Outage Detected - Backup Power Unavailable

[Jim Lewis]

After trying to cure the FordPass CONNECTION LOST by powering down and rebooting my FCSP and HIS backup system, I have started to receive multiple alerts via the FordPass app of an "Outage Detected." The only problem is that there has been no power outage at the times around each of these alerts judging by no notice from our utility, no loss of time on our microwaves, no flickering of lights or crashing of computer, etc.

Each of the above alerts was for a separate time of day, at which time no outage occurred.

Worse than the annoying outage alerts, the main load screen of the FordPass app shows a BACKUP POWER UNAVAILABLE message and will no longer show anything about a scheduled charging, a charging in progress, or the completion of charging (charging still occurs, according to my schedule and limits, it shows as a changing SOC percentage in the app, and I get an alert in the Message Center when it's complete).

When one clicks on the DETAILS button in the Backup Power Unavailable notice, one gets the following screen. Another weird screen, the backup Transfer Log says I've never initiated a transfer, which is not true as I had two successful transfers back in mid-June! So somewhere in either updating the FordPass app or rebooting my FCSP and HIS unit, any info about prior transfers was lost (or never recorded to begin with).

The final truly weird thing is if I go to Account, Charge Station, Intelligent Backup Power in the FordPass app, I get the following screen announcing Intelligent Backup is set up and working for my truck. I no longer find the circled steps 1, 2, 3 with 1 and 3 checked and filled with green and 2 unchecked and filled with blue anywhere in the FordPass app.

Initially, after getting the Backup Power Unavailable alert, the FordPass app was pretty unresponsive. I had a lot of trouble accessing my Preferred Charge Settings. Now the app is a bit more responsive, but as noted above, the Backup Power Unavailable notice dominates the Home screen and prevents any notices about the charging schedule or progress from appearing. The Charging Station screen still reports my vehicle is charging even when it's not and even when it's not plugged into my FCSP.

The app, the FCSP behavior, and the Ford "Intelligent" Backup system are certainly one hot stinking mess... I hope FMC clears it up soon before their fuddling around renders my home charging setup totally inoperable. I've wondered why the Sunrun designers put the Acrel meter for the HIS unit outside on a south-facing wall. I asked them straight up whether that was a sensible idea because of the intense sun exposure. When it's 106 degrees out in the shade, I imagine the box on the wall is heating up to at least 140 to 150 deg F (~60 to 66 deg C; our unfinished attic goes to 139 deg F the last time I checked). The installer said no problem. He claimed the electronics are designed to take it. But since the Acrel meter would be detecting an outage, I wonder if that's the source of the false alerts. And so it goes..., with no end in sight.

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[TaxmanHog]

Could it be, that the HIS system is fine, but there is an issue on the truck?
This snapshot leads me to think the truck is the issue "....a vehicle fault occurred"

 

[Ford Motor Company]

After trying to cure the FordPass CONNECTION LOST by powering down and rebooting my FCSP and HIS backup system, I have started to receive multiple alerts via the FordPass app of an "Outage Detected." The only problem is that there has been no power outage at the times around each of these alerts judging by no notice from our utility, no loss of time on our microwaves, no flickering of lights or crashing of computer, etc.

Each of the above alerts was for a separate time of day, at which time no outage occurred.

Worse than the annoying outage alerts, the main load screen of the FordPass app shows a BACKUP POWER UNAVAILABLE message and will no longer show anything about a scheduled charging, a charging in progress, or the completion of charging (charging still occurs, according to my schedule and limits, it shows as a changing SOC percentage in the app, and I get an alert in the Message Center when it's complete).

When one clicks on the DETAILS button in the Backup Power Unavailable notice, one gets the following screen. Another weird screen, the backup Transfer Log says I've never initiated a transfer, which is not true as I had two successful transfers back in mid-June! So somewhere in either updating the FordPass app or rebooting my FCSP and HIS unit, any info about prior transfers was lost (or never recorded to begin with).

The final truly weird thing is if I go to Account, Charge Station, Intelligent Backup Power in the FordPass app, I get the following screen announcing Intelligent Backup is set up and working for my truck. I no longer find the circled steps 1, 2, 3 with 1 and 3 checked and filled with green and 2 unchecked and filled with blue anywhere in the FordPass app.

