Car Bricked While Driving. Any Thoughts on This

[RickMachE]

Great job! Not so great on the tow companies.

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[walla2]

I'm back up and running no thanks to Ford or 4 different tow companies. After 6 hours and no tow, I decided to have a go at it. BTW, It's a pain in the ass to remove the frunk with minimal tools on the side of the road.

The wire on the right was reading 1.9 volts on the terminal but 12.5 on the actual wire. It took about 4 full turns to tighten it up.

Occupation listing checks out...

Glad you got up and running!

 

[SnBGC]

I'm back up and running no thanks to Ford or 4 different tow companies. After 6 hours and no tow, I decided to have a go at it. BTW, It's a pain in the ass to remove the frunk with minimal tools on the side of the road.

The wire on the right was reading 1.9 volts on the terminal but 12.5 on the actual wire. It took about 4 full turns to tighten it up.

Glad you figured it out and shared with us. Sorry you had to experience this.
No other excuse for Ford other than poor assembly and workmanship. That terminal even has the blue paint to denote that it was checked prior to leaving the assembly line.


Electrical wires do vibrate. Every electrician will tell you that all lugs must be very tight.
If this same thing happens in the HVBJB then we can deduce why those things are failing.

I am kinda glad I have a pre-OKTB car right now....even so, I am damn sure I am going to check all these connections very soon. Just the LVB stuff. I'll leave the HVB stuff alone since that is still covered under warranty and quite frankly is very dangerous to mess with unless you have proper PPE and discharge procedures.

 

[SnBGC]

I'm back up and running no thanks to Ford or 4 different tow companies. After 6 hours and no tow, I decided to have a go at it. BTW, It's a pain in the ass to remove the frunk with minimal tools on the side of the road.

The wire on the right was reading 1.9 volts on the terminal but 12.5 on the actual wire. It took about 4 full turns to tighten it up.

Was that blade loose? When you tightened the hex nut....does it thread into that blade? If so, then we can all easily check our cars without taking the entire system apart.

 

[Jon]

This was a pretty scary experience for me. I've been in wrecks that didn't bother me as much as this. 60 miles from home and suddenly zero control. I couldn't even use the emergency flashers once I stopped. If I was about 300 or so yards farther up the bridge, I would have been stuck on the road because there isn't a shoulder at the top.

I have 140 mile round trip commute and now I'm wondering if I can trust the car.

 

[AlpaChino]

@Jon Glad you're back up and running, and safe. Is there any reasonable risk of electrocution when tightening these connections? Any saftey protocols we should consider when working here if/when necessary?

Asking for a friend.

Edit: I can't say I know exactly how you feel, but just yesterday my driver's door would not open after 5 or 6 button presses, and unlocking using the FOB. I felt my temperature immediately rise and the "oh shit" thought popped up in my head. I can only imagine what you felt. Sorry you had to experience this.

 

[HuntingPudel]

Was that blade loose? When you tightened the hex nut....does it thread into that blade? If so, then we can all easily check our cars without taking the entire system apart.

On Page 2 Jon asked if that blade was supposed to be loose. Seems to me like we can reach in and try to wiggle it. Any movement means we need to snug that baby up.

 

[HuntingPudel]

@Jon Glad you're back up and running, and safe. Is there any reasonable risk of electrocution when tightening these connections? Any saftey protocols we should consider when working here if/when necessary?

Asking for a friend.

Those are 12V DC, so minimal danger to a human. One should still follow good common sense and electrical safety precautions.

 

[SnBGC]

On Page 2 Jon asked if that blade was supposed to be loose. Seems to me like we can reach in and try to wiggle it. Any movement means we need to snug that baby up.

Agree. I just wanted to confirm with the OP. From the photo, it looks like that stud is actually part of that blade terminal, so yeah, it probably wiggled. Which is why I was asking if there was a spark or arc. However, now that I see the picture, the arc would not have been visible. Might be audible though.....depending on how loud the traffic was on the side of the road of course.

 

[Jon]

Although it was only 12 volts DC, remember, amperage kills not voltage. That's a large wire that can carry a lot of potential. If you short it to ground, bad things could happen.

 

[SnBGC]

@Jon Glad you're back up and running, and safe. Is there any reasonable risk of electrocution when tightening these connections? Any saftey protocols we should consider when working here if/when necessary?

Asking for a friend.

Edit: I can't say I know exactly how you feel, but just yesterday my driver's door would not open after 5 or 6 button presses, and unlocking using the FOB. I felt my temperature immediately rise and the "oh shit" thought popped up in my head. I can only imagine what you felt. Sorry you had to experience this.

Yes, there is a safety step the OP should have (or may have) taken. There is a HVB safety disconnect that should have been separated before opening any of the junction boxes. You can find it here:

 

[Jon]

Agree. I just wanted to confirm with the OP. From the photo, it looks like that stud is actually part of that blade terminal, so yeah, it probably wiggled. Which is why I was asking if there was a spark or arc. However, now that I see the picture, the arc would not have been visible. Might be audible though.....depending on how loud the traffic was on the side of the road of course.

I couldn't hear it with all of the traffic whizzing by.

The stud that was loose runs through the copper bus and the jump point that is in the back that extend upwards. It took about 4 full turns to get it tight. I'm going to look up the torque rating and tighten it properly.

 

[SnBGC]

I couldn't hear it with all of the traffic whizzing by.

The stud that was loose runs through the copper bus and the jump point that is in the back that extend upwards. It took about 4 full turns to get it tight. I'm going to look up the torque rating and tighten it properly.

Thanks. That is what I suspected. So, the rest of us can reach in there from time to time and see if that wiggles. If so, then correct it asap or we risk a repeat performance of your morning experience.

I am glad I have quick access to those terminals.

I am glad you found the solution and shared with us. If your car was towed then we wouldn't have received that very helpful photo that you posted.
Thanks for taking one for the team. If you are ever in Phoenix then I'll buy you a beer or two.

 

[Maquis]

Although it was only 12 volts DC, remember, amperage kills not voltage. That's a large wire that can carry a lot of potential. If you short it to ground, bad things could happen.

Don't forget Ohm's law. Due to the body's resistance, it's almost impossible for 12V to induce a lethal current.

A direct short, as you mentioned, could have all kinds of bad results, including fire or battery meltdown / rupture.

Anyone who's worked on a cranking battery in an ICE vehicle has faced the same scenario and should have no issues with the MME (other than getting access to the darned battery).

Glad you're up and running again...I don't think I'd worry too much going forward. This is likely a one-off fluke failure to torque the terminal.

 

[MellowJohnny]

Is it normal for a thread lock compound to be used during assembly or would that affect conductivity?

I’m a big fan of Locktite…but I assume someone would have thought of that long before I did

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