Just updated to Sync 3.4 on my Ranger 2019

[Gizmokid2005]

I'd rather wait an extra month or two and have it be correct than receive an update that fixes climate but breaks Sirius or something. Happens all the time with video games.

Also, you have to remember Ford has complete control over the ecosystem, supporting known hardware and software, unlike with video games (especially PC). Their QA is just lacking in general. I'd rather get quick updates to solve issues rather than placations that wind up meaning nothing.

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[SILK]

The thing is, the lengthy process doesn't seem to assure quality. The choices aren't "fast and broken" or "slow and reliable", they're they seem to be "fast and broken" or "slow and broken". I'd personally rather see a faster place of change and the ability to quickly address known issues vs stuff that is known to be broken and not fixed for months or years, if ever. But that is not a thing car companies seem able to do.

Also, you have to remember Ford has complete control over the ecosystem, supporting known hardware and software, unlike with video games (especially PC). Their QA is just lacking in general. I'd rather get quick updates to solve issues rather than placations that wind up meaning nothing.

I completely understand and mostly agree with your points. I don't understand why, but auto makers have yet to develop a quality OS for their vehicles. Some of the biggest, wealthiest companies on earth and they can't develop an infotainment system that is any better than "not bad", three years down the road. I would love for a standardized OS for automobiles that has a different flavor depending on manufacturer. Kind of like Android and how a Samsung OS is different than a OnePlus or a Google OS. It's still Android though. Google builds the base and says "Here, do what you want with it." At its core, it just works and then from there the manufacturers can spice it up however they want. If it breaks, they just strip it back and try again.

That being said, I imagine developing an OS for an automobile is incredibly difficult. And depending on model and trim level, you could have 10 different versions of Sync3 to support. Shit, there are 3 different Sync UI's just for the Ranger! Not to mention that no matter how solid a program/UI is, mindless end users will without fault find a way to break it. I program AV systems for a living and I can't tell you how many times I've completed a room program, tested it thoroughly, had a third party test it thoroughly, only to be called three weeks later with an issue where the user couldn't get the display to turn on fast enough so they pressed the "ON" button 97 times and the system went into hibernation or something.

TL;DR - It can be simultaneously true that these systems are faulty and that it's insanely hard to make a system that's not and that works for millions of people across different vehicles.

 

[VAMike]

That being said, I imagine developing an OS for an automobile is incredibly difficult. And depending on model and trim level, you could have 10 different versions of Sync3 to support. Shit, there are 3 different Sync UI's just for the Ranger!

Yeah but...they did that on purpose because they think it will make them more money. I bet a lot of buyers would be happy if they got a hole in the dashboard and had to buy a third party system built to a common interface spec--because the third party would have an incentive to compete. But the automobile manufacturers don't want to do that because it's a hugely profitable option for them (and not bothering to do updates only increases the profit margin).

Anyway, that's the biggest thing to remember--it sucks this much because ford decided to make it suck this much for money, not because it has to be that way.

 

[SILK]

Yeah but...they did that on purpose because they think it will make them more money. I bet a lot of buyers would be happy if they got a hole in the dashboard and had to buy a third party system built to a common interface spec--because the third party would have an incentive to compete. But the automobile manufacturers don't want to do that because it's a hugely profitable option for them (and not bothering to do updates only increases the profit margin).

Anyway, that's the biggest thing to remember--it sucks this much because ford decided to make it suck this much for money, not because it has to be that way.

Thinking that Ford would purposefully make Sync3 suck because then they will sell more trucks is some Charlie Kelly level conspiracy shit lol

 

[VAMike]

Thinking that Ford would purposefully make Sync3 suck because then they will sell more trucks is some Charlie Kelly level conspiracy shit lol

They didn't intentionally make sync3 suck, they intentionally made it hard to switch to a third party head unit and disincentivized doing so by bundling expensive sync packages with higher trim levels. Sync3 sucking is just the logical result of having no meaningful competition and ford therefore having no incentive to reduce their profit margin by putting more effort into making it better.

The one company that understands the consumer electronics part of building a car is tesla. Unfortunately they aren't going to push the other manufacturers into catching up on that until they get better at the heavy manufacturing part of building a car. You're still locked into their proprietary unit, but at least they update the damn thing.

 

[Gizmokid2005]

They didn't intentionally make sync3 suck, they intentionally made it hard to switch to a third party head unit and disincentivized doing so by bundling expensive sync packages with higher trim levels. Sync3 sucking is just the logical result of having no meaningful competition and ford therefore having no incentive to reduce their profit margin by putting more effort into making it better.

The one company that understands the consumer electronics part of building a car is tesla. Unfortunately they aren't going to push the other manufacturers into catching up on that until they get better at the heavy manufacturing part of building a car. You're still locked into their proprietary unit, but at least they update the damn thing.

And also remove features of resold used cars because you don't actually own anything, you need to pay them licensing.

I, uhh, wouldn't really use Tesla as a model of excellence here.

We do need third party support like in the old days, but it's also way more complicated because it's more than "just a radio" now.

