Bought vehicle used the other day, made the mistake of trying to update Sync 3 when all I really needed was CarPlay, which was working just fine. Built in navigation also worked just fine. I believe my situation is the same as or very similar to this post:
Prior to update, the “About Sync” screen reported version as: SYNC 3 Software Version 3.0 build 18093_PRODUCT
I do not know what version the update was supposed to install but the file Ford provided for download was JL7T-14G381-AJ.zip
I do not yet have an OBD adapter and am not familiar with FORscan, but am happy to obtain both or whatever else I may need to get this fixed without having to wait weeks to get in to a dealer and then argue with them/Ford about who should be payin’ for it. I’m both mechanically and technically inclined and not afraid to dig deep if necessary. Any help y’all might be able to offer would be greatly appreciated. Please let me know what I should be looking to obtain and if there are referral links I can use to help support this forum, etc.
SYNC Region: North America & Canada
Navigation Variant: Yes
Install Type: Unknown / Not Sure
Old SYNC Version: see post
New SYNC Version: see post
Do you have a error message, if so what is it?
No errors, just the wrong version of Sync 3!
Hi Jakegibbons, Yes, that sounds like mine (previous owner upgraded to an 8" screen aftermarket, but Ford gave me a file for a 4" screen). With the help from F150Chief, I got it back to good. You might be able to do it with just the Updater Application (use on a Windows machine) from this site and a 32GB flash drive and not get to the point of needing the OBD adapter… But I’ll yield to smarter people for that.
For the Updater, It’ll walk you through the steps… basically it helps you format the USB, Tell you to put USB in the Truck for data log, then inform you which Sync 3 version is recommended. The tutorials are good here.
Thanks for the reply, @limclaughlin7 ! Kind of mind-boggling that there wouldn’t be safeguards on the vehicle side to prevent this sort of thing.
Haven’t bought anything yet, and would be great if it really is as simple as using the updater app to do the update over/correctly. Hoping F150Chief will show up and offer some assistance. One thing I failed to mention in the original post is that after the incorrect update from Ford, no touchscreen functionality, and I’m not sure I can do anything but turn the AM radio off and on. Soft reset goes to Ford badge boot up screen, then blank screen. Rear camera displays when vehicle is in reverse, but still in 4" mode and a simplified display (ie no fancy lines that tell you where you’re going based on steering wheel position, etc). After it sits (turned off) for a while, it does pull up the 4" radio screen again. Wash, rinse, repeat…
Will do as soon as I get a chance later today. Gotta watch one of the kids at a swim meet, swing by work and grab a Windows machine (I manage Apple devices for a living these days), and give it a try.
Thanks for the response, @CyanLabs. Silver lining in this dumb situation is finding such an awesome community. Looking forward to future tinkering once I get this thing sorted out. Coming from an '01 expedition to an '18, so much to play with!
Yes, those were my exact same symptoms. Don’t fret, it’s fixable. At this point, you don’t need a windows machine AT the vehicle (I used my son’s desktop upstairs). You will need Windows at the vehicle if it comes down to using FORScan. Or, like my neighbor helped me, he used his macbook pro and ran Windows from an external hard drive.
Hi all. I have the Interrogator log file from Syn3 Updater, but got the same xml error that limclaughlin7 got in his post. There does appear to be some additional info in the xml, but nothing that means anything to me from what I’ve read so far.
AsBuilt info is as follows:
VIN: (correct vin for vehicle)
Version JL7T-14G381-AJ
APIM Model: JS7T-14G371-KGA
I tend to be a “try it and see what happens” kind of guy, but I’m also aware that the chances of bricking the hardware are higher here than the sorts of things I typically tinker around with, so I’d be grateful for any further help anyone could offer. @F150Chief if you are willing to chime in, I’d be very grateful.
Looking at the info for JL7T-14G381-AJ I note the following:
Version: 2.3.18095 Regions: ALL
I used 2.3.18095 the in the “Full Version” field in the Syn3 Updater settings screen and set my region appropriately (US,CA,MX). Auto-Detect set for both MY20 and Install Method.
In Syn3 Updater home screen I selected the most recent version (3.4.22110), region NA, and map version 2.21. Selected my flash drive and hit “Start”. Syn3 Updater chose reformat install mode, not forced, auto-detect for MY20 protection.
Prompted with big scary red warning about MY20 APIM to which I responded “No” as vehicle was manufactured prior to 2020. Given the version numbers I’ve seen, assuming that the original 4" screen was replaced with the 8" touch screen, the APIM still appears to be pre-2020, but this is the bit that has me hoping for some further help before I stick this freshly created USB stick in the car and cross my fingers…
Also, not sure if I have to worry about storage space on my APIM with the options I selected above, or if I need to do anything related to voice files, etc.
I generally lean towards updating things as much as possible as long as functionality isn’t negatively impacted. I will be using CarPlay for the most part, but figure it doesn’t hurt to have the underlying system up to date as well, particularly the nav components just in case. Anything I might not be aware of that might make me consider staying on the 3.0 series?
Looked at so many Expeditions before buying this one and was largely focused on making sure CarPlay worked, so it’s hard not to second guess at this point. But image below is from pic I snapped of the “About SYNC” screen I shot before trying USB update via (wrong) file Ford gave me to download:
Looks like you are good to go. Just use the Syn3 Updater to upgrade to 3.4.21265 (I think this is the most stable version right now with the least bugs) and maps, etc.
Long drives aren’t too bad a hardship with the rocky mountains practically in your back yard!
Took a bit of convincing to get the black screen to go away (battery disconnect got me radio back) and get the reformat/install kicked off. Once it did, took little under half an hour to update, did a soft reset to get maps, and a master reset via settings to clean everything up, and WE ARE FULLY OPERATIONAL AND BACK IN BUSINESS!
Many thanks to everyone here who contributed or even just commented, and in particular to CyanLabs for the awesome resources. Probably saved me a good chunk of $ and definitely a whole lot of hassle trying to get this resolved via Ford. Will be sending a donation immediately after submitting this reply.
Thanks again. Looking forward to following this community and doing some more tinkering in the future.
