Ford India | Driving Basics

If the vehicle is running with all windows closed or in the internal circulation mode for a long time without defrosting/defogging, the inner surface of the glasses, in the face of some specific weather, will have a layer of fog owing to the temperature difference inside and outside of the vehicle, which will obstruct the sight of the drivers and seriously affect the driving safety. Therefore, it is necessary to know some effective defogging tips.

Defrosting/defogging of automatic thermostatic air conditioning

1) Press the orange MAX defog button in the air conditioning panel

2) If the ambient temperature at this time is higher than 4℃, the air conditioning will start automatically and run the external circulation mode, with the air circulation at a high speed and the temperature at H1. At this time, the internal circulation mode shall not be selected, and the air speed and temperature is automatically controlled and shall not be adjusted manually. When you choose the windshield defrost/defog, the rear-view window heating function will open automatically (front windshield heating, if any, will also open as well), and close after a while. Pressing the AUTO button, and the air conditioning will return to the auto mode. After defogging is finished, you can adjust the temperature, blower speed, air distribution mode, and also turn on/off the air conditioner manually.

Defrosting and defogging of manual air conditioner

1) Turn the knob of rotary blowing mode to the wind direction of windshield defogging;

2)  Choose external circulation (the internal circulation light is off);

3) The wind speed is set at Level 4 (the higher the wind speed, the higher the defogging speed);

4) Turn the temperature knob to the lowest position in the red area;

5) When the ambient temperature is higher than 4 ℃, air conditioner will automatically turn on;

6) When defrosting and defogging are completed, the temperature, blower speed, air distribution mode can be adjusted as needed and the air conditioner can be turned on or off manually.

In addition, proper opening of the window can also speed up the defrosting and defogging process. If necessary, press the rear glass heating button, then frost on the rear glass can be quickly eliminated; in order to speed up the side window defogging, you can close the central outlet to direct the outlet air of both sides to side window glass; if the vehicle is equipped with a heating rear-view mirror, the rear-view mirror defrosting and defogging function will be turned on at the same time.

• Open windows and sunroof in advance
  When entering the range of remote control of the vehicle, you may use the remote control to lower all the windows and open the sunroof so that the hot air deposited inside the car can be discharged out of the vehicle in advance. For a vehicle without remote control windows, you can open all the windows after sitting in the car.
• Vehicle types with automatic thermostatic air conditioner
  For vehicle types with the MAX A/C button, press the button and internal circulation of the air conditioner will automatically turn on (the air speed is set at the highest level and the temperature is set to the “LOW” level) for 10 to 15 minutes. Press the AUTO button to return to the automatic mode.
  
  For vehicles without the MAX A/C button, press the AUTO button until the A/C icon is displayed on the screen. Set the air conditioner temperature at the LOW level for 10 to 15 minutes. When you no longer feel hot, you can adjust the temperature, airflow direction, blower speed, and circulation mode as needed.
• Vehicle types with manual air conditioner
  For vehicle types equipped with MAX A/C button, turn the air conditioner temperature control knob to the MAX A/C position, adjust the airflow to the blowing surface position, and then set the blower speed at the highest gear (Level 4) for 10-15 minutes.
  
  For vehicles without the MAX A/C button, rotate the air temperature control knob to the coldest position (end of the blue area), adjust air distribution to the blowing surface position, and set the blower speed at the highest gear (Level 4) when the A/C button light is on. After 3-5 minutes of operation of the air conditioner, it is recommended to set the circulation mode to internal mode (confirm that the internal mode button light is on) for 10 to 15 minutes. When you no longer feel hot, you can adjust the airflow direction, blower speed and circulation mode as needed.

Any undesirable odor inside the car is related to the air circulation system, especially the air-conditioning system. The reasons can be roughly divided into:

1) The smell generated by mould in the water soaked carpet or mould in the evaporator of the air conditioning system;

2) Failure to maintain good ventilation after long-time smoking in the car, smell from tar attached to the evaporator, seats and car interior;

3) The smell produced by the poorly sealed food in the car;

4) The sour smell caused by excessive or out-of-date automobile perfume;

5) The smell of decay substances inhaled in the air conditioning system;

6) Bad air condition caused by the use of internal circulation for a long time.

