Blinking Radio

[ountersee]

Hello

I have purchased a 17 c-max hybrid se (used but new to me)... when I got the car the screen was fine but now the screen "blinks" (bright-dim-off),  everything works except the "blinking"... I have already tried to pull the fuse/ skip forward & power "reset" but still no avail... called local Ford dealership but no help because better to have tech figure it out... I do have Forscan "extended"...  I am trying to figure out what "part" is the cause and if I can fix it...

 

Thanks in advance

[grege]

Ountersee

 

1. I would try a vehicle 'reset' via your steering wheel control:  

To reset a Ford C-Max Sync 3, navigate to Settings > General > Master Reset on the touchscreen; this will completely erase all stored information and restore the system to factory defaults, prompting you to confirm before the reset occurs; remember to disconnect any paired Bluetooth devices or USB drives before performing a master reset.

 

2. Other:  My 2018 cmax screen always fades in and out with the light sensing nonsense, so I selected 'dark screen' from the display menu options.

 

3. If those don't work, bad switch/wire maybe?

 

Hopefully one of the first two work; otherwise, more work needed...

 

Greg

 

 

[ountersee]

On 3/3/2025 at 3:18 PM, grege said:

Ountersee

 

1. I would try a vehicle 'reset' via your steering wheel control:  

To reset a Ford C-Max Sync 3, navigate to Settings > General > Master Reset on the touchscreen; this will completely erase all stored information and restore the system to factory defaults, prompting you to confirm before the reset occurs; remember to disconnect any paired Bluetooth devices or USB drives before performing a master reset.

 

2. Other:  My 2018 cmax screen always fades in and out with the light sensing nonsense, so I selected 'dark screen' from the display menu options.

 

3. If those don't work, bad switch/wire maybe?

 

Hopefully one of the first two work; otherwise, more work needed...

 

Greg

 

 

Thanks Greg, but I have done a master reset with no avail either… I am thinking it may be the “tv” screen.

[homestead]

If there is a light sensor to adjust the screen brightness depending on the ambient light perhaps that is the culprit.

 

[cr08]

Just taking a wild guess here: Do you have the 4" basic non-touch screen system or the 8" touch screen? For the 2017 hybrid SE models the latter was available as an option, not standard.

 

If you do have the 8" touch screen, can you confirm with the images linked below if yours looks closer to Sync 3 or Sync 4?

 

https://api.mss.ford.com/dbi-kb/api/knowledge/v1/search/get-drupal-file/sites/default/files/2024-10/Ford SYNC Visual Reference Guide English_0.pdf

 

If closer to Sync 4, that's Sync 3.4 for our vehicles. The previous owner would have manually done that upgrade as Ford doesn't officially sanction or offer it themselves. One thing that is 'broken' is the flickering screen when the brightness changes. But it's more a rapid flickering.

 

-----

 

Beyond that guess, another thing you could try is seeing if the behavior changes with different headlamp switch positions (try them all: Off, park lamps, low beams, auto). Also checking Forscan for any codes may also be worth trying as long as you have an MS-CAN capable adapter as anything related will likely be on that bus.

[ountersee]

19 hours ago, cr08 said:

Just taking a wild guess here: Do you have the 4" basic non-touch screen system or the 8" touch screen? For the 2017 hybrid SE models the latter was available as an option, not standard.

 

If you do have the 8" touch screen, can you confirm with the images linked below if yours looks closer to Sync 3 or Sync 4?

 

https://api.mss.ford.com/dbi-kb/api/knowledge/v1/search/get-drupal-file/sites/default/files/2024-10/Ford SYNC Visual Reference Guide English_0.pdf

 

If closer to Sync 4, that's Sync 3.4 for our vehicles. The previous owner would have manually done that upgrade as Ford doesn't officially sanction or offer it themselves. One thing that is 'broken' is the flickering screen when the brightness changes. But it's more a rapid flickering.

 

-----

 

Beyond that guess, another thing you could try is seeing if the behavior changes with different headlamp switch positions (try them all: Off, park lamps, low beams, auto). Also checking Forscan for any codes may also be worth trying as long as you have an MS-CAN capable adapter as anything related will likely be on that bus.

@cr08, I did have to update the car via Ford's update and then found out Cynlabs, which I am now running Sync 3.4.23188 via 8" touch. What is weird is back when it was just the Ford's update and after the very cold snap (live in the midwest) is when the screen started to "blink", meaning that if key was on the screen was on and did not have any issues. One day near Christmas time I washed my car to clean the salt and grime off then the screen started to blink (I believe coincidental not cause). Headlamp position does not matter...  My "blink" is a bit on the slower side, Bright for about 2 seconds, then Dim for about 2 seconds then "off" for about 4/5 seconds. I believe that the issue is with the "TV"/ screen because if I use the touchsreen it does work regardless what part of the "blink" it is in, and the "radio" has no trouble playing any sound.

Edited Wednesday at 11:06 PM by ountersee

[ountersee]

I do not know if this will help anyone...

while i had a few moments i opened Forscan and had asked for a self test on the APIM and it came back with "no errors" but I did notice that the touch screen via the PID readouts kept cycling between present vs not present (mostly present with a split second saying not present)...

thanks again in advance