New Lawsuit Might Force Ford To Change Mustang Mach-E Door Handles

[fpasta]

My 12 Volt battery is coming to 3 years old from the day I got the car. I keep my car stored in the work garage for 4-5 days of the week. I have had warnings of car in battery save mode in the infotainment screen and the beeps that sound muffled. All meaning that my 12 V battery voltage is low. Not good. Thanks to this forum. When i go back to the office and take the car out if I am not driving it more than 30 minutes I will leave the car to shut down automatically. Since I have been doing that I have never had any of those warning or sounds. Also when I store the car I turn everything off that i think would drain the 12V. I don't know if these drain the 12V but like Blue tooth, WIFI, auto update, Walk away lock, Welcome Light, and motion sensor off. When i drive again I lll turn some of them back on.

Now I am getting worried because its probably time to swap the 12V battery. Fortunately and thanks to this forum again. I just leave the door unlocked. My work is gated and the workers out here hold themselves in a higher regard than to break into someone's car.

Also I have a jump starter pack too. Not in the car, at the office. So I really don't need to leave the door unlocked. So I may start locking it again. Or keep the jump starter in the car and leave the door unlocked.

I read this article a few days ago and I think it mentioned somewhere sometimes the door button doesn't even work when you have power to the 12V. That you have to press it a few more times to open it. That to me means its defective. I am already paired. The light on the door button is on and I press it the first time and it doesn't open LOL.

Should I get the battery replaced under warranty? I have a big 1 month trip in May. I am pretty sure the battery will be dead when i get back.

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[ZoNiE]

Hmmm... I may just put an Anderson power pole connector under the charge door wired to the 12V battery with a fuse. Then if the battery is dead, I can connect an external 12V power source, like a jump pack, or a cordless drill battery, to power the electronics and open the door.

 

[RickMachE]

The scenario in the lawsuit has actually happened. At least two forum members have had to have their windshield smashed to get children out. (Said children were never left unattended).

Thief waiting to break in and steal unattended child is still sitting at 0 cases. So seems more unlikely.

Please link to the "At least two forum members have had to have their windshield smashed to get children out."

Otherwise, #hyberbole

 

[Sikkun]

I read this article a few days ago and I think it mentioned somewhere sometimes the door button doesn't even work when you have power to the 12V. That you have to press it a few more times to open it. That to me means its defective. I am already paired. The light on the door button is on and I press it the first time and it doesn't open LOL.

Should I get the battery replaced under warranty? I have a big 1 month trip in May. I am pretty sure the battery will be dead when i get back.

Yes, it’s not that uncommon to have to push the button more than once. More if you are using your phone as a key, but I’ve had it happen even with the FOB.

If your battery actually fails a test and they will replace it for free. Sure, saves you $200 or so. But it would have to actually test in a way it’s deemed a warrantable failure.

 

[Sikkun]

Please link to the "At least two forum members have had to have their windshield smashed to get children out."

Otherwise, #hyberbole

https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/mach-e-dead-in-garage-next-step.37221/#post-822360

And I’m sure you have read and can find the other if you desire. Maybe it was someone cross posting.

Now anyone is obviously free to not believe the stories posted by people about it happening.

Still a higher number than…children left in locked car and then stolen by high tech thief.

 

[RickMachE]

https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/mach-e-dead-in-garage-next-step.37221/#post-822360

And I’m sure you have read and can find the other if you desire. Maybe it was someone cross posting.

Now anyone is obviously free to not believe the stories posted by people about it happening.

Still a higher number than…children left in locked car and then stolen by high tech thief.

Nope, not valid.

1) He had a new 12v battery.
2) Never validated what was the issue.
3) He tried things that were nonsense, like trying to open the windows with FordPass when he wasn't there... Why didn't wife.
4) And it was a window, not windshield.

 

[Sikkun]

Nope, not valid.

1) He had a new 12v battery.
2) Never validated what was the issue.
3) He tried things that were nonsense, like trying to open the windows with FordPass when he wasn't there... Why didn't wife.
4) And it was a window, not windshield.

Don’t think it really matters what window the fire department broke….

But you’re going with the I don’t believe people on the internet option (always valid).

So we are still able to find 2 cases of (claimed) child locked in Mach E resulting in some form of “window” being smashed. Vs 0 child stolen from locked Mach E.

What do we win?

 

[Gimme_my_MME]

Don’t think it really matters what window the fire department broke….

You are attempting to argue technicalities with Rick. You are not gonna win

 

[Sikkun]

You are attempting to argue technicalities with Rick. You are not gonna win

I forgot to read the refer to the manual on which window like objects ended up being smashed in said claims.

