It was bound to happen. After hearing from plenty of other Ford GT owners about their batteries dying, most often from a lack of use over extended periods, the long-term GT's battery finally lost the ability to turn over the 5.4-liter V8. To say it was the battery's fault would be a cruel accusation after its recent torture tests. In the previous two weeks the car had put up with hours of sitting with one or both doors open while the new JVC audio system went in. And after it went in the car sat for several more hours while various features (DVD video, Bluetooth communication, Sirius satellite radio) were set up and/or tested out.
The killing blow came Friday night as I was ripping CDs to the 24-gig harddrive. The problem with this feature is that the CD has to play through at a normal rate while it is recorded to the harddrive. That means running the car for an hour or more per CD. Not a problem if you do this during a road trip, but when parked in a garage it makes sense to simply turn on the accessories and, well, let 'er rip while you go do something else. To the battery's credit it took 3 CDs before I noticed that the driver's window was going up really slowly. I tried the "Engine Start" button and got nothing but a sickening chatter from the starter relay. Ooops!
Initially I pulled the storage tub in the car's front end to access the battery. It was relatively easy to remove because the tub is held in with five twist clips. Once the tub was out the battery required quite a reach to clip on the Battery Tender's leads. Like most major components in the GT, the battery sits very low in the car. Good for handling, bad for accessibility. Shortly after going through this I remembered that the Ford GT includes a battery charger (along with a car cover) in the purchase package. This charger simply plugs into the car's power outlet, thus avoiding the whole storage tub removal bit. The storage tub went back in as easily as it came out, and after about an hour on the factory-supplied charger the car started. But I left it on the trickle charger all weekend just to make sure.
Karl Brauer, Editor in Chief, Edmunds.com @ 7,789 miles
boxermike says:
11:08 AM, 03/26/07
I'm sorry, I've just never understood the benefit of this over say, an iPod. Which, incidentally, can be charged both while loading, and while playing, music.
But, whatever, it makes for a flimsy excuse to go on a road-trip.
heidis says:
05:43 PM, 03/26/07
Like you need an excuse to take a GT on a road trip..... =)