Read trouble codes

The Trouble codes page (Diagnose → Trouble codes) reads the engine, transmission, ABS and airbag modules for stored, pending and permanent codes. For every module on the bus, use Modules instead.

Read them

1. Connect the vehicle with the ignition on.
2. Go to Diagnose → Trouble codes.
3. Press Read codes. The toolbar shows when the codes were last read.

The three kinds

• Stored: confirmed. Usually turns the light on.
• Pending: seen once. Not confirmed yet.
• Permanent: clear themselves once the vehicle re-tests OK. Clearing does not remove them.

What each code shows

Each code gets its own panel: the code, a plain-English description, the module and system it came from, and a status chip. Under that:

• A safety chip and advice about whether it is worth driving.
• Check first: the cheap thing to rule out before anything else.
• Likely fixes, most common first, each with a difficulty chip and a typical cost.
• Find a shop near me, and links to search for the parts.
• A green box if a recall or federal emissions cover may pay for the repair, with Find a dealer and Check recalls for my VIN.
• An amber box if the work belongs at a dealer or a specialist.

Freeze frame

When a code has a freeze frame, the page shows the conditions when it was set, as a short story and as value tiles.

ABS and airbag codes

These come from separate modules and need two things: a 2008 or newer (CAN) vehicle, and the Ford pack or Drive DTC Shop. Without the pack the page says the modules answered and that their codes are part of the Ford pack. If the modules did not answer, only engine and transmission codes are shown. ABS and airbag codes are read-only. Drive DTC never clears them.

Code titles are generic SAE J2012 definitions, with Ford-specific P1xxx codes labelled as such. Always confirm a diagnosis with Ford service information. The website's trouble code library has a page per code.