 

[Gimme_my_MME]

Reading the suit, neither claimant experienced any 12v issues, let alone doors not working or children stuck in the vehicle. They are stating that due to the posts on here there is an issue and they should have been warned before buying and now they are financially harmed.

 

[n2585722]

Don’t think it really matters what window the fire department broke….

But you’re going with the I don’t believe people on the internet option (always valid).

So we are still able to find 2 cases of (claimed) child locked in Mach E. Vs 0 child stolen from locked Mach E.

What do we win?

It does if you are paying to have it repalced. At least with a window the car would still be drivable. Also with a windshield you not only have to cost of replacing it but also a lot of sensors would have to be recalibrated afterwards.

 

[Sikkun]

It does if you are paying to have it repalced. At least with a window the car would still be drivable. Also with a windshield you not only have to cost of replacing it but also a lot of sensors would have to be recalibrated afterwards.

Which is ironic because windshield used to be the cheaper one to have smashed.

 

[DaMeatMan]

And the aerodynamics? OMG


New Lawsuit Might Force Ford To Change Mustang Mach-E Door Handles | Carscoops


For those of you who haven’t encountered the Mach-E in person (or haven’t been fortunate enough to get locked out of one), here’s the deal: The electric crossover doesn’t feature the usual door handles or even a traditional keyhole. Instead, it relies on electric latches that open only when the key fob is nearby and, critically, when the battery has enough charge to pop the doors.

A Dead Mach-E Isn’t Just a Problem; It’s a Headache



Now, if your electric Ford’s battery is dead, you’re in trouble. The only way to get into a dead Mustang Mach-E is by accessing the battery and charging it enough so that the doors function again.

According to the lawsuit, the plaintiffs argue that while the Mach-E is “designed to open electrically at the touch of a button,” unlike most cars with electronic door handles, it “does not have a fail-safe physical key that can be used should the battery fail; there’s no hidden physical slot to insert one.” As a result, they claim, this “feature” is actually a defect in need of correction.

To be fair to the plaintiffs, the stories surrounding this issue do make the design seem more like an afterthought than a well-planned feature. In just the last two months, we’ve reported on at least two separate instances of owners getting locked out unexpectedly. In one case, a child was effectively trapped in the car with no fast way to open the door.

I've always found the current mechanism to be quite silly. The mechanism that presents the door open is obviously going to be a future failure point, and the fact that you cannot enter the vehicle when the 12v dies is a major issue that did not need to exist to begin with. I'm a Canadian that has seen my 12v battery die in the midst of winter on several of my traditional vehicles, but I've always been able to get into the vehicle to get warm, and pop the hood without having to have a battery on hand, and pull panels off the vehicle. The current strategy in the Mach-E is absurd and dangerous and it's always bothered me.

If aerodynamics was a concern, there are still many ways to allow for mechanical entry into the vehicle with a physical while also maintaining aero. Besides the "cool factor" the current door mechanism is failure prone, and offers no real benefits for the user. That said, we've had door handles for literally a hundred years and they work well.. stop trying to re-invent the wheel these ridiculous door mechanisms just because the vehicle is electric!

 

[buzznwood]

I've always found the current mechanism to be quite silly. The mechanism that presents the door open is obviously going to be a future failure point, and the fact that you cannot enter the vehicle when the 12v dies is a major issue that did not need to exist to begin with. I'm a Canadian that has seen my 12v battery die in the midst of winter on several of my traditional vehicles, but I've always been able to get into the vehicle to get warm, and pop the hood without having to have a battery on hand, and pull panels off the vehicle. The current strategy in the Mach-E is absurd and dangerous and it's always bothered me.

If aerodynamics was a concern, there are still many ways to allow for mechanical entry into the vehicle with a physical while also maintaining aero. Besides the "cool factor" the current door mechanism is failure prone, and offers no real benefits for the user. That said, we've had door handles for literally a hundred years and they work well.. stop trying to re-invent the wheel these ridiculous door mechanisms just because the vehicle is electric!

Early CAD models of the mach-e body design leaked online months before it was revealed at that point in time it the doors had traditional handles (similar to those on the c2 based focus / escape / kuga), so the e-handle was a later edition to the design.

Those handles could have easily been reworked to be a flush flush pop-out which is very easy to add a manual key override but instead they went with a button on the pillar. To make it worse the original clean e-handle isn't what we got in the end anyway as they had to add the goofy winglet handle due to negative feedback on the e-handle door operation.

 

[superdave80]

Those handles could have easily been reworked to be a flush flush pop-out which is very easy to add a manual key override but instead they went with a button on the pillar.

The fact that flush handles have been around forever puts a big hole in the 'it's for aerodynamics!" BS that gets thrown about. Ford just wanted to seem cool and futuristic, and wound up designing the dumbest thing to be put in a car in years.

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