UPDATE 3/25/14:
Over the last several months we have received more email than ever before. We truly wish we could respond to all of you. Visitors to SyncSucks.com have also more than doubled (which can't be good news for Ford vehicle owners). We will be posting new comments, issues and insights very soon!
UPDATE 8/1/13:
There’s been a LOT of news about the class-action suits being filed against Ford of late. Some of the articles attempt to classify the cases as frivolous lawsuits. While others dismiss the issues as non-safety-related and go on to imply that Ford Sync/MyFord Touch customers are a bunch of tech-challenged morons.
It’s not about being able to sync the latest smart phone or decipher the highly complex system. (Let’s face it, it’s not a complicated system. Inconvenient, yes. Complex, no.) Instead, it is simply customers trying to get a defective product — one that is in 40% of all SYNC/MyFord Touch equipped vehicles — fixed!
'Ford, the second-largest U.S. automaker, reported 400 problems with its MyFord Touch system for every 1,000 vehicles in November 2012. The company previously said it aims to lower that number to 360 by August.'Automotive News
Well, it’s now August 2013 and surprise! My system still doesn't work!
This website continues to get emails on a daily basis outlining how many 2013 Ford and Lincoln models still don't work. We recently received a six- page PDF outlining a ridiculous number of ongoing issues with a 2013 AWD Fusion Titanium that a customer purchased in April 2013.
I'd have to ask these class-action critics what they'd do if they paid $1,300+ for a defective product that negatively affects so many aspects of their new vehicle? In many cases (including mine), the defective product had been taken in for repair (nine times and counting for me) and yet it still wasn’t properly repaired or replaced? Then essentially being given the middle finger by the manufacturer?
Something else to ponder. Ford's VP and General Counsel David G. Leitch Ford Corporate Profileappears to have real issues with class- action lawsuits generally. He serves on the general counsel advisory committee for the Civil Justice Reform Group, an uber-secretive organization that funnels money to ATRA (American Tort Reform Association). This group seems hell bent on destroying individual’s rights when it comes to taking legal action against big businesses like Ford and their armies of attorneys. I think most people would be against a frivolous lawsuit of any kind, but it seems pretty clear that these groups are trying to do nothing but limit the big businesses’ responsibility and liability for their defective products.
Check this out: Taking Justice Back
Thanks again for the great response — visitors to the site are growing every day! If we help only 1% of the thousands of monthly visitors, it’s well worth it!
UPDATE 7/23/13:
Wow, the response has been overwhelming. This site has received thousands of visitors each month and many of you have sent emails to share your own experience, seek advice or offer insight. If yours was one I was unable to respond to, I sincerely apologize.
For all who have reached out, I wanted to provide you with an update on my case and also share a couple of thoughts.
Status of My Case
I hired a Los Angeles-based law firm to represent me with my claim against Ford. After more than 6 months, I had to force them into settling since their fees kept growing and the actual trial was still another 12-plus months away. I received $9,000 in the settlement, of that half went to the lawyers. I was disappointed, but it’s a small victory I suppose.
Before you hire an attorney, you might consider filing a claim through the Better Business Bureau. Based on the emails I received, a few Sync-related claims have been settled in favor of the customer and against Ford. The general outcome is that Ford must take back the vehicle and refund all monies paid. Which is, of course, the outcome most customers are seeking.
That was not the case for me, however. The BBB turned my claim down altogether. I have also heard from other Sync customers that it was not the case for them either. In fact, some believe that Ford has a partnership with the BBB and the entire claim process is a sham. The conflict of interest is suspect at least as one claimant notes:
“It's a very weird and disturbing partnership. Apparently, Ford uses whatever ‘wins’ or partial wins in BBB proceedings, as ‘due diligence ammunition for anything that makes it to court, where they destroy you, as they are able to prove some kind of ‘attention, and make it drag out into a lifetime of further service events.”
You might also check out this Facebook page:
Ford Sync Sucksfacebook page:
BBB and Ford partnership articles here and here.
Bottom line: working with an attorney and/or joining the Class Action complaint may be your better options, but it’s certainly worth exploring all avenues.
