Loved my Mach E - Might be done with it :(

[pr0t0c0l_dr01d]

that's a solid deal.
yeah, it sounds like, unfortunately, you got your car during a pricing peak...

EVs are heavily discounted right now, before the federal rebates potentially go away...

I just called sales at the dealer and asked if they would be willing to take my disabled vehicle in trade for a new GT. We'll see what they say.

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[rcechinel]

yeah, it sounds like, unfortunately, you got your car during a pricing peak...

Can't complain. I started the deal with 7.5k of tax credit and 8k for buying out my previous lease and immediately selling it to carvana during the covid craziness. So I only started paying the $943 after 17 months. I have had the car for 28 months. Meaning, I only paid $11K to drive it so far.
There is always a deal to be made. That's the "positive" of dealers, if you can stomach it.

 

[jksu]

nice! that would probably be an ideal outcome for you after all this...

I just called sales at the dealer and asked if they would be willing to take my disabled vehicle in trade for a new GT. We'll see what they say.

 

[HuntingPudel]

I just called sales at the dealer and asked if they would be willing to take my disabled vehicle in trade for a new GT. We'll see what they say.

Dealers have done this with other cars in the shop, but those were under warranty. I hope your dealer can approve a trade-in for you on a new GT. Were it me, I would ditch the bronze, glass roof, and BC (but that’s just me). ??

 

[pr0t0c0l_dr01d]

Okay so update - shop got back to me with what I already knew - the hvbjb is fried and they need to replace it. They are ordering the part and I’m guessing I won’t get my car back for 3 weeks to maybe a month.

Since it’s a warranty service the sales dept WILL take a trade. Sales guy gave me an offer on a 2024 GT PE they have on the lot which is “new”, except it has close to 2000 miles on it. Guessing it’s been a demonstrator that nobody has bought because it costs too much. I’m inclined to turn it down unless they sweeten the deal a lot.

 

[pr0t0c0l_dr01d]

I just wanted to post here a few things that have been on my mind about the HVBJB. I've watched some videos online about it and I can't seem to understand which contactor would have welded and why. There are contactors for DCFC and contactors which power the components of the vehicle.

The car failed and the most recent major thing I had done with it was a trip up to Vermont. I went to Killington in subzero temperatures. There were a lot of steep hills, a lot of regen braking, high demands on the cabin heater and heated seats, and more DC fast charging than I had ever done (though nothing got above 80kw at any time).

Things started to go south when my wife got a SVS message on the dash when she borrowed my car - she restarted the car and it went away - for a few days.

The day before the failure I commuted to work on a frigid day and the cabin heater just was not working. Nothing would get the cabin to warm up no matter what I tried.

The next morning I set a departure time and the cabin warmed up and the heater worked on the way into the office. It was that day that the car died and could not be started on my evening commute.

So I would say that I definitely stressed the vehicle more than it had ever been stressed. But nothing it should not be able to handle. And several days went by before it failed.

One thing that irks my wife - at no time did we get any messages in the Fordpass App warning us that something was going south with the car.

I don't know which part of the HVBJB would have failed after all that activity or why it would mean the car won't start and become undriveable. I also don't understand why I didn't get the 'stop safely now' message while I was driving - my car was behaving normally until I tried to restart it for my commute home. How does a stuck contactor happen while the car is off and not even charging?

Whatever happened, my conclusion is - if you have a 2021/2022 Mach E, no matter what the trim level, the HVBJB is probably a time bomb that will eventually fail. Ford's software recall fix was not sufficient to save me, and having a lower trim level than the GT doesn't seem like it will insulate you from the problem.

 

[rcechinel]

I have a 2022 that was built with the first revised part. The whole crisis took place in April and May 2022. It actually delayed my built for 3 weeks at the time (the factory shut down and everything, for the ones who remember it). So I was lucky and my car was one of the first ones with the new part and I always thought I was safe. But then I learned that it took 2 or 3 revised parts for Ford to get it right (words can't express my anger about this detail). I don't do much DCFC, but I drive my premium awd hard. Probably it's a time bomb for me too. ??

