20,000 mile checkin - post yours when you hit the mark

[dtbaker61]

I saw @SnBGC 60,000 report, and thought I'd start one for people hitting 20,000. I think it might be super useful for @Ford Motor Company to spot trends for what is holding up, and what is not. I'd suggest that if you've hit 20k miles, you post YOUR report on the good, bad, and ugly experiences with your MME.

My MME - 2021 Select AWD-SR , delivered 2/26/2021 , hit 20,000 on 1/2/2023

The good
- fun to drive, reliable mechanically, lots of positive comments on looks and performance

The (somewhat) expected
- stock tires were GONE at about 19k miles. I expected quick wear with such a heavy car, and spirited driving, but under 20k was a little bit of a surprise.

The bad

- smell of windshield washer fluid enters cabin EVERY TIME sprayer is used. Not sure if it is a leak, or fluid drain too close to cabin air intake.... but something needs to be re-designed.

- Ford Mobile Charger has a VERY weak design of thumblatch, and wrong material choice which does not resist impact. I dropped mine ONCE from waist high, and snapped off the latch. Turns out the latch is not replaceable (probably a $.05 part), so they swapped me a new charger kit.

- center display 'sticks up' pretty far, and sun from south overheated and killed my first display in a month, replaced under warranty in 1 day. Apparently has better chips inside, and I added a console protector to block direct UV exposure

- PAAK configuration at first on Android 9 phone was a bitch, but got it figured out.... failed about a year later with a major phone update that changed BT.... took a day to figure out, remove, replace, and reconfigure. works fine now again

- rear cargo support snapped off when I hit a 'speed table' with a fair amount of cargo in the back that thumped down pretty hard. Factory repair cost would have been crazy expensive and taken a couple days, so I fixed it myself. *should* be redesigned for better support in up or lowered position

- HVBJB issue surfaced for me at 18k miles..... took 2 trips and 10 days wait to Dealer to verify code and order part, I drove about 250 miles with Alert and power cap active under the SVS, and 2 days in shop to remove/replace (I was the first they had done, and they took it slow and carefully). Been trouble free since.

***current issue*** occasionally get a front camera fault, which knocks out some driver assist features. Might be a bad harness, bad connector, or damaged during windshield re-glue recall service. Will have Dealer check it out soon before Warranty is up.

***current issue*** return of the center screen going black.... just once, about a week ago. It cleared itself after I parked and came back later. NOT HAPPY this happened to my already replaced once display screen! Will have Dealer check it out soon before Warranty is up.

***current issue*** slight clicking noise from front wheel - axle area when accelerating from a stop with wheels not straight ahead. Not sure if its a bearing, CV half-shaft, seal, or what.... but will have Dealer check it out soon before Warranty is up. There is a discernible 'clunk', and some movement (maybe .060 or so) of front axles if I pull/push axially in/out toward the front motor. NO movement or clunk on the rear axles.
Turns out after a little more searching, this is a little more common than one would hope for early builds like mine, and MAYBE should be elevated to Recall rather than a SSM. ( SSM 50513 )

The Missing
- should have a tow rating, a removable Diaper access cover, and a 'blessed' rear hitch receiver electrical harness for trailer lights
- should have at least one rear tow hook under rear bumper cover
- should have at least one front tow hook under bumper access port cover
- should have clearly marked lift points, and permanent 'pucks' to make lift points obvious

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[Kamuelaflyer]

I’ll probably hit the 20,000 mark almost simultaneously with the 2 year of ownership mark. A few things on my list atm, all minor. We shall see when late April or May rolls around. I’ll post when I get to that point Dan.

 

[MailGuy]

I will hit 20k this week. I still love the car, but am annoyed by it constantly choosing the guest profile and choosing my wife’s phone sitting in the house when mine is sitting in the car.

 

[Tampamike]

About that windshield washer smell - does it happen when you’re using the rear washer? If so, it could be the tube connectors in the back left roof post aren’t connected. Mine weren’t. Every time I used it, fluid came out the plastic vent.

 

[Tampamike]

I’m just past 30k. Premium, RWD, ER, Dec ‘21 build.
Everything mostly works, with an intermittent glitch here and there.
Tires are still ok.
No HVBJB failure yet (knock on wood.)
PAAK works for me. I do have to push the button more than once sometimes and occasionally pull out my phone to wake up FordPass.
BlueCruise works.
My mobile charger overheats but still works.
I had the profile issue a while back but it seems to have cleared.
If my wife is in the car, it always hooks up her phone. It’s like the car laughing at me.
I couldn’t get streaming to work but I don’t really care, so I didn’t pursue it.
Still love driving it.
Several long road trips. I kind of like it and I got it down.
Current big issue is my panoramic roof is cracked. Negotiating to get that fixed under warranty. I’ll let you know how that comes out.

