Sponsored

gtotco

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 5, 2021
Threads
3
Messages
345
Reaction score
274
Location
Colorado
Vehicles
2021 F-150 Lariat 502A FX4 3.5L
OMG I just sent them an email an hour ago at that address, then logged in to try again, and this is what it said!!!!!!!

3D71DB0F-7F07-40E7-B0BD-D85F72F733BC.png


Signing up for Early Access NOW!

I really think everything is rolling out based on in service date. People that just got their trucks haven’t gotten the 1.6.0 update yet, but most folks that have older 2021’s have from what I can see.
Thanks for this tip - I emailed them also and got pushed up the Early Access Program as well!
Sponsored

 

AutonomousHybridF150

Well-known member
First Name
Kristopher
Joined
Jul 13, 2021
Threads
0
Messages
366
Reaction score
380
Location
Pensacola Fl
Vehicles
2021 F150 Powerboost
Occupation
Adjuster
Thanks for this tip - I emailed them also and got pushed up the Early Access Program as well!
Just wanted to let everyone know, persistence is KEY!

I kept emailing Ford letting them know I want to be involved as much as a normal non-Ford employee can, and they want to perform a video chat with users of their new vehicles.

After they turned on the blue cruise on the EAP website for me, I thanked them and sent a few more emails letting them know my background as a Ford enthusiast going back to 1999 (mechanical, computer programming, and electrical wiring) and how I use my truck (26k miles now) like these new trucks were intended, and want to share or possibly make the current truck software better and/or the new trucks better.

This was their response:

Ford F-150 Received invite for Early Access to BlueCruise update 35A06D31-D960-449A-8B52-79F83C9BAC84
 

SonnyDigs

Well-known member
First Name
Sonny
Joined
Dec 23, 2020
Threads
8
Messages
802
Reaction score
506
Location
Texas
Vehicles
2021 F150 King Ranch
Just wanted to let everyone know, persistence is KEY!

I kept emailing Ford letting them know I want to be involved as much as a normal non-Ford employee can, and they want to perform a video chat with users of their new vehicles.

After they turned on the blue cruise on the EAP website for me, I thanked them and sent a few more emails letting them know my background as a Ford enthusiast going back to 1999 (mechanical, computer programming, and electrical wiring) and how I use my truck (26k miles now) like these new trucks were intended, and want to share or possibly make the current truck software better and/or the new trucks better.

This was their response:

35A06D31-D960-449A-8B52-79F83C9BAC84.jpeg
 

SonnyDigs

Well-known member
First Name
Sonny
Joined
Dec 23, 2020
Threads
8
Messages
802
Reaction score
506
Location
Texas
Vehicles
2021 F150 King Ranch
Just wanted to let everyone know, persistence is KEY!

I kept emailing Ford letting them know I want to be involved as much as a normal non-Ford employee can, and they want to perform a video chat with users of their new vehicles.

After they turned on the blue cruise on the EAP website for me, I thanked them and sent a few more emails letting them know my background as a Ford enthusiast going back to 1999 (mechanical, computer programming, and electrical wiring) and how I use my truck (26k miles now) like these new trucks were intended, and want to share or possibly make the current truck software better and/or the new trucks better.

This was their response:

35A06D31-D960-449A-8B52-79F83C9BAC84.jpeg
Lol,
And I thought I was just special.
Here is there response last week to me.

Ford F-150 Received invite for Early Access to BlueCruise update Screenshot_20210810-150054_Gmail


Ford F-150 Received invite for Early Access to BlueCruise update Screenshot_20210810-150117_Gmail
 

AutonomousHybridF150

Well-known member
First Name
Kristopher
Joined
Jul 13, 2021
Threads
0
Messages
366
Reaction score
380
Location
Pensacola Fl
Vehicles
2021 F150 Powerboost
Occupation
Adjuster
Lol,
And I thought I was just special.
Here is there response last week to me.

Screenshot_20210810-150054_Gmail.jpg


Screenshot_20210810-150117_Gmail.jpg
LOL!!!!

Well maybe someone important will read my response to that canned statement email, lol. My response to their email was lengthy to say the least, so maybe it will get noticed.

