FFE Vents Air Flow & Problem

[NightHawk]

There are 4 vents in the FFE interior front panel for A/C air flow, one at the extreme left/driver side (no flow adjustment), one at the extreme right/passenger side (no flow adjustment), and two in the middle area, one on each side of the main display area (each with a manual flow level adjustment control).
On my new FFE that was delivered to me two days ago, I've observed that the left/driver side vent has zero or very little air flow compared to the other three vents, even with maximum A/C and fan active. I can't find any way to adjust the far left or right side vents, so its like the far left/driver side air vent is blocked?

I didn't notice for the first couple days since there was so much air flow from the middle vents. But today I happened to put my hand over each vent and noticed virtually no air flow only on the left side vent, so I assume there is a problem.

Anyone else ever experience this particular air vent issue on an FFE? Is it a common problem and is the cause known?
I hope its not a major repair (even under warranty) that would keep it in the shop for days or weeks...

 

[v_traveller]

If you're in El Segundo tomorrow (Friday), we can meet up for a few minutes to compare; I'll be driving my FFE in to work. My HVAC system seems to be working fine. PM'ed my email address to you, let me know...

 

[NightHawk]

Sorry, I'm way down in San Diego.
Just turn your A/C on full/max and put your hand over each of the vents (left, middle, and right side) and compare the air flow.
On my FFE the left side vent has virtually zero air flow I can feel while the other vents all have a lot of air - easy to feel the difference.
Its like the left vent's air path is blocked somehow?
I'm just curious if any other FFE owner has had this issue and if its a common problem and how difficult or easy the fix is.
We are supposed to have a big 3day+ heat wave with over 100degree temps the next several days too!

 

[hybridbear]

There's an adjustment to turn the vent off. Is that vent turned off?

 

[NightHawk]

There's an adjustment to turn the vent off. Is that vent turned off?

Is there an adjustment for the far left (driver side) air vent? I can't find one, only for the two middle air vents.
All I can see to do for adjusting the far left and far right air vents is moving its direction slightly left or right, but its set for straight out and the far right vent blows air just fine compared to the left vent.

In the FFE's Owner's Manual all I can find regarding the vents is this sentence:
"To increase airflow to the outer instrument panel vents, close the vents located in the middle of the instrument panel."
I tried that as well, reducing the two middle vents' air flow to near zero and that increased the air flow on the far right air vent, but still virtually nothing coming out of the far left vent - its like the far left vent flow is blocked somehow.

If there is an adjustment specifically for the far left air vent to turn it off, where is it exactly? Its not mentioned in the owner's manual, only about the two middle air vents.
Thanks for any info on this.

 

[hybridbear]

I'm sorry, you're correct. I don't know of a way to adjust the airflow out that far left vent.

 

[NightHawk]

I'm sorry, you're correct. I don't know of a way to adjust the airflow out that far left vent.

Yep, thats why it appears to be blocked internally somehow.
I wonder if any other FFE owners have ever had this problem - I didn't notice it at first and didn't think to check all the vents at the dealer before delivery. Took me a couple days until I happened to put my hand over each of the vents and noticed the difference on the left vent.
I wonder if its a rare or common issue and how difficult the fix is (whether I have to leave the car at the dealer for days or weeks)?

 

[v_traveller]

Just turn your A/C on full/max and put your hand over each of the vents (left, middle, and right side) and compare the air flow.
On my FFE the left side vent has virtually zero air flow I can feel while the other vents all have a lot of air - easy to feel the difference.

Okay, I tried your scenario on mine and the left vent blows as hard as the other three.

Have you tried sliding the chrome bar in the center of the vent up and down? On my FFE, that shuts the air flow on and off as well as directs the air flow up and down... I suspect you know that since you mentioned shutting off the other vents, but I thought I'd ask...

 

[NightHawk]

Have you tried sliding the chrome bar in the center of the vent up and down? On my FFE, that shuts the air flow on and off as well as directs the air flow up and down... I suspect you know that since you mentioned shutting off the other vents, but I thought I'd ask...

Yep that was it, I figured it out myself earlier tonight by accident.
The owner's manual doesn't tell anything about the side vents adjustability.

