ECU module programming guide using FDRS

[RickBullotta]

Ford is barely years into this.
There wasn't a symmetrical connection between a Ford consumer vehicle and a Ford data center until one of us purchased a 2021 F150/Mach-E (First vehicles I know of with a GWM and connectivity for Payload delivery)

I'm not saying Ford has exhibited great prowess at it, now that they have jumped in head first. But their strengths over the past 100 years wasn't exactly their DNA in high tech.

I'm just grateful that they had the courage to roll this stuff out to the mighty F150 first. That took cajones. (or naivety?) ?

And I'm grateful that I, as a consumer, even have the opportunity to get access to the tools. (FDRS)

Even with the warts, and I personally consider them minor, FDRS personal use/access is HUGE in the ownership experience of both my Powerboost and Mach-E.

I'm NOT driving the same vehicle as 95% of the other consumers of the same exact vehicles. Nor am I hostage to OTA shortcomings or the inadequacy of a dealership.

FDRS has been a godsend, relatively speaking. And how many other brands have tools like Forscan/FDRS to self support these tech laden products today?

It's really not that hard. And yes, it's certainly valuable. But this capability is more for independent repair shops than consumers of course. And other brands have similar technology, albeit often much, MUCH more expensive and difficult to obtain.

I just want to see them get it right. I was hopeful when they hired the Apple guy a couple years ago, but he probably got sucked into the EV vortex.

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[Snakebitten]

WE, that'd be the collective, ARE the independent repair shop of the modern age!

That thread that Iceman started?

Look at the revolution it sparked!
And it's spread to other collectives of other models. I personally have enjoyed the ride. Even made some great virtual friends.
That's probably obvious at this point.

 

[RickBullotta]

WE, that'd be the collective, ARE the independent repair shop of the modern age!

That thread that Iceman started?

Look at the revolution it sparked!
And it's spread to other collectives of other models. I personally have enjoyed the ride. Even made some great virtual friends.
That's probably obvious at this point.

truth! I hope we all get to share a whiskey or a beer in person someday.

 

[aaexpert]

It took me a little over 8 straight hours to get all of my updates done(and I detailed the entire truck while waiting for each update to finish). All it cost me was a day of time and $30 shipping to borrow a mongoose, well worth all the improvements it provided. So happy to have such a great bunch of people here to provide product & support. My trucks quirks like the throttle, shifting, lane centering b.c. , glare-free, have all improved and feels like I have a new truck again. A dealership is never going to get a tech paid for a whole day of just doing this work for every truck out there, especially under warranty. Too bad they couldnt implement it all via ota. Thanks @rugedraw it's on its way back to ya.

 

[roadPilot]

It does the same thing for techs. They know.

Oh, I know. I just didn't want the casual reader (read: regular Joe member with no access to FDRS) to think otherwise.

 

[roadPilot]

I'm NOT driving the same vehicle as 95% of the other consumers of the same exact vehicles. Nor am I hostage to OTA shortcomings or the inadequacy of a dealership.

Last month, I almost traded the 2021 F150 Platinum in. Changed my mind. Anyway, during the process, I had the used car manager involved in my trade in offer. When my salesman gave me the number, I mentioned (although HE already knew) that I had "made a few changes" with FORScan and FDRS. He confirmed that the used car manager had mentioned that he saw all kind of changes and figured as much (e.g., temps under gauges, the 'Unreal' theme on Sync, all the touchscreen controls for the HVAC/seats/steering wheel/etc that the 2021 didn't normally have because we have the hard knobs, etc), BC 1.4, etc.. Had to chuckle.

 

[roadPilot]

It's really not that hard. And yes, it's certainly valuable. But this capability is more for independent repair shops than consumers of course.

You, sir, are giving 98% of all of humanity far, far much more credit than they deserve.

If this was still 1982, most of the VCR clocks would be flashing 12:00 ...

