Serious Tech Issue - 12 Inch Touchscreen blacked out / bricked (by software update?)

[skhubbard93]

Yesterday the dealer confirmed that my APIM went bad as well. So I too have a dead screen and am waiting for notification from the dealer that the part has arrived.

Well my screen died this afternoon. Oddly the back up camera works and the radio station I had it on still plays, adjusts volume but that's it.

This sucks.

If you continue to have a working backup camera and radio, consider yourself lucky! Those are the two features I miss the most. I can live without nav and phone (I did just fine without for over a decade), but not having a radio means the predominant sound is the tire noise. And backing up out of my driveway without a camera, across a nearly-blind sidewalk, is not the safest maneuver what with all of the kids in the neighborhood. The only other feature I miss is the climate output control (floor / dash / windshield).

There seems to be a surprising number of failures of this module recently. I wonder what happened.

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[BrokenBronco]

Hi all,

After 9600 flawless miles, I've run into my first serious issue. After a full day of running errands in my 2021 Badlands Sasquatch, we went to an evening movie - on the drive we used the 12 inch touchscreen for nav, Apple Carplay, front/rear cameras, etc. On coming out of the theater a few hours later, the Bronco started just fine, but the 12 inch touchscreen stayed black. I turned the car off fully, locked and unlocked, restarted - still nothing. There's no response at all from the screen, the knobs do nothing, the camera button does nothing, there's no radio, navigation, etc. The USB ports below the screen don't appear to be providing power to our phones. The car otherwise runs fine - AC still works, auto start/stop is fine, headlights etc. all working, aux LEDs working.

Interestingly, I opened the Ford Pass app and noticed that Ford Power-Up 2.1.1 update ran yesterday. I don't know the exact time, but it would seem suspicious to me that this issue would rear its head on the exact same day as an update to the software. Is it possible that the update failed in some way or nuked the screen? The Ford Pass app shows the update as "successful".

I let the car sit overnight, tried starting up again at home this morning, and the issue remains. I've tried the volume button/fast forward restart and nothing happens. I disconnected the negative connection of the battery and reconnected after 20 minutes - still nothing.

Any ideas, tips, advice? My concern it's a chip issue, and I can't begin to imagine how long the wait for a replacement chip would be. Welcome any thoughts or things to look at or try. Thanks in advance!

We are also experiencing the same issue in our Badlands since March 2022. So frustrating that all we have been told is sorry we cant get the part in. And Ford just says the same, that it is a software issue that they haven't fixed yet. I'd love to get rid of my bronco but stuck with it being broken for months now.

 

[craigk724]

We are also experiencing the same issue in our Badlands since March 2022. So frustrating that all we have been told is sorry we cant get the part in. And Ford just says the same, that it is a software issue that they haven't fixed yet. I'd love to get rid of my bronco but stuck with it being broken for months now.

Man, since March - that is awful. Really sorry to hear that. Hopefully the part starts showing up soon. I find all of this baffling and really discouraging.

 

[Ksjrb03]

Has anyone had their screen black out then come back? I was ready to call mine dead on the drive home this weekend, then it just turned back on while pulling into the driveway. Worked ok this morning.

 

[PartyMarty]

We are also experiencing the same issue in our Badlands since March 2022. So frustrating that all we have been told is sorry we cant get the part in. And Ford just says the same, that it is a software issue that they haven't fixed yet. I'd love to get rid of my bronco but stuck with it being broken for months now.

I'm right there with ya bud... I've had a screen that's been in and out since the second day I've owned it (March 20th, mostly out, and has been completely out for the past two weeks...). All I know is the dealership will reach out when the module is available (they send me a text every few weeks saying it's not in yet...)

If Ford was still struggling to pump out vehicles, I would be slightly understanding, but considering they knocked their 2nd quarter earnings out of the park, clearly they're selling a lot of vehicles, and they won't even spare one damn apim module for those who have been without it for months.... all it'll take is a toddler being run over from the lack of backup camera, and Ford will be in one hell of a lawsuit...

 

[PartyMarty]

Has anyone had their screen black out then come back? I was ready to call mine dead on the drive home this weekend, then it just turned back on while pulling into the driveway. Worked ok this morning.