There are many ways to improve the quality of air and to solve the odor in the car.

On the one hand, car owners need to try their best to avoid the source of odor such as sachets, food and perfume; turn off the A/C cooling function before reaching the destination but keep the air blowing function on so that the natural wind will evaporate water in the evaporator in order to avoid odor; make use of the sun's high temperature radiation to keep the car dry and remove the musty smell in sunny days as much as possible; open all the windows or use the outdoor circulation to remove undesirable smell in the car in the suburbs with fresh air; if there is indeed an unpleasant odor in your car, you may open the windows firstly, and then turn on the heating cycle with the maximum wind speed and maximum temperature of air conditioning system in order to reduce such odor.

On the other hand, you need to eliminate any existing undesirable odor completely and clean and maintain the whole air conditioning system thoroughly. This will involve very technical works. Therefore, it is recommended that you should go to a 4S store to get technical services.

In addition, existence of smell in a new car is normal. It is recommended that customers open windows frequently in the first two months to allow ventilation and let the smell decrease gradually until it disappears.

For the new car smell, "prevention is more important than treatment": the owner should maintain good habits from the beginning, avoid smoking, eating snacks and using perfume in the car as far as possible, refresh air using the function of external circulation, and roll all the windows down to achieve ventilation when circumstances permit. When driving the car in the suburbs, the owner may set the air-conditioning inlet at the position of external circulation or roll all the windows down, so that fresh air will enter the car and drive some of the odor away. Clean or replace the air conditioning filter during routine maintenance. If you can keep these habits, a fresh and healthy odor can be maintained in your car.

Heating from air conditioner is provided by transmission of heat from the engine cooling water. Therefore, when temperature of the engine does not reach the working temperature (about 95 degrees or so), temperature at the outlet is the natural temperature inside the vehicle.

When the working temperature of the engine is normal, supply of heating will be normal, then driver and passenger(s) can adjust the temperature according to their personal needs.

For the sake of customers' health, it is recommended that external circulation mode of air conditioner should be selected under normal circumstances, which can allow the outside fresh air come into the car; when it is necessary to achieve rapid cooling or some circumstances require, such as traffic jams, traffic lights, or poor air condition outside, the internal circulation mode is selected, but it should not be used for a long time, or there will be a risk of hypoxia.

If you turn on the external circulation mode when the vehicle is operating, you can feel a slight wind at the air outlet, and sometimes the temperature is slightly higher than the air temperature, which is a normal phenomenon mainly affected by the engine.

A small number of customers also encountered the situation of very hot air at the outlet, which is because the temperature knob is not turned to the blue area at the low temperature side, so that the incoming natural wind is heated by the heater core body. Please turn the knob to the blue area.

1) When an air conditioner is turned on, the engine compartment will make a "clicking" sound, which means that the air conditioner is in the cooling mode.

2) To prolong the service life of an air conditioner compressor, it is recommended to turn on the A/C cooling function for 3 to 5 minutes every half a month.

3) Operation of the air blower will generate a sound, which is a normal phenomenon. The higher the air volume of air conditioner is, the louder the sound makes.

4) When the engine is started, the internal circulation button of manual air conditioner or A/C button of air conditioner may sometimes turn on automatically. Please manually release the button or both buttons to turn them off before the last stop.

5) Turn the knob of air conditioner wind direction to the defrosting position, the A/C button light will automatically turn on and the internal circulation button light sometimes turns off automatically, you can manually release the button to turn it off.

6) When the ambient temperature is below 4℃, the defrosting and defogging button light will automatically turn on, just release the button to turn it off.

7) When the rear window defogging switch is turned on, it typically needs about 15 minutes to eliminate fog completely, and the defogging function will automatically be turned off, and the defrosting button light will automatically turn off.

8) When the car is parked after operation of the air conditioner for a period of time, some condensed water will flow from the bottom of the car; this is a normal phenomenon.

