ST: 6 Faults at same time - OUCH!

[ethics05]

4347 miles while regular easy driving in Sport Mode the following faults appeared on the display:
- 4WD Fault Service Required
- Hill Start Assist Not available
- Pre-Collision Assist Not available
- Service AdvanceTrak
- Drive Modes Not Available
- Auto Hold System Fault

The car defaulted to what appeared in the display to be a "normal" drive mode. I did initially pull over after a few minutes, turn off the car, sit there for a few minutes and then restart. All failures came back on the screen within 10 seconds so at least the problem is very solid and should be easy to troubleshoot.

Up to this point at 4347 miles I have had no issues at all. I have the black on black, Premium Technology Package, Twin moonroof and ST High Perf Pack. Also installed a JLT oil catch can. Really love the car.

It'll go to dealership early next week after Easter. My expectation is that some portion of the computer that is a gateway to these functions failed (but don't know of course).

I'll write back so you all know what the repair was.

 

[Vinkrell]

Exact thing happened to me last week. Next time I started the car it was gone. I'd love to know what the dealer says!

Thanks

 

[Adrenalinejunky]

Keep in mind one fouled or faulty sensor can trip multiple faults as systems are often connected in the ecm processor.

 

[ethics05]

Agreed

 

[ethics05]

2 days in row now: Car is cold and all functions working. After 10 minutes of driving (at least in the last 2 days) all of a sudden all the error windows pop up (refer above to original problem) and the vehicle goes into a default regular type drive model. At that point even shutting the car off, waiting a few minutes, then re-starting it immediately displays all fault windows.

 

[ethics05]

Yesterday, Tuesday .....
UPDATE: Drove quite a bit yesterday to further test and everything operated perfectly, no fault windows in any drive mode, not 1. You got me. I'll see how this plays out the rest of this week. My wife asked me last night .... "Do you think Ford can look at your fault data remotely while you are driving and troubleshoot it and actually repair it?" Man, never thought about that. I don't think auto repair is at that level yet, but ......

 

[JohnE]

This sound like a ground problem. The intermittent occurrence would make sense. Corvette’s would do something similar if the battery was getting weak. All the warnings would trigger at the same time.

 

[ethics05]

I'll log that in my notes to bounce by the dealership when it come time, John, thanks.

 

[FlyersGuy]

Just joined the group tonight and hope this helps you folks out. Had all these errors start the morning after I took a mid-January delivery. The faults always occur within a few seconds of starting the vehicle but it's not with every start and it could be a "cold" start or when I'm leaving a gas station or grocery store after a decent amount of wheel time. The vehicle also intermittently fails to lock/unlock/release hatch/start vehicle and throws an error message about not detecting a key, even though it's in the vehicle with me. The only one I could verify was persistent was the Auto Hold failure. That would not work at all after it showed a fault and the rest, well, I wasn't going to put them to the test. I recently had a new one - "Restart Now or Key is Needed." That popped last week while I was driving in a parking lot. Anyway, I took it to the dealer a couple times and they couldn't replicate anything and a service manager took it home a couple nights, too. I don't know if the dealer was making an educated guess or got some input from Ford but they wound up replacing the transfer case motor. No joy, and the errors started popping again. I even had the parking brake fire when the vehicle was in drive but fortunately I was at a stop light. It released at the same time as the Auto Hold and I never, ever use a parking brake. That one got me pretty concerned because what's to stop it from firing while the vehicle is in motion? Fortunately it only happened once. After three visits the dealer asked if I could bring it in with the next occurrence and leave the vehicle running. Score. Got it in and a tech hooked up a diagnostic laptop and traced the issue to a faulty ABS unit. That was where the techs and Ford engineers (my issue has been bucked to them more than once) were leaning but now they had evidence. Almost four weeks later it was done - took three tries to get an undamaged ABS unit from Ford. Factor in furloughed staff and reduced service hours and there's your timespan. Picked it up a couple weeks ago and the key issue started a few days later and the suite of errors the following day. Back to the dealer again last week and I also contacted Ford's customer service team through Facebook who opened a case with a regional service manager. I have to say Ford has been very good with follow-ups and I have no qualms whatsoever with the dealer and how it's handled the issues. I asked Ford for compensation via Ford Pass points and for consideration to buy the vehicle back. Actually, I just want it swapped because it's a fun drive and I love the looks. To my surprise this afternoon I was told my buyback request was approved and I'll get more information from that team next week. Hopefully it won't be a PITA and the vehicle is still stock. Glad I put off upgrading some speakers and the subwoofer and getting a clear bra. The bummer is STs with my preferred options/colors are a rare breed in the Twin Cities and I want something with a recent build date. Will that matter? Probably not but I want to see a 2020 build date on the sticker. Couple of things I'd recommend are to take photos/video of the issues and, if you can, get to a Ford dealer with the car running when they do. Even if they clear I was told they should still be "in memory" (my words) and can be trapped with a diagnostic tool.

 

[bluehalo]

Ours has been at the dealers since February 15th for the same issues. It was also in for two weeks in January and they replaced all the front sensors, which the dealer said fixed the errors, but within a day the warning lights were all back on.

I started taking pictures of the warnings, including the odometer, and texted them to our service advisor. He logged them into their system in order to further document Our case.

