Underhood fuse block.

[wireman]

Dude, if you see this help me understand the thought process of Ford's design for access to the underhood fuse box. This is in your wheelhouse for sure.

Remove the cover, unlatch and remove 2 large connectors, remove the fuse block, turn it over to reveal the fuses.

On top of that, if you drop the fuse block the sticker says it has to be replaced.

What's the advantage to this design? Water issues?

I've never seen something like this, although it may exist in some other vehicle. I hope not.

Anyone else have an idea?

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[Mark S.]

I think you're right; it's almost certainly to protect the fuse panel from the elements. Many have noted there isn't much of anything preventing water and gunk thrown off the tires from getting into the engine compartment.

 

[Dude]

I can only offer you guesses as to the Ford engineers reasons which I don’t like to do bc guesses can be wrong. The under hood is exposed to harsh conditions including temperature, vibration, humidity, water intrusion. So your idea it relates to water is sound. And Mark S’ comment is spot on.

(As a side note I found this interesting post which is a part 1 and part 2, the link to part 2 is: https://www.broncosportforum.com/forum/threads/trailer-wiring-install-for-bronco-sport-using-factory-power-circuit-part-two-–-installation.4134/)

have you seen this video yet? I do not know if this link will work pasting it in here and if not I’ll update with directions of how to search for the video.

The video doesn’t answer your question but it does point out the difficulty of getting power to the fuses while the fuses are opened up as shown in the video. Most likely there is a special cable Ford techs have to facilitate their test and repair.

The other part of your question / comment relates to you having not seen an underhood engine compartment fuse box like in the BS but I’ve seen many designs. The BS design is not unusual.

https://lm.facebook.com/l.php?u=https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ct-TNq8M_wf/&h=AT1Y6dK2pzNTUzY6flSVTSvkCbty6MPP99WNPYHCzPu_qJfn-BX-zQTG-UbmLjBURT2p_9xqNIiyWpL_1gmWBwWi7InuER1_U1PtvIc4Ti18Ig-rPYnDnrwvOcgE&s=1&mibextid=L5VOIv

 

[Mark S.]

The video doesn’t answer your question but it does point out the difficulty of getting power to the fuses while the fuses are opened up as shown in the video. Most likely there is a special cable Ford techs have to facilitate their test and repair.

I would guess the service centers are issued a test stand with fuse box connectors (they seem to be common across models) that may be used to power up/test the fuse box. This would certainly make it easy to test fuses.

 

[Dude]

The link I just posted does not open for me but might work if you are logged into Facebook via a webpage.

An alternative way to locate the video is:

Open Google and search for this exactly as I provided with the quotes:

intermountain_upfitting "Welcome to our daily struggle of dealing with"

Scroll down in the search results to find a result that looks like the pic, then click on the search result and the video will open.

 

[wireman]

I can only offer you guesses as to the Ford engineers reasons which I don’t like to do bc guesses can be wrong. The under hood is exposed to harsh conditions including temperature, vibration, humidity, water intrusion. So your idea it relates to water is sound. And Mark S’ comment is spot on.

(As a side note I found this interesting post which is a part 1 and part 2, the link to part 2 is: https://www.broncosportforum.com/forum/threads/trailer-wiring-install-for-bronco-sport-using-factory-power-circuit-part-two-–-installation.4134/)

have you seen this video yet? I do not know if this link will work pasting it in here and if not I’ll update with directions of how to search for the video.

The video doesn’t answer your question but it does point out the difficulty of getting power to the fuses while the fuses are opened up as shown in the video. Most likely there is a special cable Ford techs have to facilitate their test and repair.

The other part of your question / comment relates to you having not seen an underhood engine compartment fuse box like in the BS but I’ve seen many designs. The BS design is not unusual.

https://lm.facebook.com/l.php?u=https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ct-TNq8M_wf/&h=AT1Y6dK2pzNTUzY6flSVTSvkCbty6MPP99WNPYHCzPu_qJfn-BX-zQTG-UbmLjBURT2p_9xqNIiyWpL_1gmWBwWi7InuER1_U1PtvIc4Ti18Ig-rPYnDnrwvOcgE&s=1&mibextid=L5VOIv

Can't get to the link.

I somewhat disagree that the design is not unusual. For the owner who never looked at the manual or didn't have access to it when they needed to check a fuse, It's a Rube Goldberg approach and confusing. There are a lot of owners who never crack a page of the manual.

When I first bought the BL or any car for that matter, I always try to familiarize myself with the normal maintenance items under the hood and elsewhere. I looked at the fuse box and had no idea what it took to get access.

I didn't want to disconnect anything for fear of causing issues. Obviously, the manual cleared it up but just looking at it was confusing. Plus, the warning of dropping it and having to replace it will cause issues for owners or mechanics.

I think the fullsize Bronco has a "normal" fuse box like other Ford models, aka on the 2018 Escape I had.

I know there's a lot that goes into engineering a vehicle.

With the BL supposedly able to ford 23" of water, and from what I understand the location of the ECM? PCM? being susceptible to water, that's questionable also. Another topic for discussion I guess. JMO

 

[Dude]

Can't get to the link.

Yep .. see the post above with the steps to google to find the video. Those steps should work for you and I think you will find the video interesting to watch.

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