 

[Snakebitten]

It took me a little over 8 straight hours to get all of my updates done(and I detailed the entire truck while waiting for each update to finish). All it cost me was a day of time and $30 shipping to borrow a mongoose, well worth all the improvements it provided. So happy to have such a great bunch of people here to provide product & support. My trucks quirks like the throttle, shifting, lane centering b.c. , glare-free, have all improved and feels like I have a new truck again. A dealership is never going to get a tech paid for a whole day of just doing this work for every truck out there, especially under warranty. Too bad they couldnt implement it all via ota. Thanks @rugedraw it's on its way back to ya.

Classic expression of what I was talking about. Iceman decided to "take matters into his own hands" , when we ALL were driving 2021's with beta everything, and made a post regarding his attempt.

Since then, a countless number of fellas have experienced what you put into words so well.

The forum basically took on an unpredicted independent shop mentality, and anyone who wanted to be their own technician was in safe hands with the growing apprentice program, headed by a few gurus that Guinea Pigged for us all.

Pretty cool to witness. And the recent rash of second hand 2021 owners, showing up with trucks that the original owner obviously wasn't a member? They are now my favorite to watch unlock their trucks from OTA Purgatory.

 

[roadPilot]

Classic expression of what I was talking about. Iceman decided to "take matters into his own hands" , when we ALL were driving 2021's with beta everything, and made a post regarding his attempt.

I had been doing FORScan changes for ~10 years, so adding the Mongoose Plus and updating firmware to get BC 1.0 going, as well as many other things, was a no-brainer for me.

I don't know everything there is about it, but I'd like to think that I've provided insight and helped others accomplish what they've needed with these tools.

 

[Snakebitten]

No doubt, you are the collective. ?

 

[Cobraman428]

I've seen a lot of posts about power supply and battery chargers. I just got my Mongoose cable and next week I was planning on updating my truck. I have a 10 amp charger, (see below). Is this good enough or do I need a 20 amp or a unit with a power supply mode? I have a lot of modules that needs updating. TIA

 

[roadPilot]

I've seen a lot of posts about power supply and battery chargers. I just got my Mongoose cable and next week I was planning on updating my truck. I have a 10 amp charger, (see below). Is this good enough or do I need a 20 amp or a unit with a power supply mode? I have a lot of modules that needs updating. TIA

That charger does not have a power supply mode. Based on all the updates you need to do (quantity and which ones), I would STRONGLY advise you to go with one that does. The de facto standard around these parts is the Clore Automotive PL2320.

 

[bmwroverf150]

I've seen a lot of posts about power supply and battery chargers. I just got my Mongoose cable and next week I was planning on updating my truck. I have a 10 amp charger, (see below). Is this good enough or do I need a 20 amp or a unit with a power supply mode? I have a lot of modules that needs updating. TIA

Yes. It’s not worth risking it. The ipma/pscm combo is every bit of 3 hours. There is no way to start or charge your battery other than the supplemental power you provide. I had a new battery fully charged with the bms reset and I got down to 12.3v towards the end with 10amp constant power supply (not charger with variable amps). I think you can get lower and be okay but I was very nervous and thought about jumping the battery with a 2nd car if it got any lower.

 

[Cobraman428]

That charger does not have a power supply mode. Based on all the updates you need to do (quantity and which ones), I would STRONGLY advise you to go with one that does. The de facto standard around these parts is the Clore Automotive PL2320.

Thanks for the input, I ordered the PL2320. Just wanted to make sure before I got started.

 

[PWRBoost]

Last month, I almost traded the 2021 F150 Platinum in. Changed my mind. Anyway, during the process, I had the used car manager involved in my trade in offer. When my salesman gave me the number, I mentioned (although HE already knew) that I had "made a few changes" with FORScan and FDRS. He confirmed that the used car manager had mentioned that he saw all kind of changes and figured as much (e.g., temps under gauges, the 'Unreal' theme on Sync, all the touchscreen controls for the HVAC/seats/steering wheel/etc that the 2021 didn't normally have because we have the hard knobs, etc), BC 1.4, etc.. Had to chuckle.

Do you happen to have a pic of your screen with the HVAC/Seats/Steering Wheel on it? Curious as to how that looks. My mongoose is supposed to delivered this week, then going to start working on BC 1.4 and some Forscan changes.

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