Truck is great, Ford's software is holding it back

[djdrew]

Really enjoying the 2025 Lariat - 1200 miles of fun so far! That said, there are still a few things that still seem unrefined - and it’s mostly just on the software side.

0. The driver screen has a mind of its own if it will show you the last selected view or not. Sometimes it stays for days, other days, it always needs to be reminded.

1. The “swipe” direction on the screen feels completely backwards to my Apple way of living. How is there no setting to inverse the scrolling??

2. On the main center screen there is Trip 1 / Trip 2 (which it NEVER remembers I was last looking at Trip 2) and then a basic ‘overall’ MPG. It would be nice to have a “This Trip” view too.

3. My wife HATES the Ford Assistance voice, to the point she said we are never to pay for any Ford connected services and just rely on Apple/Google. I think the map integration Ford does it’s great, just a shame they force you into a really crappy voice with no way to change it. (No offense if the person who voiced that voice incase they lurk on these forms.)

4. There is not an easy way to switch between Bluetooth/CarPlay audio and the Radio. It takes a lot of clicks in the screen to do so. Even the 2016 Ford Edge we had before could swap sources faster directly from the steering wheel. Ford could easily adapt one of the side screens of the center console and offer a quick-select audio source to save a lot of muddling in menus.

5. The icons along the bottom of the screen are in a goofy order. Why is there an unrelated heated mirror icon in the middle of all the HVAC controls? It’s an accessory item like heated seats, at least group it with one of those vs sticking it with a group that doesn't make sense.

6. Ford uses the touch screen for the buttons, but doesn’t actually implement much feedback. Take for example the directional airflow controls, these have so much more potential to allow me a quick glance to see what is selected instead of having to click into that menu screen. I mocked up a really easy option for simple feedback.

Overall, the pickup, comfort, driving position, and fuel efficiency have been great!

Sponsored

 

[Mavster Mechanic]

With you 200% on 4.

same with 2022-2024

 

[mangoMotors]

Happy with the truck too. My biggest UI gripe is turning off HVAC should be possible in 1 button press. Unless I'm missing something, its 3 presses all around the screen (HVAC icon on bottom, top left power button that pops up, HVAC icon again or swipe to close). Its cumbersome. Turning on can be done my pressing Auto. They could easily implement a long-hold or double-tap to turn off.

 

[MotoWojo]

Regarding #2, my screen shows an option for “This Trip”, just below Trip 1 and Trip 2.

 

[Mavster Mechanic]

There's an annoying bug in my 2022.

How many of you like to compare dash MPG to pump MPG?

To do this in my 2022, I need to check, record, or remember the tank MPG BEFORE shutting the truck off and refueling. Can't do it after refueling. At least not easily.

It shows no MPG value after refueling.
As shown (while towing TT so range is low).

I have to actually drive a little bit first with gas engine on to get the "All Electric" to go away, even though I had not yet reset anything

When I reset / zero out now, it's not exactly the zero point anymore now is it? I know. First world problems. Just annoying.

Pump was at 16.5 MPG by the way.
But I had to DRIVE to see the 16.4 on the display because I turned the key off before checking at the gas station.

 

[axel-moto]

I thought I was going crazy with 1, I can't ever swipe in the right direction. At least give us the option to switch it.

 

[ice445]

The software quality is definitely horrible. So many bugs. Like today I had my steering wheel infotainment controls not work until I rebooted the radio, lol. I mean I haven't had anything fundamental go down, but still.

 

[Cherokee]

I am so glad I snagged a 2024.
Yeah, I’m a proud member of the button/switch/dial generation.

 

[Dukeallen]

I am so glad I snagged a 2024.
Yeah, I’m a proud member of the button/switch/dial generation.

I have a 24 and it has software glitches too. It makes me miss the old days before computers complicated everything.

