Front Camera Fault & Pre-Collision Assist Not Available Errors

[bgarrett4917]

I brought my car into the dealer for this issue and gave the service rep the TSB number from this forum and they were able to fix the issue. They went through all the steps and ended up replacing a couple of the cables. 100% covered by warranty.

It was actually a smooth experience, no complaints. Hats off to Sawgrass Ford (Sunrise, FL) and my awesome service rep Patrick.

Thanks to this forum for all the info and advice!

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[AlexRose]

@bgarrett4917 Thank you so much for info!

 

[jh2021]

I have been getting these errors a lot recently. Driving on the highway and they pop up then go away within 3 minutes. Should I have this checked out? I figured the dealer would want the car to be displaying the error message when I take it in, but it fixes itself after 3 to 5 mins of driving.

****UPDATE****
The fix is to get the coaxial cable replaced by the dealer. Theres is a TSB out for it now.
Ford TSB 23-2137
23-2137 Ford Technical Service Bulletin (tsbsearch.com)
****UPDATE****

Had anyone ever gotten this fixed without the message on the screen or the codes stored. Took this to the dealer for 30k maintenance and asked them to look at this. They didn't find anything, so its obviously not broken. Still charged diagnostic fee.

 

[dtbaker61]

Had anyone ever gotten this fixed without the message on the screen or the codes stored. Took this to the dealer for 30k maintenance and asked them to look at this. They didn't find anything, so its obviously not broken. Still charged diagnostic fee.

I would highly suggest that you:

- pop off the cover of the front camera (above the rear view mirror)
- leave it off
- you will see a mini-coaxial cable that may or may not have a tight kink in it. Just give it a little back-and-forth twist while pushing in gently to seat it.
- I have left the cover off so I can poke it when and if an error pops up.

... I have found this quite effective, and the errors clear and seem to stay good for a month at a time.

 

[jh2021]

I would highly suggest that you:

- pop off the cover of the front camera (above the rear view mirror)
- leave it off
- you will see a mini-coaxial cable that may or may not have a tight kink in it. Just give it a little back-and-forth twist while pushing in gently to seat it.
- I have left the cover off so I can poke it when and if an error pops up.

... I have found this quite effective, and the errors clear and seem to stay good for a month at a time.

Issue is that this fixes itself in about 2-3 minutes, so no need to play with the cable and also makes it impossible to take it to the dealership when the message appears. Really ticked off that they can see (via saved messages in the ford app) that this has happened numerous (25+) times - mainly when it's blazing hot, but won't even try to fix since they can't reproduce the problem. Even showed the service advisor that this forum has 68 pages related to this issue and the TSB #.

 

[dtbaker61]

Issue is that this fixes itself in about 2-3 minutes, so no need to play with the cable and also makes it impossible to take it to the dealership when the message appears. Really ticked off that they can see (via saved messages in the ford app) that this has happened numerous (25+) times - mainly when it's blazing hot, but won't even try to fix since they can't reproduce the problem. Even showed the service advisor that this forum has 68 pages related to this issue and the TSB #.

I don't think there is a permanent fix with this type of mini-coaxial cable connector. They are prone to failure with vibration and disconnect/reconnect from windshield replacements.

probably *should* be changed to a permanent crimped "tail" , but this is what we've got to work with...

 

[rhougey]

Issue is that this fixes itself in about 2-3 minutes, so no need to play with the cable and also makes it impossible to take it to the dealership when the message appears. Really ticked off that they can see (via saved messages in the ford app) that this has happened numerous (25+) times - mainly when it's blazing hot, but won't even try to fix since they can't reproduce the problem. Even showed the service advisor that this forum has 68 pages related to this issue and the TSB #.

Back when I was having this problem (my car was one of the earlier ones), I snapped pictures of the display warnings at every event before they had a chance to disappear. In order to do this I had to drive with my phone at the ready, and make sure my wife was ready to grab the wheel for me while I was snapping pics. By doing this, my problem was well documented when delivering the car to the service department. They had no problem using my pictures and my description of the circumstances to work on the fix. The downside for me was that Ford engineers had to be called in to finally figure out the cause, and the dealership had possession of my car for a total of 4-1/2 months over 3 visits in order to find the cause and get it permanently fixed. I have not had a recurrence in a couple of years now. For you, the fix is known and well documented. You might want to try another dealership if this one won’t work on it if they can’t duplicate it.

