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Code P0A1A Generator Control Module

wayfarer556

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About 2 weeks ago, I had a temporary CEL come on (it's been raining heavily in Texas). The Ford App just said that it was a regulatory lamp. I brought it to the dealer, but by the time I had brought it to Leif Johnson Ford, the light was off and they told me that they would need the truck for several days before they could ever get to it.

The truck itself was driving fine, so I said I'm good. Especially since rentals are not available.

Today, the light came on again after deciding to mash my gas pedal for fun. Same "regulatory" light. This time, I was ready to go with my laptop I use for Forscan, and pulled the code. I got the following:

Code: P0A1A:06 - Generator Control Module
Additional Fault Symptom:
-Algorithm Based Failures
Module: Secondary OBD Control Module C


While I plan to take my truck to a different dealer (this isn't the first time Leif Johnson has been lazy), I'm wondering if anyone has seen or experienced this error message? A quick Google search does not show any results for this specific error. Again, usability of the truck has been unchanged.
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wayfarer556

wayfarer556

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I haven't had a chance to take the truck into the dealer over the weekend, so I went ahead and purchased the full service manual. Finally arrived this morning.

Looks like this specific error code is listed as this DTC in the manual:
Ford F-150 Code P0A1A Generator Control Module DTCFailure.PNG


The steps listed to identify root cause essentially are the following:
1. Diagnose battery and high voltage cable connections
2. Make sure that the Inverter System Controller Calibration is fully up to date
3. Make sure there are no DTCs present while doing self checks on the Battery and Inverter controller modules
4. And finally....test drive...
Ford F-150 Code P0A1A Generator Control Module testdrive.PNG

This is where I suspect the problem is...basically if the generator is outputting too much torque than it's specifying, then I need to have the entire Hybrid Drive replaced ?
Unfortunitely, this makes sense to me, since the CEL only pops on after I stomp on the gas. I wonder if things are being over-torqued in that particular road condition?

My only modification to this vehicle has been slightly larger tires than stock. Will really suck if I have to have the entire drive replaced.

I'll go through the first troubleshooting steps to just verify that I have to arrive to the Test Drive part...and then I guess it's off to the dealer with my findings.

Hopefully if any other Powerboost owner is seeing something like this, they can speak up.
 

unixadm

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There's a TSB for this. You'll need a new hybrid control module. TSB 21-2072. I posted it on this forum recently.
 
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wayfarer556

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Yup...I just read about it. I'm not happy that my brand new truck is going to require what looks to be open heart surgery....
 
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wayfarer556

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Finally dropped the truck off for service. Had to wait until today until they had a rental available.
 

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unixadm

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Good luck. I''m going to be putting the hammer down in my truck to see if it does the same thing. So far, it hasn't. I have several TSBs which need to be addressed, so if I can get someone else taken care of in the same trip, I'm all for it. Waiting for 2k miles and I'm about 400 away right now.
 
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wayfarer556

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Good luck. I''m going to be putting the hammer down in my truck to see if it does the same thing. So far, it hasn't. I have several TSBs which need to be addressed, so if I can get someone else taken care of in the same trip, I'm all for it. Waiting for 2k miles and I'm about 400 away right now.
Are you trying to do break in? I thought 1000 miles was sufficient.
You have multiple TSBs? That's not great news. Honestly this TSB isn't making me happy. Having to potentially replace the entire hybrid drive system is not cool. It's a 9 hour job that requires disassembly of the transmission. Only 8200 miles on my truck.

And also to be clear, I was able to reproduce the CEL pretty reliably. Just clear it, hop in and step on the gas...soon as the needle jumps past 4000 RPM it's an instant CEL.
 
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wayfarer556

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Just got a call back from the dealership. They said that it's a "transmission issue" and that it's likely it's going to have to have a whole new transmission. I need to wait another 5 days before I even hear back from them because that's how far back their transmission guy is.

