I was cleaning the steering column on my 2008 F-150 XL and all I get is a click click click when turning the ignition.

I was being a bit ambitious with my cleaning, liquid from the cleaning product could have easily made it inside the steering wheel column electronics.

The truck was started this morning, only after my cleaning job would the truck not turn over. Radio works fine, so do the headlights, AC etc... So I'm guessing maybe a fried starter or fried solenoid?

I have a multi-meter so I can do some testing, can someone kindly point me in the right direction? I would appreciate it a lot.

 

Year of truck? Assuming it's a year that uses PATS keys, odds are you damaged or, hopefully, just temporarily disabled the PATS sensor.. Without the PATS reading the chip, you'll get no crank and I believe the red security LED on solid..

Try getting the key hole really warm (but not hot) with a hair dryer and give it time to dry out, might be fine.

 

Hi Greg, it's a 2008 F-150 XL 4.2 V6. I tested the battery with a multi-meter, the battery read 11.90, low.

I also forget to mention that while washing the steering column, it was while I was washing the shift lever a little liquid got down in the Over Drive control button. I was listening to the in-truck radio at the time and the radio cut out for 1 second then came back on and stayed on.

That alarmed me, that's when I thought I'd better make sure that everything was alright and I tried to start the truck and got a clack clack clack.

So I borrowed the neighbor's battery and the truck started up just fine. I put my truck battery on a charger, I'm hoping I didn't short out a cell within the battery. If it charges and holds a charge I will let you know. Thanks.

 

My '07's oem group 59 battery failed suddenly in 2010 or 2011 ..... I found that the truck would take a larger and more powerful group 65 ...... food for thought.

 

I'll keep that in mind, thanks. I need a beefier battery with more CCAs anyway so this might be just the excuse I was looking for. That weird Ford battery cover might limit how big I can go though.

 

Being that your batter was only reading 11 volts, I think the only thing you did was drain the battery by leaving the radio on.

I don't think the liquid have any affect. However, I wouldn't spray directly on those parts. Spray your towel your using instead.

 

You don't need that battery cover. I went with Motorcraft again though. 850cca and it fit under that cover.

 

I think you are exactly right. I was thinking about it after I posted last night, I've been doing my 5-yearly super interior detailing job and have been at it for two days straight. That means I was listening to the in-truck radio for probably well over 10 hours without really thinking about it (and they say you get wiser with age .)

So your observation is spot on. I woke up this morning to a fully charged battery after putting it on the trickle charger. It's just a simple reminder lesson that light duty truck batteries aren't meant for long periods of power-hungry continuous use.

Funny thing is... yesterday I had started up the truck and drove a few miles without thinking about it, so somehow in my mind everything was great but I had not remembered I spent the previous day listening to the radio without driving anywhere and allowing the alt. to charge the battery back up and a deeply discharged battery needs more than just a few miles worth of driving to be fully recharged.

I'm glad it just turned out to be something simple. I probably took a little life out of the battery's overall lifespan. A lesson I thought I had already learned is re-learned. Anyway, thanks to everyone for the assistance. This is a great forum.

 

Yes true, good point. I went onto Ford Parts Dotcom last night, just out of curiosity to see what Ford says my truck can take battery group wise, it can take the larger Group 65 over the weaker Group 59 that it came with.

Ford calls the cover a heatshield. I wonder how much cooler it keeps the battery? So I will keep the heatshield cover and when it comes time to buy a new battery I'll get the larger Group 65 battery. Seems difficult to find Motorcraft batteries online, a Ford dealer seems like the only trustworthy option.

The upside is that these batteries sold online sometimes have been sitting on a shelf for a long time, having to pick one up at the dealer at least you get to see the date of manufacture before you buy.

Thanks for the advice 2008_XL.

 

Glad to hear that's all your issue was! I've seen that same thing happen many times.

I think some of those Optima batteries are made to be used for longer periods without the truck on. I'm overly cautious of draining and always manually turn off even the dome light if I'm leaving the doors open (even though the truck automatically shuts off your dome light after about 10 mins).

I got 6 years out of my OE battery. It still worked fine, but I replaced it as preventative maintenance. The OE is 550 cca and I replaced with a motorcraft 850 cca as it was only like $20 more and they gave me a core charge for my original.

 

Not a problem. I paid $119.00 for an 850cca at the ford dealer. The cover actually has a lot of extra room under it and should fit any larger motorcraft battery. I reused the cover with my battery and the new battery was maybe 2" wider.

 

Yep, group 65 fits fine under the cover ..... and a larger battery is good cushion for those long days listening to the radidio.

 

PATS disables fuel, not the starter.

With PATS activated you should get flashing theft light, and crank but no fire

 

Thats a good price! I paid $165 for a group 65 Interstate 850cca battery. Also fits perfectly and has the arch in it for the OE mount. I put the OE cover over it for kicks. My truck had the alternator and battery replaced before my ownership in 2011, and with my inactive use the last couple years I killed the battery plentiful times, about 10 times in 2015. Besides the newer quality battery I invested $40 into a Battery Tender and leave it plugged in all the time. Cranks over quickly every time.