'Powertrain Malfunction/Reduced Power' followed by 'Service Vehicle Soon' alert displayed

sattian

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I have the same issue as well. The messages popped up two weeks ago when I was in Naples, FL on a vacation. The firs message says "Powertrain Malfunction / Reduced Power" and another that says "High Voltage Battery Warning". It popped up while I was driving. Once I parked the car, it turned to a brick. It had to be towed to a dealer (Coconut Point Ford) and the dealer said it only required a software update (It took 2 days). I was grateful for it and after our vacation, we were driving back to Atlanta when the same message popped up again, in the middle of the interstate. I was able to drive it back to the dealer where I bought the car (Hennessy Ford, Atlanta). The dealer kept the car for 4 days and said they did another software update and that the other dealer missed an update for a particular module. Picked up the vehicle and started driving and after 40 miles, same message again! Took it to another dealer (Mike Fitzpatrick Ford in Newnan, GA). The technician looked at the service history and said I would have to leave it with him or he could reset the car so that it would allow me drive to a Ford dealer close to my home (Auburn, AL). I agreed to reset and drove home when the messages came up again, but fortunately 5 mins from the Ford dealer here. I parked the car (brick) and gave a synopsis of the issues to this dealer. Unfortunately this dealer is not electric car certified yet and said they would have to call someone from Ford to come and look at the issues. I initially thought it was happening after I used a DC Fast Charger to charge it, each time I got these messages. Now, I am not so sure. I am not even sure if Ford knows what is going on with the car. I left it with the dealer last Thursday ... so far no word on when it will be repaired or what is wrong with it. Frustrated!
A quick update: They seem to have been able to re-create the issue... it happens when DC charging is used... No idea when I will get the vehicle back... it has been with them since 8-July (Today is 26-July)... The frustration continues!
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Adonnelly72

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So driving home Thursday night with it being a cool -5 degrees Fahrenheit and the snow beginning to fall, I was sitting at a red light on the top of a hill when the light turned green and I tried to proceed. I attempted to accelerate and the car hesitated and felt like it lost all power and then I received the following alert on the dash 'Powertrain Malfunction/Reduced Power' followed by the 'Service Vehicle Soon' alert. The vehicle wouldn't go more than 1 mph and was jerking horribly. I was finally able to get it out of the intersection onto the side of the road, where I completely turned everything off, waited five minutes and then turned the car back on. Unfortunately the alert was still there. The car seemed to drive mostly fine after that but honestly 'freaked me out' with only 120 miles on the car. I was able to make it home (about 15 miles away) with the alert still on the dash. On Friday morning, I went back out to check on the status of the car and the alert had cleared. I called the dealership and they said to bring it in if it happens again or if I get any other errors. Just wanted to pass this along to see if anyone else has had any "mechanical issues" like this.

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Same but mine started after the charge port had to be replaced because it was only charging at 5kwh

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Achabachu

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First and foremost , love the car.

unfortunately, have had it for 12 hours and already got this error message!!! Car even stopped middle of the road. Had to park and turn it off on. Wtf FORD!! So from reading this forum seems like possibly of a software issue? I'm really hoping I don't need to take this in?
 

jojomontag

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I'm late to this thread, but I just started having the powertrain malfunction/high voltage battery warning. It started about 3 weeks ago, at first coming on and then turning off with quite a few miles/days in between. It now stays on most of the time (going off for very brief stints).

I did check the DTCs with an OBDII scan and found that an isolation fault in the BECM is what has triggered the alert, but there are other alerts indicating that communication between different modules was lost. Of course, you can't tell the service advisor anything (and I love how the service department will not tell you what the DTC is--and the service advisor asked me who told me that it was a powertrain malfunction; he didn't know the FordPass app displays the faults!).

Now I am waiting on the dealer to play email tag with Ford to diagnose and rectify the issue. I don't believe the battery is the problem (averaging 250-270 miles on a standard range, RWD premium model, having absolutely no driveability issues, and being able to charge to whatever level is needed).

Of course, dealers in the Houston area have no loaners available. I'm on a waiting list to get a loaner on 9/01/21 just in case this takes as long as others. And I am using the extended warranty rental program, which of course means driving a crappy little Hyundai unless I want to fork out more money, and Ford customer service has told me that the rental reimbursement cannot be extended past 10 days.

Hopefully this works out fine. Is anyone else tired of hearing service advisors claim that the Mach E is new technology? While I understand a fully electric car may be new to them, hybrids are not, and they utilize high voltage systems. If anything, I would think a hybrid would be more complex, given that the high voltage system has to coordinate with an ICE.

