pcweber

Yes, mine would too if I did not drive it daily. Again, it has never done it since I put the bigger battery in.

I will look in the morning. It was a 2 yr old battery on my shop shelf out of my son's Eclipse that blew the head gasket. I have NEVER had another battery issue since and I leave it sit at times 5-6 days without driving. (multiple times it has sat in the garage 8-10 days while on a vacation) I could never get past 2-3 days previous. Be aware this battery is bigger than the original so it does not sit in the battery tray but not huge by any means like in my Excursion.

I will also say if I choose the phone as the audio source via entertainment and listen to the mesic files from my phone or watch a youtube video and hear the audio via the SYNC system and get a text it will lower the music volume and play the SMS/ text alert sound. But if I am on FM radio the phone nor SYNC make any noise. Again, not plugging the phone in, just allowing it to connect via bluetooth.

not plugging the phone in, just allowing it to connect via Bluetooth to the system.

When i get in the car and the phone auto connects to SYNC the BT phone works perfect. I find I miss SMS text messages. Have realized it is because after I connect my phone no longer alerts audible.nor does the SYNC system. Any tips?

Amendment to my post above. I think a 4th way to lock the car is to touch the 2 bottom outside keypad numbers at same time. If you are set on reaching back to the exterior door and just want a solution this may be the one to use.I know this does not fix the root issue for you, but like kids, spouses, boss's, etc. sometimes it is not worth the fight if there is another solution. I also have heard you can leave the FOB inside the car if you lock it this way.

I know you want this to work but let me tell you what I do. First, there are 3 ways to lock the car. 1. the remote fob lock button, 2. the door handle sensor, 3. the lock button on the inside of door. I originally used the fob, but found myself with the fob in my pocket to dig for as it does not need to be out of pocket when driving so thus is in pocket when getting out of car. So I started using the handle to lock it. This seems high tech/ tricky but I got tired of getting of the way of the door then stepping back up to it and having to pay attention to the lock action and red LED. SO, after reading another post of a use I started just as I swing my legs out the driver door opening to exiting the car I reach up and hit the lock button on the inside door panel. You hear it lock, dont have to turn back to affirm LED is on, dont have to dig for FOB, etc. I do use the sensor when coming up to car to unlock it and it never fails.

see this post: http://lincolnmkzforum.com/topic/953-system-off-to-save-battery/ Also, I put in a larger battery 9 months ago. Mine was doing this about every 3-4 weeks and need jumped to turn on. It has NEVER done this since putting a bigger battery in. Fact is, even is the dealer gave you a new battery every week fro life do you want to wait for AAA, etc.? This will end the issue for $75, I promise it did with mine.

My detail shop does not have a key drop and dont open until 9am. Prevision fords I could lock the keys in and they could use keypad to open. Not finding the 2014 MKZ can do this. It senses the key in there and unlocks right sway.

I drive a 50 mile commute each way daily, all highway/ freeway. I have not reset my avg mpg for over 4,000 miles nor had a dead battery, etc. It is a 39 or 39.1 constant.

My 2014 has a no unscrew gas cap. There is a spring loaded flap. Does everyone else have this same type cap?

Are these amber LED's on at all times? Ever blink? Are they part of the signature lighting in any way? I got a used lamp off ebay to replace a cracked one. The light works fine but the amber LED's never come on.

on any trip in general, but not this specific trip, maybe 30ish. On this trip I usually get 39 or better. It is a very gentle rolling trip and I am 100% hwy and interstate up to the last mile. (I live on a highway so from start I am hwy. Also, I only top 2 times total entire way.

Here was the summary at end of drive. Keep in mind I do nothing abnormal around braking, etc. My drive is 96% interstate at 75mph also. My overall average MPG hovers around 39.6- 40.5 MPG overall. I own a 2014 Jetta TDI and struggle to get that.

Here is pic of the battery out of the MKZ sitting by the battery out of my daughters 2012 Kio Optima 4 cylinder. As an update it has been 2 weeks and I have never got in the car and seen my "standing voltage" from sitting overnight below 12v.

Thanks for that info ITFlyer. Will try to get that done.

