Anyone have any problems with PATS? My 2006 will periodically lock me out from starting the car. It's definitely PATS. The dealer has replaced (or at least they said they did) the reader, still same problem. It's hard to correlate what causes the problem - but I think it is heat related. Once in a while I get the PATS symbol on the dash that the starting circuit is disabled and I cannot start the car. It is always after the car has sat in the sun for some time. If I wait until the day (and the car) cools off, it will start no problem. It is very intermittent but it causes me to not trust the new car I bought. The dealer cannot figure it out. I live in FL.
Any insight would be very welcome. How does PATS work? Wiring diagrams? etc.
Maybe my reading ability is lacking after two graduate degrees, but the individual stated that the dealer had worked on the car without much success. Thus, self analysis is the next step.
Or, since it is brand new and still "COVERED UNDER WARRANTY" how about trying a different dealer who can and will do the job correctly??? Most dealerships don't really troubleshoot problems anymore, they replace parts to eliminate problems. Any dealership service department is only as good as their weakest link...
Huuum, really now, two graduate degrees? Come on, this is not Rocket Science here. :-)
Did I ever tell you my 8 visits to a local Ford dealer to get an engine mount replaced under warranty, I asked them to replace it because I determined it was bad, 8 repair attempts (time off work to drop off and pick up every time) before they finally replaced the mount I asked them to in the beginning (and the other side and trans mount too) and fixed the problem... They replaced everything else they could imagine, under warranty than started replacing non warranty parts (body mounts etc.) at their own expense, because I told them they could replace every part on the car, but I would NOT pay for it if it did not fix the problem. I drove a long way out of my way to avoid those Idiots after that, even for only the parts department.
I have long since moved out of that area, I still drive 19 miles to a competent Ford dealer, rather than 4.5 miles to the closest (incompetent) one...
To the original poster (Brett?), keep pounding Ford until they get it fixed, and check your states Lemon Laws, generally 3 failed repair attempts for the same issue gets you qualified...
Herein lies the problem, or at least part of the problem. The tech at a dealership does not really troubleshoot anymore. The car comes in with a problem at the first person to deal with it is the service advisor/shop foreman. Because of the high volume that a big dealership gets and tendency for certain models to have the similar problem, the service advisor usually tells the tech what to look for and what to replace before the tech can look at it. Usually the problem is fixed or at least worked on before the tech can do troubleshooting. Hence, the tech is left out of the troubleshooting. Now if a problem comes in that has the service advisor baffled, the tech quite often finds a TSB that tells him what the probable cause is OR the tech gets on the 800 number to the manufacturer and a expert on the other side of the telephone line tells him where to start looking. Again, the tech is left out of the troubleshooting. Now in each of these instances, the car gets fixed fairly (hopefully) in the least amount of time and with the maximum profits for the dealer, which in a way, is good. But the tech really has not learned much about troubleshooting. He may have learned how to fix the car, but not to troubleshoot.
OK, so the plot thickens. I put a Saleen Supercharger on the car - so the dealer points to that and tells me I caused the problem. And, although I only have one graduate degree, it happens to be in Electrical Engineering (as is my undergraduate), so I know a thing or two about computers and passive RFID (which I believe is the technology on which PATS is based. I live in FL and I believe my PATS issue is with the reader and is heat related, and has nothing to do with the Supercharger and/or the re-flash of the PCM (for the Supercharger). So, I'm basically on my own to figure this out. It is quite annoying to have an otherwise great car that, when you turn the key, you don't know whether the engine will start or not.
If this were a computer (or reflash) issue, it would not be intermittent (as it is). It starts most of the time - it only locks out once in a while, and like I said, it appears to be heat related. It would be helpful to know what comprises the PATS circuit so I can begin to troubleshoot the most likely cause of failure.
I have not had the keys redone, which I can probably talk the dealer into doing. Any value in that? (Would prefer to hear from someone who has had this problem instead of anecdotal advice).
Well with more information the plot does indeed thicken. You're basically screwed on the warranty angle, the modifications will make any warranty claim nearly impossible, weather actually related or not. As to trouble shooting, And here I have made a damn good living since 1980 being very good at trouble shooting computer controlled mechanical systems. Yes in 1980, there was still a lot of relay logic control going on.
First off, this statement/position is not accurate, (If this were a computer (or reflash) issue, it would not be intermittent (as it is).) Many computer/reflash issues could have/be contributing to an intermittent problem. Do you or have you ever run a Windows operating system computer? Software related intermittent problems are basically the norm, not the exception. Your exclusion of computer/reflash issues as a possibility, might keep you from finding the problem.
You could be 100% right and have a heat related problem with your reader, and still not have a Ford warranty claim. Your addition of an aftermarket Saleen Supercharger has added a tremendous increase of heat. If you suspect heat related reader issues, see if you can cool the reader. How accessible is it? Canned air can be sprayed directly on a chip to cool it, or a fan, or cool/ice packs.
Maybe there is some line of code in the reflash with some thermal protection thing going on and the hot Florida sun combined with that are what is going on?
You certainly can not rule the computer or the reflash out simply because the problem is intermittent.
The key (no pun) here is finding a "Mod Friendly" Dealer. If your dealer already noted in your cars service logs to void your warranty on this issue, you might be out of luck with this path of getting the problem fixed.
The receiver is in the steering column, maybe you can give it a non metallic heat shield.
I've also heard that you can turn the PATs off using a programmer.
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