cr08

Correct. All C-Max and Fusion models (the latter ones even up to the 2020 model years!) were equipped with either 2G or 3G modems from the factory. None came with 4G stock. Unless you've gotten the upgrade done already or (highly unlikely but possible) recently bought the vehicle and the PO had it done sometime in the past 5-6 months, you -will- need the upgrade to use the full FordPass functionality*. You can check Sync under the About Sync screen and there will be a modem ESN listed. Unfortunately, I don't recall the letter prefixes that indicate if it is 3G vs 4G. I'm pretty sure that's been mentioned somewhere here in this thread. Needless to say, barring the two situations above, highly likely you're going to need to get the upgrade done. * Some functionality in FordPass is delivered via Bluetooth from Sync without the need for a working TCU including stuff like fuel/battery levels and oil life. However Ford is deprecating these and they may already be gone. At the stage that functionality is removed, a TCU will be required to see that information. Remote Start/Lock/Unlock via FordPass will always require a working TCU. There's no Bluetooth/Wifi method of communication for those features.

If it happens often like maybe a couple times a day or even during a drive, that doesn't sound like the ACM from how most owners have experienced it. Usually the ACM may act up once or twice a year. What I have seen however on the older Sync 2/MFT APIMs not only first hand with my C-Max but I've seen a few other owners report it as well where they start to fail and throw a Windows-esque 'Application Error' dialog for some system service and reboots. And depending on the circumstances, it may happen frequently. Here's a clip I took when it occurred with mine: https://streamable.com/suukeh If it is the latter, the Sync 3 upgrade would definitely nip the whole mess in the bud. But can't confirm with the info we have. @kathi if you can go into more detail what specifically is happening, we can definitely narrow that down and give options.

I had posted this in one of the FB C-Max groups, but probably a good reminder for everyone to check your parking brake and ensure it properly engages and holds the vehicle still. It's not unheard of for the parking brake cable to wear or loosen over time and not fully engage as a result.

To elaborate a bit further: With xEV charging (EVs and PHEVs alike), as a baseline here in the US they use J1772 as the standard plug and protocol for Level 1/2 AC charging. Being standardized, EVSEs/cords work with everybody across the board. The obvious exception being the weirdness Tesla has set up. As @fbov mentioned however, if you plan to ever migrate to a full EV, you may want to consider a higher capacity cord (given your electrical supply is up for it) to future proof. You can use a much higher capacity supply with the C-Max and it will only pull the max it can take which is around 1200-1500w on a 110v circuit or 12 amps. This is also part of the J1772 standard where the cord indicates to the vehicle the max it can supply and the vehicle will only pull up to that amount to the max itself can take. One caveat with some of those cheaper 'Duosida' clones on Amazon as someone pointed out recently on /r/electricvehicles is those sold and supposedly rated for 220/240v and higher amperages above the 12a baseline may not be fully reliable at those levels. Some have reported them failing at those higher loads. For the C-Max being limited to 12a, it's likely not an issue but just something to be aware of in case you do ever plan to upgrade to a vehicle that can charge at higher rates.

It's not much different than the Prius in overall operation. The 12v battery powers all ancillary systems like any other vehicle such as lights, radio, etc.. While the vehicle is running/in 'Ready to Drive' mode there is a DC-DC converter that is active and takes power from the traction/high voltage battery and converts down to the 12+V to power those systems and keep the 12v battery topped off. Same operation as an alternator on a non-hybrid/EV, just fully solid state and not reliant on the ICE. It operates in EV modes as well. There is no direct way to actually charge the traction battery to a significant degree while driving. There is a 'button dance' with the EV mode button that can be done to inch the charge level up but charging from the ICE alone is inefficient. For a number of reasons, it is usually recommended when driving over 50mph or on the highway/freeway to switch to EV Later mode. This will save the current plug-in charge for use later and drop back to hybrid operation. There's also no official way to upgrade the battery capacity. A few owners have hinted at trying to hack something together, but nothing has come of it. The vast majority of owners don't care to attempt it and are happy with the range they get. The C-Max does get noticeably less fuel efficiency than the Prius. Most consider it a worthwhile tradeoff for being a little more comfortable and having a bit more pep than a Prius would. As far as range goes, being a 2013 it could have a degraded battery depending on how the previous owner(s) took care of it. Unfortunately due to poor programming on Ford's part, it is very easy to inadvertently degrade the battery if you 'just drive' and don't take proactive measures to prolong the battery life. Your miles of EV range could also be skewed if you JUST bought the vehicle as it will be based off recent driving, HVAC usage, ambient temp, etc.. There's a reason it is often called a 'guess-o-meter'. There is a much better and accurate way to get an idea of what battery capacity and wear you're dealing with: Fully charge the vehicle. Drive in EV mode only until the plug-in charge is depleted. Ensure the ICE does NOT run or it will skew the results. So you may want to stay off highways/freeways during this test, limit use of cabin heat (though in the current summer season, this may not be applicable), etc.. Once the plug-in charge is depleted, find a place to stop safely as soon as you can and shut off the car. You should then have a trip summary show on the dash including the kwh used. This should give a relatively accurate gauge of battery capacity. 5.5kwh is around what a brand new battery off the factory floor should have seen. 4kwh+ is still good. In the 3-ish range or below is where degradation starts to get bad.

