Air recirc button

Nmonj · Dec 20, 2019

Air recirculation button to keep cabin air inside only and prevents outside air from entering (great for dense traffic and such)... turns off randomly. Dealer witnessed it but had no resolution. Test drove another ST and the same thing happened. Weird. Anyone know a fix?

Anyone know why the steering wheel and seat heater wont turn on with autostart? If there a bypass for that?

JohnD · Jan 2, 2020

You may have a issue with the AC control module. It is a pretty extensive procedure to diagnose. Vehicle has to sit overnight, multiple sensor readings and pin voltages have to be taken and sent to ford for evaluation. Mine had the same issue. Recirc would randomly work....You may also find that when in auto mode, you don't get max fan speed when it should. Stay on your dealer....this is not an easy fix but it is an issue that needs fixed.

Cross88 · Jan 2, 2020

Our ST recirc does the same thing, I read in the manual something along the lines of “the car adjusts it for optimization of current setting” whether it’s temperature, fan speed, vent direction (ie dash, feet, defrost). I obviously could be wrong, but I know my truck, 19 ram 1500, will pretty much stay in recirc unless I have it set to feet/defrost then it will come out of recirc by itself. I could have the dealer look into it while it’s there, if I do, I’ll update.

Nmonj · Jan 4, 2020

JohnD said:

Thanks for the info. I do indeed have these issues also. Did you ever get your fixed? Could you pass along the dealership you worked with and the person who you dealt with most closely so I could get a leg-up on helping my dealership? I would love to learn more details about your resolution.

Currently on a waitlist for a loaner car for another 6 weeks (which is BS, but I guess they have figured out a way to get more money out of you by cornering you into their rental car warranty... lame).

Nmonj · Jan 4, 2020

Cross88 said:

I tried every possible combination of uses (directions, auto or not, hot or cold, cancel startstop, actually on or off... and others) just two days ago the button doesnt turn on at all. Pretty frustrated with it, I didnt realize how much I love that button. Unacceptable. I'm inline for a loaner car and I'm dropping this car off at the dealer first chance I get.

All else is going well though, sorry for all the complaints.

Cross88 · Jan 4, 2020

Nmonj said:

If something gets figured out post the fix. Once we get ours back we may look into getting that fixed. Ours is in the shop now for overheating and possible damage from the over heating. These are brand new cars and a brand new generation so things are expected to go bad, but still sucks none the less

Nmonj · Jan 20, 2020

Cross88 said:

I started recording video so I can show my dealer and he is what I've learned.
1) if defrost is the only direction selected(not feet or face) the recirculation button shuts off
2) after 5 minutes of driving with any combination of buttons on, the air recirculation button turns off.
3) when auto is selected, air recirculation turns off but can be put back on within auto mode.

No new updates from the dealer, awaiting a loaner car forecasted to be mid February.... a lame new thing dealers do now if you dont buy into their separate insurance program.

bluehalo · Jan 20, 2020

To the best of my knowledge, it’s not a defect but something Ford has intentionally programmed into all of their vehicles.

I‘ve owned 3 Fusions, 3 Escapes, and I’m on my 2nd Explorer. My 2015 Escape Titanium, 2016 Fusion Titanium, 2019 Explorer XLT, and 2020 Explorer ST all had/have the same issue with the recirculaticon button, and the dealer told me it was an engineering design to prevent the windows from fogging up by having the recirculated air on for too long.

I‘d pay damn near any amount of money to get the switch to stay on, as we have a lot of diesel trucks on the road near us and they are constantly stinking up the cabin.

Nmonj · Jan 23, 2020

It's too inconsistent... just today I drove roughly 30minutes and it never turned off, I loved it(paranoid, i looked down every few minutes). It was nighttime and about 60 degrees outside. I live within a few miles of the beach in California, condensation is not unusual. Maybe you are right but I probably wont settle until a ford engineer emails me. Thanks for the history though, that is tough to dispute.

bluehalo · Jan 23, 2020

I think the thing to consider with your experience tonight is the outside temperature. 60 degrees should be cool enough that it wouldn’t necessarily fog up the windows. I’ve always noticed it shuts off more in the winter than in the summer, but this is anecdotal more than anything.

My company car is a Subaru and it never, ever automatically shuts off the recirculate button, even if it means the windows fog up to the point where I cannot see out out of them. Personally, I’d take the fogging windows in the Subie over having to manually press the recirc button every 5 minutes or so,

Found this on the National Institute of Health website. Maybe this is why the button resets? The world is run by lawyers these days... https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28873666

Yungty718 · Jan 15, 2021

I’m very disappointed with this turning off every 5 minutes it’s very disturbing especially due to commuting with trucks and passing thru industrial areas regularly never had this issue with any other brand

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Thebigguy · Jan 15, 2021

Manual shows it shuts off automatically to reduce the risk of fogging in all modes aside from Max A/C.

Harley Helo Guy · Jan 15, 2021

I have the same problem. Every time I drive the car for 30 minutes or more, I smell odor from the engine compartment getting in to the cabin, when I come to a stop light or turn the vehicle off. I mentioned it to the Dealer at the first service, not knowing that it was the recirculating air issue, but they weren't able to duplicate driving it around the block when it was cold. Next time I go in for Service, I will specifically mention the recirculating air button won't remain on. Not sure how passing out from asphyxiation or dying of smoke inhalation is any less of a risk than a fogged window. Does anyone remember the video of the two guys escaping off of a burning mountain top driving through an out of control forest fire (somewhere in TN) in their pick up truck (with dog)? It's a hair-raising experience just watching it. There are bad environmental/emergency situations where that recirculation switch absolutely has to stay off. No other complaints about the vehicle after 13K miles. Really love driving it.

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