FordPass App Shuts Down

[Leeford]

This as been a issue with this vehicle since owning it. When the weather changes to a colder climate, I will get a message on my app that the auto start feature is disable for battery conservation. The weather here isn't that bad yet. I've installed an AGM battery with year, so I can see that being the issue. Anyone have the same issue and better yet, any solutions? BTW the k,ey fob does start the vehicle.

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[CLR]

It’s not the stop/start. If you don’t drive for a while, the vehicle shuts down the remote interaction with the app to conserve battery. Everything will be available as normal when you go for a drive.

Edit: my response is based on the thread title.

In some conditions the stop/start won’t work due to temperature or other factors.

 

[Leeford]

It’s not the stop/start. If you don’t drive for a while, the vehicle shuts down the remote interaction with the app to conserve battery. Everything will be available as normal when you go for a drive.

Edit: my response is based on the thread title.

In some conditions the stop/start won’t work due to temperature or other factors.

The auto stop/start is one of the things that definitely stops working in the winter. If I want it to work I have to hook the battery up to my trickle charger. The phone app is in the same park for not working in the winter.

 

[Dude]

You have already discovered 1 of the 2 known solutions:

1. hook the vehicle’s 12V battery to a trickle charger
2. Drive more … about 20-30 miles at 30mph or more at least a couple times a week (to keep the battery sufficiently charged)

All 12V batteries have internal resistance which depletes the battery charge (AGM Batteries typically have less internal resistance) and the vehicle has various phantom current drains even when the vehicle is off.

Even the ‘redesigned’ 2025s experience the same issue you are experiencing

 

[Leeford]

You have already discovered 1 of the 2 known solutions:

1. hook the vehicle’s 12V battery to a trickle charger
2. Drive more … about 20-30 miles at 30mph or more at least a couple times a week (to keep the battery sufficiently charged)

All 12V batteries have internal resistance which depletes the battery charge (AGM Batteries typically have less internal resistance) and the vehicle has various phantom current drains even when the vehicle is off.

Even the ‘redesigned’ 2025s experience the same issue you are experiencing

I agree, Phantom drainage . Should hear this thing when turned off. Let's not even go into why the headlight fans run even if you open your doors when not running. Thanks for the feedback and the info on the 25's.

 

[Uncle Brad]

This is a shot in the dark, but if you have an OBD device plugged into your OBD port, some of these aftermarket devices poll the modules on the bus (even when the vehicle is shut off) and thus have a parasitic draw in excess of 50mA. I don't have this problem (yet) with my OBDLink+, but I understand that insurance companies hand these things out (!) and they're causing problems. At the very least, it's best to leave any OBD device unplugged until the problem is identified.

 

[Leeford]

This is a shot in the dark, but if you have an OBD device plugged into your OBD port, some of these aftermarket devices poll the modules on the bus (even when the vehicle is shut off) and thus have a parasitic draw in excess of 50mA. I don't have this problem (yet) with my OBDLink+, but I understand that insurance companies hand these things out (!) and they're causing problems. At the very least, it's best to leave any OBD device unplugged until the problem is identified.

I never leave anything plugged in, thanks. Good advice though.

 

[Uncle Brad]

You can purchase an ammeter cheaply off of Amazon, or have a mechanic do a current draw check with everything "off" (unfortunately "OFF" no longer means "OFF"). The threshold where there may be a problem is a bit ambiguous, but in general if the current draw is over 100ma you probably have some kind of unintended parasitic draw. Anything that draws current generates heat. So if you see that you have, say, 300ma of current draw when "OFF" then using an infrared thermometer (preferably with a built-in screen; not bluetooth) will show you where the area is.

 

[Leeford]

You can purchase an ammeter cheaply off of Amazon, or have a mechanic do a current draw check with everything "off" (unfortunately "OFF" no longer means "OFF"). The threshold where there may be a problem is a bit ambiguous, but in general if the current draw is over 100ma you probably have some kind of unintended parasitic draw. Anything that draws current generates heat. So if you see that you have, say, 300ma of current draw when "OFF" then using an infrared thermometer (preferably with a built-in screen; not bluetooth) will show you where the area is.

I'll see if my Ford dealer can do this.

 

[Dude]

I'll see if my Ford dealer can do this.

Most dealerships charge a lot for this service if they will do it at all

there are many posts on the topic of phantom current drains - it’s not difficult to perform however the vehicle (as you know) periodically wakes up and does stuff that causes a current draw - to do the test correctly requires specialized equipment to log info for at least 24 hours

I would not recommend doing a phantom current drain test unless you are driving the vehicle sufficiently (or use the trickle charger enough), have a known good AGM Battery and working charging system (alternator etc) and the issue still occurs

Bronco Sports are well known for having the issue you are seeing.

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