I’m seriously sending emails trying to get Ford to let me Beta test more things with the software. I don’t think Ford employees know how everyone uses their vehicles, so I think Ford Public Beta should be a reality. In this scenario the beta testers could give real world feedback via round tables or other mediums for quick feedback to the code writers or calibration experts actually putting their “final say” on the approvedupdates rolling out to Ford vehicles.

I understand EAP is essentially the beta program, but I am talking about something more along the lines of BUGGY cool new features in beta but also puts more risk on the owner (I’ll sign a waiver), but gives access to the juicy stuff where confidentiality agreements are needed :)

I know. Pipe dream. I’ve learned a lot from Ford’s “oops” and I could give them tons of feedback from what I know works and what doesn’t. I’m sure many Ford enthusiasts would love to ask Ford engineers “What were you thinking when you created the cup holders in the 1999 mustang?!!!!”

Or am I the only one?
 

Sponsored

AutonomousHybridF150

Well-known member
First Name
Kristopher
Joined
Jul 13, 2021
Threads
0
Messages
366
Reaction score
380
Location
Pensacola Fl
Vehicles
2021 F150 Powerboost
Occupation
Adjuster
Future Video Call with the Ford Team:

That means everyone getting in the Ford early access program and Blue Cruise is probably going to receive that same canned part of the response email. My email was different for some of the content, so someone typed it and assembled the canned part in about the video call. At least it looks like a human is sending these emails, but who knows with AI.

I did send a copy of my window sticker PDF and then they asked me for the VIN in the response email, so maybe that was my CAPTCH. Lol. Or maybe they had 300 emails and it was 4:30.

So if anyone’s interested in this, they should check their emails (which I’m sure you already are, lol) if they wanted to video chat with Ford.
 

F-150 Prius

Well-known member
First Name
Adam
Joined
May 12, 2021
Threads
16
Messages
530
Reaction score
522
Location
Silicon Valley
Vehicles
2021 F-150 Platinum PowerBoost FX-4 6½
Occupation
Software Algorithms
I understand EAP is essentially the beta program, but I am talking about something more along the lines of BUGGY cool new features in beta but also puts more risk on the owner (I’ll sign a waiver), but gives access to the juicy stuff where confidentiality agreements are needed :)

I know. Pipe dream. I’ve learned a lot from Ford’s “oops” and I could give them tons of feedback from what I know works and what doesn’t. I’m sure many Ford enthusiasts would love to ask Ford engineers “What were you thinking when you created the cup holders in the 1999 mustang?!!!!”

Or am I the only one?
Marketing and product management folks usually call these "focus groups" and the auto industry seems to have steered away from focus groups (since people blab their brains out on … um … forum sites … like I'm doing right now … : ) Anyway, the cool new thing is to run artificial intelligence "bots" across social media and pick up on themes of consumer behavior … don't ask them … spy on them
The first rule of focus groups is "never let anyone in a focus group who wants to be in a focus group."
Still, there are usability studies and "out of the box" studies (the vendor pays a user to get something pre-production to see what happens as they take it out of the box, or install the software, etc.)
I was on the list of people Porsche, Ferrari and Land Rover wanted to attend focus groups and other studies. Which was especially fun because my work back then included global marketing of software, so watching other corporations conduct a focus group study while playing with new cars was double entertaining. Eventually I fell off that list and they've not called me since. It used to be a bit of fun, but when a fourth car vendor invited me (an EV maker) and offered to pay $100 for an hour or two, I declined. Land Rover paid $500 for an hour or two. That was nice. Porsche didn't pay anything (just a tchotchke out of their merch) and Ferrari gave you a ride (not a drive…) in an unreleased or very newly released model usually there for the press reviewers.
It's also a bit tedious because you're in a vehicle that is either 5 years away from the market or is never going to be built, or has some very cool stuff (see-through body panel artificial reality augmentation) that will take even longer to show up, if ever. I think Land Rover has some AR now, or is pretty close to market, but still not the "f- me, that's cool" stuff they were teasing years ago … just too expensive to put that much compute power in a vehicle back then, though it's possible now (e.g. Tesla … only Tesla continues to be the lowest tech high tech car on the market.)
Anyway, you have to be in their demographic for the product. So unless you're the marketing bullseye for most products (middle-aged white guy, affluent, well-educated, right zip code, right purchasing history, excellent credit … or the wife of such a consumer … though I'm sure they gloss over the racism and sexism in that behavior …) there's probably no budget to listen to you. Also, design teams go to huge expense internally (fighting with each other for space in the vehicle) and externally (tearing down competitive vehicles, etc.) which is fun money … listening to enthusiasts is boring and time-consuming (and rarely leads to effective decisions to improve the product.) Most customer feature requests get tossed in the "feature creep" bucket. Even the best ideas are subject to the bean counters and guesswork of "will this actually make or break a significant number of sales?" Practical ideas get dismissed till a competitor makes the first move, then every other competitor has to chase the market … e.g. USB-C … a contraindicated feature would be clever tailgates (RAM and GM do it, Ford doesn't) or the RAM Box for example, which is a combination of very expensive tooling and the marketing team all puking at the idea of convergence (when your product starts to resemble the competitor's product.) There are many gatekeepers willing to say no to a good idea, and usually the sponsor has to have an initiative (a prime move) to hitch little red wagon ideas behind one big, board-approved idea (e.g. hybrid pickups and EV pickups … try getting a big touchscreen in a pickup before approval of hybrids … touchscreens don't sell trucks … well, turns out they do, RAM proved it, Ford and GM had to catch up.)
The deepest belly laugh you get when you work in marketing is the first time you see the Simpsons episode where Homer's long lost brother let him design a car …
 

