A glitch in the F-150 matrix

"ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com" (ita97)
10/10/2019 at 10:45 • Filed to: None

A few days ago the parking brake switch failed on the F-150. More specifically, the release function of the switch failed; the apply function worked just fine. At almost 3 years old and 38K, this is the first thing on the truck that’s required attention beyond routine maintenance.

I had noticed Friday morning that I had to push the switch several times before it would release the parking brake when I left work. I made of mental note of needing to check that out this weekend and not setting the brake until I did. Come lunch time, I went home to grab a bite to eat and let the doggos out to play for a bit and feed them lunch. Without thinking, I set the parking brake out of habit when I parked the truck in the driveway. The release function of the parking brake switch was never to work again.

I ended up with my truck stuck in the driveway over my lunch break. A quick disassembly of the switch revealed a printed circuit board and an 8 wire connector feeding into the parking brake module. A quick google search didn’t turn up a pinout or detailed enough description of the parking brake wiring to make feel confident enough to think I could break out the power probe to apply some power to retract the parking brake (stepper motors in each rear caliper, so no manual release at the wheels). I also don’t own a scan tool with the capability to manually command the parking brake system.

Normally this wouldn’t be a big deal, as I could walk back to work (call it 25 minutes door to door) or otherwise just take the afternoon off, but I was to be on our reference desk that afternoon and few people are around on Fridays to horse trade reference shifts with. My boss ended up giving me a ride back to campus on his way back from lunch, and I walked home in the evening.

My time on the reference desk on a slow Friday afternoon gave me the oppotunity to fully disassemble the switch and find the failure point. There were two plastic posts that secure the black plastic housing that holds the release switch assembly together missing on the release switch along with loose pieces of the release switch assembly after it came apart. The wear pattern on the contacts was also completely different that on the apply switch, leading me to suspect those posts had been broken for some time (possibly broken off during assembly) and that housing was moving around with each press of the physical button until it finally came apart when lower tabs cracked . Once I got home that evening I was able to plug the switch back in and hold the release switch together with a finger and move the contacts to release the parking brake, freeing my truck from the driveway.

The truck spent the weekend flashing all kinds of warning lights, display messages and angry chimes. It was clearly upset at not having a parking brake switch at all. The local Ford dealer got the part in on Monday for $60 and life has been good since. I also got the number to file a claim for some after-warranty support Ford. I feel like a parking switch should last more than 38K, and some reimbursement for the new switch would be a nice gesture. I’m not holding my breath, though.

I’m still a very happy camper with this truck, but this little glitch highlights why I wish Toyota would get around to updating the Tundra into a modern truck. This is the kind of shit quality control issue I expect from American vehicles built by any of the big 3...

DISCUSSION (24)

CobraJoe > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/10/2019 at 10:57

Does it not release the parking brake when you put it in gear? That was a vacuum operated feature on the ‘96 CVPI I used to own, and it seems easier to implement on a purely electric setup.

That doesn’t fix the problem, but it would let you drive the truck home instead of leaving it at work.

BlueMazda2 - Blesses the rains down in Africa, Purveyor of BMW Individual Arctic Metallic, Merci Twingo > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/10/2019 at 10:59

This is just a heads up, but you can release it automatically by putting the truck in reverse or drive and tapping the gas pedal lightly.

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > BlueMazda2 - Blesses the rains down in Africa, Purveyor of BMW Individual Arctic Metallic, Merci Twingo
10/10/2019 at 11:08

I tried that procedure and it didn’t work. I think because the release switch literally came apart, it went in to malfunction mode where it wouldn’t respond to any inputs. I couldn’t get it to go into maintenance mode, either.

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > CobraJoe
10/10/2019 at 11:10

This is a purely electric set up. Printed circuit board with separate apply and release switches (and a bunch of little capacitors on the board), going to a parking brake module that communicates to the rest of the truck over the can-bus with electric stepper motors in each rear caliper.

Urambo Tauro > CobraJoe
10/10/2019 at 11:43

[Automatically ] release the parking brake when you put it in gear

I’m not so sure this is a good idea. Seems like a parking brake should be a totally independent thing. The car being in gear shouldn’t override the parking brake; if anything, the parking brake should be able to override the car in gear ( at least with the engine at idle speed) . I’ve heard that s ome states have inspections specifically requiring the parking brake to be able to hold the car, in gear, at 1500 RPM . That CVPI feature sounds like it would be totally counterproductive .

CobraJoe > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/10/2019 at 11:50

But would the can-bus also communicate with the shifter position and send a signal to the stepper motors in the rear caliper to release when the shifter is put in D?

I only ask because it was a feature Ford used 20 years ago, just in a different form. The mechanical foot parking brake was released by vacuum when the shifter was moved to D.

Again, it’s just a workaround, not a fix, but it could be useful to know about until you get it fixed.

CobraJoe > Urambo Tauro
10/10/2019 at 11:55

If I remember correctly, it would latch if you were in gear when you hit the parking brake, but it would release if it was previously latched when you shifted it into gear.

After all, it is a parking brake, meant to be used while the car is parked. If you put it in drive while the car is running, it’s safe to assume that you want the car to move.

The B6 Passat we used to own had a similar feature. It had an electronic parking brake and a manual instead, but if you left the parking brake on and put the car in gear and started releasing the clutch, it would automatically release the parking brake. It certainly saved me from looking like an idiot a few times.

Sammyno55 > CobraJoe
10/10/2019 at 12:02

I can confirm both of those. Had a B6 Passat with a manual and that's how it worked. My grandparents had a Panther Gran Marq and that's how it worked as well.

