Anyone having trouble with Ford Pass remote start?

My Ford Pass app shows the car as activated, but it’s not. When I try to use remote start, the lights flash, the engine cranks for a second, and then it just shuts off. This happens about half the time, so I never know if it’s actually going to start or not. Any idea what might be causing this? I really like having remote start, but it’s so unreliable that I’m considering switching to a key fob system instead.

It might be your battery getting weak. When ours was about six years old, we replaced it, and remote start started working fine again.

Neo said:
It might be your battery getting weak. When ours was about six years old, we replaced it, and remote start started working fine again.

Thanks, I’ll give that a shot!

I had this exact issue before. Turned out it was a software update needed for the BCM (Body Control Module). After the update, remote start worked every single time.

Nico said:
I had this exact issue before. Turned out it was a software update needed for the BCM (Body Control Module). After the update, remote start worked every single time.

Do I need to take it to a Ford dealership for that?

@Reagan
Yep, they did it for me. It cost me about $200 CAD.

Nico said:
@Reagan
Yep, they did it for me. It cost me about $200 CAD.

Got it, thanks! I’ll look into doing that too.

Is your car a hybrid? Mine has similar issues and overheats sometimes.

Amar said:
Is your car a hybrid? Mine has similar issues and overheats sometimes.

No, it’s a regular 1.5 Turbo. My issue is that it just doesn’t even start half the time, haha.

Reagan said:

Amar said:
Is your car a hybrid? Mine has similar issues and overheats sometimes.

No, it’s a regular 1.5 Turbo. My issue is that it just doesn’t even start half the time, haha.

Check your battery. Also, does your car have a power liftgate?

I think it’s because of the app update. I’ve got a 2017 Escape SE, and even after changing the battery, the remote start still doesn’t work properly.

Ridley said:
I think it’s because of the app update. I’ve got a 2017 Escape SE, and even after changing the battery, the remote start still doesn’t work properly.

Same thing happened to me after a battery change. It turned out to be my Battery Management System. My 2017 Escape was still running on the original battery until it died a few weeks ago, so I replaced it.

You can reset it with Forscan, or a dealer can do it for you. I tried a few DIY methods I found online, but none of them worked for me.