After the PCM software update/recalibration - observations by Hybridbear

[GrySql]

GrySql did you have to reset everything on the car after disconnecting both the HV and 12V batteries such as all of your SYNC info?

No, Sync and Nav were okay except I had to reset the time in the MFT, but they are doing the 3.6.2 update today so some of that may need to be fixed later, my iPhone was still sync'd.

Some of the Dash Display settings were reset to default, Trip and Lifetime mileage were not.

 

If you do this, take care to push the HVB lever fully closed when you re-insert it.

[EddieWinslow]

Well what the hell, I am going to go and disconnect the Battery's now.

My car was getting decent mileage, however on the highway it will never Go into EV mode unless its at 98-100km/h.

No harm in trying I guess

[GrySql]

Let me repeat, I did say that I can't draw any conclusions between the battery disconnect and my dramatic 'all of a sudden' better mpg's.

Something else could easily be the reason(s) for any mpg improvement.

I am not advocating that anyone do this and if you it is at your own risk.

I sure would not have done it if my car was getting reasonable mileage!

 

I am at the Dealer having it looked at, they are the experts ( supposedly).

Edited September 4, 2013 by GrySql

[EddieWinslow]

well its a no cost, no brainer, easy "possible fix".

disconnecting them isn't going to void any warranty, its not really going to damge your car, unless you have zero clue of how to remove a battery terminal.

5 mins of your time isn't going to hurt, I also don't see after doing the hard reset, it making your current MPG any worse?

 

I did it not to long ago, I will see how it acts on my way to work and back this evening.

[GrySql]

Before I start, let me thank Forum member DrewFM, see post 136 in this Thread.

It was his idea to disconnect both batteries in regards this PCM issue.

 

I love my Dealer's Service Department....

After I arrived there this morning I did not tell them I did a 'Hard Reset' and the Tech caught me. How so, you ask?

After they replaced my Fuel Module and installed the new MFT 3.6.2 software, the Tech began trouble shooting my PCM re-calibration to see any inconsistencies, he found one right away.

My Service Advisor sauntered over and asked why my Lifetime MPG's were <33 and my trip in this morning was over 40mpg's, "what's going on?

I was glad to hear the Tech was on the ball and was checking everything! I explained the 'Hard Reset' that I did last night and this mornings trip was the first test if it made any difference.

We had a long discussion, one in which my SA sincerely wants to find answers and listens to us Forum folks with interest and respect. He knows that we are a force multiplier in FFH Q&A.

 

The SA went back and chatted the Tech up. The Tech had just hung up from talking to Ford Technology and Engineering.

The Tech was told that Ford only know of one other example of the PCM Re-Cal negatively affecting a FFH and they did not have any answers yet why that happened or how it could be remedied.

The SA then told the Tech about the Hard Reset, to which the Tech said 'a great idea, why didn't I think of that, it resets all the default settings so that the new PCM software will work like it should." & "now we need other examples so we know that is isn't just a fluke in this case". I am instructed to call my SA in a couple weeks to tell him how things are doing with this situation.

He loved the whole idea and said "I think we're on to something and it would be a great help if you or other Forum members could help verify this 'Hard reset' theory.

 

My mileage home today was 42.4 mpg's, much higher than ever before. At highway speeds every dip in the road the EV would kick in and help, or charge, or both.

Once my SOC gets over the half way point it seems to be easy for it to stay that way and I get lots of additional EV time.

This is great, I have a 1,200 mile trip coming up shortly and I am very interested to compare the 'before and after' mpg's.

 

BTW, the correct, and latest, PCM Re-Calibration software version is:

#DS7A-14C204-ATM

Older PCM software cannot be reloaded.

Edited September 5, 2013 by GrySql

[MaineFusion]

It would be brilliant if the hard reset turns out to be a cure for some of the low MPGs people are seeing with the FFH.

[DrewFM]

Before I start, let me thank Forum member DrewFM, see post 136 in this Thread.

It was his idea to disconnect both batteries in regards this PCM issue.

