Crazy Electrical Issues with Truck

[Drocked]

Guys, I might have to lemon my truck. The list of issues keeps growing, the biggest issue is the battery. The truck is always in deep sleep, one time it went down to 4v and took a snap on jump box and a Cummins tow truck to jump it. I then had to drive it straight to the dealer with no abs, a sideways steering wheel and every light on the dash.

I took it back for battery issues again. They charged the battery and did an update and the truck was right back to deep sleep. I contacted the dealer again and they told me to pound sand and take it to where I bought it (out of state). They returned the truck to me with more issues than I originally had.

Ford customer care won't call back and it's nothing but horror stories on here. I can't be without a vehicle but nowhere will offer a loaner.

$70k truck and it's been nothing but a headache. It's my first brand new vehicle so I was expecting not to have to do anything but gas and change the oil for a while.

Issues:
Heat shield rattle
Rear window rattle
Pass door air leak
Driver side handle lock button unresponsive
Frequent deep sleep and low battery warnings
Parking sensors often call themselves blocked although clear
Lane centering frequently disables until power cycle on long trips
Clunky trans/TC at times
Vehicle self unlocks overnight
Can't use zone lighting (battery?)
Excessive rust on drivetrain
Vibration through gas pedal over 2-3k
Ford pass can't start/lock/unlock

New issues:
No lane centering
Seat heater not coming on after remote start until start button pushed
Seat/steering wheel don't return to proper position from easy entry position when getting in
Lane keep assist not detecting lines more frequently
Power running boards closing with door open

If anyone has had these issues and has had the big ones resolved please let me know how. If anyone has successfully lemoned their truck I'm open to hearing how that went.

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[Severdog]

Occam's razor; have you considered just swapping out the battery to see if it's defective? A bad battery will cause all sorts of odd symptoms. Perhaps a cell is dead so it has enough CCA to start the engine but not the required voltage to light up the complicated logic systems. And a low battery tends to act like a current sink to the alternator. You didn't mention whether or not this is a Powerboost, which also has a secondary battery behind the seat.

Don't try to get the dealer to change it (there is another megathread on their reluctance to do so). Just try a $150 experiment to see if this clears out *some* of your issues. And if not, it might be a harness issue and time to lemon it.

 

[Drocked]

Occam's razor; have you considered just swapping out the battery to see if it's defective? A bad battery will cause all sorts of odd symptoms. Perhaps a cell is dead so it has enough CCA to start the engine but not the required voltage to light up the complicated logic systems. And a low battery tends to act like a current sink to the alternator. You didn't mention whether or not this is a Powerboost, which also has a secondary battery behind the seat.

Don't try to get the dealer to change it (there is another megathread on their reluctance to do so). Just try a $150 experiment to see if this clears out *some* of your issues. And if not, it might be a harness issue and time to lemon it.

Not a powerboost, I told the dealer to replace the battery because it was at 4v which is low enough to cause significant damage yet they won't. If I change the battery myself I'm not only out money but then the liability can be shifted my direction for their issue.

 

[Autofill]

I would at least go to autozone and have them test it. Can’t hurt.

 

[Severdog]

If I change the battery myself I'm not only out money but then the liability can be shifted my direction for their issue.

What is your primary objective? To get the truck running again, or to avoid liability?

Replacement batteries are generally made by the same couple of manufacturers and just vary by construction and capacity. You cannot "break" your electronics and incur liability by putting in a different battery that has equal or larger CCA capacity. In your shoes I would remove your battery and take the working one out of your 650i and temporarily install it. Yes it will reset some systems but chances are high that this has already happened. You cannot break your truck by trying this, unless you somehow reverse the polarity when you hook it up.

Eliminate common failure points via process of elimination. A reading of 4V on your battery shows that either there is a hellacious passive draw on your battery when your truck is dormant, or your battery is toast. Maybe both. Why not try eliminating one source of failure?

But you've already found out what others have found out with similar symptoms. These trucks are starting to get so complex that they are beyond the basic troubleshooting skills of techs that are just used to mechanical issues. Unless you have "a" tech at a dealer that understands electronics and logical troubleshooting, then you are SOL as per your current situation.

(former EE who moved here from Westerville to get away from the snow)

 

[Viper]

Also check the seating of the fuses under the hood, this is also a known issue on several trucks!

 

[Drocked]

What is your primary objective? To get the truck running again, or to avoid liability?

Replacement batteries are generally made by the same couple of manufacturers and just vary by construction and capacity. You cannot "break" your electronics and incur liability by putting in a different battery that has equal or larger CCA capacity. In your shoes I would remove your battery and take the working one out of your 650i and temporarily install it. Yes it will reset some systems but chances are high that this has already happened. You cannot break your truck by trying this, unless you somehow reverse the polarity when you hook it up.

Eliminate common failure points via process of elimination. A reading of 4V on your battery shows that either there is a hellacious passive draw on your battery when your truck is dormant, or your battery is toast. Maybe both. Why not try eliminating one source of failure?

But you've already found out what others have found out with similar symptoms. These trucks are starting to get so complex that they are beyond the basic troubleshooting skills of techs that are just used to mechanical issues. Unless you have "a" tech at a dealer that understands electronics and logical troubleshooting, then you are SOL as per your current situation.

(former EE who moved here from Westerville to get away from the snow)

Lol I guess I need to update my profile I sold the 650i. That gave me an idea though, I'm about to buy an AGM battery for my boat so I can use that to test. Since you're from the area it's Germain that has been terrible to deal with. I know I cannot break the truck with a new battery but you know how these people are. You show up with a year old truck with a non-oem battery and say you have battery issues what do you think they're going to blame first?

 

[Severdog]

Lol I guess I need to update my profile I sold the 650i. That gave me an idea though, I'm about to buy an AGM battery for my boat so I can use that to test. Since you're from the area it's Germain that has been terrible to deal with. I know I cannot break the truck with a new battery but you know how these people are. You show up with a year old truck with a non-oem battery and say you have battery issues what do you think they're going to blame first?

Good idea to try the boat battery.

If the test is successful I know what I would do…spending a buck-fifty to get a new battery which would allow me use of my vehicle again seems like a cheap trade-off instead of wasting time battling with the dealer.

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