Yes, a few times now, and all have been very suspicious timing-wise....

It failed my second day of owning (3/20/22), I got it in a week later to find out it was this APIM issue, and then three weeks after that they replaced it, but said the new apim failed to take, but left the new one in there. Lo and behold, the new apim module that didn't take starts working flawlessly a week later (over the air software updates? idk)

From early May till Father's day weekend, it worked flawlessly (okay, maybe it froze a few times, mostly on longer trips, but always came immediately back on itself, no big deal).

Then the day after my 3 month connected navigation trial ended, it crapped out again... completely blank, just the blue bronco frozen, and occasionally the radio (my power and forward scan buttons are very worn by now btw).

So I said F it, and paid the $80/yr subscription for the connected nav as it'd be nice to upload maps and use a nav system without cell connection. Well a few days after that, it started working 100% flawlessly, again after maybe some over-the-air updates..... very suspicious timing.

It crapped out two weeks ago on a long road trip (middle of nowhere with no cell service on dirt roads.) and maybe after pressing and holding the power/forward scan restart deal 10 times, I can get the radio to come on for 5 minutes, but that's it. Disconnected the negative battery terminal for 30 minutes hasn't helped at all.

Well this evening I looked up my Ford app and it says my trial to connected nav expired (even though I paid for it back in June), and I updated my app, and logged back in and now it's showing my active subscription. We'll see if the apim module starts working in a few days. I also signed up for Ford streaming this evening (f it, if $10/mo keeps my sync module working, i'll deal with it.

Again, if it starts working again in a few days, it'll be incredibly suspicious...

I've been waiting on that second replacement apim module since April...

 

[Razorbak86]

No resolution yet. The dealer service center took it through a number of tests and tries and could not get it revived, and so diagnosed it as a dead APIM, which is backordered due to chip shortages. They say they've marked it as an "emergency order" on their end, but that I'm free to contact Ford customer service to try to get them to expedite it any further. My efforts dealing with @Ford Motor Company have been extremely disappointing so far. Absolutely no word on when they expect the part - it feels likely to be months. They've authorized a rental, which I haven't taken them up on yet, but otherwise refer me back to the dealership for any news on the part. It's extremely disappointing to be paying for a $68,000 car that has no radio, navigation or settings access. As much as I love the truck, the experience has soured me a good deal - first Ford and last Ford for me, I think.

You reaching out inspired me to give the dealer a call for a status update after a couple of weeks of no news. Wish I had something good to report, but they say it's still backordered with no ETA. They truly seem to have no idea if it will be a matter of weeks or months or a year - she described other cars sitting around for 6 months on the lot with chip related issues. I hope for your sake one of the other fixes - disconnect and reconnect battery, or checking connections - gets yours up and running. Quite a bummer on such a new car that we both waited so long for.

My service advisor called yesterday about the SYNC 4 APIM. He checked with his parts guy, and the module is still showing as not backordered, but there is no additional visibility on an ETA.

I don’t know whether “backordered” or “not backordered” status is really relevant to us, if we’re still waiting on parts and have no visibility on an ETA, but I thought I would throw that out there for discussion.

The only possible explanation I can think of is there may be a software issue on Ford’s end, possibly relating to the OTA updates bricking modules, and maybe Ford has everything on hold while trying to figure out the root cause?

I don’t think that’s likely, because we all know semiconductors are constrained globally, and modules are holding up automotive shipments around the world. Occam’s Razor suggests that it’s just another chip constraint holding up module deliveries.

 

[craigk724]

Has anyone had their screen black out then come back? I was ready to call mine dead on the drive home this weekend, then it just turned back on while pulling into the driveway. Worked ok this morning.

In a totally bizarre series of events, after nearly two months of not working, in the middle of a short drive to pick up dinner last night, the screen illuminated with the Bronco logo and worked as if nothing had ever been wrong - USBs functioning, presets and Bluetooth phone settings all still there - for the entire drive to the restaurant and home. In total disbelief, I shut the truck off and turned it back on a couple times, and it still worked.
The bad news (of course): By this morning the screen is black again, and no resets of the car will bring it back.
Just completely strange - I’m not sure I should be, but I’m very surprised that all our stored phones and radio settings were still there given the amount of disconnects and everything else performed on this. Not sure what this all means also - is it not a chip issue, if the screen can randomly fire up in the middle of a drive as if nothing was ever wrong?
I can pinpoint not a single thing that would have made the screen suddenly function again in the middle of a short drive, but maybe someone here has ideas. Thanks as always.