 

I love my Dealer's Service Department....

After I arrived there this morning I did not tell them I did a 'Hard Reset' and the Tech caught me. How so, you ask?

After they replaced my Fuel Module and installed the new MFT 3.6.2 software, the Tech began trouble shooting my PCM re-calibration to see any inconsistencies, he found one right away.

My Service Advisor sauntered over and asked why my Lifetime MPG's were <33 and my trip in this morning was over 40mpg's, "what's going on?

I was glad to hear the Tech was on the ball and was checking everything! I explained the 'Hard Reset' that I did last night and this mornings trip was the first test if it made any difference.

We had a long discussion, one in which my SA sincerely wants to find answers and listens to us Forum folks with interest and respect. He knows that we are a force multiplier in FFH Q&A.

 

The SA went back and chatted the Tech up. The Tech had just hung up from talking to Ford Technology and Engineering.

The Tech was told that Ford only know of one other example of the PCM Re-Cal negatively affecting a FFH and they did not have any answers yet why that happened or how it could be remedied.

The SA then told the Tech about the Hard Reset, to which the Tech said 'a great idea, why didn't I think of that, it resets all the default settings so that the new PCM software will work like it should." & "now we need other examples so we know that is isn't just a fluke in this case". I am instructed to call my SA in a couple weeks to tell him how things are doing with this situation.

He loved the whole idea and said "I think we're on to something and it would be a great help if you or other Forum members could help verify this 'Hard reset' theory.

 

My mileage home today was 42.4 mpg's, much higher than ever before. At highway speeds every dip in the road the EV would kick in and help, or charge, or both.

Once my SOC gets over the half way point it seems to be easy for it to stay that way and I get lots of additional EV time.

This is great, I have a 1,200 mile trip coming up shortly and I am very interested to compare the 'before and after' mpg's.

 

BTW, the correct, and latest, PCM Re-Calibration software version is:

#DS7A-14C204-ATM

Older PCM software cannot be reloaded.

 

Thank you, Gry Sql. I can tell you that my inspiration came from my android phone of all things (which also uses a Lithium ion battery). Phone was acting up yesterday morning,The battery hasn't been lasting as long for the last month. I had it plugged in charging and unplugged it at 80% according to the indicator.....so I did a 'hard reset' on it (pulling out the battery, reinstalling it and then reset android back to 'out of box'...after everything came back on, the battery indicator now read 100%! I thought to myself, how in the world did I gain 20% charge by just 'telling the thing' that it was new? Then, the 'hmmm, I wonder' light bulb went off about my car. Same thing happened. HVB charge stated about 20%....disconnected 12v and HVB for five minutes....reconnected and then it read 30-40%! Maybe, like the phone, if it thinks it's SOC is 80%, but its really at 100%, wouldn't it tell MG1 (generator) to stop charging? Somehow, I think all these things that use LI batteries, sometimes lose track of what the true SOC (capacity) actually is. That's my best semi-educated guess. lol ;) BTW, my mileage before the PCM update was 42-45 at 65mph. It tanked to 36-39 at 65mph after the PCM update. After I did the battery disconnect, I can go 72mph on flat road and get 44-48mpg! Yeah, it worked for me. I drive mostly freeway, so because of the raised EV speed, 65mph cycles the battery use/charge so much, that I don't gain a thing. (it's kind of up and down hills where I'm at) The magic charge benefit speed seems to be about 68-72 mph now.

[DrewFM]

Just be careful that the car doesn't figure out what you are doing or you might be hearing "I'm sorry Dave but I can't allow you to do that."

LMAO! Well...... :shift:

[Eddie Sessum]

Just did mine.. Battery shows about the same but I haven't driven it yet. Hopefully it helps somehow for me.

