2021 F150 trailer brake / brake controller nightmare

[mlmarcum]

Hey guys, sorry for the delay. TL;DR it's back on Ford once again, they're tagging in a field service engineer to come up from another state and take a crack at it.

Spent a whole day at the dealership with the service manager driving around. We towed my trailer with the working loaner F150, all good. Towed it with mine, not good per a) the brake output screen in "towing status" menu and b) general feel of braking. We drove around with a computer plugged into the OBD port, poor service manager hanging out the window to watch my trailer tires. Slide brakes stopped us once and then failed to engage at all again until we turned the truck on/off. No output on screen / no braking at all until restart. Pedal brakes stopped us once (but I still saw no output) and locked up the tires when I slammed on the brakes, but when we repeated the test the pedal brakes did big fat nothing, trailer didn't lock up. When he plugs my trailer in he gets a ground fault error code, but nothing on the normal simulator, and no ground fault error on other trucks when they're hooked up to my trailer.

The computer shows that the 7pin plug on my truck is getting the correct voltage, but for some reason the truck just doesn't consistently do anything with it. Me and service manager both think major software issues are happening. We even had my trailer taken in once again to have all wiring and brakes inspected, and they replaced the pigtail / 7pin plugin on my trailer side just to see - no difference, all checked out. Trailer tows fine with any other truck - dealership '22 F150, my buddy's 2016 F250, trailer shop's older Ford, another buddy's GMC....

When we plug the trailer simulator in it shows the correct voltage output, but my truck STILL doesn't show anything on the trailer brake output screen for the pedal (except when it does the weird "I'm going to get stuck on one bar and literally never go away until you change the gain" thing). Weirdness is always triggered immediately after using the slide brake. We are baffled.

Since my truck was initially sold in Canada we got a Canadian Ford engineer on the line to confirm that the hardware / software is all the same and not causing this. It's the same.

Weird software stuff going on in the truck in general, but especially under towing features. When I put my trailer measurements in, it always shows the "trailer blind spot" as either "0 feet" or "33,151 feet". No in between, no reasonable numbers. When I disconnect my trailer the truck doesn't realize it and keeps thinking it's still active / counting miles on the trailer trip counter, but giving me no codes or anything to indicate "Hey, I still think there's a trailer connected". This is after some potentially related or potentially not related problems with me being in that batch of '21 F150s that never got OTA updates. Wondering if it's all somehow connected to bad software. Have tried deleting / re-adding it a million times using every setting: low, medium, high; electric vs electric over hydraulic, etc, no changes.

Also turns out that they did NOT in fact replace the full trailer wiring harness like I initially thought, they just replaced the extension / connector on the first try. Then on another trip they replaced the brake control module. Then on another trip they replaced the connector again. All no luck.

My service manager pitched a fit on the delay about hearing back from corporate - as of today, it's been 72 days since I first brought my truck in complaining about lack of trailer brakes. He just got approval to bring a field service engineer up from Texas, just waiting to hear when the guy can make it up. They finally took my truck back into the shop and gave me a loaner. Thoughts, prayers, ritualistic sacrifices to the pickup truck gods in my name, etc all appreciated.

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[Snakebitten]

Amazing!

I want so bad for the truck to be fixed. But I gotta admit that it's mostly because it's turned into a fascinating mystery.

Not a good thing for you, admittedly.

 

[mlmarcum]

Amazing!

I want so bad for the truck to be fixed. But I gotta admit that it's mostly because it's turned into a fascinating mystery.

Not a good thing for you, admittedly.

It's definitely a mystery, I'm just thrilled we've gotten to the point where everyone agrees that the problems are real and doesn't think "Oh God, here comes the crazy trailer brake girl" every time I roll up to the dealership. ?

Life could always be worse. At least I have a trailer to live in, an affordable city to be stranded in with a nice RV park, a job that lets me work from wherever, friends in the area, etc. And I'm certainly learning a lot more about my first truck and first trailer than I thought I would right off the bat!

Hopefully we'll have a breakthrough (brake-through?) soon. Thanks to everyone for all suggestions and support.

 

[Snakebitten]

With your positive outlook, I predict a good ending.
Or at least you are easy to root for having one.

 

[UGADawg96]

This is after some potentially related or potentially not related problems with me being in that batch of '21 F150s that never got OTA updates. Wondering if it's all somehow connected to bad software.

