Bronco went into 4H all by itself + warning lights?

[tourproto]

So very weird thing happened yesterday with my Badlands 2.3L 7-speed.

At startup, I put the Bronco in reverse to back up and warning lights came up on the dashboard and it was very "herky-jerky" in reverse. Almost like it was "surging" but at very low speed. When I looked at the dashboard, it said "Service vehicle soon" or something to that effect. I thought that was weird, along with the unsmooth reverse gear. Then I put the car in 1st and started to move forward and I felt the tires scrubbing. That's when I looked down at the 2/4 GOAT mode selector and noticed that it was in 4H. I am never in 4H unless I am offroad or driving in snow, and couldn't figure out how this could be.

I put the Bronco back in neutral and tried to switch to 2H or 4A. Nothing happened. I tried to move forward in 4H and it felt the the tranny was "binding up" . Tried several times to change 4WD modes but it was stuck in 4H. Finally I turned off the Bronco for about 30 seconds and then started it up again and all of a sudden it was in 2H and all seemed back to normal.

Has anyone experienced anything like this? I was not able to get a screenshot when it was saying "service needed" but I did get photos with the "wrench" light on and the dashboard showing 4H. Really not happy about this "incident" and will take it into Ford this week to have it checked out. Luckily I have the 7 year 100K miles bumpet to bumper warranty from Ford so I don't care what it is, I just want it fixed. Appreciate any thoughts as to what this could be to have a more intelligent discussion with the service folks.

Gonna be ticked off if they tell me there are no "codes" in memory from the OBDII port too.

Oh and looking at the photo after I posted this, I noticed that the traction control light is on too.

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[mjp2]

Unplug the wiring harness from the back of the transfer case, clean the contacts, and reassembly with some dielectric grease. Also wiggle the wiring bundle to see if you can reproduce the issue as a wire might be partially broken inside the insulation.

Also unplug, clean, dialectic grease, and replug the connector on the outside of the frame rail below the passenger door.

 

[tourproto]

Unplug the wiring harness from the back of the transfer case, clean the contacts, and reassembly with some dielectric grease. Also wiggle the wiring bundle to see if you can reproduce the issue as a wire might be partially broken inside the insulation.

Also unplug, clean, dialectic grease, and replug the connector on the outside of the frame rail below the passenger door.

Interesting diagnosis. I think since I have a $0 deductible on my warranty, I'll have Ford do it.

 

[mjp2]

They'll pull codes and see nothing if it's not actively happening.

 

[Brian_B]

Put your battery on a trickle charger overnight. Not a certainty, but classic “dying battery” symptoms

 

[JP2]

Check your ground connector on the module next to the passenger fender well under the engine Hood that module is right above the passenger side shock pocket

 

[tourproto]

Put your battery on a trickle charger overnight. Not a certainty, but classic “dying battery” symptoms

I had heard of lots of really odd symptoms caused by a dying battery. I am still on my original battery and it is four years and three months old

It still shows 14.5 V in the dashboard, but it may not have as many apps as it should

 

[Brian_B]

I had heard of lots of really odd symptoms caused by a dying battery. I am still on my original battery and it is four years and three months old

It still shows 14.5 V in the dashboard, but it may not have as many apps as it should

The dashboard will lie about volts too - its a lot different if you check with a meter.

Volts while the engine is running really only shows the alternator is working, that will mask any indicator the battery itself may have

 

[dgorsett]

I had heard of lots of really odd symptoms caused by a dying battery. I am still on my original battery and it is four years and three months old

It still shows 14.5 V in the dashboard, but it may not have as many apps as it should

IDK if you run with ASS shut off, but leave it on and see if it functions, if it doesn't it's a good indicator of a bad battery.

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