 

[North7]

In a totally bizarre series of events, after nearly two months of not working, in the middle of a short drive to pick up dinner last night, the screen illuminated with the Bronco logo and worked as if nothing had ever been wrong - USBs functioning, presets and Bluetooth phone settings all still there - for the entire drive to the restaurant and home. In total disbelief, I shut the truck off and turned it back on a couple times, and it still worked.
The bad news (of course): By this morning the screen is black again, and no resets of the car will bring it back.
Just completely strange - I’m not sure I should be, but I’m very surprised that all our stored phones and radio settings were still there given the amount of disconnects and everything else performed on this. Not sure what this all means also - is it not a chip issue, if the screen can randomly fire up in the middle of a drive as if nothing was ever wrong?
I can pinpoint not a single thing that would have made the screen suddenly function again in the middle of a short drive, but maybe someone here has ideas. Thanks as always.

Standard behavior of loose electrical connection(s), cracked components, loose mounting fasteners, etc.

Best not to try and "fix" it as luck would have it when you take it in they say, works fine, nothing to see here, comeback if it acts up again.

Bottom line, mitts-off so the dealer sees the failure.

 

[reigny]

Well it happened to me today After almost 9 perfect months and 7800 miles my screen went completely black when I started up the car. I’ve tried several times since and nothing happens. Holding the power button and scan does nothing. Nothing is working at all. I have an appointment with my dealer next week.

 

[Razorbak86]

Well it happened to me today After almost 9 perfect months and 7800 miles my screen went completely black when I started up the car. I’ve tried several times since and nothing happens. Holding the power button and scan does nothing. Nothing is working at all. I have an appointment with my dealer next week.

Sorry to hear about that.

If you get a chance, check your FordPass app to see when the last OTA update occurred, and also check with @flip to see if there are any failed OTA updates in your vehicle history report.

I spoke to my service advisor again today, and still no visibility on ETA for the replacement APIM. Obviously, still backordered.

 

[reigny]

Thanks. I’ll contact @flip in the morning. Do you mean this?

 

[Razorbak86]

Yes, that’s it. So your software hasn’t updated since 6/27. My software had not updated OTA since 6/14, and my APIM failed at least two weeks ago.

@flip can run your VHR if he has your VIN. On my VHR, there were notes of repeated OTA failures, and there is a possibility that one of the failed updates may have bricked the APIM.

 

[reigny]

Yes, that’s it. So your software hasn’t updated since 6/27. My software had not updated OTA since 6/14, and my APIM failed at least two weeks ago.

@flip can run your VHR if he has your VIN. On my VHR, there were notes of repeated OTA failures, and there is a possibility that one of the failed updates may have bricked the APIM.

I sent Flip a message. I also noticed that my charger below the screen is also dead.

 

[craigk724]

Well it happened to me today After almost 9 perfect months and 7800 miles my screen went completely black when I started up the car. I’ve tried several times since and nothing happens. Holding the power button and scan does nothing. Nothing is working at all. I have an appointment with my dealer next week.

So sorry to hear this. Mine has been dead for two month with nary a word from @Ford Motor Company about when I can expect it to be repaired. Ford tells you to speak to the dealer, the dealer suggests you call Ford. It's a circular firing squad and Ford provides absolutely no insights, clarity, support or outreach from anything other than "customer experience specialists" who concede that they have zero understanding of the electronic issues, supply chain issues, or other problems that continue to delay this part or cause this failure.

Any effort or request to speak to anyone besides someone in this very siloed customer non-service department - someone in production or electronics or anyone in some area of Ford who may have an explanation or clarity on what is going on or when I might expect my six month old car to again function properly is rebuffed. I was recently told, with great seriousness, that if I want to make any kind of contact with someone with that sort of knowledge, I should write a paper letter and send it to a Ford PO Box in Michigan. Just unbelievably dismayed by the entire thing, and no end in sight.

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