2020 Raptor - Starting Issues

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Tnfrainier

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New Member here, I searched the forums and could not find any relevant answers.

I bought a new 2020 Raptor earlier this year and have approximately 9,000 miles on it so far. I started having issues with the vehicle earlier this month and it has been at the dealer twice to fix the issue, it has been there almost two weeks on this last visit.

I had started noticing the starter making "Not Normal" sounds about a month ago when the Auto Start Stop function was in operation. Then about three weeks ago I had driven about twenty miles and stopped at a traffic light and the vehicle shut off as normal. Then when the light turns green, no start... Needless to say I was in somewhat of a panic hitting the start button etc, still no start. I had to put the vehicle in park, then it finally did start and I was on my way. I had thought this may be just a glitch in the system so I did not call the dealer at that time. The next morning I got in to go to work and I had to push the button several times to get the vehicle to start. I would hear a clicking noise every time I hit the start button, but it took probably eight pushes of the button to get it to fire up. So on my way to work I called the dealership and dropped it off that evening. Yes, the battery had a full charge.

I explained what was happening to the dealer and, of course, they tried blaming me, asking me if I was stepping on the brake pedal hard enough, really? Well they drove the vehicle for several miles and they were able to replicate the no start after the Auto stop in traffic. The guy tells me, wow that is pretty scary, no shit! Anyway, they downloaded all of the newest software on the vehicle and called it a day.

After one day of having the vehicle back, I once again had the issue with the truck starting in the morning, so back to the dealer I went.

This time at the dealer I explained the issue again, and again I was asked if I was stepping on the brake hard enough.. So I call them after a couple of days and they determined the start button was the issue, they had to order it and replace it. I was skeptical, but whatever. They call me after replacement and letting the car sit over night, and it didn't start for them. Of course I had to ask them if they were stepping on the brake pedal hard enough, couldn't help myself. Anyway, now they have replaced the starter on Tuesday, they called me this morning that they wanted to keep it another day to verify it will start.

I did notice one thing I thought was strange and I did mention it to the dealer as well. I initially thought it was a voltage issue so I brought up the real time voltage in the gauge cluster. I noticed under acceleration the voltage would go down to as low as 12V, but under deceleration, the voltage would go up to 14-14.5V.

Sorry for the long first post, but has anyone ever had anything happen like this with their truck? I hope it is fixed but would like to be prepared if it still has issues. I have a couple of other nagging issues, back seat belt locks up and the hitch droops. When I asked them about them they say it is normal and I should read the manual.

Appreciate any feedback.
 
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Tnfrainier

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Update:

I picked the truck up this morning and everything seems to be working well. The dealer ended up replacing the Stop/Start button then the starter. Hopefully this will be the fix long term. It really kind of surprised that a starter would go out this quickly, but in the grand scheme of things, not a big deal.

Could someone please check their voltage readings during normal operation? I am still seeing a drop in voltage (12-12.5V) when accelerating and what would seem to be normal charging voltage (14-14.5V) when coasting.

Thanks for the help!
 

GCATX

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Without regard to the voltage issue you mention, it does sound like a bad starter. Once they go bad they can start drawing huge amounts of energy from the battery, add heat from sitting in traffic, it will get worse. Hopefully you are squared away.
 

FordTechOne

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That is a horrible misdiagnosis. Updating module software will never fix an issue unless there is specific direction to do so from a service message or bulletin. A faulty start/stop switch won’t result in the truck failing to restart after an auto stop/start event; that has nothing to do with the switch. The diagnostics are very straightforward, the fact that they duplicated the concern and still misdiagnosed it is sad. Sounds like the starter was definitely the root cause, glad it’s resolved.

As far as charging voltage, that is normal. It’s called Smart Charge; it charges the battery on deceleration similarly to the way a hybrid or BEV uses regenerative braking to charge. Under acceleration, it stops charging to reduce parasitic engine load, which improves fuel economy and acceleration. If there was something wrong with the system, you’d get a charging system fault message and an illuminated charging system light in the cluster.

I try and remind everyone on here; don’t over analyze gauge readings. Every time a customer brings a vehicle to the dealership with a concern over a normal gauge reading, Ford has to pay the dealer a No Problem Found (NPF) diagnosis. When warranty starts seeing those numbers driven up by a complaint from a certain system, they eliminate the feature in future models to reduce cost. This is the reason that so many vehicles went to “dummy” gauges and lights in the 90’s, only now are we finally getting full instrumentation back.
 

sixshooter_45

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That is a horrible misdiagnosis. Updating module software will never fix an issue unless there is specific direction to do so from a service message or bulletin. A faulty start/stop switch won’t result in the truck failing to restart after an auto stop/start event; that has nothing to do with the switch. The diagnostics are very straightforward, the fact that they duplicated the concern and still misdiagnosed it is sad. Sounds like the starter was definitely the root cause, glad it’s resolved.

As far as charging voltage, that is normal. It’s called Smart Charge; it charges the battery on deceleration similarly to the way a hybrid or BEV uses regenerative braking to charge. Under acceleration, it stops charging to reduce parasitic engine load, which improves fuel economy and acceleration. If there was something wrong with the system, you’d get a charging system fault message and an illuminated charging system light in the cluster.

I try and remind everyone on here; don’t over analyze gauge readings. Every time a customer brings a vehicle to the dealership with a concern over a normal gauge reading, Ford has to pay the dealer a No Problem Found (NPF) diagnosis. When warranty starts seeing those numbers driven up by a complaint from a certain system, they eliminate the feature in future models to reduce cost. This is the reason that so many vehicles went to “dummy” gauges and lights in the 90’s, only now are we finally getting full instrumentation back.

Do you know anything about an update for a better idle and a little more power on top end?

Sorry it's all I have and read it in a post a few days ago. I meant to save it but didn't.

Not that I need an update for either but was just curious if you read or know about this update.
 

MDJAK

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Forskin or an aftermarket part inserted behind the auto stop start switch, plugs between the button and the harness connected to it. Ten minute install.
 

smurfslayer

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I didn’t have a problem with auto stop/start until I upgraded the stereo. even with power/ground home runs, voltage drops to about 9.8-10.5v at the amp when the truck restarts. That’s too low for the amps, so they scram temporarily and it takes a few seconds to get sound back. I know... First world problems.

See the FORSCAN thread on the stop/start disable. Apparently that disables the battery management functionality.
 
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