Front Camera Fault Errors - Issue fixed! DIY How-to

[bergmi]

I finally replaced my cable two weeks ago and so far no faults! Thanks @GT-Papa for the great writeup! Besides the old cable being bent the camera itself was very loose on the right side clip and I ended up putting some friction tape around the right side stub for a tight fit.

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[GT-Papa]

I've been out of the country for 3 weeks and just got back. So far I've put about 1000 miles on the car since replacing that cable and no faults to report. I'm gonna officially call it fixed.

 

[GT-Papa]

For much of my working career I was a Quality Engineer; some of that time as a Supplier Quality Engineer (SQE) and some of it as a Process Engineer. As such, for a problem like this, where the selection of a coaxial cable that meets the design requirements from an impedance and flexibility point of view, but sometimes does not stand up to the abuse it can suffer during the swap (or multiple swaps) of a windscreen, I have a questions.
1. What could Ford have done differently here in the original design? A thicker coax, like RG-6 is certainly more robust but is less flexible and adds weight especially if run all the way to the back of the car.
2. Obviously they did not design this short piece of cable (from camera to A-pillar) to be easily swapped out. How could they have made this an easier swap? And what would an "improved" part look like?
3. The Mach-E is not the only Ford with a front-facing camera in it. I'm not on any other Ford forums and have no insight into if this problem is unique to MME or is it present in other vehicles? Is the same coax used anywhere else?

For those of us who have done the work of swapping out this cable, or those who have paid Ford to do it, we all must realize that we are just one windshield swap way from having to do it again if the glass jockey is not careful with this fragile piece of wire.

The Quality Engineer in me is always looking for ways to make things bulletproof. Anybody have any ideas?

 

[justalfe]

Is there a how to somewhere on replacing the cable?

Im not seeing it

 

[GT-Papa]

@justalfe
On page 4 of this thread is when I post about replacing the coax cable, with a few pics.

 

[dtbaker61]

I have not replaced the cable, but I did insert a piece of closed cell foam behind the cable to pre-load the mini-coax connector and prevent jiggling. So far working well to prevent the random blinks on the highway.

 

[someone22]

My car has been getting errors more frequently over the summer, especially when left in the sun. It did recover after it cooled down a bit. Since one month the error is persistent and all frontal assistance is gone (adaptive cruise control, emergency braking, lane keep assist, ...).

I took the cover off, the camera is held positively into position. I don't see any obvious wire kinks or other faults. I've tried keeping the coax pressed into various positions while starting the car, clearing out the errors (via OBD) but I get the errors immediately after "starting the engine". Is there anything else I can try before going for what is likely a costly repair?

The OBD (and dashboard) errors come back immediately after clearing.

 

[GT-Papa]

@someone22 - As you say, next steps, if you take it to a dealership, can be expensive. However if you are the least bit handy with tools and comfortable working on automotive interiors, taking one last step yourself could be as inexpensive as US$ 17-20. Replacing the short cable between the camera and the A-pillar connector is what finally fixed it for me. The cable is part number LJ8Z-14D202-U. At my local dealership it cost me $15. Please look at post #56 of this thread for pictures of my replacement. The most tricky part of the whole thing is getting the A-pillar cover off and back on, and opening up the A-pillar connector to get the new cable end installed. You don't have to drop the headliner because there is a small space between the windshield and the headliner which is just enough room to push the new cable into. And you don't have to remove the old cable.. Simply cut off the ends of the old cable and leave it in place, and lay the new cable in beside it.

Has your windshield ever been replaced? If so, there is a good chance that this fragile cable was damaged at the camera end.

 

[someone22]

Thank you! I don't think my windshield was ever replaced but the car was bought used. Weird that your cable seems to go to the left but mine seems to go to the right A-pillar. I have the premium model with the glass sunroof, could that be the difference? Also don't have those buttons there (garage remote?).

Does the camera get power from the coax? I mean, it is possible but I've rarely seen it done in the automotive world.

 

[GT-Papa]

@someone22 - The cable from the camera runs immediately into a wiring harness with other wires and goes along the very front of the headliner over to the driver-side A-pillar. My car is the same as yours: glass sunroof.
And to answer your coax question, yes the power and video signal run through the same single coax cable. There is no separate power connection. So if the slightest thing is wrong with that cable, power and video signal are both affected.
When I first purchased my GT (also used), it had a big chip in the windshield and the dealer agreed to replace it. Prior to replace the windshield, the vision system was working perfectly. When the windshield was replaced, the glass tech broke the first new one during installation and so had to order a new one. After they finally got the second one in without breaking it is when my camera faults started happening. The cable got damaged during that process, even though it looked normal. I tried all of the other things to get it to work, but no joy. I just decided to switch out the cable and that's what finally did the trick. Over 2000 miles now with no camera faults. Took about 2 hours.
Good luck!

 

[jwiz]

Thank you so much! Following your excellent instructions solved this problem and gave me back my sanity during my daily commute down a long, straight yet bumpy highway.

 

[someone22]

Maybe I should start a new topic for this, but, I couldn't find any supplier for the part (lj8z-14d202-u) in Europe. How was the procedure for anyone here to replace it, go directly to dealer? Was abroad for a while and couldn't contact the local service/dealer to see the details but I expect they will order it from somewhere far away as well. For context, I haven't seen many Mach-Es around my area, perhaps 5 of them in a moderately-sized city, so I expect everything will be quite new to them and want to prepare the service visit.

 

[GT-Papa]

@someone22 - I ordered one from onlinefordpartscatalog.com. US$ 11.56.

LJ8Z-14D202-U

My local Ford dealership also had these in stock.
Also try:
oemfordpartsdirect.com
Fordpartsoem.com

Not sure where you live in the EU but I don't understand why any local dealerships near you would not be able to source this part for you. Why would this part be any different from any other part they need to order for the Mach-e??

Perhaps you could try to order it yourself? Shipping costs might be very high if it is coming from the US. Good luck.

 

[justalfe]

anyone got a video or removing the
LJ8Z-14D202-U
cable from the block? Im prone to breaking things lol

 

[someone22]

@someone22 - I ordered one from onlinefordpartscatalog.com. US$ 11.56.
...
Not sure where you live in the EU but I don't understand why any local dealerships near you would not be able to source this part for you. Why would this part be any different from any other part they need to order for the Mach-e??

I talked to my local dealership and they charged me about 32$ for the cable and about 60$ for the work. Since I was also going for the scheduled service there, I went with the offer. However, two weeks after ordering it, the part was still not with them, it took about 3 weeks.

Does anyone know what kind of a connector that is? I will ask them for the broken part and try to match it against my coaxial connector pile that I own. Any idea of the cable impedance as well (I expect standard 50 ohms)?

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