Power running boards not retracting

[mb1983]

2005 was 2 centuries ago relative to document management technology. ?
(I have a stack of Clymer and others on so many vehicles I've owned from the past)

Imagine if you were to show that tech back then that the service manual was stored on a handheld device and that you could find what you were looking for in seconds.

We are so spoiled with easy access, storage, search utility, indexing, hyperlinking.......

I grew up with the World Book 24 volume encyclopedia in the living room. My dad just beemed with pride when someone visited.

You have a few years on me, but I was the last of the pre-internet days. I clearly remember the World Books (and looking down at my friends with the Brittanica). Hell, I used to read the encyclopedia for entertainment (again, no internet). I am often in awe of how my dad ever managed to figure out how to fix or build stuff. We have it sooooo easy now.

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[STM]

We had a set of encyclopedia in our house too and I used to read it.. But to think that our knowledge of the world was deemed to be in that set! And going to the library to get books that were written at least a few years before... Most information we had was years old, other than news.. Which came in news papers and magazines!

And now we can access all the knowledge, information and results in the world on our phones... Hard to picture how we got around and did things.. Things were definitely slower..
I twisted my foot yesterday, ordered crutches from Walgreens 35 minutes ago and it is at the front door already.. Door dash delivered them!

 

[Snakebitten]

Yaw making me nostalgic.
In a good way.

 

[Ford Motor Company]

My assumption is that a thorough cleaning of the hinge components followed by some sort of light lubricant would be a good plan.

The truck was a little dirty when this happened, but it has been far worse through the winter months and had no issue then. I did fluid film the underside of the truck back in November. While the Fluid Film probably does provide some lubrication, it also probably retains grime and grit.

I will also say, as I started to play around with it, the board did attempt to close and moved an inch or so before stalling. I would imagine that there is a sensor of some sort that prevents the motor from closing with too much resistance to save the motor and whatever is blocking the boards.

Either way, the running boards are still working fine this morning. Something to keep an eye on for sure, and probably another reason to grab an ESP if you plan to keep the truck longer than the factory warranty.

Good morning! I'd like to look into this for you. Feel free to send over a private message with your VIN and dealership information at your earliest convenience.

 

[My 2ND Ford]

Ford Tech Makuloco on You Tube has a detailed procedure on maintenance for the power boards. Basically keep them lubricated so that you don't have problems down the road. If you live in the Northeast or anywhere in the Rust Belt, you should do this twice a year. I do it spring and fall.

 

[PPEng15]

When I close the door or use the foot button, the board goes to the fully retracted position but then reverses. When I drive off, the board retracts and stays. It is intermittent and will resolve itself as quickly as it started. It is always the driver's side. Never the passenger.

While troubleshooting tonight, I found that there is a wiring harness plug just behind the rear mount. I squeezed it and the board went up and stayed up.

We will see.

 

[Snakebitten]

That's encouraging.

 

[PPEng15]

I do not know if anyone has found a "fix" for this issue. I only have issues with the driver side.
Outside of a dusty dusty, it is mostly a highway queen.
Every few weeks I have to spray the mechanism with a little lube. A few cycles with the kick switch and it will stay up.
I have had it jam in the partial open position while trying to get it to stay stowed.
Of course, I get it to stay stowed and it never happens when I am near a dealer.
I also noticed that neither of them are sitting in the middle of the bracket, they are both to one side. I have not looked at other trucks to see how theirs look.

 

[adyaro77]

That's good news!

I'm guessing that there's some kind of targeted maintenance that we might do for keeping it clean and lubricated?

Yes! I have had several trucks with deployable running boards. You have to keep up on greasing them. Dealership told me white lithium grease. Can get in a spray can and won't freeze. I spray the hell out of everything that moves and clean up with a rag.

Have to be very diligent in the winter.

 

[Antimatter22]

Yes! I have had several trucks with deployable running boards. You have to keep up on greasing them. Dealership told me white lithium grease. Can get in a spray can and won't freeze. I spray the hell out of everything that moves and clean up with a rag.

Have to be very diligent in the winter.

I'm surprised they would recommend white lithium grease vs a dry graphite type of lube. At work we prefer to use the graphite lube over a lithium in our air handlers since it doesn't pick up dirt/dust/etc as much. Granted, I just trusted the experienced HVAC guys know what they're talking about and it makes sense but I'm no expert on the subject myself.

 

[adyaro77]

I'm surprised they would recommend white lithium grease vs a dry graphite type of lube. At work we prefer to use the graphite lube over a lithium in our air handlers since it doesn't pick up dirt/dust/etc as much. Granted, I just trusted the experienced HVAC guys know what they're talking about and it makes sense but I'm no expert on the subject myself.

Yes, I completely agree with you. But I can tell you I've been using that for many years and it's works extremely well. Now I am in Michigan so maybe it has something to do with the colder weather as this became an issue years ago in the middle of winter for me.

I will add they also want you to use something that will help protect against rust. Those metal pins that connect everything start to rust my understanding is you will have a lot of problems.

 

[Antimatter22]

Yes, I completely agree with you. But I can tell you I've been using that for many years and it's works extremely well. Now I am in Michigan so maybe it has something to do with the colder weather as this became an issue years ago in the middle of winter for me.

I will add they also want you to use something that will help protect against rust. Those metal pins that connect everything start to rust my understanding is you will have a lot of problems.

Thanks for the info!

 

[PPEng15]

While continuing to fight with my driver side board, I thought I would get a rubber mallet out and take a wack at it.

The board is relatively easy to shift back and forth within the mounts.
This could explain why the boards seem to bind up at irregular intervals and why they work after I lube them. They do not have to move far to work or not work.
I am not sure what I am going to do about it yet, but maybe there is a solution there.

 

[ReverendQ]

I am told there is a way to "calibrate" them by running the DSM self-test in FDRS. Not sure about FORScan.

 

[PPEng15]

So after many months of trying to figure this out, I changed the settings to the extended timer.

Knock on wood, I have not had any issues since.

It was only the driver's side. The front seemed to deploy a split second after the rear when they were having issues stowing.

Maybe it will help someone else.

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