Climate Fan repeatedly turns all the way up!

[ab50228]

Hello, I have a 2012 Edge Limited. Recently the fan setting for the climate control will randomly turn itself up to the highest setting. It seems to NOT be on the touch screen but maybe something with the actual console part.. Any one else hear of this? Any at home ideas before I have to take it in? Temp never changes, but the fan speed will turn up, even if it's turned off..

 

Thanks in advance!

[enigma-2]

If you have the manual climate control, I would suspect the blower motor resistor as failing.

[WWWPerfA_ZN0W]

You can also try recalibrating the system, it may solve the issue.

http://www.fordedgeforum.com/topic/23097-2014-edge-limited-no-heat/

Edited March 14, 2018 by WWWPerfA_ZN0W

[kmitch80]

Hello, I have a 2012 Edge Limited. Recently the fan setting for the climate control will randomly turn itself up to the highest setting. It seems to NOT be on the touch screen but maybe something with the actual console part.. Any one else hear of this? Any at home ideas before I have to take it in? Temp never changes, but the fan speed will turn up, even if it's turned off..

 

Thanks in advance!

Did you ever find a fix for this? I'm having the exact same issue! Dealer says the APIM need replacing. But not paying $750 for what they THINK is the issue.

Edited September 19, 2018 by kmitch80

[GreatWyte]

Has anyone found the fix for this issue? I am experiencing the same problem on a 2012 Edge Sport. Climate control kicks out of auto and blower turns all the way up. It keeps beeping as if the up button is being pressed repeatedly. 

[ovcrash]

Hi,

 

anyone has a fix for this? I have the same problem.

 

thanks

Edited March 28, 2020 by ovcrash

[GreatWyte]

The fix for my vehicle was the replacing the FCIM. The Front Control Interface Module was replaced in May of 2019 and has been good since.

[ovcrash]

28 minutes ago, GreatWyte said:

The fix for my vehicle was the replacing the FCIM. The Front Control Interface Module was replaced in May of 2019 and has been good since.

hi,

 

The price of that part is pretty expensive, trying to see if i can not find a used one somewhere or maybe find a replacement from maybe a ford explorer to have real buttons that are less prone to break.

[GreatWyte]

On ‎3‎/‎31‎/‎2020 at 2:41 PM, ovcrash said:

hi,

 

The price of that part is pretty expensive, trying to see if i can not find a used one somewhere or maybe find a replacement from maybe a ford explorer to have real buttons that are less prone to break.

Yes, I believe the part alone was $340. Initially my blower would turn up all the way. Then it started doing the opposite and turned down all the way, so I pretty much had no heat/AC, so I had to do something.

[tommy salcedo]

For the FCIM do you guys mean just the wiring harness / connector? Or is it the entire front panel?

I see Motorcraft part WPT-1278 that looks like a connector with a bunch of leads and some heat shrink tubing. Just making sure that's what you guys are talking about.

 

My climate control continues to false press and beeping as if I am pressing "Temperature +" continuously on my 2011 Edge.

 

Here's the part I am finding, looks like it's the clip I highlighted in red:

 

Edited December 14, 2020 by tommy salcedo

[WWWPerfA_ZN0W]

the FCIM is the front panel.

 

this is the SONY piece

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2011-2014-Ford-Edge-Sony-Radio-Face-Climate-Control-Panel-BT4T-18A802-CL/174264088888

 

Edited December 14, 2020 by WWWPerfA_ZN0W

[kevink5516]

I'm having the same issue on my 2013 Edge Limited. The fan will increase to full blast and to full heat which is really annoying in the summertime. It will also change the audio source occasionally switching from SXM to FM. I've found that rubbing the palm of my hand firmly over the capacitive touch buttons on the control panel and then resetting the climate on the touch screen will temporarily pause the problem; usually until the next time I drive the car. I now officially HATE capacitive touch buttons and will never buy a car with this type of controls again. 

 

I went as far as to take my radio/climate control panel out of my Edge and then open up the panel housing to see if there is anything that can be done to repair whatever is causing the false touch inputs on the panel. What I found is that on the backside of the plastic control panel face, a thin flexible membrane circuit board is glued to the plastic. This board contains the capacitive touch sensors which must be in perfect contact with the plastic face to work. Over the years of heat cycling in the vehicle, bubbles have started to form between the circuit board and the plastic face. My theory is that these air bubbles cause enough of a disturbance in the electric field to falsely trigger the button as being "touched". I'm a mechanical engineer and don't fully understand capacitive touch sensor technology but talking to some EE's at my work they agreed that this is likely the problem. 