 

[dtbaker61]

About that windshield washer smell - does it happen when you’re using the rear washer? If so, it could be the tube connectors in the back left roof post aren’t connected. Mine weren’t. Every time I used it, fluid came out the plastic vent.

front washer....

 

[21st Century Pony]

I should hit 20k within a week. TBC... The Mach E is at 19k 400+ miles now.

BLUF (early report): I love this car

 

[jeffMachE]

I hit 20K right about my 1 year anniversary (end of November). At 22K now. Aug '21 build, Premium, Ex4, Job 2.

Mostly I love the car. Honestly have not had any of the problems that seem to occur here regularly:
- no HVJB issue (knock on wood)
- what is this "profile" thing people talk about - I don't use profiles so its a non-issue for me
- Haven't worn through stock tires yet, but I put snows on the in winter (2nd winter with them now). I expect I'll replace the tires after this summer.
- I have a frunk button in FordPass. I think I've used it once just to see if it would work
-OTA's were stalled for many months, but last summer I started getting a boatload. I have 4.1.2 (received last week, I'm in EA)

Niggles:
- A bit of a buzz/rattle from center console when driving on bumpy (e.g. snow-covered) roads. Haven't pinpointed it.
- PaaK mostly works, but 50% of time I have to open doors with code before car figures out I have my phone out. Never an issue starting/driving with Paak, just getting doors to unlock.
- Front seat only returns to memory position 1 out of 3 times when I get in car. Have to hit the memory button to get it to adjust. Maybe this is the profile thing? I don't use any presets for radio, so no idea about that.
- I wish Android Auto had DTE and charging station integration. That being said, I find the Ford navigation to be pretty good, so don't bother with AA most time.
- Range in summer is as advertised, or even a bit better. Winter range, however, is not great, especially when travelling cross country. In the summer, I get around 3.2-3.4 mi/kWh, in the winter I'm in the low 2's and below 2 when travelling at highway speeds. Requires a stop every 2 hours in the winter.

 

[mkhuffman]

22,689 and still the original HVBJB.

All my car problems have been more than compensated by the fact that I don't have to change the air filter, the oil filter and the oil.

My biggest gripe is range. Before I purchased my first BEV (my MME), I told myself I would never buy a BEV with a range of less than 400 miles. I abandoned that promise and while I love my car, it is my biggest regret. Fighting the charger hogs at work and general DCFC station congestion really, really sucks. I think a 20 minute stop to charge is workable. An hour, nope. While this has not happened to me more than a couple times, without a doubt it will be happening more.

I will NOT replace my MME unless it is with a BEV that can travel 400+ miles. If I really stick to my guns, I will wait for a 400+ mile HIGHWAY range car, not EPA range. Because it is the highway where range really matters. Around town my MME is fine. Unfortunately my office is 146 miles from my house. With a 400+ mile range car, I could drive to work and drive home without worrying about the charger hog a-holes.

 

[21st Century Pony]

I should hit 20k within a week. TBC... The Mach E is at 19k 400+ miles now.

BLUF (early report): I love this car

So, my 20K check-in opinions are:

The Good:

1. Very good cargo and passenger "packability". Beats my former Fusion by a mile.

2. After I bolted in KW shocks and Steeda anti-sway bar improvements, the handling is very good to fantastic, depending on what the driver is doing and their knowledge and ability. So, Ford can and SHOULD improve the OEM anti-sway bars. Shocks, well... that is a known economy point for car manufacturers, unfortunately.

3. Feels like a fun car, at speed, in corners and on normal commutes.

4. Cheap cheap cheap to operate, especially as gas prices reach for their climbing ladders. All we need is a really nasty infrastructure-destroying war in a key region like the Persian Gulf and this factor will compound itself.

5. This is the 1st car I've owned that has turned more heads and gathered on-the-spot comments than I've ever heard, especially from the under-40 crowd. Oh if only I could have had it back in the day... ;-) then again it might have interfered with my studies

6. I really like the layout and the taxonomy of the controls and settings menus. More intuitive BY FAR than Sonny Boy's Audi E-Tron, where you really need to think through what you want the car to do and where the Audi engineers might have hidden it.

7. I really like the Alert Yenta on the small steering wheel screen. It's not obtrusive and it works well to keep me focused if I ever drift my attention.

The Acceptable So-So:

1. Software could be just a little more stable. However, the availability of occasional FDRS licenses mitigates this in my eyes. In contrast, my Sonny Boy's used Audi E-Tron... fuggetabout FDRS-like updates unless something visibly and repeatably fails. Then and only then will the Audi dealership deign to let him know that actually, there IS a module update and is he still under warranty? etc.. this just happened with his charging system and a Grizzl-E Duo we installed at his house. Sonny Boy (of course) blamed his Dad for advising him to choose a shady EVSE until we just took the Audi to the dealership and... "oh now that you have a problem, we have an update". Grrrr...

