He Did an OTA Update The Previous Night, But in The Morning, There Was a Front Camera Fault and Pre-collision Assist Error

​Over-the-air updates are a convenient and effective means of improving vehicle software. However, there are times when things go wrong. In this specific incident, Raymond Lattanzio did an OTA update on his Mustang Mach-E at night. When he woke up, there were multiple issues, including a front camera fault and an error indicating the pre-collision assist was not working. This may not be surprising, though Ford acknowledged in 2021 that specific OTA updates may accidentally disable the pre-collision assist. 

This would lead to a warning indicating ‘Pre-Collision Assist Not Available. Ford did address the issue, though, in a subsequent update. However, Raymond also mentioned an error with the front camera. In his post, he says, “I performed an OTA update last night, and this morning there was a Front Camera Fault and an error saying the Pre-Collision Assist was not working. I had this issue last year and took it into service. They were able to fix it, but now it seems like the OTA Update broke it again. I believe the update was for “Blue Cruise 1.3”, which is weird because I don’t even have Bluecruise as I have the 2021 Mach-E Select.”

Raymond reiterated he did not even have BlueCruise. This is a valid assertion, considering the 2021 Mustang Mach-E Select did not come with BlueCruise from the factory. Rather, that trim had Ford Co-Pilot 360 Assist 2.0, which has lane centering, stop-and-go traffic assist, and adaptive cruise control. Owners could later upgrade to BlueCruise through a paid software update or dealership activation.

Mr Lattanzio may not have manually initiated the update, but Ford’s system probably pushed the BlueCruise 1.3 update automatically. Considering this update was meant for a vehicle with that system, it could have caused software conflicts, leading to errors like ‘Front Camera Fault’ and ‘Pre-Collision Assist not Working.’ 

Recurring Problems with OTA Updates on the Mustang Mach-E

Several owners have experienced issues with the front camera, which has led to problems with lane-keeping or pre-collision assistance. These systems rely heavily on the vehicle’s camera sensors to function correctly. So when an update disrupts the process, the driver might get an error message stating they are unavailable. In one case, a Mach-E owner reported a Front Camera Fault and Pre-collision assist issue on the macheforum, describing the same situation as the abovementioned one. The issue appeared intermittently but was resolved after a few minutes. The updates installed were the most likely cause of this problem.

In another scenario, after the 6.13.0 OTA update, some 2023 Mustang Mach-E vehicles illustrated inoperative Bluecruise and lane centering. Diagnostic trouble codes were also stored within the camera modules, meaning the updates might have affected the software. 

There have also been cases of SYNC 4A infotainment system glitches with laggy touchscreen responses and sudden rebooting after it updates in some cases. The manufacturer, Ford, has acknowledged the significance of these problems and tried to address them through follow-up updates. The U.S National Highway Traffic Safety Administration scaled up its investigation to include 129,222 vehicles that had BlueCruise after reports of collisions utilizing their hands-free technology. 

What Owners can do if their OTA Update Causes Problems 

While the over-the-air updates are meant to improve vehicle problems, they can sometimes lead to issues, as was the case for the Mach-E owner. He or anyone else dealing with the same issue could solve it by doing a vehicle restart. This was reiterated in the comment section of his post, as Dalton Touvell advised him to try turning it off and back on again. He reasoned that the vehicle was essentially a giant computer that may, once in a while, go through glitches. Raymond could turn it off, exit, and lock it for ten minutes, allowing the system to reboot. A hard reset is also possible. This is done by pressing the volume and seek buttons on the infotainment screen for ten seconds, allowing the system to reboot.

Alternatively, this may be complemented by a full power cycle, which a technician does. It would require disconnecting the 12V battery for ten minutes before reconnecting it. The other option is checking for follow-up updates. Ford could release a subsequent patch to fix the problem. Owners can do this by navigating to the FordPass Application or Sync 4A infotainment, then settings and software updates. For any follow-up update installation to be successful, the vehicle should have stable WI-Fi or cellular connections.

If the problem persists, the next option is to visit the dealership for a diagnostic scan. The dealership will roll back the software or reprogram the vehicle if necessary. Raymond should confirm if software-related defects are covered under the warranty. They may also provide direction for disabling automatic updates so the problem does not occur later. 

Image Source: Mustang Mach-E Owners Facebook Group and Ford.com

Nicholas Muhoro is an automotive journalist covering car news and has a decade of experience sharing working at HotCars and TopSpeed. You can follow Nicholas on X and on LinkedIn to stay in touch and follow his news coverage at Torque News.

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