If temperature of the engine coolant is higher than the acceptable immersion temperature of the engine at the instant of parking (when the key is being pulled out), the engine running computer will automatically calculate the running speed and time of the fan according to the difference between them, so as to automatically control operation of the fan. The higher the engine temperature is, the higher the running speed and the longer the time of running after car parking; when the coolant temperature of the engine is lower than the immersion temperature, the fan will be automatically turned off. The computer can control the fan and shut it down, and this function will not affect the battery power, so no need to worry. The purpose of controlling the fan in this way is to prevent the high temperature coolant from damaging the engine parts after parking, so as to protect the engine and prolong its service life. So it is normal to find that the cooling fan is still running sometimes after the engine is turned off. Please use it rest assured.

This is a normal phenomenon during the operation of the engine.

In order to make the engine reach the best working temperature in the shortest time (to make the engine enter the heat engine condition faster), the engine driving computer will control the engine running at high speed for a period of time and then run at a steady speed. The purpose is to protect the engine, prolong its service life and reduce fuel consumption. When the engine starts below the working temperature, it is not conducive to gasoline atomization, resulting in higher fuel consumption. At the same time, the emission performance is poorer when engine temperature is still low, and mechanical wear of the engine is also more serious than that at the normal working temperature. So, it is essential to make the engine enter the "warm car" state quickly.

Ford's vehicle positioning emphasis on manipulation and motion. Vibration isolation rubber on Ford cars is harder than that in cars manufactured by its competitors, so engines generate slightly louder sounds compared to car models supplied by other manufacturers.

When a car has a cold start-up, because of low temperature and high viscosity of lubricating oil, engine lubrication is insufficient, and the engine idle speed of cold car is higher, the car generates a louder sound, which will generally be reduced after warming up. The situation is more obvious in cold northern areas due to lower temperature.

When driving a car, the driver should step on the accelerator gently and start the car slowly, so that the engine will generate a smooth and gentle sound, which will not only benefit the engine, but also reduce fuel consumption.

When a car with automatic transmission is at Gear 1 position, noise generated by the automatic gearbox is louder than that generated at a higher gear position. The reason is that the torque transmission of the transmission gear at a lower gear position is larger, which will produce a larger reaction force on the car body.

When the driver is shifting gear in a car with automatic transmission, it is normal to hear a slight sound in the car because the actuating elements in the transmission are moving.

Temperature indicated by the temperature pointer of the coolant rises from more than 60 degrees to about 90 degrees in a short time, which serves as a design logic and a normal phenomenon.

The optimum working temperature of engine is around 95℃. After the engine is started, thermostat of engine will control the volume of coolant in circulation, allowing the engine to make the coolant reach this temperature in a short time, thereby reducing fuel consumption, prolonging engine life and protecting the engine. This is the normal design state, so please use it rest assured.

1) When the ABS warning light on the dashboard is on, please visit a 4S store as soon as possible for checking and repairing so as to avoid any impact on your driving safety and delay of trip.

2) Loosen the brake after start up and there will be a friction between the brake pad and brake disc, which is a normal phenomenon. After starting the engine, the driver will brake before the gear operation, and release the brake after the gear is in position, and then the vehicle runs; at this time, the brake pad and brake disc is fitted under normal temperature condition, without producing great friction, and the vehicle will produce forward or backward driving force after the gear is in position; release the brake pedal at this time, when the brake pad and brake disc will produce a sound similar to "cuckoo". If the brake disc is contaminated with water after the car wash, this sound will be more obvious.

3) After the hand brake is used for a period of time, the cable will be longer, this is a normal phenomenon. The hand brake cable is composed of a plurality of groups of wires, with some ductility after stress, and after using for a period of time, there will be a certain elongation compared to the length of the new car, which will not have any effect on the parking brake.

4) The brake disc is rusty: the main component of the brake disc is iron. If the vehicle is not used for a long time, there will be some rust on the surface of the disc. However, when the vehicle is running, the rust will be eliminated by the braking system, which will not affect the normal use.

5) The brake disc produces heat after used: normal phenomenon. The brake is achieved by the friction between the brake disc and brake pad. It is the process of converting the kinetic energy into heat energy, so it produces heat. Don't touch the brake disc with your hand after parking to avoid burns.

The power steering auxiliary system is generally hydraulic type, and the hydraulic pressure is used to apply power to the steering system, so you can easily turn the steering wheel.

When the steering wheel is turned all the way to the end, the steering rod has reached the limit. At this time, the power oil pump must be discharged by itself, otherwise it will cause the oil pump to overheat and damage, so the sound will be larger. This is a normal phenomenon.

