I have a 2021 F150 that I purchased last summer. I love the truck. The only issue that I'm having is that the auto start/stop doesn't work right. I don't drive the truck everyday, probably about 3 or 4 times a week. If I don't drive it for a day, the start/stop will not work again until I drive it at least 2 or 3 days in a row, and put on a couple hundred miles. When I look up the auto start/stop in the menu, it says "Engine on due to vehicle charging" This is even after a full day or 2 of driving.

I'm not so concerned about the actual start/stop, but that the truck always seems to think the battery needs charging. I've had it back to the dealer and they say the battery and charging systems test good. The other issue is that the zone lighting mostly only works if the truck is running. It only works after the same lengthy amount of driving and the computer reads the battery as charged. I did read something a while ago about the zone lighting causing a battery drain so I always make sure that system is off.

Any ideas on how to fix this?

 

If you are driving mostly short drives it's entirely possible the battery isn't achieving a high enough charge.
Its very common for those of us who don't drive often. Seems the 3 or 4 times a week is adequate, so long as you are driving routinely more than a mile to the grocery store during those trips.

 

I had the exact same thing. It is your battery. Your battery is bad. Mine would only charge up to 92% and only put out 11.5 volts. Tested it myself and tried to fully charge it myself. Auto start/stop would not work and the interior lights would not come on when the door was opened. The truck was not kicking out a code and the tech at the dealer told me the battery tested good. Therefore, Ford would not replace the battery. So I did it myself and paid for it myself. That fixed all problems.

 

Each day that I do drive it, I drive at least 75 miles. I have a 30 mile commute to work, so I drive my old ranger most days, trying to keep the mileage down on the new truck. I live in a very rural area, it's a 20 minute drive to the nearest grocery store!

 

Good afternoon! Could you please send us a private message with your VIN and dealership information? I would like to look into this battery charging concern for you on my end. Thanks!

 

mine does this exact same thing. But I drive everyday as it’s my only vehicle. It says it’s always charging and the auto start/stop does not work. I tried putting it on a trickle charger and it worked for one test drive then never again. I haven’t taken it to the dealer because of what I have heard they do as far as testing if it says it’s good. I never get above 11.2-11.5 on volt meter. I have the extended protection plan too

for those of you that charged your battery your self. Is there any type of procedure to do or is it simply discounting the old battery and hooking up a new one. Thank you

 

It can be very annoying. Sometimes when I shut the engine off, the accessory power shuts off immediately also (12v power points, radio, etc...). From what I've read, there's a battery management system that needs to be updated if the battery is replaced, so even that isn't a do it yourself thing anymore. I wonder is it the case that the batter really isn't charged, or the computer just thinks it isn't. I didn't drive the truck today, I'll put a meter on the battery tomorrow.

 

Me too. Except my battery tested with a bad cell. Replaced under warranty. Also fixed all problems. This was on my 18

 

I have had this problem since day one. Only good thing is the auto stop doesn’t work and that’s a PIA. Truck has been to dealer 4 times now and they keep telling me the battery is good. I finally made a complaint via BBB. Supposed to have a field engineer coming out to dealer for an “ inspection and repair”. I’ve about had it with this truck.
I usually end up putting it on a charger every other week. I too don’t drive the truck every day and when I do it’s not for extended periods. However, the truck battery should last more than 5 days.

 

Sounds like the dealers aren't testing batteries properly, they have to be tested under load or with an analyzer that determines internal resistance; just testing voltage across the terminal is inadequate. I would drive to an automotive store and have them test the battery and then take those test results along to the Ford dealer. All the bad battery threads I've read makes me wonder if they are using substandard batteries as cost reduction measure and aren't concerned with the quality of the battery. These batteries are probably cheap enough that it is worth replacing 10-20% of them when they fail. It's all about short term profits at Corporate America these days.