Think about yourself driving peacefully on board your Ford F 150  and abruptly an engine light shows up on your dashboard ! The typically seen kind of reaction is the fear of risking a severe issue. To know what precisely this light corresponds to, you will have to learn how to read an Ford F 150  fault codes, you may have previously heard about OBD system, this is precisely what we are going to talk about. Our writers have decided to write this piece of content to help you quickly locate the origin of this default code and to give you serenity. To do this, we will first look at the nature of a fault code on Ford F 150 , then how to read an Ford F 150  fault code, and finally how to erase this fault code in order to turn off the light on your dashboard.

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What is a Ford F 150  fault code?

A fault code is a generic or standard code common to all automotive companies , they are also identified as DTC (Data Trouble Code), the goal is to ensure that any diagnostic OBD can read them. They will be symbolized by a standard format, like for example: P0255. Each data will have a precise interpretation. Default codes are codes issued by the calculators of your Ford F 150 . These ECUs will continuously monitor your vehicle’s emissions, pressures, mixtures and when the values exceed the limits set by the vehicle’s ECU, the fault code will appear. The advantage of knowing how to read a fault code on your Ford F 150  is that you will have be able to access to precise data about your automobile which will let you to figure out what issue you are standing in front of.

How to read a fault code on my Ford F 150 ?

In this second part we will now focus specifically on what brings you here, how to read a fault code on Ford F 150 . To discover this valued data you will need to to acquire a diagnostic tool, also called OBD 2, named after the socket on your Ford F 150  to which you will have to connect. These diagnostic tools are freely available for purchase, you will be able to find some in Bluetooth version which connects to your phone and some standard versions with a reader associated to the socket, as far as price is concerned, you will be able to find models between 30 and 100 euros. Once you have acquired an OBD2 diagnostic reader, you will have to find the diagnostic plug on your Ford F 150 , it is based on the left side of your steering column on the lower part of your dashboard, behind a hatch. It is easy to locate because it is triangular shaped and has 16 pins. All you have to do is connect with your diagnostic tool to read the fault code of your Ford F 150 .

How to erase the fault code Ford F 150 

Finally, to conclude this article, we are going to explain you the methode to carry out to erase a fault code on your Ford F 150 . Once you have navigated through the menus, you will access the list of active fault codes on your car. But, you will have to ask yourself an important question, is it really beneficial to erase this fault code on Ford F 150 ? In fact, erasing a fault code without resolving the issue is like burying its head in the sand. Furthermore, the computer of your Ford F 150  is made to take decisions according to the data it collects, if a crucial fault code is on, it will likely modify the engine general performance to preserve it. So if you get rid of the fault code, remember to fix the problem to which it is associated. Some OBD diagnostic tools do not allow you to do this. You have a dedicated navigation menu on most diagnostic tools that should allow you to clear this fault code on Ford F 150 .

If you want more guides on the Ford F 150 , go to our Ford F 150  category.