I only knew about varying the air flow on the two center vents with that separate rotary control, I didn't know the chrome bars could also be used to control the air flow on/off by moving up and down, I only thought it was for varying the air flow direction left or right.

But tonight I happened to press it on the left vent and it moved up and down too and voila I got air flow out of it for the first time. Somehow it got closed before delivery to me I guess.

Anyway thanks for the post and the reference photo, if I hadn't discovered that myself tonight you would have helped me greatly! In any case its good for other new owners since its not mentioned in the manual.
Now I don't have to take the car to the dealer and end up having to be shown something simple like that.

I did spend earlier today checking out every other feature I could see and think of on the new car to be sure every single little thing is working. I even verified both 12V accessory outlets worked and I got the interior color scheme for the floor and cupholder area lighting to be adjusted too.

 

[hybridbear]

Where is the photo from? That Focus has a different power flow screen on the center console.

 

[v_traveller]

Anyway thanks for the post and the reference photo, if I hadn't discovered that myself tonight you would have helped me greatly! In any case its good for other new owners since its not mentioned in the manual.

Actually, I ought to thank you because I didn't discover that feature until I ran your scenario yesterday! That makes two things I learned this week... the other thing is the fact that the rear seat bottoms flip forward.

Where is the photo from? That Focus has a different power flow screen on the center console.

Weird, huh? It's from pluginamerica.org:
http://www.pluginamerica.org/vehicles/ford-focus-electric

I suspect it's from a pre-production/prototype. Pictures of the exterior on their web page show the larger grille:

 

[WattsUp]

I wonder why the grill was reduced in size?

With the larger grill, there is a much stronger connection with the rest of the front-end. Note how the hood lines "swoop" continuously into the grill (best viewed in the large size, by clicking the thumbnail here):



That connection is gone, or at least is weakened, with the smaller (production) grill:



It seems obvious that the larger grill was the original design, since it has a much stronger "fit" with the rest of the front-end aesthetics. I suppose somebody (not a designer) felt it was "too large" and ordered it reduced.

 

[NightHawk]

Actually, I ought to thank you because I didn't discover that feature until I ran your scenario yesterday! That makes two things I learned this week... the other thing is the fact that the rear seat bottoms flip forward.

Perhaps these kind of little known or undocumented in the manual features probably should be posted and collected in a special FFE little known features thread so new owners can easily read about them?

 

[WattsUp]

Perhaps these kind of little known or undocumented in the manual features probably should be posted and collected in a special FFE little known features thread so new owners can easily read about them?

I suppose it would be nice if the manual described all operations completely, but I don't find it that mysterious that the lever on the far left and right vents would restrict the air flow in the most extreme position.

A lot (most?) of cars employ this type of "omni-directional" lever to control vent flaps. When the lever moves the flaps into the fully up/down position (or perhaps the fully left/right some cars), the vent is effectively closed. Kinda like closing one of the central air vents in your house... you just move the lever until all the flaps close together, move it back to open them again.

 

[jmueller065]

I do think we need a sticky post though with hints/tricks/etc. like a FAQ post because there is a lot to the car (especially the dashboard and MFT) that has been asked several times here.

 

[v_traveller]

I wonder why the grill was reduced in size?

I'm guessing that it was due to some manufacturability or repairability/durability issue. I agree that the big grille looks better and provide more of a family resemblance, but perhaps that thin strip of plastic between the headlights and the large faux grille had strength or rigidity issues that couldn't be solved without widening the area. Just a guess. In any case, I still like the look of the pointy front fascia we ended up with, even though it kind of reminds me of a lab rat. Which seems appropriate, since as Ford's early adopters, we're all part of one big experiment.

A lot (most?) of cars employ this type of "omni-directional" lever to control vent flaps. When the lever moves the flaps into the fully up/down position (or perhaps the fully left/right some cars), the vent is effectively closed. Kinda like closing one of the central air vents in your house... you just move the lever until all the flaps close together, move it back to open them again.

True... I'm thinking that the issue (albeit a minor one) with the FFE is the absence of a visual cue that the vent is closed. In other cars (i.e. RAV4) one can clearly see when the louvers are completely blocking airflow. That being said, it is a pretty slick-looking design that works well once you figure it out.