some weird codes showed up yesterday, any ideas?

[wade001]

so, on the way home yesterday after work, car has 1746 miles, everything normal. my dash dings and says "50 miles till empty" notification.. so i stop and get gas on the way home, the same shell station i always stop at, fill up with the same shell 93 i always get..

after filling up, i turn the car on, and wrench icon shows up, and a notification to check the manual. so i press OK and head home. the gas station is like 1 mile from home. i dont believe it is the gas, as the wrench icon showed immediately after starting the car, and i dont think the car had enough time to actually use any of the new fuel i put in the tank, still residual fuel left in the lines. and the tank was not completely empty

i attempted to read codes once i got home, and due to user error i wasnt able to read any. so i turned the car off, then back on in ACC mode, again not able to read any codes due to what i believe was (my) user error. later on in the evening, after some troubleshooting and research i was able to pull codes.

fordpass app says "powertrain malfunction / reduced power". granted the gas station is very close to the house, but i felt no indication of reduced power on the way home.

the codes i pulled from OBDLink app are:

• u0121-00 - lost communication with ABS control module
• u0146-00 - lost communication with gateway A
• u1012-00 - invalid internal control module monitoring data received from ABS control module
• u2100-00 - initial configuration not complete
• u0155-87 - lost communication with instrument panel cluster control module
• u0155-00 - lost communication with instrument panel cluster control module
• u0253-00 - lost communication with accessory protocol interface module
• u0401-82 - invalid data received from ECM/PCM

i called the dealer this morning, they're doing reduced hours at the moment, and are very busy today, and wont have time to look at it. they also said they dont have a loaner if i just drop it off so i am calling back on monday to make an appt and drop the car off hopefully to get a loaner, as i still am working full time at the moment i'll need to drive something.

some info that may (or may not) be of interest. last tuesday (3 days before these codes) i got my obdlink MX and forscan together and changed vehicle chimes to come from IPC speaker rather than the audio system speakers (720-01-01: change xxxx xxx4 xxxx to xxxx xxx0 xxxx). thats the only change i have made to the car. the obdlink MX has been connected ever since, wednesday, and thursday, but on friday it was not only still connected but i started using torque and the obdlink software to monitor the guages and charts the software has, just because i was curious

does anyone think me changing the vehicle chimes, leaving the obdlink MX attached to the odb2 port, and/or viewing the gagues/graphs in torque and obdlink software would cause these codes to be thrown? i wouldnt think so, but, what do i know..

anyone got any other ideas while i wait to get to the dealer?

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[ORRadtech]

I've had a plug in obd ii reader mess with the system on other cars before. Kept it from passing emissions. Had to unplug it and run it for a while for it to pass. It wasn't the MX though.
How's the health of your battery? If the voltage drops too low during cranking it can cause it to lose connections to some of the modules.
Were it mine, I'd charge the battery with a dedicated charger then clear the codes and see what happens/ if they come back.
Of course, the downside of that is if they don't come back the dealer is going to tell you there's nothing they can do...

 

[wade001]

thanks for the idea. i havent taken a voltmeter to the battery itself, but i did notice that when in ACC mode the dash is showing 11.5v to 12v. its only a couple months old, but has been sitting at the dealer (presumably under hot florida sun) since june 2019. i cant accurately remember what the batt voltage is when the car is running, dont know that i have noticed :( . its unfortunately storming outside right now so i cant currently check or get the voltmeter out either. is something i can check later or even have autozone do a battery/alt test.

some more of what i have checked, i have checked the traction control/abs plug on the drivers side fender well, in the engine bay, it was all snug and all looked all taped up from factory. check both grounds underneath the front corner of the airbox, attached to the fender well area in the engine bay, i found a couple threads where the ground had broken. mine were snug and secure and looked to be fine. checked the ABS module, its seated and secure, looks to be ok.

i need to check the fuses, but again its storming, but is on my list of things to take a look at before i hit the dealer.

 

[Qcman17]

I'm kind of suspect of the battery too. If they are going out they can wreak havoc on vehicle systems.

 

[Avispa]

And the newer ones don't have analog gauges. Those would peg, go to zero and then read right after start when the battery was going out. Stunned a couple of Auto Zone guys with that. Don't guess digital gauges give that warning.

 

[wade001]

guess i got a battery to check tomorrow.. but seeing as how the car is so new, im sure i wont have a problem getting one under warranty if it does indeed need replacing..

thanks everyone, and i'll be sure to update with whatever the dealer comes up with later..

 

[ugstang17]

Everything is pointing to communications IMHO. Nothing voltage related in your list. Either there is an issue on the CANBUS network OR the little generic gizmo you purchased and plugged into the OBD II port to play with the CANBUS system is causing issues, has caused issues, or while poking around within the system settings has caused addressing issues on the CANBUS. Just a hunch but with 30 years of troubleshooting experience I have often times found that when issues arise shortly after a new device is added, OR when software/firmware settings have been manipulated (updated as they always would try to claim) the problem resides there or in that recently altered system.

BTW "Initial configuration not complete" code is the suggestion that the device was attempting to make alterations either of its own or of your direction to do so. Just a troubleshooting techs hunch based on personal experience with canbus on other equipment.

Battery voltage is not uncommonly at the level you are seeing on the dash. My 14 read that level KOEO all the time (11.8 - 12.1vdc). The 17 is the same. The only solid way to know if your battery is good is to do a load test on it out of the car. A simple voltage check with a multimeter can be deceiving.

That's what warranty is for.

 

[wade001]

so.. i unplugged the odblink MX from the car, started it up and codes gone, wrench icon gone, engine light off. took the car for a spin, ford pass app happy, car is not under reduced power (dont ever think it was even though it was stated it was), went to autozone they checked the battery said it tested ok, had them "Read the codes" said there were none to read..

i'll give it a month or so, and plug back in the obdlink MX and see if it starts throwing codes again. but i suspect thats the issue, which is weird.. *shrugs*

thanks everyone for your input, guess i dont need to get to the dealer afterall.. at least for the moment seems everything is back to normal

 

[ugstang17]

so.. i unplugged the odblink MX from the car, started it up and codes gone, wrench icon gone, engine light off. took the car for a spin, ford pass app happy, car is not under reduced power (dont ever think it was even though it was stated it was), went to autozone they checked the battery said it tested ok, had them "Read the codes" said there were none to read..

i'll give it a month or so, and plug back in the obdlink MX and see if it starts throwing codes again. but i suspect thats the issue, which is weird.. *shrugs*

thanks everyone for your input, guess i dont need to get to the dealer afterall.. at least for the moment seems everything is back to normal

There you go. I don't know much, but I have been known how to resolve a thing or two over the decades.

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