It is suggested to avoid turning the steering wheel all the way to the end for a long time; otherwise it may affect the life of the power oil pump.

• Open the window / sunroof during driving, the windy noise is loud

1) When the window / sunroof is opened during driving, the passenger cabin has become a cavity, where the car body surface and the cavity will form a typical acoustic resonance model and produce a noise;

2) When the window / sunroof is opened, the seal system of the whole vehicle is ineffective to a certain extent, which cannot play the role of isolating the external sound source from the passenger cabin.

3) When the window / sunroof is opened, the sound is directly actuated by the passengers' ears, and the subjective feelings of passengers become stronger.

Therefore, open the window or sunroof when driving will cause greater wind noise is a normal phenomenon. We recommend you not open the windows / sunroof during driving, especially at high speed driving, which is also a good driving habit that can save fuel consumption.

• When driving in the following circumstances, the whole noise such as tire noise and wind noise is louder.

1) Driving on cement road: when driving on cement road, the tire noise will be louder than that of asphalt road, because the asphalt pavement is honeycomb like, compared with cement pavement, not only it has less contact area with the tire, but also the honeycomb structure itself has the sound-absorbing effect.

2) When there are obvious reflectors around (for example, through tunnels): under normal circumstances, the noise generated by vehicles during driving will be radiated and dissipated to the surrounding area, but when there are obvious reflectors around the vehicles, the noise which should have been reflected to the surrounding area will reflect and direct towards the passenger cabin.

3) Driving in the windy weather: in the design and manufacturing process, our vehicles have experienced numerous wind tunnel tests and design verification, but we focus on the wind direction of 0 to 20 degrees. Without doubt, when driving in the windy weather, there will be more lateral wind disturbance, and when the lateral wind disturbance is greater than 20 degrees, it will generate a larger wind noise than normal driving conditions; at the same time, when driving against the wind, the air flow speed will be the wind speed plus the car speed, which will also produce the wind noise greater than the normal conditions.

4) Ultra high speed driving (greater than 160KPH): one of the basic characteristics of wind noise is that it increases with the increase of speed. The wind noise generated at high speed driving is certainly louder than that at low speed. At the same time, the ultra-high speed driving is not conducive to safety, which is also prohibited by law.

5) Driving on a special road, for instance a deceleration belt: when driving on special roads for instance deceleration belt, the road surface is deliberately designed to actuate the vehicle vibration and sound, so as to arouse the driver's attention.

6) Tire pressure is too high: when the tire pressure is too high, it will cause the cavity resonance of the tire and the increase of the vibration of the road to the car body, which will cause the increase of the tire noise.

7) Cold weather: in cold weather, the hardness of the car's sound insulation and vibration isolator will increase to some extent, thus causing the noise to increase.

The design concept of Ford vehicle is paying more attention to the control performance, so the suspension design is more tough, tire grip is also better. The strong suspension can provide more excellent control performance; reduce car body rollover, plus the good road holding performance of the tire, so as to bring the full and delightful driving enjoyment to the driver. In order to meet the above characteristics, the vehicle adopts the wide tire with a small ratio of height to width and the bushing with a relatively smaller vibration isolation and so on, therefore, the absorption capacity of the road noise is also becoming poorer accordingly.

At the same time, in order to respond quickly to the change of the road surface, it can provide a clear sense of road for passengers. The design of the spring is relatively rougher, the stretching stroke is shorter, and the corresponding buffer is also reduced. When the driving road is poorer or passing the deceleration belt, passengers will feel bumpy.

The external car lights can adjust the internal pressure through a breathable hole when they are working. Fog is the normal phenomenon of this kind of design. When the humid air enters into the car lights through a breathable hole, the fog can be produced when the temperature of car lights lens is lower. When the fog is produced, a layer of mist is formed on the inner surface of the car lights lens. This layer of mist will eventually disappear and may also be produced again in future use.

In some cases, it may take 2-3 days or more time to completely dissipate the mist, depending on the temperature of the environment, the humidity and the time used for the car lights. This phenomenon has no negative effect on the normal work and lighting of car lights.

