As had been promised by my latest contact at the Ford SYNC Help desk, I received an email with an attached zipped file containing an updater for my MS SYNC-equipped navigation system. Then the fun started.
Absent the preparation of my USB drive by the Java applet, had the SYNCMyRide.com web site worked properly, I didn’t know if the USB drive needed a particular name, format and how to arrange the files extracted from the zipped archive. Indeed, for all I knew, I didn’t even need to unzip the file sent to me. So I had to experiment.
My first few attempts got me a “file not found” error from the nav system so it was back into the house to try a different file arrangement on the FAT formatted USB volume.
On the third try, I got it to attempt installing. In fact, I ran the installer six times. None of the attempts have gone per the instructions on the web site. In only one try out of six did it get to the “rebooting” stage and that was a bit too quick, according to the instructions.
Within the first minute, once the installation starts and “installing files” appears on the touch screen, it announces verbally: “Installation complete” and the same message is displayed on the screen. This doesn’t mean it’s complete (per the instructions on the web site) and I’m supposed to leave the USB drive plugged in while the files are actually installed over the next 5-10 minutes. Once that has completed, I’m supposed to get another verbal announcement of “Installation complete” possibly followed by a verbal “rebooting” and “rebooting” on the screen. In six (6) attempts, this has never happened.
On the very first attempt, it went way too quickly to “rebooting (it’s supposed to take 5-10 minutes)” There were no verbal announcements at all.
In subsequent attempts, more often than not, I got the initial “Installation complete” verbally and/or on the screen, but never a subsequent second “Installation complete” nor a “rebooting” message.
Once it told me the install had failed because “the memory is full or the file is incompatible.”
Because the installation is not supposed to be interrupted, I let the install attempts each run from 45 minutes to an hour before giving up.
I’ve emailed the Help guy again, citing what appears to be the software version appearing on the nav system’s INFO screen:
HW: BL3T-19C156-BC
SW: B4U22002
I am guessing that “SW: B4U22002” means my software version is B4U22002. I’ve inquired whether this is in fact the software I just updated and if the version shown means the update took or didn’t. I wish I’d thought to check the SW version before I started. (Curiously, the VIN on the INFO screen is blank.)