Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

Hey everyone, going to get to the facts very quickly here:

2 days ago
-STOP SAFELY NOW comes on
-No drivetrain
-Battery appears to be working
-Turn car off and back on. NO crank NO start but power does come on

Get car towed to AAA service center as I am a AAA member. Wanted to take it to my house instead but Dad visiting from out of town insisted (he isn't very handy by any means) that AAA take it.

Yesterday
-AAA gets back to me with error codes: P0827 (was on phone so this very well could've been P0A27) and P1A10
-They insist I have Ford take a look at it because they're not sure whats going on. Useless.

When this problem accord, I was SURE that it was the MECS pump. I know of them going bad around 50,000 miles and recently got a recall notice from Ford about it. Kicking myself that I didn't take care of it sooner. Figured what the hell, atleast Ford isn't going to break the bank to fix it, right?

Today
-Mike at Ford tells me that the wiring harness connected to the Hybrid battery is shorted out and needs to be replaced.

(Quick back story: AAMCO replaced the transmission on my car about 5 years ago and in doing so, did a sh*t job cutting the harness and putting it back together. Gave a lot of error codes after a few months, would often lose power steering. After sinking $1000+ and replacing rack and pinon, turns out the fix was properly putting the wiring harness back together which would've only cost $100 tops--problem solved).

-Mike says the repair is going to cost $950
-3rd Party warranty with $100 deductible will NOT cover it
-Mike also tells me that my coolant needs to be replaced.
-I tell him that coolant is only supposed to be replaced every 100,000 miles, right?
-He stutters and says "Alright well, you at least need to get the harness done"
-I mention that the MECS pump might be an issue. He says he already replaced the pump.
-I ask if he's already replaced the MECS pump, doesn't the coolant also get changed since the original coolant is drained out? He replies "No, that happens after the fact."
-I have no idea what the hell he is talking about and tell him that I will call him back.

I'm not sure what to do at this point. I definitely want to get my car out of there and either take it somewhere else or work on it myself and figure out what the issue is. I absolutely want to see if the MECS pump has been replaced. If it has, I should hear the pump working in the ACCESSORY position of my key, right?

If anyone can shed some light on this issue, I would GREATLY appreciate it. Thanks everyone!

Re: Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

6 years or 100k miles whichever comes first for both engine and electronics coolants.

Re: Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

Ford should be able to show you records that the MECS pump was replaced in the recall.
What on earth was AAMCO doing working on a Ford hybrid transmission 5 years ago? Nobody should touch them except Ford and it should have been under the 8 year, 100K mile hybrid warranty then.
Do not take it somewhere else than Ford and do not work on it yourself.

Re: Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

I'm also pretty surprised AAMCO even attempted to work on a FEH's transmission, unlike like the OP's AAA shop which referred him to a dealer. I bet back then someone thought the Ford dealer was taking him for a ride and honest AAMCO would not. ;)
The Ford dealer tech is correct, the MECS pump can be easily changed without the coolant. In the MECS pump change they also change out the battery air filter.
The pump change is a pretty easy DIY (instructions posted up on the web) if someone don't want Ford to pay for it.
HV Battery vent blend doors are also a known failure point and not an expensive fix.

Re: Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

Hey, this may not be the car for you man. I've done most of my own mechanical work for the last 45 years, AND I'm an experienced industrial electrician (since 1979), and I know this is a car to have serviced by a Ford dealer mechanic.
There are only certain Ford mechanics (and dealers) that do well with them though. The one you're at might not be the best, but from what you've told us here so far, I'm not seeing evidence of anything wrong. They may well hope you'll take your hacked up wiring and the rig it's attached to somewhere else, but they seem legitimate at this point.

Re: Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

AAMCO replaced the transmission, they did not rebuild it. VERY few repair parts are available for our CVT...replacement is typically the only option.

Re: Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

Why was this transmission not under Ford's hybrid components warranty? Was it a high mileage taxi? Was the replacement transmission out of a wreck?

Re: Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

Hi everyone,

Just wanted to quickly update the thread on my situation. First and foremost, thank you to everyone that replied to this thread.

Picked up the vehicle from Ford. I made sure they replaced the MECS pump and they did, so I was happy about that.

I got a chance to speak to the mechanic who ran the diagnostics tests on my vehicle. He told me according to the error codes, the issue is with the hybrid battery wiring harness.

I was a little peeved with myself that I didn't get the issue "fixed" back in 2007 when there was a recall on the part. As I mentioned earlier, Ford quoted me $950 (4.5 hour job) to replace the part.

This was unacceptable to me especially considering the part itself could be had for $33 off of eBay. So I took it upon myself as I had a few hours to kill one afternoon and ended up installing the harness (essentially a small extension cord--nothing is actually replaced). I haven't had any problems since and I've been driving the vehicle for a weeks time now. ;):shade:

If anyone wants links: HERE is link to the part on eBay. The part number is 7M6Z14A303B. It came with detailed instructions on how to do the "repair."

If anyone wants instructions, I found them over at the Escape-City forums HERE.

Thanks again for the help everyone! Now on to changing engine coolant and timing belt. Anyone got any helpful links? I've got the repair workshop manual. :)

Re: Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

Why are you replacing the timing belt? Does the maintenance schedule call for it? Does it even have a "timing belt" that may need replacing? My 2010 Fusion hybrid with the 2.5 L. 4 cylinder Atkinson makes no mention of needing any periodic service to it. It's either a chain or gears. It's a later version of the same engine.

Re: Feel Like I'm Being Taken for a Ride - Stop Safely Now
 

Sorry; Yes you are right. There is no timing belt; its a chain.

I just want to do whatever preventative maintenance that I can so my vehicle runs smoothly for atleast another 100,000 miles.

I'm a broke actor in LA, I can't afford another vehicle. This car is the most important asset that I have and I want to make sure it lasts me for as long as I need.