Power tailgate not working on Day 1

[TJSam]

After waiting over 8 months for my 2022 Ford F-150 Lariat, I took delivery of the truck on Friday 1/6/23. When walking through the features of the truck with the salesperson we discovered the tailgate would not open. The power tailgate is set to Power and it can't be changed to Manual. There's an error message indicating "try later". There no beeps or any status changes when using the key FOB, the tailgate button inside the truck or the release on the actual tailgate. The dealership tried to fix the issue and ended up having to order a "module". I'm not sure which module, but I will find out.

The replacement module arrived yesterday and I dropped off the truck today. Unfortunately, after installing the new module the tailgate still doesn't work. The dealership said they are working with Ford technical support to troubleshoot the issue. I called Ford Customer Relations department and they said they can file a complaint which is sent to the engineering department.

I'm a first time Ford buyer and I have to say I'm extremely disappointed in this buying experience and the quality of the product. I don't understand how the truck could be manufactured, checked for quality at the factory and then checked by the dealer after delivery and the problem with the tailgate wasn't found.

Do you have any advice on how to proceed?

I'm leaning toward wanting my money back, but I love the truck. This sucks.

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[notabot]

After waiting over 8 months for my 2022 Ford F-150 Lariat, I took delivery of the truck on Friday 1/6/23. When walking through the features of the truck with the salesperson we discovered the tailgate would not open. The power tailgate is set to Power and it can't be changed to Manual. There's an error message indicating "try later". There no beeps or any status changes when using the key FOB, the tailgate button inside the truck or the release on the actual tailgate. The dealership tried to fix the issue and ended up having to order a "module". I'm not sure which module, but I will find out.

The replacement module arrived yesterday and I dropped off the truck today. Unfortunately, after installing the new module the tailgate still doesn't work. The dealership said they are working with Ford technical support to troubleshoot the issue. I called Ford Customer Relations department and they said they can file a complaint which is sent to the engineering department.

I'm a first time Ford buyer and I have to say I'm extremely disappointed in this buying experience and the quality of the product. I don't understand how the truck could be manufactured, checked for quality at the factory and then checked by the dealer after delivery and the problem with the tailgate wasn't found.

Do you have any advice on how to proceed?

I'm leaning toward wanting my money back, but I love the truck. This sucks.

AFAIK, you can't get your money back after you signed the paperwork and drive off the lot. Never know about funny-sunny CA though....

Let 'em fix it. An INOP power tailgate is pretty small issue compared to what others have run into. Please know, I think FORD QC sucks. Hope you get if fixed right quick.

 

[TJSam]

They replaced the “gateway” module today which didn’t fix the tailgate. According to the Ford technician, there are 6 separate networks throughout the truck connecting to the radio, instrument panel, doors, tailgate, etc. The error codes are telling them only 2 of the 6 networks are communicating, but everything else in the truck is working. They are escalating to Ford engineering to troubleshoot further. They suggest I leave the truck overnight, so they can keep working on it tomorrow.

Is there anyone from Ford in this forum that can explain why a newly built truck is throwing errors like this?

 

[TJSam]

My new truck is still broken. Ford Fairway dealership in Placentia, CA can't figure out why the tailgate won't work. They are still saying only 2 of the 6 networks in the truck are working and they are waiting for Ford engineering to reply to their request for next steps.

This is a terrible first time Ford buying experience.

 

[JScaro]

My new truck is still broken. Ford Fairway dealership in Placentia, CA can't figure out why the tailgate won't work. They are still saying only 2 of the 6 networks in the truck are working and they are waiting for Ford engineering to reply to their request for next steps.

This is a terrible first time Ford buying experience.

