We have a 2017 150 Transit van at work that started having weird issues. When you shift it into reverse or drive there is a loud clunk and the van shakes, the first time it happened the van would barely accelerate. When it happened yesterday the RPM would get high but barely go above a few miles an hour going uphill. The check engine light is on; I will plug my code reader in on Monday to verify the code, but I'm pretty sure I know what it is going to read.

The first time it happened the P1636 Inductive Chip Communication Error code came up. Doing some research it is likely the chip in the key or the brain, we have tried our other keys, so I think we can eliminate that as the problem. We sent it to the dealership by tow truck but of course the light had gone off before it got there and they could not recreate the issue. They did find that the rear brake calipers were frozen and attributed the problem to that. I told them again about the code that it threw but they didn't want to take my word for it and just "start throwing parts at it". I knew that the brakes wouldn't cause it to throw that code.

The fact that it is an intermittent problem is frustrating; I am going to try to get a video of what it is doing on Monday to show the tech when we get it towed back into them. I think it is a brain issue not communicating with the shift solenoid.

Has anyone else had this problem with these rigs? If so what did it end up being?

 

I never had this problem, you should take it to a mechanic.

 

There are many input pieces of info that go to the PCM (Brain) that the PCM uses to make certain decisions.
What may appear as a PCM issue could be influenced by one incorrect piece of information.

A good understanding of how the network(System) works is absolutely necessary in order to troubleshoot any problems.
On top of that requirement is the requirement of a capable scan tool to access information then understand what that info is telling us.

Today's vehicles don't allow us to do very much without that special equip and info, yes you need access to special info in order to do most tests.
Dealerships have access to all that info , unfortunately not all techs are experienced in what to do with that info and some shops are in the same position.

There are more electronics in today's vehicles than the first spaceship that went to the moon
If it takes some time and trouble to isolate the root cause for a problem., patience needs to reign.
A good shop will eventually find the cause and intermittent problems are a technicians nightmare..
Hope you now have some idea of why it takes so long to correct some problems.

 

I know that, just curious if anyone else had the same issue.

 

I realize how complicated they are, which is frustrating in itself. Since cars are so smart today the codes should tel you what the exact problem is lol. My post was curiosity if anyone else had the same problem and what they found. It does get very expensive towing it to the dealership just to have the problem not present, we take it back to work, problem happens again, we tow it back to the dealership and on it goes. That is why I took a video as the problems are happening in case it doesn't do it for them this time they will have some sort of idea what it was doing at the time. It's at the dealership now so we'll see what happens.

 

Understand your frustration !
Believe me, it is just as frustrating to a tech when the customer has to keep coming back, now we have at least 2 people wanting to know what is going on.


A code DOES NOT TELL US WHAT PART IS MALFUNCTIONING,
It only tells us what system is involved and provide some direction. The rest is on the shoulders of whoever gets assigned to find and correct the cause.
Because there are so many components and signals involved, there is NO WAY to provide an accurate instant answer as to WHAT IS THE FIX until the cause is determined..