tcconvert Posted March 29, 2021 Share Posted March 29, 2021 Haven't been on here for quite a spell. My 2016 has been pretty trouble-free so far, as I approach 27,000 miles. Had my first failure - the FoMoCo original battery just died. Went out yesterday and hit the starter. Click-click-click-click and no-go. Classic sound of a dead battery!. Sure enough - only reading 10.49 Volts. Odd, since there have been no warnings, and two days before I did a 200 mile drive. No issues. I decided to put a new battery in. Shock number one: the replacement cost me $184 (I haven't bought an auto battery in probably 20 years). Shock number 2: Replacement in the TC is a nightmare! If it hadn't been for a short YouTube video I found, I never would have figured out how to get that sucker out of there! I'm sure I would have come away from the dealer at least $400-500 poorer for this one. Anyway, I was apprehensive about whether or not the system would even boot and run properly after disconnecting those leads. This can create havoc in some modern vehicles. Well, she started right up. Then came the inevitable chore of re-programming the head unit. Re-set clock and date. get AM/FM working - and then the disappointment. It refused to bring up anything from the media button! No connectivity. No phone pairing. So we get to the point of this post: Does the dealer hold us hostage when it comes to having complete control over this(admittedly) tragic Sync head unit? I seem to remember some earlier issue where I disconnected the battery leads - maybe it was when I installed my hitch - I had to go to the dealer and they got all the Sync functions working again. Is it possible that the dealer can somehow electronically program these units to disable some functions, so we will have to come back to them to regain full control every time we disconnect the battery? At this point it seems I either have become a victim of the dealer, or there is some failure in the unit itself. Maybe there's just a code reset required any time power is cut off? (I don't own a vehicle computer and don't want one) To wrap this up, I would have to say that 5 years after purchase, I have, for the most part, found MY TC to be extremely useful and versatile - not to mention easy to drive, and the major concern I am having now? I usually buy new every 5 years, when depreciation begins to tank, and in that area the TC turns out to be a pig. I just hope the low miles, non-commercial use, and the addition of some insulation and padding in the cargo compartment, along with the a set of custom wheels and a hitch, can do their part to get me a decent private sale. Any suggestions? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcconvert Posted April 2, 2021 Author Share Posted April 2, 2021 Follow Up: Thankfully, there is no conspiracy going on at my dealership re. my TC's head unit failure. I was the first to arrive at the service bay early in the AM, and after a 4.5 hour wait, while watching everyone who showed up after me during that time get serviced and sent on their way, someone finally put a code reader on my vehicle and discovered that one of two modules in the head unit (the APIM) that control audio and video, had failed. List price for the replacement (which you get to pay in full at a dealership) came to $444.38. Tack on labor and and "mechanical," whatever that is - $300 - add the diagnostic fee of $138.68. BOOM! I'm just shy of $900 just to restore the operation of this crappy little unit. And the service tech tells me that when this module goes, it's very common for the other one to follow soon after, and it's also very common for these modules to fail (he isn't supposed to tell me that). Extrapolate: Somewhere down a very short road I am likely to be out something close to two grand and another day of my time just to recover function of this sad excuse for a head unit. And this on a vehicle which has not yet seen 27,000 miles of private use. I "thanked the dealer for their service" and immediately headed down the road to the local Audio Express, where, for about $1300, including installation, I am going to have a modern touch screen unit and a couple of upgraded speakers added to my TC. A bonus was that since my purchase of the vehicle, the aftermarket suppliers now have the gear to install a 3rd party unit and still retain all the original steering wheel controls and functions. So the choice was - spend two grand to retain the original head unit -so I could continue to yell and cuss at it while attempting to get it to function - or spend several hundred dollars less and move into the modern era? It was a no-brainer for me. This is the part where I could rant about the horrors of having to work with a car dealership, and my foolish choice of buying an odd-ball, non mainstream, overpriced vehicle, but i will spare you that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Ridley Posted April 2, 2021 Share Posted April 2, 2021 It is interesting that the most common complaint about newer cars is dissatisfaction with the infotainment system. BMW, Volvo, Subaru...all have their critics. Remember the days when we talked about horsepower, handling, MPG and premature failure of mechanical parts? This is not a criticism of your experience...just an observation of the new paradigm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.