Best practices for extending the LIFE of the battery?

[LariatLarry]

I’m sure there are tips and tricks in here…. can we summarize again?

Note - I’m not talking about extending the range, plenty of threads on that.

Thanks guys

Sponsored

 

[Firn]

I mean, LOTS of threads on battery life too. We just had another one yesterday.

In short, ABC, always be charging. Charge every chance you get, keep the battery at as low of a SOC as works for you (but not too low), and keep it cool.

 

[Montecarlossfan]

I tend not to worry about it other than blatantly charging to 100 for no reason.
Heck if a 3 year old iPhone I didn’t treat well had 89% capacity with close to 1000 cycles , the truck with its cooling and BMS will probably never have an issue in my years of ownership.

 

[Maxx]

Keep DOD as low as is convenient for you. 40-60, 30-70, 30-80, spending more time closer to 50% and away from 100% or 0%. depending on how much range you need on hand. Keep it plugged in when it is very cold if it is convenient. I try to not charge the battery when it is very cold however BMS does try to heat up the battery while it is charging. It just does not seem like the battery is warm in the beginning of the process. In sport mode, regen is like DC fast charging when you let go of the gas going down hill. so if my battery is cold, I go easy on acceleration and deceleration.

As others have mentioned. BMS generally does a good job taking care of the battery. This is just if you want to go that extra mile Chances are, if you do all of this, you still may have a cell that just does not like to play ball and forces you to replace the pack anyway.

 

[Calvin H-C]

Here's my suggestions, coming from over seven years experience with a Focus Electric that is now hitting close to 100,000 miles. With a rated range of about 100 miles, that would be over 1000 charge cycles. In fact, it's probably closer to more than double that since full cycles from near-zero to 100 are pretty rare.

A couple of points that differ from the Lightning:

• Battery is rated at 33 kWh
• Fastest DC charge rate I've ever experienced is 53 kW, 48-50 is more typical and this does not start dropping until SOC exceeds 90%
• FFE has no ability to set a maximum SOC for charging, it charges to 100% unless you stop it manually (note: it won't start charging if already 97% or higher)

For the most part, I charge it after it's used, but I won't leave it sitting more than a day at 100%. If I have a pretty good idea of the next day's use (or lack of expected use), I won't bother to charge. For daily commuting (prior to Covid), this meant charging every third day in the summer or every second day in the winter.

There were exceptions to this, especially for cabin preconditioning as it has to be plugged in for it to heat or cool the cabin for your "go time".

I've restricted fast charging pretty much to road trips, but with a 100 mile range, the odd fast charge has been needed for heavy local use.

I have no science to back this up, but I've always suspected that as much as too much fast charging may be hard on the battery, so too is never fast charging it. I sort of suspect the battery needs to occasionally get its "ass kicked" by the odd fast charge, so to speak.

When the temperature is low, a message pops up when you put it in park to recommend it be plugged in. Even if it's scheduled to not charge until overnight, it will use some energy to keep the battery warm, even with the Level 1 cable. That said, almost always when away from home there's no opportunity to do so, so I rarely did it except when at home, and even then only occasionally.

 

[RocketGhost]

My take is to not overthink it. Ford says charge to 90% for regular use but 100% is ok if you need it. DCFC is generally regarded as harder on the battery but ok to do if needed. That's all you need to know.

All the picky tips and tricks of how much to charge and when to charge have such a negligible impact on long term battery health it's not worth the mental energy. These batteries are very well engineered and have health management systems that make it hard to harm them if even if you tried (except for possibly exclusively fast charging). So far data has shown that these batteries degrade so little that it would take hundreds of thousands of miles to make much difference.

Just drive the truck and plug it in when you need to charge it to get where you need to go.

 

[PrimeRisk]

I've been a BEV user since 2015 and these are the rules I've always used on every vehicle:

• Always plug it in when you can.
• Don't charge over 80% unless you need the extra range and will be driving off that top 20% within 12 hours.
• Never run it below 20% unless you have to.
• Never let it sit idle below 20%, find a charge point even if you just use it to get above 20%.
• Don't DCFC unless you have to.

All of the above said, my experience has been different in practice.

My 2015 Leaf that was my daily driver for 6 years and 60k+ miles showed only 3% battery degradation via LeafSpy Pro when I sold it. For the first couple of years I followed all of the above rules, but then my office moved further away from my home. This required me to charge to 100% every night and return home virtually every night with <20% charge. I was effectively abusing the crap out of the battery, yet I didn't see battery high degradation.

The dealership that I sold it to did their testing on the battery before making me an offer and stated that there was no appreciable battery degradation and didn't ding me.

Summing it all up, I simply don't worry about it too much. I follow the recommendations when convenient, but don't worry in any way if I break from the recommended approach on occasion.

 

[G-Zeus]

For me, KISS:
Home L2 charge to 90% - I want the range and options for whatever may come my way the next day.

CCS fast charge to 80% max unless I'm in a charging desert and need more range, but it is VERY slow charging once it hits 80% SOC - plus this need is unlikely now with access to the Tesla network.

 

[chl]

I would only add to the above advice two things I didn't see mentioned:

{Note: this post has excerpts for the Ford Battery Warranty and the Manual for a 2023 Lightning, so it is a bit long - I put it in a PDF attached to read off-line}

1) if not using the vehicle for an extended period of time, store it with the battery at or near 50% SOC,

2) see the battery warranty information (an excerpt below with some pertinent things highlighted) which requires, for example, installing power up software within a reasonable amount of time (e.g., 30 days) etc.

-----
MAINTAIN YOUR VEHICLE PROPERLY
Your Owner’s Manual, provided with your vehicle, indicates the
scheduled maintenance required for your vehicle. Proper
maintenance guards against major repair expenses resulting from
neglect or inadequate maintenance and may help increase the
value you receive when you sell or trade your vehicle.