Website Feedback
If any of you have feedback on the site or ideas on how it could be improved, please feel free to let me know. I have offered to include your experiences alongside mine, but am open to anything that will help others who've been subjected to Ford's faulty products and misdeeds. Through this site, I’ve heard complaints on virtually all Ford models that have Sync/ MyFordTouch, as well as several Lincoln models.
If you would like us to include your story on the website, please take a few minutes to write it up as succinctly as possible and include all parts of the Sync system experience — back-up camera, phone, connection issues, playback issues, etc. Also let us know what personal info you think should be displayed (i.e. first name, nickname, no name, city/state). I think it would be nice for people to see complaints from all over the country, but it’s up to you.
Website Maintenance
A couple of you have offered to work on or take over the website since my case has been settled. I have decided to retain control of the domain name, at least for now. I would, however, consider forwarding it to another site or server if somebody is interested in taking it on. I am also willing to share content or work together with any of you who might be interested.
Again, I apologize for taking so long to update the site and hope your cases, claims or complaints are well on their way to being resolved in your favor. This process wouldn't be as bad if Ford offered some sort of support, but that just hasn't been the case. They do nothing but deny, sidestep, ignore and hope that you'll just go away and get tired of taking your vehicle back to the dealerships. All you can do is hang in there and keep fighting the good fight!
Sincerely,
SyncSucks.com
PS, Here are links to articles regarding Ford Sync as well as the Class Action suits being filed:
From Reuters here thanks to The Center for Defensive Driving.
From The Wall Street Journal here.
From Apple Insider here.
Over the last several months we have received more email than ever before. We truly wish we could respond to all of you. Visitors to SyncSucks.com have also more than doubled (which can't be good news for Ford vehicle owners). We will be posting new comments, issues and insights very soon!
UPDATE 8/1/13:
There’s been a LOT of news about the class-action suits being filed against Ford of late. Some of the articles attempt to classify the cases as frivolous lawsuits. While others dismiss the issues as non-safety-related and go on to imply that Ford Sync/MyFord Touch customers are a bunch of tech-challenged morons.
It’s not about being able to sync the latest smart phone or decipher the highly complex system. (Let’s face it, it’s not a complicated system. Inconvenient, yes. Complex, no.) Instead, it is simply customers trying to get a defective product — one that is in 40% of all SYNC/MyFord Touch equipped vehicles — fixed!
'Ford, the second-largest U.S. automaker, reported 400 problems with its MyFord Touch system for every 1,000 vehicles in November 2012. The company previously said it aims to lower that number to 360 by August.'Automotive News
Well, it’s now August 2013 and surprise! My system still doesn't work!
This website continues to get emails on a daily basis outlining how many 2013 Ford and Lincoln models still don't work. We recently received a six- page PDF outlining a ridiculous number of ongoing issues with a 2013 AWD Fusion Titanium that a customer purchased in April 2013.
I'd have to ask these class-action critics what they'd do if they paid $1,300+ for a defective product that negatively affects so many aspects of their new vehicle? In many cases (including mine), the defective product had been taken in for repair (nine times and counting for me) and yet it still wasn’t properly repaired or replaced? Then essentially being given the middle finger by the manufacturer?
Something else to ponder. Ford's VP and General Counsel David G. Leitch Ford Corporate Profileappears to have real issues with class- action lawsuits generally. He serves on the general counsel advisory committee for the Civil Justice Reform Group, an uber-secretive organization that funnels money to ATRA (American Tort Reform Association). This group seems hell bent on destroying individual’s rights when it comes to taking legal action against big businesses like Ford and their armies of attorneys. I think most people would be against a frivolous lawsuit of any kind, but it seems pretty clear that these groups are trying to do nothing but limit the big businesses’ responsibility and liability for their defective products.
Check this out: Taking Justice Back
Thanks again for the great response — visitors to the site are growing every day! If we help only 1% of the thousands of monthly visitors, it’s well worth it!