[Eddie Sessum]

 

Thank you, Gry Sql. I can tell you that my inspiration came from my android phone of all things (which also uses a Lithium ion battery). Phone was acting up yesterday morning,The battery hasn't been lasting as long for the last month. I had it plugged in charging and unplugged it at 80% according to the indicator.....so I did a 'hard reset' on it (pulling out the battery, reinstalling it and then reset android back to 'out of box'...after everything came back on, the battery indicator now read 100%! I thought to myself, how in the world did I gain 20% charge by just 'telling the thing' that it was new? Then, the 'hmmm, I wonder' light bulb went off about my car. Same thing happened. HVB charge stated about 20%....disconnected 12v and HVB for five minutes....reconnected and then it read 30-40%! Maybe, like the phone, if it thinks it's SOC is 80%, but its really at 100%, wouldn't it tell MG1 (generator) to stop charging? Somehow, I think all these things that use LI batteries, sometimes lose track of what the true SOC (capacity) actually is. That's my best semi-educated guess. lol ;) BTW, my mileage before the PCM update was 42-45 at 65mph. It tanked to 36-39 at 65mph after the PCM update. After I did the battery disconnect, I can go 72mph on flat road and get 44-48mpg! Yeah, it worked for me. I drive mostly freeway, so because of the raised EV speed, 65mph cycles the battery use/charge so much, that I don't gain a thing. (it's kind of up and down hills where I'm at) The magic charge benefit speed seems to be about 68-72 mph now.

 

What you said here kinda goes on what I had already said.. At 65ish the ev mode goes on and off and charging the battery uses more than giving it a full charge and just running ICE down the road.

 

Being my battery gauge is exactly the same but Alot of the settings changed back to defaults I don't have much hope.. :/

[acdii]

It would be brilliant if the hard reset turns out to be a cure for some of the low MPGs people are seeing with the FFH.

Wouldn't that be a kicker, that was the only thing I didn't try in that other car. What this does is equal to pulling hte battery in a non hybrid and keeping it disconnected for 30 minutes, wipes out all the KAM and KOEO memory, flushing all the tables and starting from scratch.

[GrySql]

wipes out all the KAM and KOEO memory, flushing all the tables and starting from scratch.

That's what the Tech said, and added that this makes a huge difference when applying a new rationale to the on-board computer, i.e., the new PCM update.

I have more driving to do before I really believe this but I am optimistic now.

 

The Forum strikes again!

[Eddie Sessum]

Did mine, so far its looking nill. But no worse.

[MaineFusion]

Did mine, so far its looking nill. But no worse.

 

How long did you keep it disconnected?

 

One thing I wonder is how many of the FFH that under preform sat on sales lots for a while and had quite a number of test drives. My thought is that test drives may frequently be about testing performance and result in the computers "learning" some inefficient operating behaviors. Hard resetting the computers would cause them to forget bad habits.

Edited September 6, 2013 by MaineFusion

[corncobs]

 

How long did you keep it disconnected?

 

One thing I wonder is how many of the FFH that under preform sat on sales lots for a while and had quite a number of test drives. My thought is that test drives may frequently be about testing performance and result in the computers "learning" some inefficient operating behaviors. Hard resetting the computers would cause them to forget bad habits.

Ditto that's exactly what I thought and/or maybe the under performers have been chosen for a factory test lap and screwed with the initial learning process of the PCM.

[MaineFusion]

Ditto that's exactly what I thought and/or maybe the under performers have been chosen for a factory test lap and screwed with the initial learning process of the PCM.

I was under the impression that all cars went for a test lap at the factory. I picked up mine the day it arrived on the truck it had 4-8 miles on it (don't remember precisely now). Less than a mile was put on it at the dealership, just enough to get to the gas station to fill it up.

[corncobs]

I can't imagine that they test drive every car that would be a massive undertaking!

 

I think the few miles come from getting the cars to and from the train and getting the car ready at the dealer.

 

If they do test drive each car they might have some drivers that have a very very heavy right foot basically totally screwing up the initial first components communication and setting a very bad first parameter set.

[MaineFusion]

I can't imagine that they test drive every car that would be a massive undertaking!

 

I think the few miles come from getting the cars to and from the train and getting the car ready at the dealer.