It is your responsibility to make sure that all the scheduled
maintenance is performed and that the materials used meet Ford
engineering specifications. Failure to perform scheduled
maintenance as specified in the Owner’s Manual will invalidate
warranty coverage on parts affected by the lack of maintenance.
Make sure that receipts for completed maintenance work are
retained with the vehicle.

High Voltage Lithium-Ion Battery Capacity Coverage
...
NOTE: The battery capacity degradation rate will vary based on
various factors, including environmental conditions, and will also
be affected by the way in which the vehicle is used. Following the
recommendations in the Preserving Your High Voltage Battery
section of the Owner’s Manual may help lower the rate of capacity
degradation and optimize battery life.

Ford Power-Up software updates
During the warranty coverage period, Ford Motor Company
warrants that:
• you will not be charged for diagnosis, repair, replacement, or
adjustment of components that are damaged or inoperable
due to a defect caused by a Ford Power-Up software update

WHAT IS NOT COVERED?
Damage Caused By:
• accidents, collision or objects striking the vehicle (including
driving through a car wash)
• theft, vandalism, or riot
• fire or explosion
• using contaminated or improper fluids
• customer-applied chemicals or accidental spills
• driving through water deep enough to cause water to be
ingested into any component. i.e. powertrain components
• immersion/flooding of the high voltage battery assembly
• abuse and/or misuse of the vehicle and/or high voltage battery
pack, such as driving over curbs, overloading, racing or using
the vehicle as a permanent stationary power source
• exceeding the load limits specified on the certification label.
See your Owner’s Manual for the location of the certification
label
• failure to observe and resolve vehicle warnings and indications
of battery concerns within a reasonable amount of time,
typically 30 days
• failure to complete Ford Power-Up software updates within a
reasonable amount of time, typically 30 days
• the use of incompatible charging devices or methods
• modifications to the high voltage battery assembly, high
voltage system, or associated wiring
• exposure to direct and/or intense heat sources outside of
normal use, such as collision repairs that subject the vehicle to
paint booth conditions that exceed Ford’s recommendations
• allowing the high voltage battery assembly to remain in a fully
discharged, or near zero state of charge, for more than 14 days
• repairs performed by facilities and personnel not authorized by
Ford, including repairs which would have otherwise been
covered under the manufacturer’s warranty,
• improper vehicle storage resulting in high voltage battery damage
(See Owner’s Manual for vehicle storage recommendations)

In order to maintain your warranty coverage, be sure to follow the
recommendations in the Owner’s Manual under Preserving Your
High Voltage Battery.

Other Items or Conditions Not Covered
The New Vehicle Limited Warranty does not cover:

high-voltage battery replacement due to improper vehicle
storage. Refer to the Owner’s Manual for the proper ways your
vehicle’s battery must be maintained in the event the vehicle is
not driven or is stored for an extended period.
...
In order to maintain optimal battery life and functionality of your
vehicle, it is imperative that all high voltage battery software
updates are installed. You are responsible for ensuring all software
updates are installed within 30 days of software availability. You
can most easily accomplish this by keeping Automatic Updates set
to “ON”. If you are unable or choose not to use your vehicle’s
connectivity features to update software, your Ford Dealer can
determine if software updates are available for your vehicle and
perform these updates. Software updates will be installed at no
cost to you during the warranty period. Damage resulting from
failure to install battery system updates will not be covered under
your New Vehicle Limited Warranty.

If you do not maintain your vehicle properly, Ford may have the
right to deny you warranty coverage. To have repairs made under
this warranty, you may have to show that you have followed
Ford’s instructions on properly maintaining and using your
vehicle. You will find these instructions in your Owner’s Manual.
Be sure to save your service receipts and to keep accurate
records of all maintenance work.

NOTE: The high voltage battery assembly is not eligible for any of
the extended warranty plans or packages.
-----------
From the Manual (2023 Lightning):

Overnight Charging
You can increase the longevity and
performance of your high voltage battery
by using the charge scheduling and
departure and comfort settings on your
touchscreen or in the FordPass app.

With Charge Scheduling, you can improve
the high voltage battery's longevity by
delaying the start of charging and setting
a maximum charging limit. We recommend
you set your preferred charging times to
be at least 2-3 hours after your typical plug
in time. This allows the battery to cool
before charging begins. Additionally,
setting the maximum charge level to be
less than 100% for everyday usage reduces
strain on the battery.

You can improve driving range and
performance by scheduling departure
times and cabin comfort level with the
Departure and Comfort feature. This not
only warms or cools the cabin but also
conditions the battery to ensure the best
driving range and performance by the set
departure time.

DC Charging
Frequent use of DC charging could result
in reducing your battery's efficiency and
lifespan. This is more pronounced on the
standard range battery pack versus the
extended range battery pack. See What
is DC Charging (page 198).

Storage Temperature
Storing your vehicle in temperatures
between 32°F (0°C) and 113°F (45°C) is
the most beneficial range for the high
voltage battery.

At temperatures just above the freezing
point or lower, plug in your vehicle to
maintain battery performance and
maximize driving range.

Storage State of Charge
You can increase the battery life by
maintaining your state of charge below
100%. When you park your vehicle for an
extended period of 30 days or more, we
recommend your battery be at an
approximately 50% state of charge.

Storing your vehicle's high voltage battery
at higher states of charge is less favorable
than storing at lower states of charge.
Note: To achieve this state of charge for
storage, you can drive your vehicle down to
50% and set a charge limit for your location.

See Setting the Charging Schedule and
Preferences (page 213).

 

[chl]

I would only add to the above advice two things I didn't see mentioned:
...

PS: also check the coolant reservoirs and watch for leaks.

Sponsored