If what you're experiencing feels like a slightly unsteady idle (not feeling like a full on misfire) on the first cold start of the ICE, I'd say this is likely normal. I know on my '13 in the past 40k miles of ownership it has behaved this way and goes away once it takes the very brief time to warm up (basically once it is able to shut off the ICE). Hasn't been an issue and still on the original transmission with no weird noises, knock on wood.

This has been discussed in a little more detail over on the CyanLabs Discord but basically they are just removing the Applink/BT connection related stuff so the current 'My Journeys' feature will be going away (hopefully once they get the EV Trip Data function working, which is solely fed data via the TCU, we'll retain essentially the same functionality. Remains to be seen given the issues going on currently). This likely also means the 'Apps' menu in Sync will be killed off, Oil life display may go away. It's unsure in details what's going to be affected especially with TCU equipped vehicles. Some features are only communicated via Bluetooth with the vehicle, others done via TCU, some may have overlap.

Mine's a 2013 but mine was done DIY and not through Ford officially. But it works just fine (at least what is functional currently. There's some missing EV Trip Data stuff across the board that is likely something Ford is working on from their end.). Another thing to keep in mind is that Ford has stopped all upgrades across the board for the time being while some software related issues are fixed.

Yeah. On these vehicles, it will only alert if there's an issue. Under normal operation with working TPMS and proper tire pressures, this is all you'll see.

Interesting. Do you happen to know which dealer in Columbus it was?

It -SHOULD- be drivable as long as it is operating in hybrid mode (I'm assuming it is with the ICE operating as such with it locked in Auto mode?). Basically, it is now operating the same as a Hybrid model C-Max as they do not have the auxiliary pump. There's a mechanical fluid pump spun by the ICE that is the same between both the Energi and Hybrid models.

Seems like it is all over the board with the C-Max depending on a number of factors. Best I can tell mine was original (2013) when it finally needed replacement here last December. Those with continuing electrical gremlins may see reduced longevity as a result. Weather/climate will also play a factor here. That said, for the OP if it is original or known to be 4-5 years old or more that's about where I'd say the low end of 'normal' battery life would be and definitely worth looking into as the culprit for sure.

Definitely check the battery. The power steering fault and other warning messages could just be the systems freaking out from the low battery. It's pretty common to see a lot of 'red herring' warnings and alerts when this happens. Get the battery replaced, then see if any other warnings or error codes remain.

Can you specify the problems you've been having? Sync 3 in general has been solid from what I've seen. The only constant has been the well known issues of the audio staying on after the car is off or not being able to change volume/sources. From a technical standpoint this isn't Sync related but the separate ACM module which is the same whether you have an older Sync 2 vehicle or Sync 3. The dealer should be able to do a simple firmware upgrade on this as the proper fix which would just be whatever their diagnostic cost is. Maybe an hour of labor tops? If the issue is something else, I'd be interested in knowing what that is. FWIW, if the Sync/APIM module legitimately does need to be replaced, that $1200 is highway robbery. If you are at all technically inclined, you can usually find the APIM only on eBay under $300-$400. Any APIM from any other Ford vehicle can be used and just needs to be programmed to your vehicle (Ford provides the AsBuilt config on their site for your vehicle and can be programmed in seconds using ForScan).