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IBGroggy

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I searched the forum first before I added this little tidbit. Two words: Micro Corrosion. Now the details. The day before yesterday, I had the message about a Powertrain Malfunction / Reduced Power and to seek service soon. I read all the possible causes, but nothing added up for me. In my case, I didn't have any other issues except for just the message. It's like the check engine light that comes on and nobody knows why and they fix it with some black tape (cover it) :).

MME still shifted into gear just fine, was able to move backwards and forwards and drive fine with no noticable power loss at all. Shutoff, started again, plugged in, unplugged. Nothing cleared it. Into the dealer it goes this morning. They called me this afternoon and said it was ready. They stated it was due to micro corrosion on the shift module or something like that. I've had it since February so it was a shock to both of us. After being on the hotline with Ford, and working out some details, they cleaned things up and applied some electrical grease (my term, not theirs). They believe that should solve it, but they are always there if I need them. Love the technician they have there as we both are having fun when I come up with things. Thankfully it has only been a couple issues.
 


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I searched the forum first before I added this little tidbit. Two words: Micro Corrosion. Now the details. The day before yesterday, I had the message about a Powertrain Malfunction / Reduced Power and to seek service soon. I read all the possible causes, but nothing added up for me. In my case, I didn't have any other issues except for just the message. It's like the check engine light that comes on and nobody knows why and they fix it with some black tape (cover it) :).

MME still shifted into gear just fine, was able to move backwards and forwards and drive fine with no noticable power loss at all. Shutoff, started again, plugged in, unplugged. Nothing cleared it. Into the dealer it goes this morning. They called me this afternoon and said it was ready. They stated it was due to micro corrosion on the shift module or something like that. I've had it since February so it was a shock to both of us. After being on the hotline with Ford, and working out some details, they cleaned things up and applied some electrical grease (my term, not theirs). They believe that should solve it, but they are always there if I need them. Love the technician they have there as we both are having fun when I come up with things. Thankfully it has only been a couple issues.
Hey @IBGroggy, is your car still working without these issues? Also, did you have the high voltage error as well?
 
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BMT1071

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I searched the forum first before I added this little tidbit. Two words: Micro Corrosion. Now the details. The day before yesterday, I had the message about a Powertrain Malfunction / Reduced Power and to seek service soon. I read all the possible causes, but nothing added up for me. In my case, I didn't have any other issues except for just the message. It's like the check engine light that comes on and nobody knows why and they fix it with some black tape (cover it) :).

MME still shifted into gear just fine, was able to move backwards and forwards and drive fine with no noticable power loss at all. Shutoff, started again, plugged in, unplugged. Nothing cleared it. Into the dealer it goes this morning. They called me this afternoon and said it was ready. They stated it was due to micro corrosion on the shift module or something like that. I've had it since February so it was a shock to both of us. After being on the hotline with Ford, and working out some details, they cleaned things up and applied some electrical grease (my term, not theirs). They believe that should solve it, but they are always there if I need them. Love the technician they have there as we both are having fun when I come up with things. Thankfully it has only been a couple issues.
Fretting corrosion is a real thing. Usually just disconnecting and reconnecting will resolve the issue. Applying dielectric grease helps prevent the corrosion from happening again.
 

IBGroggy

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Hey @IBGroggy, is your car still working without these issues? Also, did you have the high voltage error as well?
Yeah, runs fine. Not issue except for the message. No high voltage errors either. Charges fine. Dealer fixed it pretty quick and all is right in the world. Gave it a nice bath this weekend to praise it. I'd give it an apple, but well...
 

IBGroggy

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Fretting corrosion is a real thing. Usually just disconnecting and reconnecting will resolve the issue. Applying dielectric grease helps prevent the corrosion from happening again.
That's what they found to be the case and applied grease. Got it back that afternoon. Again, love my tech at my dealership. I think he lives for these challenges. Thanks for the tip. Could be useful for others.
 
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Yeah, runs fine. Not issue except for the message. No high voltage errors either. Charges fine. Dealer fixed it pretty quick and all is right in the world. Gave it a nice bath this weekend to praise it. I'd give it an apple, but well...
Thanks for the update. Glad it's working well. Just to make sure I'm understanding correctly, did you have the high voltage warning as well initially or just the power train?
 

Dolphingirl

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Hi All,
I just received this alert yesterday. I charged on Friday evening, drove Saturday with no issues and then got the alert Sun as soon as I started up.

Service can’t get me in until next Wed. Is ok to drive Until then? What do you all recommend?
 

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Hi All,
I just received this alert yesterday. I charged on Friday evening, drove Saturday with no issues and then got the alert Sun as soon as I started up.

Service can’t get me in until next Wed. Is ok to drive Until then? What do you all recommend?
You will be fine, as long as it says service soon or alert comes and goes. If it says stop safely now, then no. However no one can really say for sure as it's a very generic warning. Given past personal experiences you will be fine.
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