Pedestrian Protection System activating without hitting anything.

[RustyBit]

Hey, my first post........as the thread title states, my Pedestrian Protection Activation System deployed without a pedestrian in sight and without hitting anything.
I was driving at a speed less than 25kph as I was just starting to go over a speed hump. I knew the speed hump was there and did not brake heavily approaching it. 100% did not hit anything or bottom out in anyway. A large van was approaching from the opposite direction, but not close enough to cause problems. I understand that the PPS uses the three sensors plus the radar to detect pedestrians; maybe it thought the van was a very large pedestrian. In doing so, the bonnet (hood), hinges, and actuators were destroyed, which is a very expensive fault.
My questions are: has anyone else had this happen and does anybody know how to remove the PPS actuators from the Air Bag system?
I certainly do not want to go through that again.
My car is a 2018 FN Australian manual GT. It has quite a few mods, including body kit, but that has all been on there for over three years, got bored during Covid. I put as much info on so as to lessen the questions.

Sponsored

 

[RustyBit]

Yep. And according to one of my parts suppliers I am not the only one, it is happening more often.

 

[luca1290]

My questions are: has anyone else had this happen and does anybody know how to remove the PPS actuators from the Air Bag system?

I guess that electronically you can't. The SRS system is locked and it's not accessible or modifiable with FORScan ASBuilt Editor.

But you can engineer some resistor to mimic the resistance of the explosive charges to fool the module.
Just do it properly (proper connectors, sealants...).

Do you care to post any pictures of the damage? I've yet to see one of these systems deployed.

 

[Skye]

https://www.fordservicecontent.com/...S&div=f&vFilteringEnabled=False&buildtype=web

https://media.ford.com/content/ford...llision-assist-with-pedestrian-detection.html

Sorry about what happened. It seems to be a bad combination of events. I do wonder if any of the sensors involved degrade and lose accuracy over time.

There are two broad reasons why I'd have serious reservations about removing the PPS actuators.

Modifying the car's safety features isn't something to be taken lightly, even if you never intend on selling the car. I know what would happen if I designed a fix: I'd get into an accident, inspectors would confirm the car's systems had been changed, with the insurance company then wash their hands of it. Worse still, that one time in a million I'd need and appreciate the feature, only to realize and remember it's no longer there.

My knowledge of these sensors and systems is they are heavily interconnected to one another. There's the physical, electrical connections, but also the logical messaging and checks that are constantly occurring. IMO, the ability to circumvent one service while leaving everything else in-tact would require some heavy electronic design and systems engineering knowledge.

Before posting, I did check the Ford US Warranty Guide. The Supplemental Restraint System is covered for 5 Yr / 60,000 mi, 96,500 km. For US operators, I wonder if the PPS is covered as part of the SRS. IDK.

Checking Ford Extended Service Plans, the, "Collision Avoidance System" is covered by the following policies:

Premium

The Base, Powertrain and Extra plans do not appear to cover any safety-related features, by those brochures or the ESP agreement I'm wading through.

Returning to the Premium Plan, while I could not find any specific insight on the PPS, I did find this:

"5D. COVERED ITEMS - “PremiumCARE”
If You elected PremiumCARE, all Failures are covered EXCEPT for those items excluded in the Provision titled: “WHAT IS NOT COVERED BY THIS AGREEMENT.”"

What is not covered? Any pre-existing condition, problems caused by modification or lack of maintenance and common wear items, brake pads for example.

 

[RustyBit]

I guess that electronically you can't. The SRS system is locked and it's not accessible or modifiable with FORScan ASBuilt Editor.

But you can engineer some resistor to mimic the resistance of the explosive charges to fool the module.
Just do it properly (proper connectors, sealants...).

Do you care to post any pictures of the damage? I've yet to see one of these systems deployed.

Thanks for the reply, as for pics very difficult to show as the actuators are installed below the hinges. I managed to flatten the bonnet and pushed the pistons back in.

 

[WildHorse]

Wait, so there's explosive charges attached to the hood hinges ?

 

[RustyBit]

Wait, so there's explosive charges attached to the hood hinges ?

In Australia from 2018 yes. Either explosive charges or very powerful electrical actuators (solenoids). The reason they are there, so it goes, is that if you are about to hit a pedestrian, they deploy, lifting the back edge of the bonnet, giving more clearance between the bonnet and the engine compartment, supposedly making a softer landing for the said pedestrian.