Long_Voyager, Now With More Caravanny Goodness > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/10/2019 at 12:03

This is the kind of shit quality control issue I expect from American vehicles built by any of the big 3...

It’s not like the modern Tundra is any better. Plenty of issues cropping up on those , many happening in the first year and well under 50k miles.

CobraJoe > Sammyno55
10/10/2019 at 12:08

Thanks for the backup. I very distinctly remember the stomping the parking brake while stopped at stoplights in the CVPI just to shift it into gear and use the resulting “BANG” to scare passengers.

I don’t even remember how I figured that trick out, I never use the parking brake in automatic equipped vehicles.

Captain of the Enterprise > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/10/2019 at 12:13

Toyota does need to do a serious update on the Tundra and 4Runner.

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > CobraJoe
10/10/2019 at 12:14

There is definitely communication with sifter position , but it is probably a matter of how Ford programs it all to work. If you put the truck and gear and try to move without releasing the brake it will display a message telling you to do so. It also has messages for when you attempt to set the brake while the truck is moving, which it won’t allow you to do.

Sammyno55 > CobraJoe
10/10/2019 at 12:14

The panther got me every time I backed it down my grandparents driveway. That bang!

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > Captain of the Enterprise
10/10/2019 at 12:21

Indeed. The 4runner doesn’t strike me as quite as outdated, as it is the last body-on-frame SUV standing built on less than a 1/2 ton truck platform. I see it as still filling that niche 4X4 market quite nicely. I could conceive of a not unreasonable future where I might buy a new one if my towing needs were to change a bit . The Tundra on the other hand feels like a slightly warmed over version of any full-size truck on the market in 2007. It’s not that it is bad, but when I was in the market for a new truck in 2017 I wasn’t even willing to consider spending real money on something not tremendously different than the 2005 F-150 I bought new back in the day. It’s competition has all moved on to vastly newer and better designs.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > CobraJoe
10/10/2019 at 12:34

My Corolla works the same way as the Passat with the added benefit that it also automatically engages the parking brake when you shut off the engine.

CobraJoe > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/10/2019 at 12:40

Ah, gotcha. Figures it would be too helpful to release the parking brake for you.

Oh well, I thought it would be worth a shot.

Captain of the Enterprise > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/10/2019 at 13:19

I test dro ve a 4Runner recently and it was really slow. My 2011 Camry 2.5 felt noticeably faster. I had to floor the 4Runner to merge and pass on the highway and give it a lot of gas to get moving from a stop. I think what it needs most is a p owertrain upgrade. It’s still a 5 speed and the 4.0 doesn’t feel like it powerful enough.

ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com > Captain of the Enterprise
10/10/2019 at 13:37

I agree there. I also kind of forgot about the Jeep Wrangler when making the initial reply as being in a similar market category. Although, I view even the 4 door wrangler as much more off-road oriented than the 4-runner. Enough so that owning a wrangler as anything more than a weekend toy doesn’t hold much appeal for. There also the Jeep, bro, image projection thing that I’m not comfortable with. I’d happily drive a 4 runner everyday and excessive it in remote mountain spots on the weeken d (not unlike what I do with my 2WD F-150, but I’d have to pay less attention to the weather forecast for getting home from seriously remote spots a long ways from pavement).

Captain of the Enterprise > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/10/2019 at 14:27

I agree on the Wrangler. I haven’t been in a current one but they seem like they are more compromised in regards to daily driving. Plus I wouldn’t be taking the roof and doors off so permanent r oof and door versions are much more appealing to me which is why I wanted to look at a 4Runner. Plus I’m a Toyota fan and have only bought Toyota’s since buying my own vehicles. Granted that’s only my 2005 Corolla and 2011 Camry but I have been impressed with them and their reliability and longevity and relative ease to work on when compared to Fords I started on in high school.

Gnarly > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/10/2019 at 20:21

Don’ t hold your breath on after warranty support. My 2011 F150 Ecoboost timing chain stretched at 460000 miles and caused a few codes to be thrown. Despite being within the warranty period, Ford refused to warranty it until it threw a SPECIFIC engine code, despite the dealer already having diagnosed the issue as a timing chain problem AND there being a service bulletin about this exact issue. I went back and forth with Ford for several months. The dealership even took my side and tried petitioning Ford corporate. No luck. After much back and forth I begged them to at least cover the cost of the chain itself, (l ike a $60 part) “as a show of good faith” I was told by a regional rep that Ford, “does not have the wherewithall to do so.

Yep. Ford told me to shove it over a $60 part that would have made me happy enough to stick with them. Repairs should have been over $3000 but the dealership did everything they could and managed to knock it down to $2300. It's still unbelievable to me. I've lost all good will towards Ford and I've only remained a customer because of that one dealership going to bat for me against the evil corporate overlords.

Runforcoverenfro > Long_Voyager, Now With More Caravanny Goodness
10/10/2019 at 22:20

I find that comment funny as well. The old e-brake setup Toyota used, the one under the steering column, was broken on the Toyota truck my wife owned. Damn Ford.

Bdholli > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/11/2019 at 09:23

I never use the release side of the rocker switch only the apply side. At the moment you touch the gas pedal it releases itself.. this works fantastic for traffic if I get tired holding the brake I just tug the e-brake switch at each stop and pop the gas to go! My wife’s car has this same feature and I have been doing this with her car for 6 years not a single issue...

Daniel > Gnarly
10/11/2019 at 15:53

I hope you meant 46,000 miles and not 460,000 miles as you typed it. Expecting after warranty work at nearly half a million miles is not going to happen.

NojustNo > ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com
10/12/2019 at 03:53

So much for having the parking brake as a backup if the h ydraulics fail.

P rogress!