It is a combination Front camera plus software issue. Ford is unwilling or unable to fix. Dealer reset is the only option once you get the front camera fault. Up till then you can reset with total shut down. Dealer reset has worked for 30-300 miles. I drove Stoneblue for 19,000 miles with no cruise and no safety systems. Ford Corporate did the string along we will fix it a few months down the road, q125, Feb-25, March-25, May-25, July-25 now October-25. My first failure was within 3 days of purchase. If you have three significant dealer fixes that do not work (you safety systems and cruise control are significant) you can in most states do the Lemon law thing… my learning from that:
1) you don’t need a Lawyer if you can get Ford Repurchase attention. Auto companies do the legally required actions no more no less. (verified by a lemon law attorney)
2) if you do work a deal with Ford repurchase - lemon law attorneys will not touch your case after that, their cut is not covered.
3) It does not matter that Ford knowing sold you a defective unit, you are bound by lemon law recompense. Unless you want to do a class action - years to do and Pennie’s on the dollar - not worth the effort and I talked with 5+ attorneys none was interested
4) Lemon law depending on your state, stops protection at 2 years 24,000 typically - google your state and check it out. The point being the lemon law protection does end.
5) The lemon law stuff requires you to have your dealer receipts for service, keep the original, do not write on it, make copies of your Ford app failures ( this gets Ford repurchase attention quickly)
6) If you go the repurchase route - lots of paperwork to gather.
7) Ford Repurchase is very professional- process takes 6-8 weeks to gather paperwork and get an offer. After you accept the offer it takes another 3-4 weeks to do the legal transfer and another 2-3 weeks for Ford repurchase to pay off your loan.
8) there is little room to negotiate, my case 10 dealer visits in 10 months over 150 failures in the Ford App, failed days after purchase, known VIN grouping for potential failure by Ford corporate, good class action basis.. they gave me a $500 credit for mileage ( mileage is a deduction from your settlement- this state is 10 cents a mile) they stood firm.. I walked away waiting for the June fix - they closed my case - “will reopen if you change your mind within 6 months- delay to October fix cooked it to over and done with Ford.
9) offer is repurchase with multiple deductions- my was slightly less than the trade in on my old car- Tax, title extras all on me - I simply wanted my money back and never got it fully back. They paid off my loan, gave me a check for a little less than my trade in and a code for $2500 off the purchase of my next Ford. The second part of the offer did not apply to me - cash ~$8500 in lieu of repurchase if the vehicle has been fixed - it had not been fixed so this was not an option.
10) overall 10 months of pain in the rear - plus we loved the vehicle, except for its faults - perfect long distance machine.
Will I buy another Ford? Only with two options 1) 90 day money back guarantee and 2) 100% Money back if Ford delays a SSM fix for more than a month. - I don’t think my dealer will accept those terms.
New car: Hyundai Santa Fe Hybred. Not plug in, uses brakes for regen - 2000 miles at 31mpg, awesome lane tracking and the big plus ALL the electronic gizmos work with no beep, beep, beep at start up. Purchased my first Ford in 1972, might be the last in 2024. Ford did what the law required, no more no less. The law is inadequate for a case where they know it will fail, then sliding the fix multiple times and as yet still no fix. If Ford had gone the extra mile they would still have a customer, but they did what was required by law. One has to question the engineering when a basic system like cruise control is tied to adaptive cruise control, and thus to radar/camera failures. One fail all fail is not acceptable engineering. I did send numerous letters and phone calls to various people in the Ford organization, had my dealer run it up the flagpole- the response was that isn’t my area ( a pretty strong indictment of the current company culture) though I think it did help spurn Ford Repurchase into action.
Buying a Ford: Check those SSMs closely and let the buyer beware.