Yep. I've had mine set since I first did the upgrade and have gotten an email from Ford like clockwork every month so far. I get a report even with everything a-ok. (images attached) Not sure whether this goes through the TCU or if it relies in the Applink/Journey stuff that links to your phone directly, though I think it's the latter. Which brings me to my next point that it was pointed out by the folks over in the Cyanlabs community that sometime soon, POTENTIALLY Ford is going to be decomissioning FordPass and specifically the Applink/journey/etc stuff that interfaces via Bluetooth/USB. The TCU specific stuff should not be impacted (much). Unfortunately not too many details currently on this. If I see anything new that relates to us, I'll definitely keep that updated here. https://discord.com/channels/133641094997999617/912758808185540619/971485280232161340

$1300 to throw a part at the problem with the dealer basically giving you no idea what the problem was to begin with sounds sketch to me. If anything, I'd get a second opinion from another dealer. Specifically an EV certified one. Ford's dealer search tool on their website has an advanced search option to filter for this. As far as those of us here on the forum, we can really only make wild guesses with the information given so far. My personal two best educated guesses are a) It is behaving normally and is just in a situation that you are not used to or b) There is something legitimate going on and it may be a deeper code than a generic code scanner will reveal. Is it at all possible you can provide any further details what is going on when this happens? The more detail the better. Does this happen whenever you've already been driving a bit and it has already cycled the battery charge up and down a bit normally? Or after the car has been sitting? You mentioned 'not charging' the HVB. Does it appear like the charge level in the dash is really low with the up arrow visible like it is trying to charge? Does the engine run constantly in this case and feel like it may be laboring hard hence your concern about 'shifting properly'? Do you have EV+ enabled and does this possibly occur after sitting with the previous arrival being in EV+? Any more details above and beyond this will help us help you. You didn't mention what OBD tool you had used earlier, but if you have the option I'd highly recommend what I mentioned prior as far as getting a dirt cheap Bluetooth OBD adapter and checking out the ForScan app just to rule out if there are any Ford specific codes stored. If your dealer is jerking you around like this and seems like they have no clue what to do with this hybrid vehicle, this could also benefit you down the road to do more diagnosing yourself.

Just taking some guesses here based on the information you've given: If there's no CEL or Wrench Light and your OBD Scanner isn't pulling any codes, it is likely something normal and just something you may not be used to. Especially if you haven't driven a CVT equipped vehicle before. I'd imagine if it was serious enough such as it being -unable- to charge the HVB, it would set a serious enough code to light up on the dash and report a code visible to even a basic code scanner. Isn't to say something isn't there. It's possible it could be something less serious and stored as a more Ford specific code that a generic OBD scanner won't see if that's what you're using. This is one reason why I recommend any C-Max owners pick up a dirt cheap Bluetooth OBD dongle and get familiar with the ForScan app. For the price of around $10-$15 for one of those dongles and free for the app, it'll pull up not only any Ford specific DTCs but also provides other useful diagnostic tools. Keeping safety in mind of course, if there's any possible way you can get a video recording (even if briefly) of what is occurring, I think that may be the only way to get a better idea what's going on. Other than that, we can only really make guesses.

Same. Nothing new yet. Though the 'Vehicle Dashboard' is now showing stuff on the page. Nothing too useful there either, though it is tracking the FordPass reported mileage for me (compared to the estimated mileage reported elsewhere on their site). Nothing new in the JSON data though. Same limited status updates that have been there for the past couple weeks now.

This. If the car is not behaving right and there is something legitimately wrong, it should have codes stored and is the only way we can really give proper advice. Is your Check Engine Light or Wrench light lit when this happens? Even if not, still a good idea to get it scanned for any. Not all codes will trigger these lights on the dash depending on the severity. The only remote case where I can and have seen it act similar to this in a legitimate fashion is long uphill climbs. Road tripping and driving up the steep grades of I-70 through Colorado it would happily deplete the battery down to low levels and stay there and rely 100% on the ICE for propulsion and due to the behavior of the CVT, it does wind out the ICE to high RPMs to maintain momentum at those steep grades and speeds. That's another thing to consider as well if you aren't familiar with CVTs is there are no gears to shift and it'll adjust what RPM the ICE will run at on the fly depending on what's needed in that moment. In some cases such as the above scenario, it is not unexpected to feel like the ICE is running really fast and the transmission isn't 'shifting' into the appropriate gear. My cousin just recently bought an ICE only Kia Celtos with a CVT and on a recent trip to West Virginia it behaved similarly on some highway inclines where it'd easily wind out the ICE on the climbs.

