BlueCruise Upgrade Experience (1.0 → 1.3+/1.4-ish): Worth It, but its work

[bilnc]

I just finished a long I-40 / I-26 run (NC ⇄ Charleston, SC) after completing the full BlueCruise firmware + config upgrade, and I wanted to share a real-world report for anyone considering this. (Ford F150 Lariat 2021, Bluecruise 1.0)

Driving Experience, Short version: it’s dramatically better.

• BlueCruise activates much faster
• Lane Change Assist is far easier and smoother to use
• BlueCruise stays engaged after lane changes instead of dropping out
• Lane centering is noticeably smoother and more confident
• In-lane repositioning away from large trucks is obvious and extremely welcome
• System stayed active for ~95% of the drive, even with heavy construction

Its not self driving - hands ready, eyes up at all times — especially through construction zones. But fatigue reduction on a 4-hour highway drive is huge. I felt calmer, less tense, and far less worn out at the end of the trip.

What It Took - This was not a casual afternoon project.

• Buying a proper battery charger
• Renting a Mongoose cable
• Renting FDRS access
• Getting FORScan + extended license
• Sitting in the truck for hours while it was:
  • ~30°F during the day
  • ~20–25°F late at night and early morning
• Multiple long sessions:
  • Daytime
  • Midnight
  • 4am (in pajamas)

And no — the truck is not running with heat on during programming. If I have to do it again, it will be summer.

Two major module updates did not complete on the first attempt and had to be canceled and restarted. But once you get on this train, you kind of have to finish. The FDRS 48 hour clock is always ticking. Total time from start to finish: ~26 hours, spread across multiple sessions.


Software UX (Ford, Please…)
The tooling experience is rough.

• Constant manual confirmations (“OK” clicked many times)
• No meaningful time-remaining estimates
• Minimal feedback during long “internal operation in progress” phases
• This feels like software engineering frozen somewhere around 1995

Huge thanks to Rugedraw — his calm, simple messages of support and guidance were a lifeline during the long stretches where you’re just watching progress bars and hoping nothing goes sideways. I know he’s not the only knowledgeable person in the community, but having someone steady in your corner matters when you’re hours deep into this.

I would do this again if I had to, it’s worth it. And it resolved the recurring power train error as a bonus. I’m happy we can do this at all and do it ourselves. But the path is unnecessarily painful. For good or bad, I imagine this will be the last bluecruise update that helps a 2021. I’m impressed with all the people on here who have made it work and support each other throughout.

Sponsored