 

I can't think of anyway to repair this. Trying to remove and re-glue the flexible circuit board will likely damage the board in the process. 

 

Does anyone know how interchangeable the FCIM radio/climate control panels are in the Edge? The part number on my panel is DT4T-18A802-CB. I can't find any information online which identifies what the final two letters ("CB") of this number mean. Searching for used replacements on Ebay I can find models ending in "CL" and other versions. I cannot locate a "CB" version anywhere. Has anyone tried replacing the FCIM with a model different than what was removed from the car?

   

[GreatWyte]

I'm not sure about the interchangeability of the panels. I would think that if it was from the model years 2011-2014 and had the same features it would work. I ordered mine from my local dealership and didn't compare part numbers of the old one. Looking at my receipt the part number of the new panel I received is  DT4T18A802CC.

[CARTBRY]

I have had the same problem with my 2013 Limited for about a year now. I have narrowed the issue to the physical blower fan increase (+) button below the round volume dial (not the LCD touchscreen or steering wheel controlled dash blower + button). It will intermediately act as if someone is pushing the button repeatedly. To stop it, I have to push the physical blower fan decrease (-) button at least once. This stops it for a random period of time (seconds, minutes, even the remainder of my trip sometimes) then it starts again. Pushing the LCD blower decrease (-) or the steering wheel blower decrease (-) button does not stop it, rather just fights the malfunctioning button back and forth. It's to the point where I drive with one finger on the blower decrease button at all times ready to push if and when it starts going up. I am (nearly) 100% confident it is a mechanical problem with that button and not a computer issue as I have been dealing with it for a year and no module reset techniques have an impact. 

 

Since there are 3 methods to increase the blower motor on the vehicle and only one of the 3 is the culprit (the one I would naturally use the least), I am thinking about disabling the actual button instead of buying an expensive replacement module for a button I don't need or use. Unfortunately, the only way I can think of disabling the button is by physically destroying it. Easiest method would be to drill a hole straight through it or try to surgically cut that button right out of the dash with a dremel or something. Alternatively, a little less crude yet more work would be to remove the panel and destroy the solder connections behind the button. The only  reason I haven't done this months ago is that I'm concerned destroying that button will either cause the button to permanently be in the activated position resulting in me never being able to lower the blower speed again or even worse, causing harm/errors to other climate control functions which all work just fine with zero issues. 

 

Does anyone have any advice or know how these buttons actually function internally to know the proper way to destroy them effectively?           

 

 

[ovcrash]

I have the exact same problem and i’m trying to find a solution. Your idea is good, but it would maybe make the whole panel stop working. I tried to just unplug the whole panel but it disables the heating function completely and no way to turn back on.

[CARTBRY]

14 minutes ago, ovcrash said:

I have the exact same problem and i’m trying to find a solution. Your idea is good, but it would maybe make the whole panel stop working. I tried to just unplug the whole panel but it disables the heating function completely and no way to turn back on.

That is exactly my concern as well. One of these days I'm going to get fed up and just do it and risk the cost of a new module if I break the whole thing. I feel that day coming soon which is why I made the post today in a last ditch effort. Somebody talk me back from or over the ledge! haha ....  When the day comes and I do it, I'll be sure to update this post on the success/failure.  

[ovcrash]

I found this post in the other forum and it seems that it’s a recurring problem even after changing the panel.

 

https://lincolnforums.com/forums/threads/problems-with-capacitive-touch-front-control-panel.34683/

 

the other thing i was looking into was replacing this with the ford explorer panel that have normal push buttons. I never had  confirmation that would work and maybe it won’t fit because of the design of the panel.

 

so back to square one and trying to find a fix. In the other forum they talk about cleaning the panel but i don’t see how that would fix it.

[kevink5516]

I just swapped my panel out with a used one I picked up on ebay and it has fixed my problems. The panel was a good deal at only $65 since it was missing the touchscreen bezel and some of the plastic housing was damaged. I took the electrical parts I needed from this panel and installed them into the frame of my panel. Problem solved. Since this is a used panel of equal age as the car; I don't expect this fix to last forever before it starts to have the same problems again. I'll be trading in my Edge soon anyways though to get something more efficient for a new commute I'll be starting in a few weeks. 

 

Regarding the idea of permanently disabling the faulty buttons, I'd be hesitant to try any irreversible modifications to your panel unless you have another replacement panel on hand as a backup. I also tried just unplugging the whole control panel from the head unit and confirmed the system will not work without the control panel harness connected. Putting a hole through a sensor might make the whole system go out of out of control since it will still be trying to control and sense the electric field for that particular sensor. If you're ok disabling all the touch buttons, you could maybe try leaving the ribbon cable from the touch panel disconnected from the PCB control board and then see how the head unit then responds to this.

