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Ford Explorer Maintenance and Repair

6385 messages,  Last post on May 05, 2013 at 7:47 AM

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Messages Page 619 of 639

#6177 of 6385 Do I need a new battery? by dmt4

Apr 22, 2009 (12:54 pm)

Hi, I just made a dumb mistake. I have a 2004 V8 Ford Explorer Limited Edition. I turned my headlights on because it is drizzling rain and they did not come on automatically. Well since I never manually turn them on and off... I forgot and left them on. They were on for about 40 minutes. The battery died, I got a jump, and am leaving it run for at least a half hour. My question is.... did I kill the battery? Should I go replace it, or do you think I will be okay? Is there any way to tell? Thank you so much for your help!
Donna

#6178 of 6385 Re: Do I need a new battery? [dmt4] by electricdesign

Apr 22, 2009 (7:42 pm)

Replying to: dmt4 (Apr 22, 2009 12:54 pm)
1. My question is.... did I kill the battery?
Answer - This depends on the Age and Capacity of the battery. Compare the battery to a glass of water. The bigger the battery, the more water it holds. It is the same for the battery, the larger it is (more capacity), the more power it holds. As the glass can hold different levels of water, the battery can hold varying levels of power. Only thing is that you can't see the amount of power in the battery, like you can see the water in the glass. The battery capacity is not directly related to the physical size of the battery, it is the RATING of the battery that determines how much power it can hold. There are several terms for battery capacity that may be quite confusing to you, Cold Cranking Amps, Hot Cranking Amps, Reserve Capacity, etc. To compare apples to apples you need to use the same terms when comparing batteries, the Cold Cranking Amps is the oldest and most common, and easiest to understand. So the larger the Cold Cranking Amps, the more powerful the battery. The battery also loses power as it ages, due to chemical breakdown within the battery. Average battery life varies a lot, but 4 to 5 years is about average in normal service. The battery also loses power the more it is charged and discharged, it loses a little bit of life each time it is discharged, therefore a total discharge like you experienced will drain some life from the battery. You can charge it back up, but the amount of available power becomes less after each discharge, so that the power of the battery declines as time and use take there toll. Cold weather also weakens a battery.
 
2. Should I go replace it?
Answer - Maybe, depending on how much power is left in the battery.
 
3. Is there any way to tell?
Answer - Yes, the battery can be tested using a "LOAD TEST". You can take the vehicle to an auto parts store and have them "LOAD TEST" the battery. It is usually done for free, as they are hoping to sell you a battery. BE SURE that they FULLY CHARGE the battery BEFORE the LOAD TEST. Even a good battery will test bad if it is not fully charged. Remember the glass of water? An almost empty glass of water would test low, even if the glass is good. The standard rating for the load test is that the battery is good if it can put out at least HALF of it's COLD CRANKING AMPS rating without dropping below 9 1/2 volts. The LOAD TESTER does two things at the same time, it measures the voltage across the battery terminals AND it applies a variable load across the battery, so that the amps drawn from the battery can be increased and monitored while also monitoring the battery volts. An example would be, if your battery is rated at 600 Cold Cranking Amps, as the variable load is applied and increased across the battery, the amp meter will rise and the volt meter will start to drop, the amps should be 300 amps or more when the voltmeter gets down to 9 1/2 volts. This has to be done fairly quickly, because the heavy amperage can quickly overheat the wiring and battery. There are also several electronic type of battery testers. If the battery tests low, then it is time to replace the battery, even if the vehicle is cranking ok at the present time, because batteries have a way of going dead when you need them the most.
 
4. Recommendation - If testing determines that you need to replace the battery, buy the largest capacity battery that you can get or afford. The physical size of the battery is determined by the GROUP NUMBER size. You need to buy the same GROUP NUMBER (same physical size), but if you have a choice between a standard duty verses a heavy duty, buy the heavy duty, and if you have a choice between a 600CCA and a 800CCA, buy the 800CCA or largest CCA capacity that you can.
Good Luck,
E. D. in Sunny Florida

#6179 of 6385 EGR VALVE REPLACEMENT by darrall

May 03, 2009 (11:47 am)

WHAT TOOL DO YOU USE TO GET TO THE EGR VALVE ON A 2000 MERCURY MOUNTAINEER,AND WILL IT COME OFF EASY.

#6180 of 6385 2000 Ford Explorer ball joint replacement by bullridingfool

May 15, 2009 (2:28 pm)

2000 Ford Explorer XLT V8 Torsion bar suspension. Need to replace ball joints, upper and lower. I have been searching for the correct parts. The Ford website indicates that there is only a QTY=1 of Upper Front Ball joints on the vehicle. I searched by VIN and that's what it came up with. I know for a fact that there are two upper front ball joints (Passenger and Driver sides). Am I missing something here?
I have also read that the ball joints, themselves, cannot be replaced and the entire control arm mus be replaced. I find this hard to believe.
Any help and.or direction would be greatly appreciated.

#6181 of 6385 Re: 2000 Ford Explorer ball joint replacement [bullridingfool] by egyptgerry

May 15, 2009 (3:13 pm)

Replying to: bullridingfool (May 15, 2009 2:28 pm)
I have the v6 but the ball joints are the same i think,the left and right are the same ball joint,Not sure how it says to replace the control arm,is there a nut about 4inches in from the ball jont on the control arm,if there is then you only need to replace the ball joint,Also if there is dont forget to count the turns when taking them of so that when you replace them you dont have to take the truck to have the tracking done,

#6182 of 6385 Re: 2000 Ford Explorer ball joint replacement [bullridingfool] by bioman

May 15, 2009 (4:15 pm)

Replying to: bullridingfool (May 15, 2009 2:28 pm)
For the upper ball joint the upper control arm and the ball joint has to be replaced. They are an integrated unit. For the lower ball joints you can replace just the ball joint not the entire control arm. The lower control arm and ball joint take must of the weight and abuse.

#6183 of 6385 wrong 02 sensor used by bbelasco

May 26, 2009 (7:33 am)

Hello, I replaced an o2 sensor from a 1998 awd 5.0 befor cat passenger side with an o2 sensor from a ford escape, yes dumb idea. Upon driving i noticed a sulfer smell, only drove it about 5 miles. immediatly replaced it with a new correct one. Rotten egg smell gone, but now car runs rough, what did I screw up? help!

#6184 of 6385 1999 Explorer hood by swburbguy

Jun 11, 2009 (12:18 pm)

I cant get my hood to open on my explorer? Anyone have any ideas?

#6185 of 6385 1999 explorer by swburbguy

Jun 11, 2009 (12:28 pm)

MY explorer o/d light comes on sometimes. Whats causing this?

#6186 of 6385 pcv replacement by pfran6078

Jun 17, 2009 (12:43 pm)

can anyone tell me on how to replace the pcv valve on a 2000 explorer 5.0 engine

Messages Page 619 of 639

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