Battery Replacement

JohnGalt4

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Location
Sacramento/Tahoe
Current Ride
2022 Bronco Raptor
Current Ride #2
2023 Land Rover Defender 110
At 40k my stock battery decided to leave the chat while at a trailhead. Fortunately, I had my little battery jump starter. Highly recommend these for your tool kit, saved me twice now (once on a Tacoma).

Some general points on Battery replacement for anyone interested…

The battery is a DH7/94R

I bought an Optima Yellow top. I’m sure there are other options that are as good, better or cheaper. The thing I love about it is the handle! Dropping a 60lb battery in between cables and other items into the cradle is waaaaaay easier with a handle. It fit perfectly.

To replace the battery you’ll need 10mm and 13mm deep well sockets, a 1/4” ratchet and 6” extension. All included in your Raptor tool kit! A flat head screw driver could come in handy too.

There are 10mm nuts on the battery hold down bracket and the cable clamps. Two 13mm nuts on the hold down bracket. All easy to access.

It’s a little tight getting the battery out, but there’s ample room to come straight up. It’s just difficult lifting a 60 pound battery straight up in tight quarters up and over the fender without a handle. I’d recommend using a step stool.

The felt liner slipped right off the old battery and on to the new.

Once installed it seems that one should perform a battery management system sensor reset. This is easy to do and doesn’t require Forscan or similar software. The procedure is to 1) turn on the ignition, but don’t start the engine. 2) Flash the brights 5 times in succession, 3)then pump brakes three times. 4) You should see the battery icon on the dashboard begin to flash after about 10 seconds confirming the reset. I’m still not sure this is actually required, but I did it anyway.

The before picture, as you can see there isn’t a lot of clearance or room to get your fingers in to lift the 60 pound brick
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The Optima and its sweet sexy handle. So much easier to install/remove!
IMG_3709.webp

And everyone needs one of these, it holds a charge a long time, but you do need to check and recharge occasionally. This need is directly correlated to the age of your battery and the distance you will be from a AAA accessible point. So easy to use and store.
IMG_1650.webp
 
Good info. Happened to me on the trail as well. That little jumper would been nice to have.
 
I'd be curious if anyone knows what the reset process you went through actually does? I've replaced mine and didn't reset a thing.... heh.
 
I'd be curious if anyone knows what the reset process you went through actually does? I've replaced mine and didn't reset a thing.... heh.

My AI Overlord has informed me that

“A battery reset on a Ford is required to update the Battery Management System (BMS) that a new, fully functional battery has been installed. Without this reset, the BMS continues to assume the old battery is still present, resulting in overcharging, premature failure of the new battery, and reduced functionality of auto start-stop and electronic systems”

As I recall you replaced a fully functional battery with the Optima booty you plundered at the Raptor Rally. Thus the BMS may have been entirely indifferent to the change.
 
Look at the Antigravity H7 80Ah batteries as well. They shave 40 pounds over the OEM battery and being lithium, charge in about 1/3 the time of a lead acid battery. I'm a dealer for them and can get you a nice Braptor discount. On top of that, they have a built-in jump start feature although if there's total battery failure, that's another matter altogether.

If you must have a lead acid, AGM-style batteries are the way. More durable than standard cells and they do charge faster than a normal lead acid but not nearly as fast as a lithium.. Our BMS is set up for an AGM which produces higher voltage to charge AGM-style batteries vs. standard cells which is where the faster charging comes from. AGM demands a higher voltage for charging.

Generally, BMS systems are "dumb" but can remember several battery changes. They cannot sense internal battery resistance, actively vary voltage based on feedback, etc. They will adjust charging logistics over time but that's pre-programmed in based on simple table calculations based on number of discharge/charing sequences. Just glad Ford didn't go with the coding system like the German manufacturers did. Way overcomplicated to steer owners towards dealerships for something they should be able to replace themselves.
 
Anti-gravity batteries
swap video

I use a Battery Tender on my battery in the winter, will I have to have a different one for The Anti-gravity or Lithium ones?
 
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Anti-gravity batteries
swap video

I use a Battery Tender on my battery in the winter, will I have to have a different one for The Anti-gravity or Lithium ones?

Yes, a specific charger is needed. You can't charge a lithium ion battery with a charger designed solely for lead acid batteries. AG has a new line of chargers out now, they charge lithium as well as lead acid and everything in between and come up to 10 amp hours at an affordable price. We used to use CTEK but these are better.

I might as well post my own installation video even though it's not in a Bronco. I promise to do one of those once I have more free time.
 
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