023 Lightning (Build 08/23) – No Heat / No Defrost Heat – Dealer says “failed heater assembly” (any insight?)

[Balke]

This may help in your discussion.
https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2023/RCLRPT-23V688-9845.PDF

I'm watching this closely since I also have a 2023.

Edit: Affected vehicles are select 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning pickups built between July 27th, 2023 and August 30th, 2023 so you are in the zone.

Thank you! I knew I was in the zone but it just doesn't show up when I look for recalls on my truck. Maybe because it was on the dealer lot when the notices went out it slipped through the cracks? The report you attached said only 931 vehicles affected and does not give a vin range.

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[RocketGhost]

I wouldn't expect every part necessary to make the truck drive to be included in a powertrain/battery warranty. You gotta have a good 12v battery but it's not covered. Same thing with various other parts like the ignition switch, etc.

I had an Infiniti and the radiator fan quit. Powertrain warranty was still in effect but it wasn't covered. I wasn't too far out of bumper to bumper and they covered it as a goodwill gesture.

 

[Balke]

You didn’t complain about the preconditioning or battery Hester not working , your complaint was cabin heat . Had you asked for the battery heater to be fixed they may have covered it but they may not anything to do with the battery is warranties . Cabin heat and comfort issues are not once past 3/36 if you didn’t buy the premium care

You are correct that I complained of no heat. I also started to bring up other problems/items that were wrong since purchase and the advisor said they charge 250 per item for diagnostics, then I just told him my concern now is the heating issue because I didn't want to pay 250 for each item

 

[Balke]

I wouldn't expect every part necessary to make the truck drive to be included in a powertrain/battery warranty. You gotta have a good 12v battery but it's not covered. Same thing with various other parts like the ignition switch, etc.

I had an Infiniti and the radiator fan quit. Powertrain warranty was still in effect but it wasn't covered. I wasn't too far out of bumper to bumper and they covered it as a goodwill gesture.

Right, but this is a high voltage part that gets battery to proper temp for usage and charging. To me it would obviously fall into "8-year/100,000-mile warranty for the high-voltage battery and electric components."

Your example of a 12v battery does not really make sense to me, it has its own warranty that covers it for one and its also a known replacement part.

 

[RocketGhost]

Right, but this is a high voltage part that gets battery to proper temp for usage and charging. To me it would obviously fall into "8-year/100,000-mile warranty for the high-voltage battery and electric components."

Your example of a 12v battery does not really make sense to me, it has its own warranty that covers it for one and its also a known replacement part.

My point is that not every auxiliary component is covered under a powertrain or battery warranty. It's not an integral part of the battery or a motor. Like with my Infiniti, the radiator fan is necessary for engine cooling but it wasn't part of the engine itself and thus not covered under the powertrain warranty.

It really just depends on whether it's on the list of covered components. It could go either way.

Things like this are why I got the Ford extended warranty. There's a ton of stuff on the truck that isn't covered under the 8/100 warranty.

 

[Balke]

My point is that not every auxiliary component is covered under a powertrain or battery warranty. It's not an integral part of the battery or a motor. Like with my Infiniti, the radiator fan is necessary for engine cooling but it wasn't part of the engine itself and thus not covered under the powertrain warranty.

It really just depends on whether it's on the list of covered components. It could go either way.

Things like this are why I got the Ford extended warranty. There's a ton of stuff on the truck that isn't covered under the 8/100 warranty.

Yeah, I understand your point. Its a slippery slope both ways, without having an exact list to go from its just one big gray area and I am pretty sure that is by design.

 

[Grumpy2]

You saved about $2k by not getting the extended warrantee, so you are still ahead with that gamble.

 

[Balke]

Update, the advisor sent a message this morning saying it is covered under warranty. Thank everyone for your input, I will be uploading any additional info they provide once I pick up the truck in hopes it can help someone else out.

 

[Balke]

Unfortunate Update, got a call from the advisor and he apologized and said he was incorrect on what part it was and its not under warranty. $2400 repair for part RL3Z-18K463-A.

Does anyone have any insight on this?

 

[chriserx]

Unfortunate Update, got a call from the advisor and he apologized and said he was incorrect on what part it was and its not under warranty. $2400 repair for part RL3Z-18K463-A.

Does anyone have any insight on this?

Unfortunately that's about par, it is entirely dumb, but haven't heard of any replaced without a warranty in place.

 

[Balke]

Ugh, things just are not adding up. I do a part lookup and I am pretty sure the the part number he gave me is a revision for the ptc heater that has been recalled and what people have been able to get covered under the 100k mile warranty. He apologized for mistake and said they will replace part minus labor which is very kind but I genuinely believe it should be covered.

 

[Balke]

The PTC is just a basic high voltage hot water heater. A resistive element with PID controller with CAN communication. It's really the simplest of the HVDC parts on the truck. There's no reason at all it should cost more than $200, but....
https://ford.oempartsonline.com/oem-parts/ford-high-voltage-ptc-heater-lx6z18k463a
the OP needs to call the BEV customer service and bitch a fit b/c this is definitely part of the EV powertrain as it's used to heat the battery. If more info is needed on how to argue this just ask here.

Furthermore owners with the heat pump experiencing poor heater performance could have the PTC heater failed, but have heat pump operation. This sucks as heat pump heat is not as comfortable as resistive heat. And I doubt Ford gives any way to discretly control this. This is squarely why residential heat pumps don't market well in the North; because, if you raise the temp of your 70deg return air by 15deg that means you've got 85deg air blowing on you in the winter and that sucks for comfort. A vehicle amplifies this negative of heat pumps, in vehicles, when people turn their heat on, especially initially, they usually want the air blowing to be as hot as possible.

Well I am going to need your help they are saying now it is not covered.

 

[ZSC100]

Exactly how many days has this been in service.

 

[Balke]

Exactly how many days has this been in service.

Dropped it off for a scheduled diagnostic Friday. I didnt hear back until Monday, then they were waiting on part (even though I didnt agree to repair), texeted saying it was covered today and ready tomorrow then called and said it was not.

 

[ZSC100]

Dropped it off for a scheduled diagnostic Friday. I didnt hear back until Monday, then they were waiting on part (even though I didnt agree to repair), texeted saying it was covered today and ready tomorrow then called and said it was not.

Have you called the BEV customer support. Start a case with them and have them call your service advisor at the dealer and talk one-on-one. They will be the one to tell you if it is covered, not the dealer and not the service advisor. If you get a denial from them, demand it via email with part numbers and post it back here. And at any time during this conversation, feel free to tell them you have talked to technical people in the community that have confirmed it should be covered under the EV powertrain warranty.

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