I'm not at all pleased. I'm preparing myself to wait 2 - 3 weeks before I ever see my truck again. Then after that, and all the other TSBs I'm reading, it makes me wonder if I can trust this truck long term.
 

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Just got a call back from the dealership. They said that it's a "transmission issue" and that it's likely it's going to have to have a whole new transmission. I need to wait another 5 days before I even hear back from them because that's how far back their transmission guy is.

I'm not at all pleased. I'm preparing myself to wait 2 - 3 weeks before I ever see my truck again. Then after that, and all the other TSBs I'm reading, it makes me wonder if I can trust this truck long term.
Sorry to hear that! Don't get all hung up on TSBs though. Every model year vehicle has dozens of them. Not just Ford. If you look up TSBs (and equivalent) from Toyota, Honda, GMC, etc, they all have them at higher numbers. They are not equivalent to a recall, and 99% of them won't apply to your vehicle.

Sometimes there is a module that isn't properly soldered when being built because they find out the robot wasn't aligning properly, but it only impacted 500 units and the result is the bed lighting doesn't work. So those 500 units get a TSB. Doesn't impact you, could happen to any manufacturer, but it's there.

My truck had a TSB for the modem where the Hotspot/Wireless CarPlay/FordPass wouldn't work. It seemed to impact vehicles built in a three week window. So that's another TSB that likely doesn't apply to you and was caused by a firmware issue.

It being a first model year vehicle, it's going to have more than average TSBs. It's hardly a secret that you are taking on some additional risk with a first model year of a new gen of anything. But I definitely wouldn't get too worked up over it. You have a big issue now, no doubt, but it's under warranty, will be fixed, and another way of looking at it is you will have a new transmission and electric motor instead of one with 8k miles on it. :)
 
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wayfarer556

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Sorry to hear that! Don't get all hung up on TSBs though. Every model year vehicle has dozens of them. Not just Ford. If you look up TSBs (and equivalent) from Toyota, Honda, GMC, etc, they all have them at higher numbers. They are not equivalent to a recall, and 99% of them won't apply to your vehicle.

Sometimes there is a module that isn't properly soldered when being built because they find out the robot wasn't aligning properly, but it only impacted 500 units and the result is the bed lighting doesn't work. So those 500 units get a TSB. Doesn't impact you, could happen to any manufacturer, but it's there.

My truck had a TSB for the modem where the Hotspot/Wireless CarPlay/FordPass wouldn't work. It seemed to impact vehicles built in a three week window. So that's another TSB that likely doesn't apply to you and was caused by a firmware issue.

It being a first model year vehicle, it's going to have more than average TSBs. It's hardly a secret that you are taking on some additional risk with a first model year of a new gen of anything. But I definitely wouldn't get too worked up over it. You have a big issue now, no doubt, but it's under warranty, will be fixed, and another way of looking at it is you will have a new transmission and electric motor instead of one with 8k miles on it. :)
We'll see. I expected electrical issues (like the modem), not transmission ones.
 

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Vulnox

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We'll see. I expected electrical issues (like the modem), not transmission ones.
The electric motor is in the transmission, I don't know that they can replace one without the other, at least it may not be worth it to Ford to part it out.

Maybe you know that, but to me it sounds like it's still an electrical issue.
 
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wayfarer556

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The electric motor is in the transmission, I don't know that they can replace one without the other, at least it may not be worth it to Ford to part it out.

Maybe you know that, but to me it sounds like it's still an electrical issue.
Let me be more broad...I meant I expected electrical issues such as that affecting computer related items (radio, modem, sensors), not mechanical issues like the hybrid system. Ford's been making hybrids for a long time.

Anyways, I appreciate your optimism, I'm just in a cynical mood at the moment. Also, I'm driving an Explorer for a rental, which is just not nearly as good or fun as a ride as my truck.
 

Vulnox

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Let me be more broad...I meant I expected electrical issues such as that affecting computer related items (radio, modem, sensors), not mechanical issues like the hybrid system. Ford's been making hybrids for a long time.