 

[HuntingPudel]

I have a 2022 that was built with the first revised part. The whole crisis took place in April and May 2022. It actually delayed my built for 3 weeks at the time (the factory shut down and everything, for the ones who remember it). So I was lucky and my car was one of the first ones with the new part and I always thought I was safe. But then I learned that it took 2 or 3 revised parts for Ford to get it right (words can't express my anger about this detail). I don't do much DCFC, but I drive my premium awd hard. Probably it's a time bomb for me too. ??

I’m not up on the other trims, but the third release version of the part (second revision) for the GT seems to be the one with the lowest failure rate. This was released in mid-November of 2023. We haven’t seen a lot of reports of cars manufactured after this as having blown theirs up almost 14 months later. There seems to be a significant enough number of 2022s and 2023s that did either weld or open their HVBJBs within the first year after introduction of the second generation part. The thought is that the standard and extended range battery junction boxes also follow that pattern, as the public reports of failures seem to have gone down as well. ??

 

[ChehRob]

"I went to Killington in subzero temperatures. There were a lot of steep hills, a lot of regen braking, high demands on the cabin heater and heated seats, and more DC fast charging than I had ever done"

Not at all an expert, but the car should be able to do all of that easily. Cabin heat and range may be minimal and uncomfortable, but that should be the biggest problem.

 

[pr0t0c0l_dr01d]

Update:

The GT I’m looking at did not have 2000 miles on it. That was a paperwork error. It has 66 miles on it.

Fully loaded 2024 GTPE, rapid red, glass roof, magneride, the works. They took my car in trade, gave me a fair offer on it and gave me a stellar choice of 0% financing and lease options. I decided to go with the lease and just signed the deal!

 

[melissphillips]

Bingo, the customer services is the main issue for sure. The way Ford is handling all of this leaves a lot to be desired. Here's the situation with Ford and my dealer right now.

>Dealer only has so many loaner cars and could only get me one after two days - this could have been longer. I have to pick it up this morning.

>Dealer says Ford won't authorize a rental car for me until the Dealer can diagnose the car.

>Dealer also says diagnosis of the car might take a while, and might even be MONTHS.

Called Ford and opened a case - Ford offers very little help to get me out of this situation. They will not do a buyback unless they are compelled by the State's lemon law - and we are way beyond all the limitations there. Meanwhile I am still paying a car payment on a car I might not have for months.

I'd upgrade but Ford is offering no incentives to me to do so. Why not offer a nice 0% loan and some dealer cash to people whose cars are bricked - I'd take a chance on a 2025 Mach E for sure.

I definitely feel like the dealer network is sabotaging Ford's Model E program by not having enough skilled techs, not installing chargers, etc. But Ford could also help more and they really are not doing much except liasing with the dealer and probably providing diagnostic help in the background.

Hey - in a similar boat, mine died on Dec 6, and was told much the same about getting it fixed timeline wise.

But then parts started arriving Dec 30 and the dealer finally got to it this week and it's in the bay now. Hopefully at home by next week.

(that being said they did provide a loaner from Day 1, didn't even have to ask)

 

[jksu]

congrats!! glad it worked out!

although i would've preferred not to get rear-ended, i've really loved going from the 21 premium rwd to the 23 gtpe. better in every way (except maybe miss the acoustic glass on the front windows)

Update:

The GT I’m looking at did not have 2000 miles on it. That was a paperwork error. It has 66 miles on it.

Fully loaded 2024 GTPE, rapid red, glass roof, magneride, the works. They took my car in trade, gave me a fair offer on it and gave me a stellar choice of 0% financing and lease options. I decided to go with the lease and just signed the deal!

 

[pr0t0c0l_dr01d]

Yeah I mean my plan was to pay off this car and keep it until it fell apart. That won't happen now, and I'm signed up for financial servitude again for several years. This is definitely Ford's last chance for me - if this new car strands me again, I'm out.

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