I have a 2000 Excursion V10 wich runs just perfectly, exept for the problems I have experienced lately with no battery-power to start the engine in the morning. There is no "warning" in advance. When I park it in the evening, everything is ok, the next morning there is no batterypower. It is not something that happens every day, but has happened 3 times in the last 2 months. The first time , I thought it was a broken battery, so I replaced it with a new one. But it happened again just a few weeks later, so then I charged it. And now, it has happened again. I have also checked all the interior/reading lamps, and none of them have been turned on. I have tried to locate the error myself by removing the negative cable from the battery-terminal, and put a test lamp in between. The test lamp do light up, and from what I know, that means that something is drawing current from the battery. I have then removed the incab fuses, one by one, to try to locate the "user", with no sucsess. Is it advisible to do the same thing with the fuses in the engine compartment? Are the relays a possible source? I have owned the car since september last year, and have not experienced any such problems until now, not even during the winter, wich is very cold here in my part of Norway. I appreciate any information you may have to help me figure out this.

 

larspetter123

You are on the correct path but it will be very difficult to track down the exact drain with the trouble light.

There are a few circuits that are required to draw a few milliamp of power with the key off to Keep Alive (the) Memory known as KAM circuits. These are in the radio, Main Computer, (PCM) and I think the ABS computer circuits. All of these are designed to draw VERY little power and usually have no impact on a fully charged battery.

You will need to place a meter in series with the battery positive OR negative and set it to the 10 amp scale with the KEY and ALL accessories OFF. See how much the current draw is. If you can not get a reading step down to the 1 Amp scale and look again. Now you should see some current draw. If the draw is less then 1/4 scale around 250 to 375 milliamp then you have a normal system and it is likely your charging system is not working and the battery is being drained during use and then depleted some more over night.

If the amperage draw is greater then 1/2 Amp then some sensor, switch, or wire is grounded and depleting the battery too much over night.

I suspect you do NOT know about a very dangerous RECALL we have over here and your 2000 Ex is in the group I think.

The problem is a switch on the bottom of the Brake Master Cylinder that send power to the Cruise Control computer when you use the brakes and tell the cruise control to release the throttle. Ford wired this switch to always be HOT with 12VDC on it all the time. The Recall is because the switch itself can be defective and short out causing 12 VDC to go to ground and heat up the wire in the engine compartment, sometimes causing a FIRE. You can safely disconnect the wires connector from the bottom of the master cylinder and check the switch with a meter. There should be not connection of the contacts with the brakes off and good continuity when brake pedal pushed down. The wire should have 12vdc on only one pin.

It is possible for other circuits in some of the relays to be stuck hot at shut down.

To answer your question, NO it will not cause any problems for you to use the light as you described and remove the fuses and relays, and electrical connectors in the engine compartment. But I highly recommend that you use an Ammeter to do these tests because then you can see when you disconnect a item that draws some power while other circuits are still drawing power. In this case with the light you may disconnect one of the power robbers but still see a light because more then one item is HOT. Sorry I do not know all of the circuits in a 2000 Ex that have 12vdc on them all the time with the key off.
I hope this helps.

 

Fredvon4
Thanks, I will try the same routine again, including the engine compartment, with a meter. And I also have to check the fuses for the LPG conversion. I had an updated version of the LPG system installed just a few weeks before the first incident, so maybe that is a source for my problems.

And I will absolutely check the switch on the master cylinder. With an additional pressure tank holding, when full, 36 gallons of propane, I shure don´t want any signs of fire

About LPG; My 4x4 Limited Ex is working just fine on LPG. When I bought the car, I had an LPG conversion installed. At first I had a system that mixes LPG with air in the intake tube between the air filter and throttle body. That worked ok, but before summer I had an updated system that is direct propan injection with injectors mounted right next to the gas injectors. It is a Canadian system called Ecofuel. This is working very well.
In Norway the price for gasoline is about USD 8 (yes, eight) pr gallon, and the price for LPG is about USD 2.50, so the installation cost pays off fast.

 

TTT

For the new folks TTT is To The Top

I wanted this thread back on the front page for a few more days as I suspect some of our more frugle V10 owners may be interested in the LPG conversion... At $3.00 a gallon and I bet never to se $2.50 ever again it may be that LPG conversion could now pay for it self.

 

The Excursion is NOT included in the recall.

 

Even if the Excursion was included in the recall, there are ways in which the customer can have the recall done if the vehicle has been exported to another country, but it must be initiated and paid for by the customer.

 

I admit that I did not seriously research what all the "recall" vehicles were, (but considering the seriousness of the potential fire from a failed cruise control brake switch), I thought it appropriate to mention this issue to LarrsPeter.

I work on the "better safe than sorry" principal of life. If this caused LarrsPeter to get unreasonably concerned, I apologize!

However, in reality, I feel that at least one of the fellow V10 owners from across the pond is now aware that our unique recall listing process is something for him to pay attention to.

Fire, a garage, and propane, is a very real "life changing" set of conditions that a owner needs to be cognizant of.

 

Oh, I forgot to add this, one of my friends actually works at a gas conversion place here (LPG is a popular form of automotive fuel in Australia).
He was talking the other day about a LPG injection system - as opposed to the current systems which use a gas convertor - similar to a carburettor.

Will see if I can find some info on it.

 

Ok.

I think this is the manufacturer of the system he was talking about.
http://www.centralgaragecarcroft.co.uk/landirenzo.htm

Thier web site:
http://www.landi.it/eng/prodotti/prodotti_i.html
They also do Natural gas injection systems.

In fact, this website has a LOT of good info on LPG systems:
http://www.centralgaragecarcroft.co.uk/lpg.htm

The great thing about injection of LPG as opposed to a normal gas convertor is that is greatly reduces the chance of backfire.

 

Thanks for the response to my problem. I have not solved it yet, so I will let my dealer look into it.
Regarding LPG, try www.ecofuel.com, I have an LPG injection system manufactured by them, custom made for the V10. I have no problems with backfire with this system. It is easy to operate. The car always starts up on gasoline. When the engine has reached a specific temperature, it automaticly swiches to LPG. This is completely safe even when driving, you do not have to wait until the engine has heated up. And this "delay" also keeps your gasoline system alert, so nothing dries out. You can hardly feel the switch. I am very satisfied with my LPG conversion. As I stated earlier, the price for gasoline in Norway is USD 8 pr gallon, and LPG costs USD 2,50 pr gallon. In Norwegian terms, that means that I have the same fuel cost pr mile as a 2002 Chrysler Neon 1600 cc 115hp (My wifes car). So with the gasoline prices we have here in one of the worlds largest oil producing countrys, this convertion pays off nearly just by taking a drive around the block.