 

[VAMike]

And also remove features of resold used cars because you don't actually own anything, you need to pay them licensing.

If ford could figure out to make that stick, I'm sure they would. I'm only speaking to their ability to create and distribute updates to their electronics, and the UX for those electronics--not their business practices.

We do need third party support like in the old days, but it's also way more complicated because it's more than "just a radio" now.

You'd need to define standards and have a commitment to follow those standards for a third party market to thrive. To some degree that already exists, and there are products which can interface with a surprising number of cars. None of the mainstream cars is all that novel--you've got an antenna input, a microphone, cameras, etc. But you've got a zillion different connectors, and slightly different protocols, and just enough differences to make it hard to support all the functionality on a wide scale. And nobody is going to invest a ton of money in development if they might have to throw it out when the car is tweaked for the next model year. But this is all theory because as long as the manufacturers are making huge profits on infotainment packages they have no incentive to stop the gravy train.

 

[txquailguy]

Ok...so I threw caution to the wind, used the Cyanlabs installer and upgraded to Sync 3.4. Everything seems to be working great except......I lost my climate control button and I'm not able to get connected to FordPass. I think I can live without the climate thing since you can control from the panel and see the climate info at the top of the screen. The FordPass issue I need to figure out. I have been at the dealer twice this week for an actuator door related to climate control. My service advisor told me if I screwed up the Sync system trying to upgrade to 3.4 just bring it in to him and he'll fix it under warranty at no cost. Guess if I want him to fix my 3.4 I'm going to need to wait until Ford makes the release for the 2019 Ranger or he will take me back to 3.3. Interestingly, he told me the service techs love the mods we do to these trucks. He said if something screws up from a mod, as long as the problem can't be traced to the mod, no issue, they will fix. Obviously if it's the mod you'll be getting your wallet out. Anyone know how I can maybe get FordPass back up?

 

[Gizmokid2005]

Ok...so I threw caution to the wind, used the Cyanlabs installer and upgraded to Sync 3.4. Everything seems to be working great except......I lost my climate control button and I'm not able to get connected to FordPass. I think I can live without the climate thing since you can control from the panel and see the climate info at the top of the screen. The FordPass issue I need to figure out. I have been at the dealer twice this week for an actuator door related to climate control. My service advisor told me if I screwed up the Sync system trying to upgrade to 3.4 just bring it in to him and he'll fix it under warranty at no cost. Guess if I want him to fix my 3.4 I'm going to need to wait until Ford makes the release for the 2019 Ranger or he will take me back to 3.3. Interestingly, he told me the service techs love the mods we do to these trucks. He said if something screws up from a mod, as long as the problem can't be traced to the mod, no issue, they will fix. Obviously if it's the mod you'll be getting your wallet out. Anyone know how I can maybe get FordPass back up?

Try a system reset, that usually fixes it.

 

[txquailguy]

I did that and that's why I lost the FordPass access. It was fine, I tested it. So the only thing that did not go over correctly was the climate controls. Do not do a Master System Reset unless you really have too. But hey man thanks for the feedback! Sadly, I'm not sure if I will get FordPass access back until we get the Sync 3.4 release from Ford for the 2019 Rnger. If I take it to the dealer to fix it they will take me back to 3.3 guaranteed.

 

[Gizmokid2005]

I did that and that's why I lost the FordPass access. It was fine, I tested it. So the only thing that did not go over correctly was the climate controls. Do not do a Master System Reset unless you really have too. But hey man thanks for the feedback! Sadly, I'm not sure if I will get FordPass access back until we get the Sync 3.4 release from Ford for the 2019 Rnger. If I take it to the dealer to fix it they will take me back to 3.3 guaranteed.

That's the first thing the dealer did for me when I lost my climate controls, a master sync reset. AFAIK that's the only way to "reactivate" ford pass if it stops working.

 

[alcohenusa]

I did that and that's why I lost the FordPass access. It was fine, I tested it. So the only thing that did not go over correctly was the climate controls. Do not do a Master System Reset unless you really have too. But hey man thanks for the feedback! Sadly, I'm not sure if I will get FordPass access back until we get the Sync 3.4 release from Ford for the 2019 Rnger. If I take it to the dealer to fix it they will take me back to 3.3 guaranteed.

I would try removing the vehicle from the app. Then add it back and reactivate.

 

[txquailguy]

I think when I did the master reset it did that automatically. Honestly, I don't remember, but I will try it for sure. I'm actually good with the climate control screen gone. You can control the HVAC pretty well with just the manual controls. I did see the OBDLink is on sale and I was thinking about getting it. Thing is I just ordered a tuner and exhaust this week so I'm pretty tapped out....lol.
I think I can live without FordPass till the upgrade is available. I'm at 27,500 and have the full comprehensive warranty for 5yr/125k so I'll get fixed up for free when it hits.

 

[SILK]

Check at the end of the month.

It's the end of the month and it still says I'm up to date

 

[UofMEngineer]

It's the end of the month and it still says I'm up to date

Hah. Yeah, not out yet unfortunately.

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