Reproducable PAAK failure when using AirPods

[ericNdfw]

I've been using PAAK for the last few weeks after giving my wife the key FOB to keep in her bag (she has started driving the MME more now that gas prices are so high). It was seeming like most of the flakiness I saw last year may have been ironed out by either Ford or Apple. The only regular annoyance has been "No Key Found" errors even though the phone is sitting on the charger pad, with wireless CarPlay active ?.

I have, however, found a new, reproducible PAAK failure use case: if I have my AirPod Pros connected, the doors won't unlock and power will not come on. As soon as I disconnect them, it works fine. Obviously, this is some kind of BlueTooth conflict but it's highly annoying when on a call for work to either flip to speakerphone or have to type the code and password to open and start the car.

Preaching to the choir here, I know, but IMO, Ford really needs to comp' us early buyers a 2nd key FOB.

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[Logal727]

I've been using PAAK for the last few weeks after giving my wife the key FOB to keep in her bag (she has started driving the MME more now that gas prices are so high). It was seeming like most of the flakiness I saw last year may have been ironed out by either Ford or Apple. The only regular annoyance has been "No Key Found" errors even though the phone is sitting on the charger pad, with wireless CarPlay active ?.

I have, however, found a new, reproducible PAAK failure use case: if I have my AirPod Pros connected, the doors won't unlock and power will not come on. As soon as I disconnect them, it works fine. Obviously, this is some kind of BlueTooth conflict but it's highly annoying when on a call for work to either flip to speakerphone or have to type the code and password to open and start the car.

Preaching to the choir here, I know, but IMO, Ford really needs to comp' us early buyers a 2nd key FOB.

Yeah this is an area where you’ll get NKD, I wouldn’t say it’s Ford’s fault though.

 

[ericNdfw]

Yeah this is an area where you’ll get NKD, I wouldn’t say it’s Ford’s fault though.

(assuming NKD = No Key Detected)
I can see how this could be an Apple issue (or whomever's BT chip they use), but I'd return to the fact that Ford made the decision to ship these with a single FOB because PAAK is supposed to take the place of needing a second one but it clearly causes problems for many people.

 

[Neil4Real]

This is definitely not a "failure" as PaaK uses Bluetooth to work... If your phone's Bluetooth connection is not available, by either being off or connected to something else, it wouldn't work. The only other PaaK tech out would be NFC that Apple key uses, but that requires you to basically use your phone like an RFID, so you have to take it out of your pocket/bag each time you want to use it and put it up against the door to unlock it and put it on a spot in the car to start the car. It is always worth a shot trying going to your dealer and explaining the issue and seeing if they'll comp a second fob. A few people have had success with that.

 

[ericNdfw]

This is definitely not a "failure" as PaaK uses Bluetooth to work... If your phone's Bluetooth connection is not available, by either being off or connected to something else, it wouldn't work. The only other PaaK tech out would be NFC that Apple key uses, but that requires you to basically use your phone like an RFID, so you have to take it out of your pocket/bag each time you want to use it and put it up against the door to unlock it and put it on a spot in the car to start the car. It is always worth a shot trying going to your dealer and explaining the issue and seeing if they'll comp a second fob. A few people have had success with that.

Ford has reached out to me and I'm conversing with them about this, and another door lock related issue right now.

The phone should be able to connect to multiple Bluetooth devices, as it does with headphones, keyboards, laptops, etc all day long.

 

[Logal727]

(assuming NKD = No Key Detected)
I can see how this could be an Apple issue (or whomever's BT chip they use), but I'd return to the fact that Ford made the decision to ship these with a single FOB because PAAK is supposed to take the place of needing a second one but it clearly causes problems for many people.

It’s not permanent though, it recovers after a few seconds.

 

[Neil4Real]

Ford has reached out to me and I'm conversing with them about this, and another door lock related issue right now.

The phone should be able to connect to multiple Bluetooth devices, as it does with headphones, keyboards, laptops, etc all day long.

I would hazard a guess that it might be because your Airpods are an audio output as would the car, so maybe that's what is causing the problem?

 

[ericNdfw]

It’s not permanent though, it recovers after a few seconds.

Until I disconnected the AirPods, the car would not see the phone.

To be fair, I would have been taking them out as soon as started the car anyway but trying to participate in a work call while getting my kid in the car for school made this a hassle that I do not deal with when I have the key fob with me.

 

[Logal727]

Until I disconnected the AirPods, the car would not see the phone.

To be fair, I would have been taking them out as soon as started the car anyway but trying to participate in a work call while getting my kid in the car for school made this a hassle that I do not deal with when I have the key fob with me.

Just fyi this isn’t a unique thing to Ford, Tesla has same issue with PAAK, but yeah, they do have more backup RFID cards that you can use, which is where door codes and passcodes come in on the Mach e. It would have been nice to get another fob but it was sold with just one so I don’t really expect a free one.

 

[ericNdfw]

I would hazard a guess that it might be because your Airpods are an audio output as would the car, so maybe that's what is causing the problem?

??‍
This behavior has not always been the case; I regularly wear them while washing the car and often have to move it. Usually, the door opens fine and when the car starts, the audio shifts from the AirPods to it. I'm wondering if an Apple or Ford update has introduced a bug.

 

[ericNdfw]

Following up on this. Ford Warranty comped me a 2nd key FOB.

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