I'm having intermittent issues like you have had as well. What was the fix on yours? I'm just outside of warranty, but I reported this numerous to the dealer via email (with photos). Hopefully they will work with me on the coverage.

 

Same problem here, 2016 King Ranch. It went black (well, nearly black) in Key West. I thought it was the heat, as it came back on as we went North. But it did it again, while stored in an air-conditioned garage. I suspect the camera itself is flaky or the connector (far more likely) is corroded or loose. Your suggestion to take a picture is a good one, as it will likely fail out of warranty. I can see now, how it will play out when I take the truck in, "Cannot replicate consumer complaint" or something like that. Keep placating them until the warranty expires!

 

I just noticed this same issue this morning. The back driver side quadrant is dark on my 360 view. Did anyone above get theirs fixed? I'm due for an oil change in about 500 miles so I'll mention it then when I bring it in.

 

seems to do it when left out in hot weather. taking it to dealer this week...

pix of truck in garage showing black rh camera

 

I assumed it was because they are under the mirror so it was dimmer due to the shadow/shade of the mirror. Only seem to notice it when its really sunny out.

 

backup image
the side images have always been a different color and the front and back ones. When the camera goes black, it doesn't really go entirely black but you can sort of see your finger if you put it over at the lens.

Then the next day it's working fine.

Pretty amazing this stuff works at all. Consider that the lens is underneath the base of the side view mirror and manages to capture an image that goes all the way to the back of the truck and to the front. They must use some serious fisheye lens and image processing.

I just realized the backup image is reversed. Never noticed that before. I guess that is to replicate a rear view mirror.

 

Let us know what the dealer says. I'm planning to bring my issue up when it's in for next oil change. Your whole right side is dark where it is just one rear quadrant of mine. Weird

 

"They all do that"

I called the local dealer and made an appointment for next week. He said that the backup cameras sometimes go blank, and if you disconnect the battery (!!) it will "reset" the backup camera sometimes. He suggested maybe I try this to "reset" the side camera as well.

In other words, it is the time-honored "they all do that" approach to warranty repair.

This is the first American car I have bought in over a decade (since my last F-150, in 1995) and quite frankly, I had forgotten what the experience was like - and why I stopped buying American cars (and this after working for GM).

We have a 2015 KIA and the clearcoat was starting to peel on the alloy wheels. I went to the dealer, expecting nothing, and they took photos and called me back a few days later saying to bring the car in. They installed four new wheels on the car, free of charge. That had to cost them a grand or two, right? But no hassle, no questions, no fighting. Just "we'll make it right" and they did.

Meanwhile, on a three-year-old CPO F150, I had to go out and pay cash out-of-pocket for a set of Bilsteins to keep the truck from bouncing like a basketball. When I took it to the dealer, their response was "they all do that - that's normal" But a car or truck should not bounce two or three times after going over a small bump. At least that is what they taught us at GMI. Maybe Ford has different standards.

Oh, well. Serves me right for "Buying American" I guess. This does not bode well.

The service guy acted like I was ruining his day by asking for an appointment. DOES NOT FORD REIMBURSE THEM FOR WARRANTY WORK??????

I guess not.

Time was, warranty work was one of the prime profit centers for local dealers. I guess times have changed.

 

It could be the camera is defective. But you did try cleaning the camera lens, right? It is under the mounting bracket for the rear-view mirror. Maybe some road debris is covering part of the lens?

But it could be a defective camera - these are CCD devices and if a portion of the chip goes south, it could cause part of the image to go dark. Not likely, though.

I am suspecting that on mine it is a connector issue. I used to do Failure Mode Effects Analysis for UTC (35 years ago, when I was an electrical engineer) and connectors and power supplies are usually the highest sources of failure modes. Flexible circuit connectors are often glued in place, and under extreme heat, the glue can come undone, causing an intermittent "flaky" error. This used to be a problem for BMW "trip computers" - the things would work, but the displays would start losing pixels due to a flexible circuit connector problem. Many folks "fixed" it by wedging a matchbook cover under the flexible circuit connector.

A lot of component problems are actually connector problems. I ran into a guy with an F250 at the boat ramp (this was decades ago) who was stalled out. "Damn engine computer!" he said, "Third one I've put in this truck!" I asked him if he had a pencil, and I disconnected the engine computer connector and cleaned the contacts with the pencil eraser and then blew off the dust and plugged it back in. Truck started right up. The connection was corroded, and every time the mechanic installed a "new" engine computer, he scraped just enough corrosion off the connector by dint of unplugging and plugging it back in. So replacing the computer "fixed" the problem, when the problem was just the connector.

A little dielectric grease goes a long way with these things. Many carmakers use aluminum contacts on connectors. They work fine until they corrode - aluminum oxide is a perfect insulator and causes all sorts of havoc. ABS sensors are a similar problem - a very weak signal (mA) that can be wiped out by a corroded connector that is often mounted inside the wheel well where it gets the brunt of salt and road debris.

Electrical components themselves rarely fail during their service life. Usually they fail either right away (infant mortality) or after many years of service. But it is odd and unusual to have something fail after working fine for 2-3 years. Which leads me to think, connector. But components do fail, sometimes.

But we'll see. I suspect the guy at the local Ford dealer isn't happy to see me, because he doesn't have the technicians qualified to work on it, and failing a TSB on the issue, they wouldn't know how to deal with it. Probably the "fix" is to replace the entire mirror assembly, which would require they order the parts, but only after diagnosing it, which may be hard to do, as when I bring it there, no doubt, it will be working perfectly fine, right? Such is fate.

Once out of warranty, I'll end up fixing it myself by replacing the mirror assembly with one from a wrecked King Ranch.

I am wondering whether Ford is trying to cut warranty costs by incentivizing dealers to not to work. The dealer that refused to replace the shocks offered to pay me for the Bilsteins if I would not sent in the Ford customer service satisfaction survey. Sadly, I had already sent it in.

Fortunately, this forum tipped me off to the Bilstein solution, which, come to think of it, was what I put in my 1995 F150. And by-the-way, Bilstein's "lifetime warranty" is lifetime. After a decade, they gave me free new rear shocks on that truck.