A bit late, but definitely appreciative of the extra info and investigation @Cellivar. I'm currently still in the busy season at work so haven't had much time to follow through on much of this. That said, I'm going to be heading on a road trip here in a couple weeks and plan to work on this and a few other resources while I'm not driving. I know I've neglected the TCU upgrade thread and need to overhaul the initial post. One quick addition I did find after reviewing the service manual: One/Two Stage Unlocking (fob unlock button on first press unlocks just the drivers door, second press unlocks all doors), which has an IPC configuration bit but doesn't seem to do anything at least on my '13, is able to be toggled in a more 'user friendly' manner without any AsBuilt or changes in ForScan. Simply press and hold the lock and unlock buttons on your fob for a few seconds. The park lamps will eventually flash to signal the feature has been toggled. I know there are some other features like this one that are modified through more user accessible means and not ForScan/AsBuilt changes. Currently debating how to document and list all of these, but that'll be another list that I'll be trying to put together.

This is correct. The factory system only triggers on an unauthorized entry to the vehicle (ie: Doors are locked with the fob, arming the system. Then if someone manages to open the door without unlocking via the fob or starting within 10-15 seconds, the alarm will trigger. Ford does offer an optional dealer installed accessory they call their 'Ford Perimeter Plus Vehicle Security System' which does have some motion/glass impact detection. Best I can tell per their site this uses the stock keyfob. If you bought the vehicle used, maybe the previous owner had it installed? In theory you should be able to test for this by locking the vehicle and giving a window or body panel a good hit or two (obviously without doing any damage).

YEah, I just had a chance to review the brochure for the 2016's and kinda wild that the SE trims weren't even offered the option of remote start but came with MFM standard. So I guess my original information was wrong that remote start is needed in the vehicle for that to function in the app. At the same time, it's a very interesting 'bypass' for sure. May also explain why the wording for pushing the brake and start button on the IPC/dash is there as they never intended the key equipped vehicles to have RS. Seems like Ford really did start 'dumbing down' both the C-Max and Fusion Hybrid/Energi models in later years.

It's my understanding that for FordPass to have the remote start functions working, it does rely on the vehicle being equipped with Remote Start internally and having it be enabled as well. Given the comment made above about the options being available in the app and the air conditioning starting up, it seems likely it is equipped with RS. Verifying the options on the left screen in the cluster/IPC would also confirm this 100%. Beyond that, can't really comment on the cross-comparison between trims, key vs keyless, and RS availability. I don't have specific posts on the FB groups to provide where this has come up, but I recall at least one user with a keyed ignition C-Max that was equipped with RS and the dealer somehow provided them a key without that button. One additional assumption but has been proven out on other Ford models that I've seen commented on over the years is that if the vehicle IS equipped with RS but you have the wrong key, it is usually as simple as getting a key with the RS button and doing the normal programming process (either the DIY process mentioned in the manual to add an additional key if you already have two or going through the dealer, a locksmith, or ForScan if you are so inclined.). The keys with the remote start button do exist. Here's one source I found. Can't comment on compatibility with the C-Max though: 2015 Ford Explorer Keyless Entry Remote Key Fob 164-R8000 5921467 CWTWB1U793 (carandtruckremotes.com)

Not stock, no. I don't believe any of the C-Max model years came with the option for an LTE/cellular antenna integrated into the rooftop antenna combo. May even be the same with the Fusion. I don't think any of the 3G modem parts had the option for an external antenna. Mine didn't when I pulled it. Even the official upgrade instructions just has an separate antenna they have you attach with adhesive tape/velcro to the nearest trim piece. That said, other Ford models do have this option with the rooftop antenna including all the different options and they usually have an antenna splitter harness to break out the different feeds (AM/FM, Sirius, GPS, and LTE). It's something that is on the potential agenda to add to my 2013 at some point down the road.

Doesn't look like you have the button on there. Should be a distinct button that looks like a circle with a 2x in the middle. Definitely check the menus and see if the Remote Start options are there AND able to be modified and not just greyed out. Though if the remote start from FordPass works, these should be there. If that all checks out, likely you were provided the wrong key when you bought the car. Seems a number of people on the FB C-Max groups may have experienced this as well. I'd bug your dealer to get the proper key with the remote start button.