Maybe I missed it in an earlier post, but maybe one of the forum gurus can run your VIN and see if your truck is way behind on updates. Many on this forum have had better luck updating their modules themselves versus having their dealers try whether they've wanted to or been reluctant to do them. Like Bruce/Snake said, good luck and you have a great attitude!!!

 

[minirx7]

IN 2021, i bought my F150 and my Jayco 267bhs at the same time. Picked up the Truck in July 2021, and the Jayco 1 week after brand new. Drove frantically on my F150 to get 1500kms to break then engine in.

I had never driven a truck before (my prior car was a 2018 Nissan Leaf and 2018 Honda Odyessy) nor have i ever towed anything before, or owned/had an RV before. everythign was brand new to me.

Crazy part, was my first trip was going from Toronto to Quebec, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island in Canada which is about a 5000km journey.

Here is the craziest thing. Eveyrthing was fine for the first 2 weeks until i noticed i was STRUGGLING to stop going down a hill almost blowing a redlight. I didnt understand why my braking was so bad suddenly. Then i got a trailer light fault.

Turned out that suddenly my trailer brakes stopped working WITHOUT notice. Even though i was a newbie, i kept testing the trailer brakes and it worked at the beginning of the drive then suddenly it just stops workign with no warning. For many months after every time i stopped i had to keep checking if the trailer brakes worked by pulling the lever as i was scared it woudl fail again and again.

Fortunately a software update ifxed it but man that was completely sudden and unsafe especially a newbie like me.

Just wanted to share my story! LOL

 

[Cobraman428]

Wow, maybe you should get a job at Ford as Travel Trailer Brake system engineer. You know more about it then the people who built the truck... Please post your VIN and I'm sure someone can check your truck for updates using FDRS and give you a list of what needs to be updated to show the dealership.

I picked up my trailer today from the storage lot and use the trailer info option on the IPC which also showed the gain amount in use while towing. Thanks for that info.

Keep the faith.... and good luck "Crazy Trailer Brake Girl". PLEASE update the forum once it gets fixed. I'm waiting for the next chapter in this story.....

 

[mlmarcum]

Once again, Ford never fails to stun me.

My truck has been in the shop since 4/21, 2.5 weeks of which was waiting on the field service engineer to decide to answer the dealerships' calls and schedule a visit. He came in on Wednesday and said some ridiculous stuff about how my truck doesn't include trailer blind spot, pro trailer backup assist, etc - spoiler alert, it does! He is somehow blaming the weirdness on the fact that my truck is "An XL with Platinum features" (it's an XLT and you can order one with pro trailer stuff online right now if you'd like).

The FSE told the dealership to reflash software on the brake booster, and try replacing it if that doesn't work. They assured me I'd hear back about the software reflash on Wednesday, but they've been dodging my calls since. It's now been 93 days since I first took the truck in stating that I have no trailer brakes, and 21 days straight that Ford has had it in the shop.

I submitted a buyback request which was denied by Ford corporate today because the original owner purchased the truck in Canada. Riddle me this: somehow, I still get the original USA factory warranty on the truck, but apparently buybacks aren't on the table! How does that make any sense? What happens if they finally throw their hands up and say "We can't fix it"? No buyback for me, guess I can just go eat dirt.

They appear to not care at all that it's been nearly 100 days since I first raised this issue, or that Metro Ford has had way more repair attempts than anyone would consider reasonable, or that this whole processes has been delayed by misinformation, lies, and the FSE straight up taking nearly 3 weeks to bother to call them back. They also appear to not care at all about the massive, glaring safety issue that me not having trailer brakes causes.

I have no idea if the brake booster stuff has helped because Metro didn't call me back on Wednesday as promised, and they've dodged several of my calls today.

I don't really know what I'm hoping for here. It's crazy that there is not a single person that wants to put me out of my misery on this godforsaken unsafe truck. I'm never buying another Ford again and many members of my family are changing their own loyalty after hearing about this whole debacle. Does anyone know of any way to reach someone with actual power?

 

[Snakebitten]

Are you saying that:

1. You are the second owner
2. The truck is no longer in the country of origin
3. The truck has features that were not part of the original factory build

If all that is true, and given the current state of the post purchase servicing capabilities for the Gen14 F150, I think you are facing a very steep hill to climb for a resolution that would satisfy you. The deck is stacked against your situation, unless you were very fortunate and ran into someone with both the authority and the resolve to cut through the redtape.

