Fordpass unable authorise

[Sahit]

Hi everyone,
I’m posting this in case the previous owner of this F-150 Lightning is here on the forum.
The truck is a 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Lariat in Carbonized Gray Metallic.
I’ve followed all the FordPass steps and the truck is online, but I still get the “Unable to authorise” message and I can’t connect the vehicle to my phone (see screenshot).
If anyone here previously owned an F-150 Lightning in this exact color and configuration, please check if this vehicle is still linked to your FordPass account.
For reference, the VIN ends with 15670.
If this is your vehicle, I’d really appreciate it if you could remove it from your FordPass app. Alternatively, feel free to contact me privately and we can confirm the full VIN so you can safely transfer/remove the vehicle and allow me to complete the setup on my phone.
Thank you in advance.

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[RLXXI]

Did you try the vehicle reset?

 

[Sahit]

Did you try the vehicle reset?

Yes i did

 

[RickLightning]

Umm, that is not a full vehicle reset. See Factory Reset?

You don't need previous owner.

 

[Sahit]

Umm, that is not a full vehicle reset. See Factory Reset?

You don't need previous owner.

I have already done a full Factory Reset, probably dozens of times.
However, since the vehicle has changed continents (US → Europe), I suspect there may be a backend or regional lock on Ford’s side that isn’t cleared by a standard factory reset alone.
The truck is online, has LTE, and is receiving OTA updates, but FordPass authorization still fails with “Unable to authorise”. That’s why I believe this may be account- or region-related rather than a local vehicle reset issue.

 

[RickLightning]

You have a US ATT modem...

 

[TaxmanHog]

For reference, the VIN ends with 15670.

I looked at my tracker for 2022 production this VIN didn't come up, not to say the former owner might have joined the forum or elected not to share order/production details.

 

[bmwhitetx]

For those that didn’t see your other posts you should have explained in your first post that the car was exported to Europe, you kept the existing North American TCU/modem, but unsoldered the eSIM from the modem and soldered in a regular SIM tied to a European data plan.

 

[Sahit]

For those that didn’t see your other posts you should have explained in your first post that the car was exported to Europe, you kept the existing North American TCU/modem, but unsoldered the eSIM from the modem and soldered in a regular SIM tied to a European data plan.

You’re absolutely right, and I apologize for not explaining that clearly in my first post.
Thank you very much for pointing it out and for taking the time to clarify it for others. I appreciate

 

[RickLightning]

Should have had a full factory reset done before it left the US.

I suspect that it won't reset because if it is really communicating with Ford's European servers, the VIN either isn't recognized as it is missing from the European database, or there is some identification of modules that is saying "this is a US vehicle " and stopping it.

I have never understood importing a vehicle that has no support.

Also - since you have existing threads, why start a new one? There are 100,000 Lightning owners, and this forum has a fraction of those.

 

[Sahit]

Should have had a full factory reset done before it left the US.

I suspect that it won't reset because if it is really communicating with Ford's European servers, the VIN either isn't recognized as it is missing from the European database, or there is some identification of modules that is saying "this is a US vehicle " and stopping it.

I have never understood importing a vehicle that has no support.

Also - since you have existing threads, why start a new one? There are 100,000 Lightning owners, and this forum has a fraction of those.

Thank you for your reply. I appreciate the input, but I need to clarify a few important points.
The vehicle did have multiple factory resets performed, including full resets, after arriving in Europe. The issue is not a simple reset problem. The core problem appears to be VIN and regional recognition on Ford’s backend systems, not user-level actions.
At this point, the vehicle:
Has stable LTE connectivity
Communicates with Ford servers
Receives OTA updates
Functions normally at the vehicle level
However, FordPass and full EU backend support remain blocked, which strongly suggests:
The VIN is not present or not authorized in the European Ford database, or
One or more modules still identify the vehicle as US-region, causing server-side rejection
Regarding importing vehicles without support while I understand the concern, many owners import vehicles and successfully resolve regional limitations through correct module configuration, server-side alignment, or official support escalation. This discussion exists precisely to document and solve such edge cases.
As for starting a new thread: this issue is highly specific and technical, and mixing it into older threads would only reduce clarity for others who may face the same situation in the future.
I am actively testing, documenting results, and sharing outcomes transparently. If a definitive technical solution exists, I am confident it will be identified.
Thank you for your time and contribution to the discussion

Should have had a full factory reset done before it left the US.

I suspect that it won't reset because if it is really communicating with Ford's European servers, the VIN either isn't recognized as it is missing from the European database, or there is some identification of modules that is saying "this is a US vehicle " and stopping it.

I have never understood importing a vehicle that has no support.

Also - since you have existing threads, why start a new one? There are 100,000 Lightning owners, and this forum has a fraction of those.

Just to clarify a few points: the vehicle did have multiple factory resets performed.
The issue is not a simple reset problem, but a region and backend limitation between US and EU Ford systems, which is already well known when importing vehicles across regions.
I am fully aware that the VIN may not exist in the European database and that certain modules still identify the truck as a US vehicle — that is exactly what I am actively testing and documenting here. The goal is to understand the technical limitations, not to pretend official EU support exists where it doesn’t.
As for starting a new thread: this is a different stage of the process with new findings and real-world results. Keeping information updated and clearly separated actually helps others who may face the same situation in the future.
I understand importing a vehicle without local support isn’t for everyone — but some of us choose to take that challenge on knowingly, learn from it, and share accurate information rather than assumptions

 

[RickLightning]

So, in short, you're agreeing with me.

It won't tie to the European database, so it's really not reset. Had it been reset before it left the US, you would not have this one problem.

 

[Sahit]

So, in short, you're agreeing with me.

It won't tie to the European database, so it's really not reset. Had it been reset before it left the US, you would not have this one problem.

Yes, I believe the same as well. However, I’d like to wait until the truck finishes receiving all available updates. As I mentioned earlier, it is very far behind on updates, and my thought is that once it fully catches up, it may be able to properly connect and synchronize with the European servers. Fingers crossed

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