jd281

Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2021
Threads
0
Messages
14
Reaction score
12
Location
MN
Vehicles
2021 F150 Lariat Powerboost
I just got signed up for the EAP this week and am very much looking forward to it. Has anyone here actually gotten the download yet?
 

SonnyDigs

Well-known member
First Name
Sonny
Joined
Dec 23, 2020
Threads
8
Messages
802
Reaction score
506
Location
Texas
Vehicles
2021 F150 King Ranch
I just got signed up for the EAP this week and am very much looking forward to it. Has anyone here actually gotten the download yet?
Not that I'm aware of.
 

Sponsored


dweller

Well-known member
First Name
Jonathan
Joined
Jul 26, 2021
Threads
2
Messages
65
Reaction score
39
Location
Maryland, USA
Vehicles
Soon maybe 2021 F-150 Lariat 3.5EB 4x4 Lead Foot
Occupation
Army
Has anyone heard how aggressive the eye monitoring will be? If you glance at the radio to change the station, does the car get mad? What if you’re browsing f150gen14.com on your phone while the car is driving? What’s the limit and what happens if you take your eyes off the road?
 

F-150 Prius

Well-known member
First Name
Adam
Joined
May 12, 2021
Threads
16
Messages
530
Reaction score
522
Location
Silicon Valley
Vehicles
2021 F-150 Platinum PowerBoost FX-4 6½
Occupation
Software Algorithms

GolfR

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 24, 2021
Threads
2
Messages
344
Reaction score
323
Location
Maryland
Vehicles
2022 F150 KR PB
I just got signed up for the EAP this week and am very much looking forward to it. Has anyone here actually gotten the download yet?
I too was able to use the email request route to get added to the EAP program. I signed the consent early last week but don't yet have the option to add Bluecruise. For those who have recently signed up for the early access program, how long did it take after accepting the program to see the blue cruise invite show up?

Thanks in advance!
 

SonnyDigs

Well-known member
First Name
Sonny
Joined
Dec 23, 2020
Threads
8
Messages
802
Reaction score
506
Location
Texas
Vehicles
2021 F150 King Ranch
I too was able to use the email request route to get added to the EAP program. I signed the consent early last week but don't yet have the option to add Bluecruise. For those who have recently signed up for the early access program, how long did it take after accepting the program to see the blue cruise invite show up?

Thanks in advance!
30 minutes..
Persistence pays off but there has been an aggressive action on Fords part to move forward with recruiting.
There has to be a point where they max out on how many they can accept..
Good luck.
 

GolfR

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 24, 2021
Threads
2
Messages
344
Reaction score
323
Location
Maryland
Vehicles
2022 F150 KR PB
30 minutes..
Persistence pays off but there has been an aggressive action on Fords part to move forward with recruiting.
There has to be a point where they max out on how many they can accept..
Good luck.
Interestingly, I received the invite from Ford early access this afternoon to join the Bluecruise program. I guess they are reading these forums ;-)
Sponsored

 
 




Top