 

[jh2021]

Back when I was having this problem (my car was one of the earlier ones), I snapped pictures of the display warnings at every event before they had a chance to disappear. In order to do this I had to drive with my phone at the ready, and make sure my wife was ready to grab the wheel for me while I was snapping pics. By doing this, my problem was well documented when delivering the car to the service department. They had no problem using my pictures and my description of the circumstances to work on the fix. The downside for me was that Ford engineers had to be called in to finally figure out the cause, and the dealership had possession of my car for a total of 4-1/2 months over 3 visits in order to find the cause and get it permanently fixed. I have not had a recurrence in a couple of years now. For you, the fix is known and well documented. You might want to try another dealership if this one won’t work on it if they can’t duplicate it.

Thanks for this, it's good to know there is a fix. My car is one of the early ones and is out of warranty, but I would like to get it fixed before my extended warranty runs out. Unfortunately, it only seems to do this in really hot weather, so likely won't be an issue again till summer. That is why I kept all the messages in the Ford app. Going back today to see if their troubleshooting included looking for the error codes outlined in the TSB. The paperwork indicates they fixed SSM 51776 which appears to be the camera that looks at the driver, which was working fine when I took it in. Frustrating!!!

 

[dtbaker61]

Thanks for this, it's good to know there is a fix. My car is one of the early ones and is out of warranty, but I would like to get it fixed before my extended warranty runs out. Unfortunately, it only seems to do this in really hot weather, so likely won't be an issue again till summer. That is why I kept all the messages in the Ford app. Going back today to see if their troubleshooting included looking for the error codes outlined in the TSB. The paperwork indicates they fixed SSM 51776 which appears to be the camera that looks at the driver, which was working fine when I took it in. Frustrating!!!

my front camera would "blink" occasionally when I hit a sharp bump at highway speed like a crack between asphalt and a bridge, or seams on a concrete highway.....

the "push and wiggle" of the mini-coaxial connecter seems to fix it for a couple months at a time. No way I am going to pay thousands out of pocket to replace the harness now that I am past 36 mo warranty.

 

[rhougey]

Thanks for this, it's good to know there is a fix. My car is one of the early ones and is out of warranty, but I would like to get it fixed before my extended warranty runs out. Unfortunately, it only seems to do this in really hot weather, so likely won't be an issue again till summer. That is why I kept all the messages in the Ford app. Going back today to see if their troubleshooting included looking for the error codes outlined in the TSB. The paperwork indicates they fixed SSM 51776 which appears to be the camera that looks at the driver, which was working fine when I took it in. Frustrating!!!

The most common trigger for mine and many others was the sharp “bump” in the road. It would trigger sometimes for no apparent reason, maybe temp related. I seem to recall that others could reportedly make it trigger by whacking the camera housing. If that were to work for you, you could demonstrate it to a ride-along technician. Mine was finally fixed for good at around 35,500 miles, and Ford comp’ed me with a 75,000 extended warranty at that time just in case it came back. Now that warranty will be expired in another 8 months or so, but the car has been perfect ever since, and I have not needed the warranty. They also reimbursed me for what I spent on gas for the time I didn’t have my car. I believe it amounted to a little over $2000 in gas. I would definitely try to get it to trigger and get it repaired while under your warranty if possible. Again, you may have better result with another dealership.

 

[rhougey]

my front camera would "blink" occasionally when I hit a sharp bump at highway speed like a crack between asphalt and a bridge, or seams on a concrete highway.....

the "push and wiggle" of the mini-coaxial connecter seems to fix it for a couple months at a time. No way I am going to pay thousands out of pocket to replace the harness now that I am past 36 mo warranty.

I was thinking that others have replaced that coax cable themselves fairly easily, and that the part is not that expensive. Its not the harness, just the coax from the camera to the harness. Or just re-routing the bend in the existing cable in the camera housing has been reported to resolve it.

 

[TDAnthony]

I was thinking that others have replaced that coax cable themselves fairly easily, and that the part is not that expensive. Its not the harness, just the coax from the camera to the harness. Or just re-routing the bend in the existing cable in the camera housing has been reported to resolve it.

Is there a forum thread detailing this process? Or at least providing the part number(s) of the coax, etc.?

 

[rhougey]

Is there a forum thread detailing this process? Or at least providing the part number(s) of the coax, etc.?

I think this might be that thread. It’s got over 1000 posts, and began in June 2022. The whole saga is in here.

 

[AndyR]

OK, somebody referred to my fix but I can’t find it.

I now have almost 4 years and 58,000 miles on my job one with the foam repair.

Still working flawlessly, that foam vibration insulation is working like a charm!!

and I was sent blue Cruise 1.3 a couple weeks ago!!

 

[jay1122]

Mine is out permanently. Just went through the effort and replaced the camera to A-pillar coaxial cable. Took some time figuring out how to disconnect the A pillar cable. The error message still pops up after replacement. What a bummer. The car is out of warranty. I wish Ford would issue a Recall.

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