Failure of Back-Up Start Code Screen to Appear

[ARK]

Has anyone else experienced a failure of their back-up start code? Not the Mach-E saying incorrect code, but the Mach-E not bringing up the screen to input the back-up start code? This has happened to me three times now, all in the last ten or so days. It used to never be an issue on the rare occasion where I would want to enter my Mach-E without my phone or key fob, or when I was getting a PaaK failure.

This just happened as I was home so I went inside to grab my iPad (not my PaaK enabled phone) and took a video. Before I went inside to get my iPad, the center screen came on and the radio worked, but I did NOT get the back-up start code pop up despite pressing the On button multiple times. When I came back with the iPad, the center screen didn’t turn on at all, just the driver display briefly coming on to flash “No Key Detected” before switching back off.

Is there anything I can do in this situation to force the back-up start code input screen to appear? Here is the video:

 

[smartino]

Had this happen to me for the first time 2 nights ago. Car would not connect to Bluetooth so PAAK would not work. Used the numbers on the door to get in the car. But the car would not recognize my phone as a key and the backup code would not show on the screen. Tried a number of things and nothing worked. Was thinking I was stranded and all of a sudden the phone connected to Bluetooth and the car started. No idea why this happened and what fixed the issue.

 

[Mopey]

....the center screen came on and the radio worked, but I did NOT get the back-up start code pop up despite pressing the On button multiple times.

Is there anything I can do in this situation to force the back-up start code input screen to appear? Here is the video:

You pressed the Start button AND the brake three times, right?

 

[ARK]

You pressed the Start button AND the brake three times, right?

Yes, tried to both ways in fact, no joy either way.

 

[ARK]

Had this happen to me for the first time 2 nights ago. Car would not connect to Bluetooth so PAAK would not work. Used the numbers on the door to get in the car. But the car would not recognize my phone as a key and the backup code would not show on the screen. Tried a number of things and nothing worked. Was thinking I was stranded and all of a sudden the phone connected to Bluetooth and the car started. No idea why this happened and what fixed the issue.

This did occur to me once too in conjunction with a PaaK failure. I had my nephew with me in the car and luckily I was home, so just went to get the key fob from inside instead of being able to play around and troubleshoot it.

But this does concern me if the back-up start code is not foolproof. We know on rare occasions PaaK isn’t foolproof (I mean total failure not delay in working), and if the stars align for these two things to both not work simultaneously, I can see someone legitimately getting stuck, but I don’t know if a PaaK failure is ever permanent, I feel reasonably confident that you can eventually get it working, but perhaps not if you are in a complete cellular dead zone.

 

[jaash]

Had this happen to me for the first time 2 nights ago. Car would not connect to Bluetooth so PAAK would not work. Used the numbers on the door to get in the car. But the car would not recognize my phone as a key and the backup code would not show on the screen. Tried a number of things and nothing worked. Was thinking I was stranded and all of a sudden the phone connected to Bluetooth and the car started. No idea why this happened and what fixed the issue.

Exact same thing happened to me 2 nights ago. I was *this close* to sheepishly calling my wife to ask her to drive over and bring the fob to me....but then my phone suddenly connected to Bluetooth and I was able to start. I haven't been too concerned about the occasional PaaK failure since the backup code has always worked in the past, but this is concerning.

 

[Carsinmyblood]

Just for kicks, try the valet code to see if ANY input screens come to life.

 

[ChasingCoral]

Did you try with more patience -- press brake and start and wait a couple of minutes? I seem to recall it sometimes doesn't come up for right away.

 

[ARK]

Just for kicks, try the valet code to see if ANY input screens come to life.

I do not have a valet code set up to input, unfortunately.

 

[ARK]

Did you try with more patience -- press brake and start and wait a couple of minutes? I seem to recall it sometimes doesn't come up for right away.

I hadn’t yesterday. Basically what I show in the video is what I did before going to grab my iPad and doing it over again to capture it on video.

Interestingly though, this error is still present. I have not driven my Mach-E since I posted this video. I just went outside and got in with the key pad. Same thing as yesterday was happening, and I did give it more of a chance just now, waiting longer, also getting out of the car, relocking it with the door code, unlocking it again with the door code, and rinse and repeat a few times.

Interestingly, the center screen can come on if I press the power button in the middle of the volume knob. I went to the back-up code section in settings to see if I might be able to manually bring up the prompt to enter the code, but it wouldn’t work, the Mach-E wanted to try and get me to set up a new back-up code.