 

If they do test drive each car they might have some drivers that have a very very heavy right foot basically totally screwing up the initial first components communication and setting a very bad first parameter set.

 

This makes total sense. I don't know that they would have to do an extended test, but I'm sure every car does have to have some sort of track test to make sure it is working correctly.

[GrySql]

Well, mine is creeping up from last weeks <31 average to tonight's 37.7 lifetime average.

My EV time at 68mph is lovely to see.

I can tell almost exactly when the road surface is starting down in elevation, the EV Mode starts, it even carries a bit uphill on a slight slope.

I check this by watching my Garmin GPS elevation status.

In my case, the car is improving, whether it will ever be an average or high mpg performer is still undetermined.

At least it is going back to the mpg zone where it was when I got it last December, hopefully the added EV time ought to help in the long run.

 

BTW, I asked the Service Tech to diagnose my HVB.

He responded by saying the car does that automatically all the time, all he does is check for that status on his computer.

If the HVB had any fault it would go into the 'limp mode' and a Dashboard Alert would tell you to have it serviced.

In summary, it is a good battery, doing exactly what it should be doing.

[acdii]

When a car is built, before it leave the factory it is put though a series of tests, water leaks, quality inspection, and then they put it on a dyno, run up the engine through a series of tests to ensure all is working correctly, put on rollers to ensure the brakes are working, then it is driven out to the lot, loaded on a rail car and delivered.

 

 

GrySql, keeping my fingers crossed that yours is resolved. The theory seems good, and most likely will work on some cars, but not on all. Some are just going to be bad no matter what is done to them, Thar be Gremlins in them!

[Jamone]

I pulled the 12v battery for ~10 minutes yesterday. Clearly enough for it to reset some things like clock, and EV+ locations. I haven't had a chance to drive it on the highway yet but I can already tell its acting different. Warmup finished and the ICE started charging the HVB before I left my subdivision instead of 1/2 a mile after leaving. On a couple trips up to 45 mph that I normally would get 45-50 mpg I am getting 52-56 mpg. The car also seems to coast longer and doesn't feel as draggy when letting off the gas.

Edited September 6, 2013 by Jamone

[terryb]

I did the deed to mine and it seems to be doing better. I had several 5 mi. trips and all were in excess of 40 mpg according to the empower display. I've got a refuel coming up so everything will get zeroed this evening. We shall see. I'll make a run around the beltway to go to the Houston FFH meet in the morning.

[MaineFusion]

I wish there were some FFH meets here in the southern Maine area.

[majorleeslow]

that would be nice.

Edited September 7, 2013 by majorleeslow

[hybridbear]

I was under the impression that all cars went for a test lap at the factory. I picked up mine the day it arrived on the truck it had 4-8 miles on it (don't remember precisely now). Less than a mile was put on it at the dealership, just enough to get to the gas station to fill it up.

I can't imagine that they test drive every car that would be a massive undertaking!

 

I think the few miles come from getting the cars to and from the train and getting the car ready at the dealer.

 

If they do test drive each car they might have some drivers that have a very very heavy right foot basically totally screwing up the initial first components communication and setting a very bad first parameter set.

When a car is built, before it leave the factory it is put though a series of tests, water leaks, quality inspection, and then they put it on a dyno, run up the engine through a series of tests to ensure all is working correctly, put on rollers to ensure the brakes are working, then it is driven out to the lot, loaded on a rail car and delivered.

Tesla recently released a video showing their final QA process before cars leave the factory. Since the Model S is electric they can do their testing indoors unlike most manufacturers.

 

When we picked up our FFH it had 12 miles on it. I wondered why so many when the gas station used by the dealership is their next door neighbor on the same street. When my parents picked up their C-Max Energi it had about 25 miles on it...I remember when test driving a Toyota hybrid while comparison shopping that it had only 2 miles on it before we drove it. And the first FFH that we drove before ordering our car began our test drive with less than 5 miles on the odometer. Since both our FFH and my parents' Energi were special order vehicles they shouldn't have been used for any test drives or anything, yet they still had miles on them...