[1004ron]

2 hours ago, CARTBRY said:

I have had the same problem with my 2013 Limited for about a year now. I have narrowed the issue to the physical blower fan increase (+) button below the round volume dial (not the LCD touchscreen or steering wheel controlled dash blower + button). It will intermediately act as if someone is pushing the button repeatedly. To stop it, I have to push the physical blower fan decrease (-) button at least once. This stops it for a random period of time (seconds, minutes, even the remainder of my trip sometimes) then it starts again. Pushing the LCD blower decrease (-) or the steering wheel blower decrease (-) button does not stop it, rather just fights the malfunctioning button back and forth. It's to the point where I drive with one finger on the blower decrease button at all times ready to push if and when it starts going up. I am (nearly) 100% confident it is a mechanical problem with that button and not a computer issue as I have been dealing with it for a year and no module reset techniques have an impact. 

 

Since there are 3 methods to increase the blower motor on the vehicle and only one of the 3 is the culprit (the one I would naturally use the least), I am thinking about disabling the actual button instead of buying an expensive replacement module for a button I don't need or use. Unfortunately, the only way I can think of disabling the button is by physically destroying it. Easiest method would be to drill a hole straight through it or try to surgically cut that button right out of the dash with a dremel or something. Alternatively, a little less crude yet more work would be to remove the panel and destroy the solder connections behind the button. The only  reason I haven't done this months ago is that I'm concerned destroying that button will either cause the button to permanently be in the activated position resulting in me never being able to lower the blower speed again or even worse, causing harm/errors to other climate control functions which all work just fine with zero issues. 

 

Does anyone have any advice or know how these buttons actually function internally to know the proper way to destroy them effectively?           

 

 

For the button that you want to disable, you could cut the printed circuit board track and if it doesn't work out good just join it with solder.

 

[Edwin-SlowPoke]

I've been having the same issues as those above have described.  On eBay, I found a panel for 2012 Edge SEL for our 2012 Limited.  It fits 100% and works.   The single cable plug and attachment points are identical.  Not the shiny black panel;  obviously it looks different but it still looks good... most importantly no ghosting functions. I'd rather pay $105 versus all the other much higher costs for the original look and same age part.  Also, although I suspect the technology may be the same as the original failing "Limited" panel, I'm hoping the different "button" style has fewer if no issues in the future.  Good luck and thanks for all the posts.

[Devo33]

I had this problem and going with the theory that the air in between the plastic that covers the round pad censors on the FICM, was causing it to read being pushed up or down. I took a heat gun to the pads and kind of melted it back in place. It works great now! Hope this helps everyone out. 

Edited July 10, 2022 by Devo33

[techwriter1009]

On 7/10/2022 at 2:43 PM, Devo33 said:

I had this problem and going with the theory that the air in between the plastic that covers the round pad censors on the FICM, was causing it to read being pushed up or down. I took a heat gun to the pads and kind of melted it back in place. It works great now! Hope this helps everyone out. 

My husband did what you did and it fixed the problem! thank you!

[stevebrain]

On 7/10/2022 at 11:43 AM, Devo33 said:

I had this problem and going with the theory that the air in between the plastic that covers the round pad censors on the FICM, was causing it to read being pushed up or down. I took a heat gun to the pads and kind of melted it back in place. It works great now! Hope this helps everyone out. 

Did you remove the panel first and apply the heat to the actual switch, or did you leave the panel on and apply the heat directly to the face of the panel?

[stevebrain]

On 7/11/2022 at 6:07 PM, techwriter1009 said:

My husband did what you did and it fixed the problem! thank you!

Did you remove the panel first and apply the heat to the actual switch, or did you leave the panel on and apply the heat directly to the face of the panel?

[stevebrain]

On 10/24/2021 at 3:22 PM, Edwin-SlowPoke said:

I've been having the same issues as those above have described.  On eBay, I found a panel for 2012 Edge SEL for our 2012 Limited.  It fits 100% and works.   The single cable plug and attachment points are identical.  Not the shiny black panel;  obviously it looks different but it still looks good... most importantly no ghosting functions. I'd rather pay $105 versus all the other much higher costs for the original look and same age part.  Also, although I suspect the technology may be the same as the original failing "Limited" panel, I'm hoping the different "button" style has fewer if no issues in the future.  Good luck and thanks for all the posts.

What is the part number for the SEL panel?