 

[CrazyHippie]

Hey, my first post........as the thread title states, my Pedestrian Protection Activation System deployed without a pedestrian in sight and without hitting anything.
I was driving at a speed less than 25kph as I was just starting to go over a speed hump. I knew the speed hump was there and did not brake heavily approaching it. 100% did not hit anything or bottom out in anyway. A large van was approaching from the opposite direction, but not close enough to cause problems. I understand that the PPS uses the three sensors plus the radar to detect pedestrians; maybe it thought the van was a very large pedestrian. In doing so, the bonnet (hood), hinges, and actuators were destroyed, which is a very expensive fault.
My questions are: has anyone else had this happen and does anybody know how to remove the PPS actuators from the Air Bag system?
I certainly do not want to go through that again.
My car is a 2018 FN Australian manual GT. It has quite a few mods, including body kit, but that has all been on there for over three years, got bored during Covid. I put as much info on so as to lessen the questions.

Pedestrian protection system? What happened to "Look both ways and don't step into the path of a moving vehicle?" Geesh!

 

[RustyBit]

Pedestrian protection system? What happened to "Look both ways and don't step into the path of a moving vehicle?" Geesh!

I'd be happy if it was a pedestrian........ Well maybe nah.

 

[RustyBit]

https://www.fordservicecontent.com/...S&div=f&vFilteringEnabled=False&buildtype=web

https://media.ford.com/content/ford...llision-assist-with-pedestrian-detection.html

Sorry about what happened. It seems to be a bad combination of events. I do wonder if any of the sensors involved degrade and lose accuracy over time.

There are two broad reasons why I'd have serious reservations about removing the PPS actuators.

Modifying the car's safety features isn't something to be taken lightly, even if you never intend on selling the car. I know what would happen if I designed a fix: I'd get into an accident, inspectors would confirm the car's systems had been changed, with the insurance company then wash their hands of it. Worse still, that one time in a million I'd need and appreciate the feature, only to realize and remember it's no longer there.

My knowledge of these sensors and systems is they are heavily interconnected to one another. There's the physical, electrical connections, but also the logical messaging and checks that are constantly occurring. IMO, the ability to circumvent one service while leaving everything else in-tact would require some heavy electronic design and systems engineering knowledge.

Before posting, I did check the Ford US Warranty Guide. The Supplemental Restraint System is covered for 5 Yr / 60,000 mi, 96,500 km. For US operators, I wonder if the PPS is covered as part of the SRS. IDK.

Checking Ford Extended Service Plans, the, "Collision Avoidance System" is covered by the following policies:

Premium

The Base, Powertrain and Extra plans do not appear to cover any safety-related features, by those brochures or the ESP agreement I'm wading through.

Returning to the Premium Plan, while I could not find any specific insight on the PPS, I did find this:

"5D. COVERED ITEMS - “PremiumCARE”
If You elected PremiumCARE, all Failures are covered EXCEPT for those items excluded in the Provision titled: “WHAT IS NOT COVERED BY THIS AGREEMENT.”"

What is not covered? Any pre-existing condition, problems caused by modification or lack of maintenance and common wear items, brake pads for example.

What is not covered? Any pre-existing condition, problems caused by modification or lack of maintenance and common wear items, brake pads for example.

Sorry about the late reply; I have now had it all repaired, painted and striped again! Also had everything checked by the panel shop, and the Ford dealer where I purchased the car new. There were no problems with any of the sensors or radar alignment etc. Ford Australia knocked back any claims as they determined the modifications may have caused it. A...Holes!!

To add insult to injury, it cost quite a bit more than expected because, as it turns out, whenever any component of the so-called safety systems is activated, the AirBag module, which is in the same location as the ECU, under the centre console, has to be replaced and reprogrammed???

Was driven very nervously over bumps and speedhumps for the first few hundred K's.

I'd be happy if it was a pedestrian........ Well maybe nah.

I was thinking exactly the same thing, except the nah part. Needed to be able to blame someone or something.

 

[Skye]

Glad the issue was fixed. Sorry to hear Ford would not support. I checked the US warranty pamphlet. The Supplemental Restraint System is warrantied for five years, 60,000 mi / 96,000 km.

I read up on airbag deployment, codes and recovery. When any airbag deploys, a code and crash data are hard-set in some modules. One way to clear the code is to re-flash the affected module. If that can be accomplished, great. If not, the affected module is then replaced.

 

[RustyBit]

Thanks, yes, they said the module was full and could not be reset. I thought it was odd that one relatively small amount of data from the PPS would fill the module. I spoke to several Ford dealers, and they all said that it is normal for the module to be replaced after any airbag or part of the SRS system deploys. The panel shop and my original dealer tried to flash it with no luck.

Sponsored