 

[grandpa_disney]

I went with a 2024 XLT Lux Hybrid because I wanted real buttons and knobs and not everything on a touch screen. I only use the screen for car play maps and it would be nice if it was larger, but it will do.

As far as SW quality. It is much better than our Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. Its software is a total mess. Sometimes I have to reset it just to get the iPhone connected via car play again.

In my working days I did avionics software. You're correct in that everything goes through legal. Even the most simple change takes a ton of red tape, reviews, testing, reviews, planning, and did I say reviews? Every time a plane crashes, attorneys show up in force. Plans crash rarely, cars everyday. I can only imagine how much scrutiny they get. So it really is not surprising how handcuffed the devs feel.

And your are correct in that the truck is comfortable and a joy to drive! I love it.

 

[Darryl]

One of my neighbors worked for Ford on some of their web site UX and he says it was like being trapped in quicksand. You'd want to change one word in a description, it would have to go to legal and you'd get an answer 6-8 weeks later if you could go ahead or not.

This isn't even their vehicle UX, just the web site UX. On the vehicle side it must be even worse. Their programmers probably hate this stuff MORE than we do but there probably isn't much they can do about it, realistically

My main gripe on my 2025, which is IMO a genuine safety hazard, is that if you turn down the dashboard brightness to some reasonable level for very low light environments (driving in the country on unlit roads), the row of buttons which includes the hazard light switch becomes invisible. I've been in a situation where I wanted to warn drivers behind me of something but simply couldn't find the switch.

EDIT: just remembered another gripe ... you pull into a gas station and want to reset the "trip 1" or "trip 2" setting before fueling to track your mileage. Put the truck in Park, undo your seatbelt OHHHH here's a nice seatbelt warning that CAN'T BE DISMISSED, even tough the truck is in Park ... so you have to redo your seatbelt in order to access the menus ... : rage :

Unless I'm mistaken, The seatbelt minder can be dismissed by simply pressing the ok button, I believe.

 

[Darryl]

I am so glad I snagged a 2024.
Yeah, I’m a proud member of the button/switch/dial generation.

I like dials too. But I literally got used to the touchscreen within a couple of days because this touchscreen is so much more intuitive than most for the everyday functions such as climate control. I've driven other vehicles where I've had to pull over in order to figure out how to control the basic AC and radio functions. So if I have to have a touchscreen, the Maverick is the one to have.

 

[Darryl]

The software quality is definitely horrible. So many bugs. Like today I had my steering wheel infotainment controls not work until I rebooted the radio, lol. I mean I haven't had anything fundamental go down, but still.

The 2025 seems to be a significant improvement over the sync 3. But I'm sure it's not totally glitch free.

 

[ice445]

The 2025 seems to be a significant improvement over the sync 3. But I'm sure it's not totally glitch free.

Yeah, that's the one thing I wish I had instead of poverty sync. I suppose you can always retrofit the sync 4 from Panda or something like that, but it's wildly expensive. I have no issues using android auto on mine, but the glitch I have the most often is the song title in the cluster getting frozen on whatever the first song you played after starting the truck. The volume and next track stuff not working on the wheel but still working under the radio was a new one lol.

Another thing I've noticed that's irritating is that none of the infotainment or audio modules seem to actually shut off for quite a while after you exit and lock the vehicle, so bugs won't clear unless you do a manual reset if you're just doing errands or something.

All in all it's just minor stuff though, so it's hard to really complain

 

[Darryl]

Happy with the truck too. My biggest UI gripe is turning off HVAC should be possible in 1 button press. Unless I'm missing something, its 3 presses all around the screen (HVAC icon on bottom, top left power button that pops up, HVAC icon again or swipe to close). Its cumbersome. Turning on can be done my pressing Auto. They could easily implement a long-hold or double-tap to turn off.

I think you can shut it off by repeatedly pressing the fan - button or pressing the fan button once, then touching the off button on the screen. Still a 2 step process though. I agree that there should be an always visible button that simply turns it off.

Sponsored