As for it being unsafe, I wouldn't use the truck in an unsafe manner willingly. If I had to tow, I'd equip the truck with a functional trailer brake controller no matter what.

 

[mlmarcum]

Are you saying that:

1. You are the second owner
2. The truck is no longer in the country of origin
3. The truck has features that were not part of the original factory build

If all that is true, and given the current state of the post purchase servicing capabilities for the Gen14 F150, I think you are facing a very steep hill to climb for a resolution that would satisfy you. The deck is stacked against your situation, unless you were very fortunate and ran into someone with both the authority and the resolve to cut through the redtape.

As for it being unsafe, I wouldn't use the truck in an unsafe manner willingly. If I had to tow, I'd equip the truck with a functional trailer brake controller no matter what.

1. I am the second owner, but I bought it with such low mileage that it's still under the original factory warranty.
2. Truck was manufactured in Kansas. It just happened to be sold in Canada the first time it was sold. It was imported back into the States by a non-Ford dealership and sold to me, they assured me that it's the same as any other F150 and that the OG factory warranty still applies. They're right, I still have the original warranty and all work done so far has been warranty work.
3. Nope, everything on this truck is 100% factory. The FSE is just being really, really dumb. He's not saying that things were installed aftermarket, he's saying that my truck doesn't have some features at all because "those don't come on XLs" (they can and do, and mine does, and I have an XLT not an XL lmao). I don't know what in God's name he's thinking. Even Ford corporate rep has confirmed that my truck has all the features that it has, and that they're all straight from the factory.

 

[JEB]

1. I am the second owner, but I bought it with such low mileage that it's still under the original factory warranty.
2. Truck was manufactured in Kansas. It just happened to be sold in Canada the first time it was sold. It was imported back into the States by a non-Ford dealership and sold to me, they assured me that it's the same as any other F150 and that the OG factory warranty still applies. They're right, I still have the original warranty and all work done so far has been warranty work.
3. Nope, everything on this truck is 100% factory. The FSE is just being really, really dumb. He's not saying that things were installed aftermarket, he's saying that my truck doesn't have some features at all because "those don't come on XLs" (they can and do, and mine does, and I have an XLT not an XL lmao). I don't know what in God's name he's thinking. Even Ford corporate rep has confirmed that my truck has all the features that it has, and that they're all straight from the factory.

Unfortunately, comment 1 may be why Ford denied your buyback request. I am assuming you bought your truck in Oklahoma. Although lemon laws can vary considerably from state to state, Oklahoma’s lemon law is kind of restrictive—it looks like it applies only to “new“ vehicles. https://www.oag.ok.gov/oklahomas-lemon-law. Granted, your truck is still under warranty and mileage is low. But since you’re the second owner, technically you purchased it “used” and when it comes to statutes, technicalities matter. It still might be worth talking to a lemon law specialist in case there are exceptions to the new vs used bright line. A BBB complaint might also be worth pursuing.

Given the complete lack of assistance from the FSE, I still think it might be worth talking to your dealer about a full wire replacement between the brake controller module and the 7-way. It will be a big job but you’ve looked into everything else I can think of. Some of your symptoms sound like there’s a ground fault somewhere.

 

[Snakebitten]

Folks around here can vouch for the consistency in my statement that I wouldn't let them get near my truck at this point. Even if I somehow gained the leverage necessary to get my truck in their bay, it would possibly be an adversarial climate. Not happening.

I would throw fair/unfair, as well as principle out the window. And instead, I would switch to a selfish results-oriented strategy.
It's not nuclear physics. It's modules and wires.
I'd either go aftermarket, or as JEB suggests, inspect/rewire the factory components methodically.

I like my truck.
The product itself is what I prefer.
The only thing wrong with the machine isn't the machine's doing. It's people. They could care less if I drive this truck or another brand. I ain't letting them determine for me if they care so little.

 

[mlmarcum]

Lots has happened since the last update - several more parts (part of wiring harness again, instrument control panel, powertrain control module) replaced to no avail, FSE still bamboozled and was talking about calling in a higher-up engineer from Detroit, all signs pointing to an absolute freak software issue still...

