Just a tip on Ford Lightning...tiny 12v lead acid battery gets totally whipped by the IPMA update. You will need at least 30-40 amp charger to keep the battery charged enough and power supplied to finish the update. If you cannot find a charger that large, you can hook up two 15a or 20a chargers, in series, to the charging posts

Thanks for the great video. I wish I would have found this and your other video, about stuck updates, a month ago. I just had the dealer work on my truck and it needed a bunch of updates, 2 1/2 years worth. When that was all done they said "bad APIM". After replacing that they wanted to do more updates at $150 per hour at that point I took the truck home and did some research and found your videos. Thanks, you probably saved me $1000 even after buying the equipment.

@TheBigHeavy

4 ай бұрын

Best comment I've had all week and glad the videos helped you! I wonder how many perfectly fine APIMs Ford has replaced since the process is such a cluster. Hopefully you're all up to date and BlueCruising along!

@mkinttrim

2 ай бұрын

I'm in same boat, gonna rent a cable and go for it.

Great video. Thank you!

@TheBigHeavy

2 ай бұрын

Glad you liked it!

Really nice video great teaching seems complicated compared to Forscan but looking for something that works when Forscan doesnt like the inability in 2024 to shut off stop start and also program keys and entry pads that the dealer wants to rob you to do

@TheBigHeavy

Ай бұрын

Glad it was helpful! Certainly not an easy tool to use but very powerful.

Good video, going to rent a mongoose and use FDRS as my 21 Lariat has NEVER updated even after dealer threw 3 APIMs at it. Hope I have strong enough wifi, I'm going to get a repeater and put it in garage! I'm on revision 197

@TheBigHeavy

2 ай бұрын

Good luck! I have another (long) video showing the full process of getting my F-150 “unstuck.” Key is keeping the battery charged since some of the updates (IPMI) can take 5+ hours.

@mkinttrim

2 ай бұрын

I'll look for the video. I bought a new battery for the truck (H8) and I have a 20amp maintainer. Will be moving my router into the garage!​@TheBigHeavy

Many thanks for this video I live in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia I have a car maintenance center This FDRS program only works for one day and then it is closed Can you help me solve this problem? my regards

@TheBigHeavy

Ай бұрын

I have been to KSA and was very impressed with the hospitality and country (as well as surprised by all the big American trucks and other impressive cars in Riyadh). You can buy an FDTS license for more than one day from the website I mention. I’ve always bought the shorter license but the site also provides a customer support address that I’ve never used but have heard is helpful if you have a license problem.

I’m hitting go after the application reads the vin but it says there was an error downloading the info from that vin. This f150 is at an auction site and has been reported stolen, could that be the issue? Or it’s more the hardware I’m using (vcm2 clone)

@TheBigHeavy

3 ай бұрын

I’m not sure, but the hardware does seem to be fairly sensitive so if you know someone with a Mongoose perhaps give that a try? Or, if you’ve taken it to Ford and they’ve been able to scan the car it’s probably your hardware.

Great video. Do u have a NASTAF account? Thanks!

@TheBigHeavy

14 күн бұрын

I do not, and don’t actually know what that is.

Unfortunately my activation failed after following your steps exactly. Not a good start with mongoose..

@TheBigHeavy

2 күн бұрын

The mongoose activation or FDRS? I’ve heard of people getting a used/refurbished mongoose that says it’s already been registered, which should affect actual use. On FDRS the servers occasionally go down and if you contact the customer service they’ll apparently extend your license. I’ve had this happen a couple times and unfortunately the only recourse is to wait for Ford to fix their tech (usually in a few hours) and try again.

@metro77ful

Күн бұрын

@@TheBigHeavy The mongoose activation process (never got to the FDRS part). Called the support # today and after trying a few things on 2 separate laptops they believe the unit is "faulty". so, now in the process of a full amazon refund that will likely take weeks to compete. once complete, i can re-order and try again i guess.