UPDATE 7/23/13:
Wow, the response has been overwhelming. This site has received thousands of visitors each month and many of you have sent emails to share your own experience, seek advice or offer insight. If yours was one I was unable to respond to, I sincerely apologize.
For all who have reached out, I wanted to provide you with an update on my case and also share a couple of thoughts.
Status of My Case
I hired a Los Angeles-based law firm to represent me with my claim against Ford. After more than 6 months, I had to force them into settling since their fees kept growing and the actual trial was still another 12-plus months away. I received $9,000 in the settlement, of that half went to the lawyers. I was disappointed, but it’s a small victory I suppose.
Before you hire an attorney, you might consider filing a claim through the Better Business Bureau. Based on the emails I received, a few Sync-related claims have been settled in favor of the customer and against Ford. The general outcome is that Ford must take back the vehicle and refund all monies paid. Which is, of course, the outcome most customers are seeking.
That was not the case for me, however. The BBB turned my claim down altogether. I have also heard from other Sync customers that it was not the case for them either. In fact, some believe that Ford has a partnership with the BBB and the entire claim process is a sham. The conflict of interest is suspect at least as one claimant notes:
“It's a very weird and disturbing partnership. Apparently, Ford uses whatever ‘wins’ or partial wins in BBB proceedings, as ‘due diligence ammunition for anything that makes it to court, where they destroy you, as they are able to prove some kind of ‘attention, and make it drag out into a lifetime of further service events.”
You might also check out this Facebook page:
Ford Sync Sucksfacebook page:
BBB and Ford partnership articles here and here.
Bottom line: working with an attorney and/or joining the Class Action complaint may be your better options, but it’s certainly worth exploring all avenues.
Website Feedback
If any of you have feedback on the site or ideas on how it could be improved, please feel free to let me know. I have offered to include your experiences alongside mine, but am open to anything that will help others who've been subjected to Ford's faulty products and misdeeds. Through this site, I’ve heard complaints on virtually all Ford models that have Sync/ MyFordTouch, as well as several Lincoln models.
If you would like us to include your story on the website, please take a few minutes to write it up as succinctly as possible and include all parts of the Sync system experience — back-up camera, phone, connection issues, playback issues, etc. Also let us know what personal info you think should be displayed (i.e. first name, nickname, no name, city/state). I think it would be nice for people to see complaints from all over the country, but it’s up to you.
Website Maintenance
A couple of you have offered to work on or take over the website since my case has been settled. I have decided to retain control of the domain name, at least for now. I would, however, consider forwarding it to another site or server if somebody is interested in taking it on. I am also willing to share content or work together with any of you who might be interested.
Again, I apologize for taking so long to update the site and hope your cases, claims or complaints are well on their way to being resolved in your favor. This process wouldn't be as bad if Ford offered some sort of support, but that just hasn't been the case. They do nothing but deny, sidestep, ignore and hope that you'll just go away and get tired of taking your vehicle back to the dealerships. All you can do is hang in there and keep fighting the good fight!
Sincerely,
SyncSucks.com
PS, Here are links to articles regarding Ford Sync as well as the Class Action suits being filed:
From Reuters here thanks to The Center for Defensive Driving.
From The Wall Street Journal here.
From Apple Insider here.
Ford Sync V4.6 Download
These were the correct files for my car to update SYNC 1.1 to v5.11 - the correct files for your car may be different. Check on the ford website and enter your VIN to be sure. This is just the firmware that SYNC 1.1 runs on - you will still have SYNC 1.1, for those that are not familiar with things like this. When I was on Ford SYNC, no Google code ran on the module. The feature they are talking about is called Send To Sync and it's a web service where the SYNC module can receive a map planned on Google Maps. The mapping software in Ford SYNC is simply given the data output in the form of lat/long info. He also said that within a few weeks Sync V4.6 should be released. Kodi 17.5 roku build download. He said V4.4 was no longer recommended by Ford. Understand this was for a Fusion but since the Sync platform runs the same in every model, I would think we would be seeing a V4.6 update as well. So maybe all of us with V4.4 issues could have them solved with V4.6?