• Acceptable circumstances:

The inner surface of car lights lens has a layer of mist (without water drops or water marks), where the area of mist covering car lights lens is less than 50%

• Unacceptable conditions (usually due to the leakage of the car lights):

When there is water inside the car lights, and there are very large water drops, water stains or water marks on the inner surface of car lights lens.

If you find your car lights have the above unacceptable cases, please take your car to the dealer for inspection and necessary maintenance.

★Warm prompts:

Before using the vehicle's audio system, please make sure that the speakers on the four doors are free of any plastic film or unobstructed by foreign objects

1 Small-sized, irregular shaped sharp disc

3’’ (8cm) disc     triangle     rectangle      arrow      etc.

2 Thick disc

Labeled      printed label      inner hole protection     external protection

3 Damaged disc

Chipped

4 Low-quality disc

Rough edge

• Note:

1) To better protect the pickup head in the CD/DVD player, it is recommended to prepare a CD/DVD cleaner and clean the pickup head regularly. Do not use any disc with a dirty reading face.

2) To better protect and ensure the normal function of your CD/DVD player, it is recommended to place the disc gently into the disc slot, making sure that the disc is parallel to the disc slot and perpendicular to the panel of CD/DVD player, until the disc is sucked into the unit automatically. Do not push the disc into the unit violently from any angles. Please click ESC and the disc would eject automatically, and then remove the disc gently. Do not pull out the disc violently from any angles.

• Disc cannot eject

Irregular discs, once inserted, are likely to jam the interior mechanical parts and get stuck in the player.

• Disc gets stuck

For single-disc CD or single-disc DVD movement, only one disc is supported to play at one time. 

• Position may be inaccurate under the following circumstances:

1) When GPS signal is weak

2) When the vehicle is moved or towed away after flameout (e.g. by ferry or trailer)

3) When the fork on the road is at a small angle

4) When the vehicle is driving on and off an urban overpass

5) When the main road is close to the auxiliary road

6) When the overpass is almost on a vertical plane with the road below

7) When the vehicle is driving on a long straight road

8) When the vehicle is driving for a long time on somewhere not displayed on map, and keeps changing directions irregularly

9) When the vehicle is driving on a turn lane of a three-dimensional garage

10) When a new tire is used

11) When the pressure of tire is incorrect

12) In the case that non-original Ford components are mounted on the vehicle and the actual driving route is found to deviate from the GPS route, please check whether the map is the latest version in a timely manner.

External behaviors such as touching the vehicle do not fall into the alarm scope of the anti-theft system. The anti-theft system starts only when the vehicle is unlocked or started in an illegal manner.

When the vehicle is unlocked in an illegal manner, the anti-theft system will trigger the burglar alarm (if any) to beep for 28sec and meanwhile the emergency light will flicker for 4 min45sec.

When the vehicle is started in an illegal manner, the passive burglar light in the dashboard will flicker abnormally, and meanwhile the vehicle will be forbidden to start till the signal of legal key appears.

Ford has introduced a battery saving function for the new electrical architecture and also clarified its requirements, mainly aiming to save the energy consumption of battery and make the range in the dashboard and the date and time in the acoustic system visible to the driver

The steering wheel is locked, in such a case, please turn the steering wheel and the start key simultaneously, and the problem can be resolved.

In case water flows in, open the remote control key immediately, and dry it with a hair dryer, then you can use it.

Maybe your USB drive is overloaded with documents or data, or the formats of your USB drive and multimedia file are not supported, please refer to your vehicle audio instructions. It is recommended that you prepare a dedicated USB drive for the vehicle.

After the fuel is burned in the engine, the exhaust will be discharged through the silencer. This process won’t last long, but the temperature of the exhaust is very high, which would lead to a rise in the silencer temperature. This is a normal phenomenon, please rest assured.

After the fuel is burned in the engine, the exhaust will be discharged through the silencer. Some exhaust will be condensed inside the silencer and flow out from the hemming and the tail. This is a normal phenomenon, please rest assured.

Remote control key is an electrical component without strong waterproof ability. Please use it with care, and protect it against rain and direct contact with liquids, especially when the battery is replaced. Water inflow may cause the malfunction of remote control or lead to the starting failure of the vehicle.