I mostly use my 2019 Raptor for short trips that don't give the battery time to recharge fully, especially in cold weather when I'm using heated seats and steering wheel a lot. It also seems to light up a lot of things whenever I open a door even when not actually going anywhere and that takes some life out of the charge. I've been putting a smart battery charger on the truck every other week or so just to ensure the battery is fully charged and I find that the charger reports the battery as only being about 40% charged on hook up and it takes 8 to 10 hours to bring it up to 100%. I know this truck has very sophisticated electronics and a large alternator to keep things going but I'm wondering if what I'm seeing is the norm for these trucks or if there might be a parasitic drain somewhere. Give me your thoughts if you've had similar experience.

I might add that this charger knows the battery is not fully discharged and is acting like a battery tender to bring the battery to full charge. The charger will charge a dead battery much faster - the 8 to 10 hours to charge is normal for this charger in this circumstance.

 

If you are not having issues with power loss and failure to start I feel like you may be being a little too paranoid about it... I can honestly say that I have never in my 17 years of driving ever checked my battery just to see how it was feeling... when it fails I replace it. And if your truck is "running" the lights and other electronics "heated seats, radio, etc." should be relying on the alternator and not the battery alone. Are you having electrical issues? What made you want to check your battery?

 

I think what you are experiencing is pretty common for these trucks these days. I also think you are smart to keep using the charger on a regular basis if you continue to only make short trips.

With Covid isolation, I'm putting my smart charger on my truck about every other week for a day or so (depends on when I go out next and if I put it on my Mustang which is parked for the winter).

Automotive batteries have, by design and chemistry, a limited number of drain-and-charge cycles they can experience before they are used up. Keeping the SOC as high as possible helps increase the life of a battery, whether its a FLA or AGM.

 

Keeping the battery charged up for longer life, if you don't drive enough to keep it charged, is a good idea. You get a much longer battery life than just waiting for it
to die and replacing it. Your cold weather doesn't help either.

I top my batteries off every few weeks just to make sure they are all charged, especially now that they hardly get driven because we are all at home. Texas heat isnt
good on ours.

I would suggest that you get it out and heated up when you do drive it, take the long way there and back once a month to get the moisture and fuel out
of the oil. 30min drive should help a lot with the battery too.

 

For you guys charging/maintaining - are you going right to the battery terminals or is there a different place for ground?

Have heard mixed things due to the monitor for state of charge.

Thanks

 

Yes, that is normal.

 

Thank you for the replies. Batteries, like most other items on a car, need a little TLC once in awhile to keep them performing properly and to get the maximum life out of them. I recently watched a thread on another forum where the OP was complaining about needing a step stool or a ladder to reach the oil dip stick making it difficult to check the oil. One of the responders thought checking oil was a waste of time - just take the truck to the oil change place and have it changed when the info center says it's time. You don't have to be rocket scientist to see that sort of reasoning can leave you stranded and cost a lot of money in repairs.

I put the positive on the positive battery terminal and the negative on the negative terminal. Putting the negative on another ground away from the battery works just as well and is suggested to prevent an explosion in you get a spark near the battery. Batteries produce hydrogen gas and it can produce an explosion if not vented properly. If in doubt - use another ground.

 

If your truck has A-STOP (aka: Auto Start-Stop), then the current sensor monitors current entering the battery from a charger even when the truck is shut off. Therfore, it is best to use a chassis ground rather than the battery post. If you don't have A-STOP, then the current sensor does not monitor current flow while the truck is shut off so it is not as important, but still best for safety purposes, to connect the charger negative lead to a chassis ground. There is a ground just to the side of the battery which works well. Always connect the positive charger (or jumper cable) first, then the negative.

 

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Thanks. I do have A stop (though disabled). Planning to use a battery tender Jr that is only 750mA. Supposedly it will work with AGM batteries. I use it on motorcycles in the past without issue but those has much less parasitic drain. Not even sure if it will work but worth a shot during longer periods with less use.

 

That's good to know. You learn something new every day!