2. Trunk cargo moveable floor is good. Its inner wall cargo floor supports stink, as many members here have found out. Hey Ford Engineers: if ya gonna use a plastic shelf support, then put in some bolts and backing plates rather than two pop rivets to hold it up. After all, the side walls of that area are steel, and with decent bolts and backing plates those supports would pretty much never get pulled out by weight on that floor panel.

The "Let's Improve This":

1. The very silly trunk aft hatch cargo cover posts. I think a good high school shop student could gin up a better, more stable system.

2. The Big Sail flappy unnecessarily enormous charging port cover was IMHO designed solely by a stylist and not by a functional user. No accounting for wind, for passing people brushing up against the open cover while the cord is plugged in, etc. etc. WHY DO WE DEPEND ON THE KINDNESS OF A SKILLED FORUM MEMBER WITH A 3-D PRINTER TO FIX THIS LOUSY PORT COVER?

2.5 (related issue) Why not a better location for the charging port? Charging port locations have been around now since what... 2012? IMHO, a better location would be at the front or at the rear. This is especially important for DCFC.

3. Front and rear screw-in bumper tow hooks. Ford already puts these in, in Europe and (AFAIK) in other regional markets. What is the economic basis for their elimination in North America? ...especially if the car ever needs a tow because of the Big Battery issues. This is known, proven, cheap and solid technology... 'nuff said.

4. Lack of a Rear Fog Light. Again, just like in #3 directly above, this is a known, proven, cheap and solid technology, which BTW adds safety for everyone. I just drove through Western Maryland yesterday night at 2,600 feet in socked-in 33 degree, black ice weather, and the visibility was at times "4-way flasher-ready". WHY DO I HAVE TO FINAGLE PARTS FROM EUROPE AND FIGURE OUT THE CANBUS WIRING TO ADD THIS SAFETY FEATURE at my own time, effort and expense? Really, Ford? Sure, this safety feature might only be used 1 - 3 times per year, but when you need it it is priceless.

5. Cargo Towing capacity... this is a light SUV according to Ford's marketing. Moreover, Ford actually sells a Ford-labeled towing kit, with a wiring harness and a software module that integrates with the car's computer systems... except not here in North America. I do not want to and will not tow a 2-axle Winnebago up the Pikes Peak Road with this car. I do intend to and will tow a garden trailer with a mower to the repair shop, or my motorcycle and its sidecar, or (someday) a light teardrop camper. Others might want to tow a boat.

In light of this I already bought and installed, at my cost and effort, Ford's European tow kit which BTW is very well-made and will tow up to 3,300 pounds with my car's AWD (partly described elsewhere on this forum). I much prefer to use Ford's authorized towing kit for this car rather than a reverse-engineered aftermarket kit. Why can't Ford give us the option up front? IMHO the lower electric efficiency is not a problem... there are plenty of great camping trips / sites within 100 miles of both my Virginia house and my son's Kentucky house.

6. Rear cargo area's two missing net hooks on the inner walls. Really Ford? Hey let's put in the indentations in the steel wall and also in the felt cargo wall covers, but we'll just skip on spot-welding the ring hooks that we put there everywhere but in North America. Really? What is the savings here Ford? ...this is just chintzy corporate behavior, IMHO.

...and I still love this car

 

[21st Century Pony]

So, my 20K check-in opinions are:

The Good:

1. Very good cargo and passenger "packability". Beats my former Fusion by a mile.

2. After I bolted in KW shocks and Steeda anti-sway bar improvements, the handling is very good to fantastic, depending on what the driver is doing and their knowledge and ability. So, Ford can and SHOULD improve the OEM anti-sway bars. Shocks, well... that is a known economy point for car manufacturers, unfortunately.

3. Feels like a fun car, at speed, in corners and on normal commutes.

4. Cheap cheap cheap to operate, especially as gas prices reach for their climbing ladders. All we need is a really nasty infrastructure-destroying war in a key region like the Persian Gulf and this factor will compound itself.

5. This is the 1st car I've owned that has turned more heads and gathered on-the-spot comments than I've ever heard, especially from the under-40 crowd. Oh if only I could have had it back in the day... ;-) then again it might have interfered with my studies

6. I really like the layout and the taxonomy of the controls and settings menus. More intuitive BY FAR than Sonny Boy's Audi E-Tron, where you really need to thing through what you want the car to do and where the Audi engineers might have hidden it.

7. I really like the Alert Yenta on the small steering wheel screen. It's not obtrusive and it works well to keep me focused if I ever drift my attention.

