1999 Ford Windstar Battery?

[sodadude]

There is a sightglass on my battery that I presume is supposed to tell me the condition of the battery.

However, when I look in I see no color at all.

Stupid question, does that indicate the battery is weak and needs replacing?

I cant find anything in the van manual concerning the sightglass on the battery.

[12Ounce]

I have seen some batteries that have sight glasses on each cell's cap. The sight glass allows you to see if distilled water needs to be added to a cell, without actually removing the cap.

Could this be what you have?

[DRW1000]

Originally Posted by sodadude

There is a sightglass on my battery that I presume is supposed to tell me the condition of the battery.

However, when I look in I see no color at all.

Stupid question, does that indicate the battery is weak and needs replacing?

I cant find anything in the van manual concerning the sightglass on the battery.

I think I have the window on my 99 too. Is it the original battery? I never paid much attention to it but normally they are green for good (charged) and red for bad. (dis-charged).

I will check my battery tomorrow.

[LeSabre97mint]

Originally Posted by sodadude

There is a sightglass on my battery that I presume is supposed to tell me the condition of the battery.

However, when I look in I see no color at all.

Stupid question, does that indicate the battery is weak and needs replacing?

I cant find anything in the van manual concerning the sightglass on the battery.

This is not a stupid question! Yes there is sightglass on some batteries that should show green. If it's green it means that the battery is fully charged. If you're not seeing green it means that the cel that the sightglass is in is low on charge. Try charging the battery and then testing it. If it doesn't past the test it's time to replace the battery.

I'm assuming that this battery is "maintenance free" meaning that the caps can not be removed to add water.

Regards

Dan

[sodadude]

Yes it is a maintenance free battery. And yes I have other batteries with either a green or red sight window. This one is just dark. 80000 miles on the battery, methinks it is time for a new one anyways.

Thanks again for responding.

[wiswind]

I checked around...and recently bought one at autozone. I bought the "direct fit" battery. It had the highest cold cranking amps at best price that I could find. I think it was 850 Cold Cranking Amps (CCA) and 1000 cranking amps.

[busboy4]

Hi Soladude

Just changed out my OEM battery on my other car ('99 intrigue). It was a maintenance free battery that no longer was "green" in the sight glass. It did leave me dead once so I decided to replace it. I found that Walmart had a maintenance free replacement for it for $58. It is a 108 month pro-rated warranty. For comparison the comparable Sears and Interstate batteries were $100+.
So if you don't mind shopping Walmart it is a great deal.

[sodadude]

Thanks for the info.

[sodadude]

Originally Posted by busboy4

Hi Soladude

Just changed out my OEM battery on my other car ('99 intrigue). It was a maintenance free battery that no longer was "green" in the sight glass. It did leave me dead once so I decided to replace it. I found that Walmart had a maintenance free replacement for it for $58. It is a 108 month pro-rated warranty. For comparison the comparable Sears and Interstate batteries were $100+.
So if you don't mind shopping Walmart it is a great deal.

Picked up the battey at Walmart today. Any special instructions? Do I need to trickle charge it before installing?

I saw something in the vans owner manual that said something about driving the van after hooking up the new battery. That driving helps something get reset. I will have to look at that a little closer.

Oh yeah, did not notice a sight window on the new battery. Did yours have one busboy4?

[busboy4]

Originally Posted by sodadude

Picked up the battey at Walmart today. Any special instructions? Do I need to trickle charge it before installing?

I saw something in the vans owner manual that said something about driving the van after hooking up the new battery. That driving helps something get reset. I will have to look at that a little closer.

Oh yeah, did not notice a sight window on the new battery. Did yours have one busboy4?

Hi
no sight glass on mine either. You should not need to charge the battery before installation, but I would not jump right into stop/start, on/off driving without it running a while just for good measure. I think what you read regarding running the van related to re-adjusting the idle. The PCM I think will want about 5 minutes at idle to "re-learn" the idle setting.

[LeSabre97mint]

Originally Posted by sodadude

Picked up the battey at Walmart today. Any special instructions? Do I need to trickle charge it before installing?

I saw something in the vans owner manual that said something about driving the van after hooking up the new battery. That driving helps something get reset. I will have to look at that a little closer.

Oh yeah, did not notice a sight window on the new battery. Did yours have one busboy4?

SodaDude

I would charge the battery before installing it. If the battery isn't installed fully charged, the alternator will be on full charge and may be over loaded. This is just information that I'm passing on.

Regards

Dan

[DRW1000]

I think the line in your manual refers to the PCM re-learning the fuel-trim parameters. This is simply because the memory has cleared due to the battery disconnect.

If you have access to a charger and you can afford the wait then why not charge the battery. If not I wouldn't worry about it - (of course - my opinion only)