Initially, after getting the Backup Power Unavailable alert, the FordPass app was pretty unresponsive. I had a lot of trouble accessing my Preferred Charge Settings. Now the app is a bit more responsive, but as noted above, the Backup Power Unavailable notice dominates the Home screen and prevents any notices about the charging schedule or progress from appearing. The Charging Station screen still reports my vehicle is charging even when it's not and even when it's not plugged into my FCSP.

The app, the FCSP behavior, and the Ford "Intelligent" Backup system are certainly one hot stinking mess... I hope FMC clears it up soon before their fuddling around renders my home charging setup totally inoperable. I've wondered why the Sunrun designers put the Acrel meter for the HIS unit outside on a south-facing wall. I asked them straight up whether that was a sensible idea because of the intense sun exposure. When it's 106 degrees out in the shade, I imagine the box on the wall is heating up to at least 140 to 150 deg F (~60 to 66 deg C; our unfinished attic goes to 139 deg F the last time I checked). The installer said no problem. He claimed the electronics are designed to take it. But since the Acrel meter would be detecting an outage, I wonder if that's the source of the false alerts. And so it goes..., with no end in sight.

Hi there, Jim. These electrical/connection concerns doesn’t sound like something we want you to experience with your Lightning truck. Could you please send us a DM with your VIN and the name and location of your Ford dealer? To send a direct message, just click on our username and select "Start Conversation". I'd be happy to look into how I can assist you on my end.

 

[Jim Lewis]

Could it be, that the HIS system is fine, but there is an issue on the truck?
This snapshot leads me to think the truck is the issue "....a vehicle fault occurred"

I think it's important to keep in mind that the latest imbroglio started with repeated notices in the FordPass app that an electrical outage was detected even when the truck was not plugged in and, in one instance, even when the truck was five miles away from home. (and the whole thing started with the LOST CONNECTION bit for my FCSP). The truck could be involved in that FMC has told us HIS backup unit owners that the HIS system won't work until an OTA update for the truck is issued. AFAIK no one here on the forum who owns a HIS unit has reported the availability of that required update. So a truck "fault" could merely be flotsam with a new FordPass app version that is perhaps not taking into account the lack of the purported required OTA update, and the FordPass app is just flashing an "idiot light" message that something didn't work. The real problem is why my HIS system thinks electrical outages are occurring at my house when they are not. I think that's screwing everything else up.

Could you please send us a DM with your VIN and the name and location of your Ford dealer?

Thanks. I've sent FMC a DM by starting a conversation as you suggested. But as I've replied to @TaxmanHog just above, I think the issue originates in my FCSP/HIS setup. Sunrun and its local installer ETW Energy would be better options to investigate and remedy the problem at my house with expert advice provided by FMC. In weather that peaks at 106 deg F now, I don't want to be leaving my truck at my dealer to potentially roast in a lot at 130 to 140 deg F (FMC should encourage dealers to have shaded parking spaces for EVs held for service as FMC advice for owners is to do so especially and not leave a vehicle out in summer sun-in the owner's manual and advice I received in a chat with a Ford BEV rep).

 

[Jim Lewis]

Update on OUTAGE DETECTED - BACKUP POWER UNAVAILABLE: Last night all the OUTAGE DETECTED alerts but no other alert messages disappeared from my FordPass app, i.e., the ones depicted in the first image of my OP post in this thread (reproduced below):

The outage messages were generated via a Ford server. My interpretation now is that the messages were bogus, and someone at Ford realized the system malfunctioned and deleted the false alerts (I certainly didn't delete the alerts, and we had no outages at home).

However, the Backup Power Unavailable alert on my FordPass app hasn't gone away. Curiously enough, it went away temporarily when I unplugged my truck from the FCSP and went grocery shopping on a 10-mile roundtrip over several hours. When I returned and plugged the truck in, the Backup Power Unavailable notice came back right away (see 2nd image in OP post: https://www.f150lightningforum.com/forum/attachments/img_0630-png.71081/).

The HIS system hasn't been functional since mid-June. But Sunday was the first time I've seen the Backup Power Unavailable notice. Perhaps a recent FordPass update, like v4.29.1 last week, rendered the Backup Power Unavailable notice more functional, or something additional has gone wrong with the whole setup to trigger the warning notice only now.