The Acceptable So-So:

1. Software could be just a little more stable. However, the availability of occasional FDRS licenses mitigates this in my eyes. In contrast, my Sonny Boy's used Audi E-Tron... fuggetabout FDRS-like updates unless something visibly and repeatably fails. Then and only then will the Audi dealership deign to let him know that actually, there IS a module update and is he still under warranty? etc.. this just happened with his charging system and a Grizzl-E Duo we installed at his house. Sonny Boy (of course) blamed his Dad for advising him to choose a shady EVSE until we just took the Audi to the dealership and... "oh now that you have a problem, we have an update". Grrrr...

2. Trunk cargo moveable floor is good. Its inner wall cargo floor supports stink, as many members here have found out. Hey Ford Engineers: if ya gonna use a plastic shelf, then put in some bolts and backing plates rather than two pop rivets to hold it up. After all, the side walls of that area are steel, and with decent bolts and backing plates those supports would pretty much never get pulled out by weight on that floor panel.

The "Let's Improve This":

1. The very silly trunk aft hatch cargo cover posts. I think a good high school shop student could gin up a better, more stable system.

2. The Big Sail flappy unnecessarily enormous charging port cover was IMHO designed solely by a stylist and not by a functional user. No accounting for wind, for passing people brushing up against the open cover while the cord is plugged in, etc. etc. WHY DO WE DEPEND ON THE KINDNESS OF A SKILLED FORUM MEMBER WITH A 3-D PRINTER TO FIX THIS LOUSY PORT COVER?

2.5 (related issue) Why not a better location for the charging port? Charging port locations have been around now since what... 2012? IMHO, a better location would be at the front or at the rear. This is especially important for DCFC.

3. Front and rear screw-in bumper tow hooks. Ford already puts these in, in Europe and (AFAIK) in other regional markets. What is the economic basis for their elimination in North America? ...especially if the car ever needs a tow because of the Big Battery issues. This is known, proven, cheap and solid technology... 'nuff said.

4. Lack of a Rear Fog Light. Again, just like in #3 directly above, this is a known, proven, cheap and solid technology, which BTW adds safety for everyone. I just drove through Western Maryland yesterday night at 2,600 feet in socked-in 33 degree, black ice weather, and the visibility was at times "4-way flasher-ready". WHY DO I HAVE TO FINAGLE PARTS FROM EUROPE AND FIGURE OUT THE CANBUS WIRING TO ADD THIS SAFETY FEATURE at my own time, effort and expense? Really, Ford? Sure, this safety feature might only be used 1 - 3 times per year, but when you need it it is priceless.

5. Cargo Towing capacity... this is a light SUV according to Ford's marketing. Moreover, Ford actually sells a Ford-labeled towing kit, with a wiring harness and a software module that integrates with the car's computer systems... except not here in North America. I do not want to and will not tow a 2-axle Winnebago up the Pikes Peak Road with this car. I do intend to and will tow a garden trailer with a mower to the repair shop, or my motorcycle and its sidecar, or (someday) a light teardrop camper. Others might want to tow a boat.

In light of this I already bought and installed, at my cost and effort, Ford's European tow kit which BTW is very well-made and will tow up to 3,300 pounds with my car's AWD (partly described elsewhere on this forum). I much prefer to use Ford's authorized towing kit for this car rather than a reverse-engineered aftermarket kit. Why can't Ford give us the option up front? IMHO the lower electric efficiency is not a problem... there are plenty of great camping trips / sites within 100 miles of both my Virginia house and my son's Kentucky house.

6. Rear cargo area's two missing net hooks on the inner walls. Really Ford? Hey let's put in the indentations in the steel wall and also in the felt cargo wall covers, but we'll just skip on spot-welding the ring hooks that we put there everywhere but in North America. Really? What is the savings here Ford? ...this is just chintzy corporate behavior, IMHO.

...and I still love this car

OK I forgot to add the "Jump Point Holes" to the SO-SO section... but all one needs is a hole saw and some furniture plugs, so it's not that big a deal.

 

[mkhuffman]

OK I forgot to add the "Jump Point Holes" to the SO-SO section... but all one needs is a hole saw and some furniture plugs, so it's not that big a deal.

My first mod!

 

[michilex74]

Useful information

 

[Mike G]

About that windshield washer smell - does it happen when you’re using the rear washer? If so, it could be the tube connectors in the back left roof post aren’t connected. Mine weren’t. Every time I used it, fluid came out the plastic vent.

It does it on mine when I use the front washer as well...just yesterday in fact.

 

[21st Century Pony]

It does it on mine when I use the front washer as well...just yesterday in fact.

Wow! ...mine doesn't have this problem. Sorry...

Factory assembly QA problems, eh? When I bolted up my KW V3 coilovers, I discovered the rear right spring's OEM rubber base pad was laid in about 130 degrees out of phase.

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