Here’s the warnings I got, in order:
1. Service AdvanceTrac
2. 4WD Fault Service Required
3. Auto Hold System Fault
4. Pre-Collision Assist Not Available
5. Reverse Brake Assist Not Available Set Manual
6. Drive Mode Not Available
7. For Hill Descent Select Gear

Ford finally approved the buyback on Monday, so we’re supposed to get together with the dealer tomorrow to sign everything and get rid of the vehicle.

Hope this helps.

 

[ethics05]

I certainly appreciate your comments on your vehicles. Sounds like we definitely have some repeat/same problems going on. Can "bluehalo" and "FlyersGuy" share the mileage when these problems developed and also information about your build dates.

Also did it seem to matter if you were a leasing buyer or purchased the vehicle as you went through the approval process to exchange the vehicle?

Sure would be nice to get at the real solution to these issues.

Thank you very much.

 

[KegsBdry]

I came across this forum when I was having trouble starting my ST today. All kinds of weird lights flickered when I attempted to start the vehicle remotely. Same thing happened when I press the brake and the start button. Headlights flashed clicking noises from in the electronics somewhere. Maybe the battery is dead but I took my vehicle for a nice hundred mile drive 3 days ago, everything was working fine. So the battery should be fully charged. Luckily I have a trickle charger and place that on the battery. I noticed the electronic start getting a little weird when the battery is dying. For instance, the St and light for the pin code on the door stay lit for about 20 minutes before the battery completely died. Had to use the key in the key fob to unlock my door and pop the hood. Maybe an update got pushed down and inadvertently left the lights on?!

 

[bluehalo]

I certainly appreciate your comments on your vehicles. Sounds like we definitely have some repeat/same problems going on. Can "bluehalo" and "FlyersGuy" share the mileage when these problems developed and also information about your build dates.

Also did it seem to matter if you were a leasing buyer or purchased the vehicle as you went through the approval process to exchange the vehicle?

Sure would be nice to get at the real solution to these issues.

Thank you very much.

We had 109 miles on the odometer when the Park Aid Fault first appeared and it occurred the day after we took delivery. On a 500 mile trip a week later we didn’t see any faults, but within a day of getting home the faults returned.

As far as a pattern, it didn’t matter if we used remote start or the key fob. One thing I did notice is that within an hour of getting the vehicle washed, there was a higher likelihood of getting a fault but it wasn’t consistently faulting.

Our build date is 10/19, and we purchased the vehicle using our local credit union for financing. My photographs of the faults is what finally convinced Ford to take our case seriously, so get lots pictures when they happen and make sure the odometer is visible as well.

 

[bluehalo]

Don’t ‘ forget to participate in the buyback survey I started. Although we are only a small percentage of ST owners, I think this data would be good to share with Ford at some point.

https://www.explorerst.org/threads/buyback-data.328/page-2#post-3135

 

[FlyersGuy]

My build is 12/4/19 and the issues started around the 100-mile odometer mark.

 

[ethics05]

Thanks so much for that additional information on your vehicles. Interesting events today: I had a repeat of all Fault Windows on the display today (listed in my earlier post) and took quick photos of the dash of each window as it popped up as you had recommended.

What was particularly interesting is when it happened and there were some similarities to the event on 4/10/20 the first time all the fault windows suddenly displayed.

On 4/10 I was taking off from a dead stop and had to make a slight turn in the road while accelerating. That action set off the faults. This time today I was making a routine turn onto a street, maybe about 15 miles an hour and then accelerated some while still in the turn (normal process). That's when the faults occurred.

Anyway, I drove straight to the Ford dealership with descriptions documented, told them I had photos of all fault windows. Dropped the car off and left.

We'll see what develops in their troubleshooting tomorrow when they try and duplicate it. I noticed that Ford Pass is recording at least some of the fault windows and hopefully the vehicle itself is storing some the data. If not, I HAVE THE PHOTOS. Thanks guys for the assist. I'll let you know how this plays out.

 

[ethics05]

Ok guys. Picked up the ST after 1 day in the shop for those 6 fault windows indicated in above post.

SOLUTION: Replaced Front Half Speed Sensor per TSB# 20-2071. Tech at dealership told me that Ford was already aware of the issue.

It appears I may have been on to something on the fault windows being triggered by the "acceleration around the corners".

We'll see if this proves to be successful. I'm hopeful and will give it some good amount of tests myself.

 

[FlyersGuy]

Did a Google search but no hits for that TSB. Odd thing is in my case the faults occur just after startup or when I'm in reverse.

 

[ethics05]

I couldn't find the TSB either. Still running good.

 

[KegsBdry]

I came across this forum when I was having trouble starting my ST today. All kinds of weird lights flickered when I attempted to start the vehicle remotely. Same thing happened when I press the brake and the start button. Headlights flashed clicking noises from in the electronics somewhere. Maybe the battery is dead but I took my vehicle for a nice hundred mile drive 3 days ago, everything was working fine. So the battery should be fully charged. Luckily I have a trickle charger and place that on the battery. I noticed the electronic start getting a little weird when the battery is dying. For instance, the St and light for the pin code on the door stay lit for about 20 minutes before the battery completely died. Had to use the key in the key fob to unlock my door and pop the hood. Maybe an update got pushed down and inadvertently left the lights on?!

Update: Even though a new battery was placed in a little over a week ago, I got a Battery System Fault pop up on my dashboard when driving back from a 300 mile drive. It's back at the dealers. Bad alternator?