It does say in the 2023 Lightning owner's manual to take the vehicle to a dealer if unplugging the charger from the truck, restarting the vehicle, and plugging the cable in doesn't make the message go away. I've tried unplugging and replugging the charger several additional times. It doesn't matter if the vehicle is running or not. The Backup Power Unavailable notice goes away with the vehicle unplugged and comes back shortly after the charger is connected again.

 

[TaxmanHog]

I just mentioned in the 4.29.2 thread (it's current variation) that FP is slow to report charging session event data, @Zprime29 experienced impromptu charging outside his preferred TOU scheme.

IMHO, these issues may be related to the cloud database, the APP and/or your HIS software/apps.

Hopefully it's resolved in the next version release!!

 

[Zprime29]

I really wish companies would understand that being transparent about technical problems is better than having technical problems and not telling us about them. Then we aren't left wondering what the heck is going on.

 

[Jim Lewis]

@TaxmanHog and @Zprime29, I heartily agree with both of your comments.

I have experienced a delay, too, in receiving entries to my charging log. After I escaped the LOST CONNECTION report situation, I went to READY TO CHARGE, and now I'm at CHARGING all the time on my FCSP connection page, whether my vehicle is plugged in or not. So things are pretty messed up compared to back in mid-June when all seemed normal and my HIS system actually provided backup 2x in a row! (amazing!)

I really wish companies would understand that being transparent about technical problems is better than having technical problems and not telling us about them. Then we aren't left wondering what the heck is going on.

I agree. Not only are we confused by the software/system behavior, but we waste our own time and others' trying to figure things out and get stuff working normally again when that may be out of our control, totally in the hands of some Ford development team that's keeping things "secret."

Ford ought to take a lesson from Quicken. Of course, financial communication is very important to get right. But so is expensive motor vehicle behavior. Quicken informs users of pending important updates in financial services, gives users a reference time frame, and then often issues a specific notice or reminder as the deadline for the update approaches. Perhaps Ford has so many updates to issue, etc., it thinks notices will be an annoying distraction to owners. But just as for smartphone owners, there ought to be a notification control option in the FordPass app, the truck, or one's online FMC account (or all of the previous) to set notification options by category.

My ignorance is probably showing here but it would be great to have an update history list where the version one's truck and equipment is on is compared to the most current available version from Ford, along with a third column that explains the delivery time frame for users, e.g., "will be rolling out over the next several months, completed by 10/31/23," etc. Perhaps that's way too much to hope for, but much more organization and information from Ford would be encouraging if it were possible.

 

[Jim Lewis]

Today I had a very reassuring series of calls with various representatives from Ford. I eventually spoke to someone in electric vehicle software development. He said from the information accumulated previously in the chain of calls, my truck looked healthy and had all the updates that had been rolled out to it (I'm at the end of the line, I guess, for % HVB SOC on the dash; haven't gotten that yet). They were experiencing various glitches with the Home Backup system and the FordPass app, and I could probably safely ignore the various warnings I'm getting through the FordPass app and wait and see what happens when they issue the OTA updates required for the truck and the FCSP to make the Home Backup system work properly. That may occur as late as the October to December 2023 time frame.

My recollection of who I discussed what with is a little foggy, but several reps emphasized the need for various conditions to be met to get an update successfully. I responded that it would be nice to get notices about updates being rolled out to us and how we need to set the truck up for that update to succeed. I gave the example of Apple Watch updates. You can find out on your iPhone whether a watch update is pending, and with each update, Apple gives instructions on how the watch must be set up for the update to work. I said Ford should do the same for each of its updates. I mentioned people complaining about LVB SOC information and suggested that Ford add that info for owners to see somewhere, if they want, in the vehicle settings. All this is not new. I was just casting my vote with FMC.

 

[Pitbull2o08]

I am going through literally the exact same thing. Even the disappearing of the notifications and reappearing.

 

[Jim Lewis]

Yes, same here. A week or two after my initial report, the Backup Power Unavailable and Outage Detected went away for a couple of weeks, then in the last week or two, came back with a vengeance, with the Backup Power Unavailable notice again blocking my Charging Status Indicator on my FordPass Home Screen. Now, this evening, Backup Power Unavailable has disappeared, and I have my charging status button showing again???

Too bad Ford can't suppress "noise" in a system that doesn't work... They really need to find a different location for the Backup Power Unavailable notice, which doesn't affect charging my truck with the FCSP and shouldn't wipe out useful charging info.

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