Nuke

I'll put money on the battery and/or starter. The charging systems on these S197's are a weak link in an otherwise decent vehicle.

Joshspony

Even though the battery was tested and passed. Did they load test it or just check for voltage. It is possible to have voltage without amperage. If the cells in the battery fail and fuse there will still be voltage but little or no amperage to do anything with.

I just had that happen in my sisters 04 focus. Battery tested 12.67, but there was no amps. A new battery fixed the problem.

Bearcat94

Well, it's a month later and we stil lhave not got to the root of the issue.

After reading the replies here and being a bit less nervous about it being an SJB issue, we cleaned the battery terminal contacts and checked the grounds, etc. All seemed OK.

Battery and alternator were NOT tested/re-tested. We thought maybe it was just a one-off deal.

Car ran fine with zero issues for several days, then the battery light came on - of course while the car is, again, 3 hours away. At that time I had my daughter just shut it down and re-start it; the light was out and again no issues - until yesterday.

After/during a long drive (~3 hours) the battery light came on again. It would not go out with a simple restart. I don't know (yet) if the car has been run today or whether the electrical system indicattor light is on or off.

While we have not definitevly ruled out the battery, I'm starting to think the alternator may be the issue.

Two questions:

- Any new ideas or suggestions?

- Is there a DIY somewhere on changing the alternator (if it comes to that)?

TIA.

obxdude018

Changing the alternators on these cars are very simple, 2 bolts that hold the alternator to the motor, one bolt for the electrical connection, and to remove/install the belt there is a hole in the tensioner where you put a 3/8 ratchet in it and just pull back on the tensioner and slide the belt back on. My alternator had a diode go out, I was having the same problem you are and could not figure out what was going on. I resided the whole entire electrical system, located the battery to the trunk, replaced the alternator, replaced the battery, still didn't fix my problem, so I could only then start pulling fuses and relays to find a culprit, I never found exactly what caused my problems, but I have had none in the past 5-6 months.

Bearcat94

Sounds easy enough. I've seen the diagram/drawing.

Thanks for the tip on the 3/8" ratchet to move the tensioner pulley.

157dB

You will need a really long ratchet handle or a long cheater bar.
Check the idler pully for bearing run-out while you have it unloaded.
Check the Tensioner pully bearing as well. (remember the 3 hour spread)
The FIRST thing you will want to do is to remove the NEGATIVE battery cable.
It is very simple, but some things must be done in order.

HERE is how Ford would do it in the service shop.

Some DIAGNOSING PROCEDURES for the Alternator.

Find your Fusable Link and inspect that for signs of overloading.
Its in the harness under the only RED piece of plastic sleeving
by the battery.
Get the Ohm Meter out and start checking for voltage drops.

If you want dependability, ditch the 'known to have many
first year production problems' 05 model for a 'we have
worked out many of the TSBs' 07-09 model.

Once again, the SJB has nothing to do with it starting or not.

kc5mhb

The alternator in my '07 left me stranded twice. Auto Zone told me it wasn't charging the battery which was fairly new. The dealer said everything was OK but I didn't believe them. I bought a voltage tester that plugs into the cigar lighter socket and has a LCD readout of the charge voltage. Sure enough, sitting at a stop light, the battery voltage dropped to 11 volts. I shot video of it with my phone and took it back to the dealer where they promptly changed the alternator.