Since it was asking me to set up a new back-up start code, I wonder if this might be a manifestation of the bug people see when the Mach-E isn’t remembering prior settings, like with the radio - that the Mach-E isn’t realizing that a back-up start code already has been set up and that’s why the prompt isn’t coming up.

I’m open to trying other things since I apparently can keep this bug going when it occurs. Maybe @Ford Motor Company can point this thread too to the appropriate person/team at Ford.

Here is what the settings page for my back-up start code looked like while experiencing this bug:

 

[Kamuelaflyer]

I hadn’t yesterday. Basically what I show in the video is what I did before going to grab my iPad and doing it over again to capture it on video.

Interestingly though, this error is still present. I have not driven my Mach-E since I posted this video. I just went outside and got in with the key pad. Same thing as yesterday was happening, and I did give it more of a chance just now, waiting longer, also getting out of the car, relocking it with the door code, unlocking it again with the door code, and rinse and repeat a few times.

Interestingly, the center screen can come on if I press the power button in the middle of the volume knob. I went to the back-up code section in settings to see if I might be able to manually bring up the prompt to enter the code, but it wouldn’t work, the Mach-E wanted to try and get me to set up a new back-up code.

Since it was asking me to set up a new back-up start code, I wonder if this might be a manifestation of the bug people see when the Mach-E isn’t remembering prior settings, like with the radio - that the Mach-E isn’t realizing that a back-up start code already has been set up and that’s why the prompt isn’t coming up.

I’m open to trying other things since I apparently can keep this bug going when it occurs. Maybe @Ford Motor Company can point this thread too to the appropriate person/team at Ford.

Here is what the settings page for my back-up start code looked like while experiencing this bug:

Odd indeed.
See if changing profiles and then switching back, via the buttons on the door changes things. The startup code shouldn’t be connected to an individual profile though

But offhand, I’d say this a job for the dealer.

 

[Mopey]

My Paak and backup code have worked without problems, but these kind of issues do validate my decision to stick with the fob for day-to-day driving and use Paak and manual start code as my backup start methods, rather than as the primaries.

 

[ChasingCoral]

I hadn’t yesterday. Basically what I show in the video is what I did before going to grab my iPad and doing it over again to capture it on video.

Interestingly though, this error is still present. I have not driven my Mach-E since I posted this video. I just went outside and got in with the key pad. Same thing as yesterday was happening, and I did give it more of a chance just now, waiting longer, also getting out of the car, relocking it with the door code, unlocking it again with the door code, and rinse and repeat a few times.

Interestingly, the center screen can come on if I press the power button in the middle of the volume knob. I went to the back-up code section in settings to see if I might be able to manually bring up the prompt to enter the code, but it wouldn’t work, the Mach-E wanted to try and get me to set up a new back-up code.

Since it was asking me to set up a new back-up start code, I wonder if this might be a manifestation of the bug people see when the Mach-E isn’t remembering prior settings, like with the radio - that the Mach-E isn’t realizing that a back-up start code already has been set up and that’s why the prompt isn’t coming up.

I’m open to trying other things since I apparently can keep this bug going when it occurs. Maybe @Ford Motor Company can point this thread too to the appropriate person/team at Ford.

Here is what the settings page for my back-up start code looked like while experiencing this bug:

I wonder if this has something to do with the FordPass outage problem?

 

[ARK]

Odd indeed.
See if changing profiles and then switching back, via the buttons on the door changes things. The startup code shouldn’t be connected to an individual profile though

But offhand, I’d say this a job for the dealer.

I just tried this, it would not let me choose Guest profile, but I could sort of get it into guest mode by turning Personal Profiles off in settings. Unfortunately, it made no difference.

I was about to post the above, but I realized I misread your post and you suggested toggle it back to my profile from Guest using the door numbers. I tried it this way too just now. I also was able to switch profiles to Guest without having to turn personal profiles off this second time by accessing a different screen for profiles, but still no dice, would not get the back up start code input to appear.

 

[ARK]

I wonder if this has something to do with the FordPass outage problem?

Could be, though I would think back-up start code wouldn’t need to communicate with Ford’s servers to work. Still, the couple other people who posted here saying they’ve had a similiar experience all said this was a new occurrence so something recent may have introduced a bug, and the FordPass outage did cause other problems.

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