Anyways, I appreciate your optimism, I'm just in a cynical mood at the moment. Also, I'm driving an Explorer for a rental, which is just not nearly as good or fun as a ride as my truck.
Yeah, I hear ya, not trying to diminish or dismiss your concerns. I got my truck back Friday from the dealer. It started off with the CarPlay/Hotspot issue I mentioned, but the first week I owned it I noticed a heavy rattle from the rear sliding window when I had it open and was listening to music. They looked at it and said the entire rear window had to be replaced. Then I had the rattle in the driver door arm rest area.

They had the truck three days (a minor vacation compared to what you are in for, I know) and tackled all the issues at once thankfully, although I had three weeks of having all those issues since they didn't want to bring it in until they got the rear window in and the body shop had time to do the window replacement.

I was worried about them replacing the entire rear window, if they did anything half-assed I could be in for who knows how long of leaks and maybe new rattles, who knows. They seemed to do a good job, and I have working CarPlay/Hotspot now, but the door rattle was still there.

That rattle really drove me nuts, and I thought they nailed it because they did try to fix it. I was pretty bummed on my new truck when I realized that rattle was still there, because I figured it meant going back again, and then I started thinking about how I traded in my 2019 Lariat with only 15k miles on it for this truck, and my '19 was flawless.

Well I fixed the rattle myself thanks to this forum, turned out it was a somewhat common and stupid easy to fix rattle. Now my truck has everything working, no rattles, and we've had a good deal of rain the past few days and no leaks.

So to some point, I understand how you are feeling. I hope they beat all the timelines they gave you, and this is your last real issue, and you get to where I am today and back in love with the truck. Good luck, and keep us updated!
 
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wayfarer556

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Yeah, I hear ya, not trying to diminish or dismiss your concerns. I got my truck back Friday from the dealer. It started off with the CarPlay/Hotspot issue I mentioned, but the first week I owned it I noticed a heavy rattle from the rear sliding window when I had it open and was listening to music. They looked at it and said the entire rear window had to be replaced. Then I had the rattle in the driver door arm rest area.

They had the truck three days (a minor vacation compared to what you are in for, I know) and tackled all the issues at once thankfully, although I had three weeks of having all those issues since they didn't want to bring it in until they got the rear window in and the body shop had time to do the window replacement.

I was worried about them replacing the entire rear window, if they did anything half-assed I could be in for who knows how long of leaks and maybe new rattles, who knows. They seemed to do a good job, and I have working CarPlay/Hotspot now, but the door rattle was still there.

That rattle really drove me nuts, and I thought they nailed it because they did try to fix it. I was pretty bummed on my new truck when I realized that rattle was still there, because I figured it meant going back again, and then I started thinking about how I traded in my 2019 Lariat with only 15k miles on it for this truck, and my '19 was flawless.

Well I fixed the rattle myself thanks to this forum, turned out it was a somewhat common and stupid easy to fix rattle. Now my truck has everything working, no rattles, and we've had a good deal of rain the past few days and no leaks.

So to some point, I understand how you are feeling. I hope they beat all the timelines they gave you, and this is your last real issue, and you get to where I am today and back in love with the truck. Good luck, and keep us updated!
Fair enough. I too had a rattle develop, this forum helped me fix that. Thanks for the empathy, I'll move on from this eventually and give Ford a chance to make this right.

Hopefully next week I have a positive update.
 
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wayfarer556

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So, outside of these forums, I vented my frustration on social media and tagged @Ford on it. A social media specialist responded damn near immediately and I've been in constant, consistent contact via DM.

He's created an escalated case for my concerns and informed me a customer experience rep will be in formal contact with me by tomorrow at the latest.

I would definitely be a lot less cynical if I got this level of customer support in the first place. I really wish Ford could find a way to bypass the dealers, the dealers seem to be holding everyone back.

That being said, if Ford Corporate can light a fire under the dealer's ass, that would be awesome. Updates as they come.
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