@TJSam Go over to this post and they can look up you VIN and see what's going on.
https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/request-vin-lookup-thread.13393/

 

[Jesse-Infotainment]

They are over doing it.. They should NOT have replaced the gateway.. It is most likely the plugs need to be checked under the center of the tailgate

Send me your vin

 

[MichaelJones810]

I also received my F150 Platinum this week after waiting for 11 months and the power tailgate does not work. In the settings, Manual is selected and if I try to change it to Power I get the "try again later" message. The tailgate just beeps three times if I try to open it with the fob, dash button, or the tailgate button. The dealer has tried updates for two days and is now being told by Ford engineering to replace the Gateway control module which they say might be corrupt. Of course the module is not available at any warehouse right now, and who knows if that is even the problem. I have the truck right now and everything else seems to work, but not being able to open the tailgate is a killer. I'm to the point of considering removing the inside tailgate panel and checking for anything obvious or at least manually pulling on the latch rods to open it. Very frustrating!

 

[Handle]

I also received my F150 Platinum this week after waiting for 11 months and the power tailgate does not work. In the settings, Manual is selected and if I try to change it to Power I get the "try again later" message. The tailgate just beeps three times if I try to open it with the fob, dash button, or the tailgate button. The dealer has tried updates for two days and is now being told by Ford engineering to replace the Gateway control module which they say might be corrupt. Of course the module is not available at any warehouse right now, and who knows if that is even the problem. I have the truck right now and everything else seems to work, but not being able to open the tailgate is a killer. I'm to the point of considering removing the inside tailgate panel and checking for anything obvious or at least manually pulling on the latch rods to open it. Very frustrating!

You would like to assume the dealer did decent troubleshooting and checked the simple items first starting with fuse panel, and then the connections/wiring and actuator in the center of the tailgate……but who knows these days. It’s pretty quick job to access the tailgate so definitely worth the inspection. If it’s module related Jesse and others with FDRS access can check. Best of luck

 

[TJSam]

The tailgate was fixed by a software reload. Based on the errors of only 2 of the 7 networks communicating, Ford engineering suspected a corrupt software load. I’m trying to get more details about what exactly they “reloaded”, but it was more than just updating modules. While the initial first step involved replacing the gateway module this didn’t fix the issue because the same corrupt software was loaded into the gate at module. It’s my understanding the fresh install of software resolved the issue which means the gateway module probably didn’t need to be replaced.

 

[MichaelJones810]

I agree that the dealer has probably already checked everything obvious since my experience is that they have a top-notch service dept. I'll take a quick look, mainly to see if I can unlatch it temporarily. Hoping that TJSam finds out something since he seems to be farther along in the process.

 

[MichaelJones810]

TJSam that is great news. Can you tell me what dealer you were using so I can see if my dealer can contact them? What software was actually loaded? Just the gateway control module software?

 

[TJSam]

Fairway Ford in Placentia, CA.

Have they told you if there are any errors being logged? My truck had very specific errors related to the networks not communicating.

 

[MichaelJones810]

Yes, they have been getting network communication errors. I may have misunderstood, but they indicated that the gateway control module would have to be replaced because the software on those modules can't be replaced.

 

[TJSam]

I will call my dealer and ask them to provide more detail about exacting what software was reloaded.

 

[Jesse-Infotainment]

Ok I have found the issue between looking at @TJSam logs and the new issue @MichaelJones810 is having.

They apear to have configed the gateway wrong. The truck of these two people are identical. I can see that after the dealer replaced and ran the PMI the config changed on the top line of the gateway. The gateway doesnt need to be replaced.

All the dealer needs to do is run a config on the gateway.

If you have the truck at home and want to fix it yourself you can with Forscan.

Wrong config is

716-01-01

0322

0000

0044

Correct one is

716-01-01

0332

0000

0054

I can see in the logs teh two changed to a 3 and that enabled the network the RTGM is on.

The dealer can easily confirm if the config fixed it by looking at the as buiild after running a config. The best way to fix this issue would be to run a PMI on the gateway in the truck. When asked if original module is installed select no. It will force FDRS to pull the correct as build from teh server rather than pulling it from the old module.

Edit.. This is For this situation. If you have a different Truck check with me. These two both had identical trucks down to the color. They are power boost as well. If you do not have a power boost or in fact jsut check with me on your situation is best.

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