HUGE Safety Issue - 1PD - "Drive Mode Not Available"

[jdmrc93]

This has happened a couple of times before... but today's instance was scary and the car could have wrecked itself.

I have had instances when I'm driving, I will get a notification saying "Drive Mode Not Available". Ok whatever. The problem is, when this happens to me, the 1PD turns off by itself and can't be re-engaged without power cycling the car. If I'm driving along on a road and I see that, I know what to expect. HOWEVER, 10 min ago, I was pulling into a parking spot with concrete posts around it. This time, it happened as I was turning into the spot. I was in Whisper mode this time. I noticed the car SPED UP a bit as I was letting my foot off the accelerator, and I had to slam on the brakes. Sure enough, "Drive Mode Not Available" was up on the screen. I was about 1 inch away from this concrete post.

Has this happened to anyone else? I can't be the only one...

@Ford Motor Company ya'll need to weigh-in here. This needs to be fixed.

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[Jax_GT]

I’ve had the Drive Mode Not Available a few times but never 1PD turning off. I wonder if you have 1PD set differently for each mode.

 

[Mach-Lee]

Yes, it’s happened to others before. I get what you’re saying and it’s a poor design because they didn’t think of the failure effects. When the pedal mode changes, acceleration should be disabled until you completely let your foot off the accelerator pedal and press the brake to reset. The current design can cause unintended acceleration if there is a 1PD failure.

 

[generaltso]

Sounds like a reason to stop using 1PD until it's addressed.

 

[GreaseMonkey]

It never happened to me before, but completely understand how dangerous this can be in tight spaces. I hope that Ford takes this seriously and diagnoses the problem in short order.

 

[hybrid2bev]

Sounds like the car sped up because of the different pedal mapping for the drive modes. In Whisper you have to press the pedal further to reach a set speed vs. Engage (which is what drive mode not available defaults to.) So even when modulating the pedal it's still going to have a faster set speed for Engage vs. Whisper based on how far the pedal is depressed.

I notice the opposite effect, my car actually slows down when 'Drive Mode Not Available' hits. Because I'm usually in Unbridle. But I've never had 1PD disengage.

 

[DevSecOps]

I've been saying it's a safety issue since this first showed up as a bug. This can happen when regen changes while you're braking. Expecting the car to stop via your set and accustom regen and then it changes during "drive mode not available" makes the regen change as well which, if using unbridled like I do, makes the car lunge forward with less regenerative baking.

 

[Logal727]

I've found keeping it on Engage, I rarely see the Drive Mode Not Available anymore, but it's so quirky YMMV.

 

[Monke]

I understand your concern. My MME jerked forward after a complete stop. @Ford Motor Company reached out to me. I replied then I was told to go to the dealer since the car has not been inspected by the dealer in the past 30 days. I was also told.

"Your dealership will have the resources needed to have your vehicle's driving performance issues diagnosed and can also discuss what coverage options are available for you."

This is new. I think the rules have changed. The car is less than 1 year old and less than 5,000 miles.

 

[MachLovin]

I've been saying it's a safety issue since this first showed up as a bug. This can happen when regen changes while you're braking. Expecting the car to stop via your set and accustom regen and then it changes during "drive mode not available" makes the regen change as well which, if using unbridled like I do, makes the car lunge forward with less regenerative baking.

same thing has happened to me too when using 1pd drive

 

[MachLovin]

This has happened a couple of times before... but today's instance was scary and the car could have wrecked itself.

I have had instances when I'm driving, I will get a notification saying "Drive Mode Not Available". Ok whatever. The problem is, when this happens to me, the 1PD turns off by itself and can't be re-engaged without power cycling the car. If I'm driving along on a road and I see that, I know what to expect. HOWEVER, 10 min ago, I was pulling into a parking spot with concrete posts around it. This time, it happened as I was turning into the spot. I was in Whisper mode this time. I noticed the car SPED UP a bit as I was letting my foot off the accelerator, and I had to slam on the brakes. Sure enough, "Drive Mode Not Available" was up on the screen. I was about 1 inch away from this concrete post.

Has this happened to anyone else? I can't be the only one...

@Ford Motor Company ya'll need to weigh-in here. This needs to be fixed.

unfortunately this has happened to me too. Luckily i wasn't in the scenario you were in though.. .

 

[azerik]

I had 1pd turn off previously as well. But a few people here said I was crazy and it wasn't possible. I've avoided running into others thankfully as I drive in whisper and when it kicks out of whisper I feel the car go a little faster. I hadn't had "DMNA" for a long time, but got it twice in the last 2 days.

 

[summerlinLV]

All these sudden acceleration events need to be reported to NHTSA as these are safety issues.

 

[radicalEdward]

So do the " Drive Mode Not Available" available events. I know this issue has been brought up a lot in there forums but the general response is to just wait a bit a change back to your preferred drive mode. I really dislike that rhetoric because it's not just a preference issue, it's also a safety issue. In 1PD the braking profile changes between drive modes, I know I can always use the brake pedal but that sort of defeats the purpose. I don't want to guess what my braking is going to be like when I'm coming to a stop, it should be consistent.

 

[Blue PonyE]

I drive in Unbridled; no 1 pedal driving and I've had "Drive Mode Not Available" happen several times under different driving scenarios in traffic on surface streets or highway. Going to whisper mode, that has very different regenerative braking effect, creates a potential for an accident in traffic. Usually, after a minute or two of pushing buttons on the drive selection screen, I can select Unbridled; it resets, and I continue on.

I have been meaning to get this checked out at the Ford of Kirkland, but it seems like an issue that won't replicate when in the shop, unless there are fault codes logged when it happens.

This needs to be addressed through a software update or a shop bulletin.

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