Driver assist features like Adaptive Cruise Control are supposed to make driving safer for everyone – in theory, anyway. But as with any system, things can go wrong, causing problems for not only the driver but for motorists around them, too. One 2024 Ford F-150 Lariat owner discovered the hard way that driver assist features can do more harm than good when his pickup unexpectedly slammed on the brakes at highway speeds due to a malfunction.
According to a report from local Texas news outlet KPRC Click2Houston, Ford F-150 owner Ryan Kattchee quickly noticed his pickup acting up with Adaptive Cruise Control active. The pickup would randomly apply the brakes, prefaced by a red alert on the instrument cluster display, grabbing the brakes in otherwise normal driving conditions.
“Suddenly this whole thing turns red. The whole display right here flashes red,” Kattchee said. “It hits the brakes. And it’s not soft. It’s enough to pull you out of your seat.”
Kattchee demonstrated the 2024 Ford F-150 to see for themselves. It doesn’t take long for the pickup to start misbehaving, slamming on the brakes seven times in just a few miles. The system fires off an alert before hammering the brakes. There’s no reason for the pickup to do so, and it almost appears to be completely random.
Kattchee brought the F-150 back to the dealership that sold it to him. They kept it for nearly three months while they troubleshot the system, replacing myriad parts and attempting to diagnose it. The dealership contacted Ford directly, but have come to the conclusion that the best course of action moving forward is for Ford to simply buy the 2024 Ford F-150 back from Kattchee, although the automaker has not finalized the decision.
Ford says that it’s checking into Kattchee’s case, but has not provided any more information about the issue beyond that.
Comments
These auto braking features are dangerous when they decide to randomly go off. Feel for the guy but my suspicion is something is interfering with the sensor causing these cars to brake. I had a non Ford that would do this in the same area almost 100% of the time. The dealer could never find anything wrong.
My experience is a bit different from the one listed, but the BlueCruise on my 2022 F-150 will sometimes read the Speed Limit from the EXIT RAMP while I’m on the highway cruising at 75, suddenly braking me down to 45 mph or less. Happens all the time on 595 here in Fort Lauderdale, FL when heading West.
Same here!