The 12V battery in trunk is not used to start the engine ever. It simply "turns" the car systems on. If it is not at a certain voltage the car electrical sysem falls on its face. (I will say one recurring symptom I found before I installed the voltmeter was the trunk would not release or self close when battery was at that low state the car would not turn on) I will take a pic of the battery tomorrow of it in my shop beside a beer can for reference. I agree, mine is one of the many with a bad cell more than likely. I just am choosing not to waste 1/2 of a day of my life gambling the dealer will replace it because driving int here the battery will be full charged unless I stay for 2-6 hours and they dont turn the car on and it gets a huge drink of charge from the large battery. I wish the cig. lighter ports were hot all the time and it would make it simpler for folks to see their batt status. If you look on Fusion-H forums there are threads 12-15 pages long about the battery stranding many people and they have to send a child through trunk to release the safety trunk release to jumper/ charge it. (not that it cant be done under the hood on the + acc terminal) If you are at a standing voltage of 12V overnight you are fine. Anyhow, I am going the route of self healing with a larger battery with a larger reserve and driving it for a week to observe data and confirm the issue is gone and that there is no parasitic drain. (Google that) Thus far it has been nails, never got in car overnight with the standing voltage below 12V. I will answer any questions, report my results, and tell my story but wont endure the dealership hell just yet. Also note I could at any moment put the old battery back in and choose to endure a day of dealership sitting. It is not an eliminated chess move. Just one I choose not to do yet, but also may never do.

Here is a pic of the $4 voltmeter I rigged up. Note that reading is standing voltage. When car is turned on the system goes immediate to 14.4V. Note, I know for a fact it does this weather engine or not running. Also when you get in car and hit power button without touching brake and the green light flashes it starts charging then too,

Agree, It must have a bad cell. Given the amount of Fusion Hybrid owners having the issue (far more cars shipped, but same car) it seems the battery is under sized as even 3-6 months after getting them replaced at dealers people report seeing the "System shutting down to save battery" display. From my volt meter experience I sense that happens when the battery voltage is at around 9.8V. I agree I could go to dealer and likely get a new battery but until I hear of a TSB that they are replacing the battery tray to fit a larger battery it is not worth my time wasting half to a full day to only get a small mini battery put back in. My wife went back to driving her Sonata because she dont trust the MKZ so I want a solution to the core issue. So if you see that system shutting down message within 1-2 hrs of just driving your car your battery is likely bad.

I bought a digital voltmeter display from Amazon for $4, Wired it to some power under the driver side at fuse box. Found after sitting for even an hour the battery "standing voltage" was down to 10.5 volts. All night next morning was down to 9 volts many times. I pulled that toy battery and put one out of my small tractor that is a smaller form factor normal car battery. Fixed it, now standing voltage is 12v overnight. That battery is just too small. I will throw it back in sometime and take it to dealer but given all the Fusion posts it is just likely that the battery is too small. For $80 I am just going to put a larger battery in and not have the problem and have wife stranded over and over. This issue is not going to stop unless you have brand new toy battery.

Any steep grade will force it to start. If you live in a fairly level terrain and you could baby it, you may get a few miles. Getting back may need engine start as battery will likely be pretty drained. In the end the engine will start when battery gets low to charge it as driving around babying it will likely not get enough excess velocity built up to do much regen braking. Here is a simple overview of my finding I was not searching for to ponder. I drove it like my grandfather for a week or so when I first got ours. I then needed a vitrectomy (eye surgery) My wife needed to drive me around. She drives far more aggressive. Low and behold after she drove it a few days the avg MPG had increased by .1.1 MPG. So I stopped trying to baby it too. Said nothing to her...

update, when I went out to garage this morning the MKZ was dead, had to put charger on the service connector under hood to turn it on and it charges from larger battery. So, 1 this affirms that display shutdown is sign it knows battery it going down and it shuts down to confirm it is not causing it. 2, the display must not be the cause because it shutdown and still went dead. 3, again I left the FOB in the cupholder and car unlocked. Will watch to see if that is a factor next time.

Mine did this just tonight as I got in it while sitting in the garage. I did note I had left the FOB in the cupholder from pulling it in garage earlier in day.I do have the irritating once every few months the battery is dead issue by the way.