Ford Touch Control A Failure?

[pj8708]

Touch screen control has been a huge mess for Ford. Lessons for Lexus?

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/06/business/after-ratings-drop-ford-reworks-touch-screens.html?_r=1&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=edit_th_20120306

[nc211]

My office admin has a 2011 Edge Limited with this system. The nav totally crashed about 8 weeks ago and the dealer is dumbfounded on how to even approach it to fix it. Told her she has to wait for this USB plug directly from Ford. I've ridden in it a couple of times. While extremely

comfortable and smooth and quiet, the electrical gremlins are very apparent. The latest issue is a high pitched whine from the passenger rear door speaker, which somehow is picking up a cross grounding loop from the ac compressor. It's annoying as hell! Again, the dealer has no documented approach from Ford on how to fix it.

You should see this lady who owns it try to use the Bluetooth and adjust the air fan speed, and

turn down the radio volume in downtown DC traffic! It's scary! The joke in the office is that whoever rides "shotgun" is now called "flight engineer". She's bumped into things twice already while fussing with the screen. She's had it since November, 4k miles on the clock Ford screwed the pooch on this one, no bones about it...

[lenore]

That is what generally happens when manufacturors try to low bid items. Shame because Ford is doing a great job on new ideas and designs...The engineers work hard to produce a marketable product and the bean counters start destroying it. Saw this same thing before I left my company. Saved a few cents and cost us a fortune out in the field.

[SW03ES]

I obviously haven't used it at length, but we did extensively look at the new Explorer and Edge before we got the Jeep and played with the MyFordTouch a good bit. Overall I think it's a great system, I think it just obviously needs to go through a few generations before they get it right. I think it's probably the prototype for the sort of systems we'll see in cars of e future though.