But that doesn't matter, because I just got the call that Ford is officially going to buy it back!!! I think I surpassed some kind of internal time limit that corporate has, because my customer service rep was able to submit some other kind of appeal that finally worked. She said they'll get with me in 3-5 business days about the details and logistics of the buyback. I am SO happy to finally be nearing the finish line on this debacle, and I will absolutely think about replacing it with an old ass truck that is all hardware and no software LOL. Thank you to everyone for your help, suggestions, and well wishes!

 

[powerboatr]

great to hear
with all they replaced, i would love to know if ford ever figures it out or simply scraps the truck

TBC system since 2006 has had some weirdness, but your seems to have surpassed the level of weirdness
again great to hear ford is now buying it back

 

[loder]

I have a 2021 F150 XLT 3.5L GTDI V6 (VIN 1FTFW1E8XMKE08562). It's a 4x4 Supercrew with a 3.55 axle ratio and 145.5" WB. Build date says 06/21. It has the regular trailer tow package, not max tow, and it came with a factory trailer brake preinstalled. I bought it used a few months ago and it still has the factory warranty (really low mileage).

Last month I bought a brand new travel trailer (a 2023 Forest River Ibex 20MDS) and I live and travel on it fulltime (I work remote). Trailer brakes worked and threw no error codes when we hooked up at the RV dealer, but 5 minutes down the road I started getting "trailer wiring fault"... Over the next couple of days the issue went from intermittent to consistent no matter what, and now the fun begins.

What happens now:

• Now, 100% of the time as soon as I plug in, my truck throws a "trailer wiring fault" error.
• When I slide the trailer brakes, I get a "trailer disconnected" error, but all lights / turn signals are functioning as normal. Zero trailer brake output shown on screen for both slider braking and pedal braking, regardless of the gain setting.
• Bizarrely, after about 15 minutes of driving, somehow my slider brakes come online and I can use them without the "trailer disconnected" error. They show brake output on the screen and work as intended, but I see zero brake output when I use the brake pedal. This happens even when the gain is set at 10. I don't trust it and haven't driven it for more than about 30 minutes this way.

What I've tried:

• Had dealership update all software to current version - apparently my truck hadn't receieved any updates in well over a year. It took 2 full days and Sync / the menus / everything looks wildly different. Fixed a few little bugs I had but not this.
• Deleted my trailer and readded it again - nada.
• Cleaned 7-pin connector and receiver extremely well - nada.
• Added an extra ground wire from the trailer to the truck - nada.
• This suggested fix involving a load equalizer to trick the truck into seeing consistent current. We didn't want to cut into my trailer or truck and potentially void any warranty on either, so we bought an extra 7-pin and receiver, spliced the equalizer into that, and plugged it between the trailer and truck like an extension cord - nada.
• Checked trailer brake controller fuse. Looks fine, truck throws an error saying something about brakes (can't remember exact wording) when it's pulled, clears when it's back.
• Disconnected battery, let it sit, and tried again - nada.
• Every possible order of doing things - plugging in before starting truck, after, etc, nothing makes a difference.

Some considerations:

• Had trailer wiring inspected by a third party shop - they said it's perfect and the issue is on Ford. They knew of a guy going through a similar ordeal but no solution.
• Plugged a 2016 F250 - also with factory brake controller - into trailer, did not actually tow. Immediately got "trailer wiring fault" and when we tested the slide brake, "trailer disconnected".
• Plugged a very new GMC dually (don't know exact year or model, sorry) into trailer - actually towed it - zero error codes, brakes worked perfectly, no issue at all.
• Took both my Ford and the '16 F250 to my buddy's fifth wheel, plugged into it, no error codes on either. I don't have a fifth wheel hitch to truly test towing, but I could hear the brakes pulsing every ~4-5 seconds.
• I know about recall 22S17, but my truck isn't showing that it needs a fix when I check the vin. Some kind soul in another thread confirmed my trailer brake software is on the most recent version.

It's at the shop now and Ford is giving me hell over it - they have no problems on their trailer simulator and they're pointing the finger at my trailer, saying they've never heard of any issues with trailer brakes (clearly not true from this forum).

Any ideas at all? I spent so much on a high quality truck and a brand new trailer so that I can travel and live on it fulltime, and I've been stuck in Oklahoma for weeks longer than planned. I don't have a house or apartment I can just fall back to - I gotta get this fixed!

" trailer simulator"- does anyone know what this is? My dealer says they have no way of simulating a trailer. Is this simulator the same thing as the 7-pin tester you can get from Amazon?

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