I have a 2000 f-150 and upon start up the needles on the gauges sweep there full range and return to normal. I have cleaned the battery cables and checked under hood grounds. any ideas?

 

Mine did the same thing when the battery had a bad cell. Took it bad to Wally world and they gave me a new battery.

Have you had the battery tested?

 

He's correct. Mind did that same thing and I replaced the battery and it stopped. Hope this helps.

 

My 01 does that now if it sits for a while. I'm due for a new battery so that should clear it up.

 

Yeah, bad battery or battery is going bad. Mine was doing the exact same thing. I replaced it after lasting 5+ years and no more sweeping back and forth.

 

Damn!

It's great that I found this post.. (by accident 'cause I was just bored on a Sunday morning and surfing....)

I've been having the same thing happen. Also once every 2-3 weeks the truck is completely DEAD in the morning, however after boosting it ran fine for another 2-3 weeks. I blamed it on a bad command start install, as many wires were not soldered by the installer, and they used black tape instead of shrink sleeves. I guess one of the plates in the Battery has busted loose and occasionally shorts a cell... makes sense.

Methinks I better go grab a new battery!
Cheers for the info!