Power Windows Locked Up

[Figmo]

Went out today and noticed both my windows were rolled down (2 door). That’s weird. It’s winter in Montana and only those who chew tobacco roll down their windows (not me).

Just assumed I must have accidentally bumped and held the button in my pocket or something similar to activate the global window open feature. Which would suck if true because….what if it was outside during a rain/snow storm?

Anyway….oh well, hop in….started the rig….tried to roll up the windows. Nothing. No response to the switches on the console for either side. Tried up. Tried down (even though they were both all the way down). Nothing. Tried pressing and holding them for 10 seconds. Each direction. Nothing. Turned off the vehicle and restarted it. Still nothing. Tried pressing and holding unlock on the fob to activate the global window open feature. STILL NOTHING.

So out of desperation I hopped out and performed the “universal fix”. Disconnected the battery for 10 seconds and then reconnected it. Started the vehicle and again and windows were back to working again.

I swear I‘m going to install a big ass knife switch under the hood to make this easier for as many Bronco Bugs there are that require a hard reboot.

Anyway - I‘m back working now. Not sure if this was a “one off” problem or will be a common issue.

Just wanted to make others aware of how to fix and ask…..am I the only one?

I’ve read about the windows needing to be reset for the ”up/down a little when opening the doors” problem but not seen any other threads about them just plumb locking up and not responding at all.

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[Felix808]

How cold was it? Perhaps they were frozen for a moment

 

[PWillette]

People reporting lots of issues after OTA updates, wonder if it's related?

 

[Figmo]

How cold was it? Perhaps they were frozen for a moment

Cold - but not what anybody would consider unusually cold. Outside temps were in the 20’s that day but Bronco is stored in the garage which tends to be a few degrees warmer.

Final reason I lean toward this not being the issue is that I monkeyed with various methods of trying to get them working for a good 10 minutes before I gave up and reboot the system by pulling the battery lead. Could not hear any click or whirs or anything indicating that the mechanics were restricted.

This implies that it wasn’t anything mechanical. Certainly had to be some sort of a software glitch.

 

[Figmo]

People reporting lots of issues after OTA updates, wonder if it's related?

This is the direction I’m leaning (hoping). If it was a one-off glitch after an OTA update that’s cool. I can cut Ford a little slack.

Really hoping it doesn’t happen again.

As I said it was an easy fix (even easier now that I know right what to do), But what if this happened while a Bronco was parked outside in a rain/snow storm? Or in a bad ‘hood? Having the windows globally roll down over night is just not cool.

 

[jrod5k]

Same issue. Intermittent my drivers side window stops indexing as well as moving up or down. When it finally responded it went down but would not roll back up. I had to drive home in wind storm, about 40° was inconvenient and upsetting in a 1 year old vehicle. It’s happened multiple times in the past but duration of inoperability was much shorter. I had to park inside the garage. Tried removing and reinstalling the plug in the door jamb for the removable door with no avail. Passenger window works normal. I’m thinking it’s a bad switch in the console or the switch in the door latch that differentiates between the door being open/closed.

 

[Figmo]

Same issue....

Don't think it's same. Mine has not had this problem before or since. So I'm convinced mine was just a strange artifact of an OTA update.

Yours sounds more like "take it to the dealer 'cause something's broke"

Which is precisely what I was prepared to do had the problem happened again.

 

[Ford Motor Company]

Same issue. Intermittent my drivers side window stops indexing as well as moving up or down. When it finally responded it went down but would not roll back up. I had to drive home in wind storm, about 40° was inconvenient and upsetting in a 1 year old vehicle. It’s happened multiple times in the past but duration of inoperability was much shorter. I had to park inside the garage. Tried removing and reinstalling the plug in the door jamb for the removable door with no avail. Passenger window works normal. I’m thinking it’s a bad switch in the console or the switch in the door latch that differentiates between the door being open/closed.

Hi there. This driver side window concern doesn’t sound like something we want you to experience with your Bronco. Could you please send us a PM with your VIN and the name and location of your Ford dealer? To send a private message, just click on our username and select "Start Conversation". I'd be happy to look into how I can assist you on my end.

 

[jrod5k]

Don't think it's same. Mine has not had this problem before or since. So I'm convinced mine was just a strange artifact of an OTA update.

Yours sounds more like "take it to the dealer 'cause something's broke"

Which is precisely what I was prepared to do had the problem happened again.

Apparently I had a broken wire somewhere in the window circuit. I’ve had intermittent trouble having to re-index once a week then it would occasionally stop working for a few minutes until this week it completely stopped (in the down position of course)

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