to get that charger? Thanks!!
There’s a link in the description for all the stuff I used. I got the charger from Amazon
www.amazon.com/HLG-120H-C350A-150-5W-Single-Output-Switching/dp/B073ZCRJ5P
Where is the list of needed stuff
Click on “more” in the description just below the video. Click on “more” again until it shows you the entire description which includes the stuff I used.
I just cant believe this was uploaded roughly 6 months ago and you had a 2009 with only 40k miles on it...
It was a Los Angeles County Lifeguard vehicle before I bought it in December of 2021. It had 23k on it. I think it was probably only driven for short distances on the beach, mainly during the summer.
OK, so it probably took me two hours alone just to remove those two %&@*ing inaccessible screws, but otherwise I'm completely happy. Thank you, it worked! But does anybody know if it's dangerous to leave it plugged in too long? (This is now my son's car at college, where it might be left for periods of time and I'm not sure if he just needs to try starting the car every half hour after plugging in ... and I didn't wire it with an easy ability to check the voltage.)
By the way, I was able to start those screws by holding the Torx T30 bit sideways in a vice grip. But once it started coming out on one side, there was no longer enough room for the bit. So I did have to saw off an appropriately-sized allen wrench to finish the job, just like the video suggested. Anyway, just wanted to repeat my appreciation for this video!
Glad it worked for you. IDK about leaving it plugged in too long, but several other videos with these DIY charging setups talk about leaving the charger plugged in for six to eight hours. I’d recommend only leaving it plugged in enough to get the car started.
purchase one of these cars from auction with only 70k miles, going to try this today,.
It works, thank you for the video, there are other methods on youtube, but this is way way easier. Like you said the hardest part was taking out the t30 torx bolt. I only removed the one the right side (passenger) and propped the cover up.
Awesome! I’m glad it worked for you. If you haven’t already tried it, I would definitely recommend using Forscan to check and rebalance the battery system.
Great video. Another example of Ford doing their customers a disservice. Why not keep the charging button on the side of the dash like like the previous models? I can work on my own cars but the orange wires scare me as they are very dangerous and high voltage.
Thanks. I was also cautious about the orange high voltage wires, which is why I really liked this method over the others I’d seen that were working with the circuitry on the passenger side of the battery ⚡️🫣
Not bad. Missed a couple points:
1) Seal the hole. This battery is hermetically sealed for a reason.
2) Charge for at least two hours. It's not about voltage, it's about state of charge. A battery at 1V/cell may have excessive internal resistance and may spike the voltage very quickly. You need to use math. The first 300-500mAh input is needed to restore the proper chemistry phases at the terminals and reduce internal resistance. After that, you're getting legitimate charge. Two hours at 350mA means you're only putting about 200-400mAh usable capacity into the cells. That's 3.6 - 7.3% SoC.
Failing to restore the proper phase will 1) fail to start or 2) start but slam a bunch of current into the cells in a high resistance state and damage them.
Thanks for the comments.
I wouldn’t call the HV battery case “hermetically sealed”, especially since it has a barely filtered airflow system that keeps it from overheating by circulating outside air through the case.
As for the state of charge, I was only using this setup to get the engine to start. Once started, I let the factory engineered system take over to fully charge the HV battery, and ran Forscan on it to run the maintenance cycles on the HV battery.
@@mattgatlin1918"Hermetically" is indeed a strong term, but it conveys intent. The only intentional opening in the battery is the inlet/outlet at the driver's side rear. Everywhere else is "hermetically" sealed. When the blend door is closed, it very nearly meets the "hermetically sealed" definition. Leaks in the case, even small ones compromise the cooling system. Why compromise the one part of the system that is most key in pack longevity when a dab of sealant or foam fixes it? I prefer to drill a 1/4" hole and use a sealing grommet around the power cord. Super fast and effective.
Again, it's not about voltage, it's about state of charge and proper cell chemistry. I must not have conveyed this sufficiently. The "factory engineered system" does not take into account the conditions needed by deeply discharged cells to prevent damage. Rushing the recharge further exacerbates the self-discharge conditions already present.
Observing ~350V (1.4V/cell) after a few minutes of charging positively confirms that your cells were in a high resistance state. Pushing ~15A into them via the vehicle's charging system is not good for them. Charging in a high resistance state should be done at no more than about 0.2C.
Keep in mind these are the same "factory engineers" that designed a system that can discharge a completely healthy battery if left sitting for 30 days and will void your warranty (when these cars were young enough to still have warranties). Toyotas have sat for years without this happening. Furthermore, these are the same people that chose to 1) remove the factory jump starter because "it has never been needed" and 2) removed the battery A/C cooling system in the 2010+ years.
If your goal is a lasting repair that does not degrade the cells, patience is warranted. A two hour charge ensures the cells are in a state suitable to receive the charging system's current.
I've been doing this for 8 years, and I have a lot of experience with it (documented this process on a website 8 years ago). I've done this to dozens of FEH/MMH, and I have substantial experience with NiMH hybrids having serviced hundreds and personally owned 14 NiMH based hybrids. Charge for two hours if you want to improve the outcome. My charger is 1.4A, and I still do it for 30 minutes before I attempt start.
Very cool.
Ok thank you
very cool. Why would ford do away with a system that could actually balance their batteries?? Hmm makes you wonder.
IDK. A specialized dealer-service procedure that potentially makes them several hundreds of dollars for simply charging a depleted battery? 🤑🪫 Such a scheme would only work if they could somehow make it so the ICE can’t start like a normal ICE 😂
@@mattgatlin1918 that is what I thought!
Cost cutting, the internal charger cost $900
Genius
Don't do this mistake. The hv battery you must to charge only the engine .
Care to elaborate with reasons?
You are a live saver! 😊 🛟
Thanks! Glad it worked out for you!