AcousticTheory

Hello, I recently purchased a 2019 Edge Titanium (used, w/ ~12k miles) and I have been learning about the controls and tech in this car. I'm coming from a 2010 Fusion SE with Sync, and this is at the other end of the spectrum for complexity and features. When I'm not in a rush, I spend around five minutes poking at the touch screen controls and trying different things while my car warms up.

I have a couple settings in the gauge cluster Settings menu that keep mysteriously coming back after I have disabled them. 1) Auto Engine Off, and 2) Easy Entry and Exit. I don't need the seat moving around unnecessarily, and I want to avoid the wear and tear caused by auto stop-start, to the point where I'm about ready to buy a defeat device I found that installs in-line with the button panel harness and simulates a momentary button press after a time delay from starting the vehicle and applying power. Is there a software bug in these feature settings that might cause them to automatically come back? Is there a software-based fix?

The transmission vent cap should say something like "GORE" on it, and if that is the case, then the piece of plastic inside is actually called "Gore-Tex" - it prevents water from passing while allowing airflow. The same material is used in some winter clothing so it doesn't become soaked and un-breathable. It's used in breather caps to keep water out, but allow air to pass slowly.

I previously worked for a company that made the Ford AVAS sounders for some PHEV vehicles, and a small circle of Gore-Tex was used over a breather opening in those housings to prevent them from developing air pressure differentials inside due to temperature.

The intermittent nature of the sound even while RPMs increase and decrease would suggest something is loose, and the diagnosis suggests the engine has had a very hard life before you received it. At least they are going to replace the engine.