A U Battery Change

MUSTANGNED · 02-10-2007, 07:06 PM

Hi , last time i disconnected the battery on my AU3 i had problems with my idling and had to get my electronics sorted That was minus $70 NZ in my wallet ,Not happy ,, Now as the battery is getting to the end of its life its going to need a new one , How do i stop the same problem happening again or is it into Ford to get stung again ,Thanx for any advice as i would prefer to change this myself .. Ned

Casper · 02-10-2007, 07:40 PM

Ford really shafted you well didnt they?

Bad idling after a battery change is usually due to the ECU "forgetting" its settings. Do this after you change the battery and you will be fine.. and $70 better off.

Oh, and this is all Ford did.. I can assure you.

Once reconnected do the following:

AUTO Transmission:

- Reset Computer by disconnecting battery (Take off the positive terminal lead)
- When power is re-connected, start car and idle in this sequence
- 2 minutes idling with the transmission in drive and A/C on.
- 2 minutes idling with the transmission in drive and A/C off.
- 2 minutes idling with the transmission in neutral and A/C on.
- 2 minutes idling with the transmission in neutral and A/C off.
- Drive the car on the road, for at least 5 minutes under variable throttle positions.

MANUAL Transmission:

- Same as above, except put the transmission in gear for (drive).

Often, resetting the ECU can give the car a fresh start, improving performance, economy and smoothness. It is recommended that an ECU reset is done after any modification to allow the computer to relearn the car and the driver.

**Jastel** · 02-10-2007, 07:44 PM

Get another battery (not the new one) and hook up some jumper leads to the cars battery leads, even a half flat one or a motorbike one will do
You can use the existing battery but it will be a bit of a tangle

Make sure it always has 12V and it won't lose it's memory

You can also wire a 9V battery to a cigarette lighter plug and plug it in to the socket to keep the power on.

peterban · 02-10-2007, 09:56 PM

The last battery I bought for the LTD was from K-mart Tyre and auto.
They connected up another battery with jumper leads to the connections and then disconnected my old one, put a new battery in and then disconnected the jumper leads.
I didn't even have to put in the radio code.
It was the first time in 30 odd years of buying batterys that it had ever been done that way.
Sometimes they used a 9 volt battery plugged into the cigarette lighter so that the radio code was not lost.
Most of the time they just took the old battery out and put the new one in and hoped that I had the radio code.

NC1183 · 02-10-2007, 10:28 PM

If your quick enough i'm pretty sure you can change the battery over without the ECU resetting itself, as it takes a little while for it to "forget".

Mind you thats a rumor i've heard, so don't take it as gospel.

MUSTANGNED · 03-10-2007, 07:16 AM

Thanx all <Casper .. i tried what you describe when this happened last time but to no avail , and ended up taking to Ford where they reset the ECU whith their computer program ,All the Best

Casper · 03-10-2007, 09:07 AM

Sounds like they reflashed the ECU then. Similar to an "edit" reflash.

Approx 1 minute for an AU.

sneaky · 03-10-2007, 04:33 PM

i have seen a gadget at an automotive parts shop (peps) that you connect up to the car so you don't lose your settings..

i only noticed it because when my battery terminals were disconnected for cleaning at the last service it cost me $700 in repairs to get the car running again (new plugs, leads, idle air sensor, labour at auto electrics shop). next time i'll buy one of these gadgets (and service the car myself)

SirHenry · 03-10-2007, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MUSTANGNED

Thanx all <Casper .. i tried what you describe when this happened last time but to no avail , and ended up taking to Ford where they reset the ECU whith their computer program ,All the Best

I hear where you're coming from with this one.
I dunno what it is mine is exactly the same, last battery I didn't lose power to the ecu but must have been drained enough to reset it. I put the new one as carefully as possible, car had the ol' base idle miss issues, I tried every single trick in the book in the end I had to take in to the boys at Denmac Ford in Brisbane and for only $45 I saved a hell of a lot of frustration swearing and cursing. Quite a few people tried all the usual tricks as welll and its just plain stubborn, I'm beginning to think the falcon's having an affair with the GT at the back.....