There is some frustration on the street with Ford Sync users since the launch of the iPhone 5; fear not, take a moment to review a few things before you begin …
First of all, if you had a previously paired phone in your vehicle and you have a new iPhone 5, the first thing to do is “re-pair” your system. Go to the “Phone Menu” on the dash of your Ford vehicle.
With a sync system with the blue LED readout on the center console, simply press the “Phone” icon on the steering wheel. The words “Phone Menu” will appear and in a few seconds it will change to “Redial Phone”. then turn the tuning knob on the right side until you see the words “Pairing Settings”, then press the OK button in the center of the tuning knob (or on the steering wheel. Go to the phone menu and go to Bluetooth Devices and remove the phone from your BT device list, then select Add devices and press OK to start “Pair a phone.” A 6-digit PIN number will appear.
If you have a touchscreen navigation system, press the Phone hard button on the side of the touchscreen, then go to the Settings button, it will take you to the screen to add or remove Bluetooth devices. Select the button with the name of your old phone. Tap it and then press the button on the right that says “Delete phone.” Then you can tap on the button that says “Add Device”. Press OK to start “Pair a phone”. A 6-digit PIN number will be displayed.
If you have a MyFord Touch system, press the upper left corner to access the phone menu, then go to the lower button on the left side of the screen to access Settings, then on the next screen select “Bluetooth” and then another will appear The screen displays the list of Bluetooth devices. Tap the button with the name of your old phone and then tap Delete. Then tap the “Add Device” button. Press OK to start “Pair a phone”. A 6-digit PIN number will be displayed.
Go to your new iPhone 5, to the settings folder and then select the “General” settings. Next, make sure your Bluetooth switch is in the “On” position. Your iPhone will start “searching for devices”. In a moment, your phone will first see a “Hands Free” device and then it will turn to “Pairing”. Press the Sync button on your phone and in a moment or two a second screen will appear. Look at your dash for the 6-digit PIN. Enter that into your iPhone and hit the blue button on the screen that says “Pair.”
When your Sync system asks you to enable 911 Assistance, press OK. Press OK to set your phone as the primary phone. When the synchronization system asks you to press OK to download the phonebook, then press OK. This will take a few minutes, but once this is done, you will be “paired” with the new iPhone.
No software updates are needed for the Ford Sync system to work with the iPhone 5 (or any iPhone for that matter).
Note that Apple uses MAP (Message Access Protocol) to enable Ford’s text-to-speech system. However, if you have an iPhone4S or an iPhone 5, that’s fine! Just press the “Home” button on the iPhone screen for a couple of seconds. You will hear the voice of “Siri” on the vehicle’s sound system. Then say “Read text messages” and she will read them to you. If you want, continue talking to “Siri”. Ask him to send you a text message and he will start asking you questions about what text message and to whom you would like to send it. Seconds and it will be disconnected.
The iPhone with Siri actually seems to have the “best of both worlds” as it allows you to press the “voice” button on the steering wheel to make and review phone calls, to start streaming Bluetooth music, USB music, and to say “Mobile Apps. “if you have an AppLink-equipped Ford. If it doesn’t, press the voice button and say Bluetooth audio, then go to your phone and press “Pandora” or some other app to start streaming music through your dash.
Remember to do this tip once a week: Turn off your vehicle. Completely turn off your iPhone for at least 30 seconds. Then start it again. This helps your phone reset to your carrier’s settings.
As for “updating” your Sync software to handle the new iPhone, don’t worry, you don’t have to. The new iPhone 5 will work seamlessly with your existing Sync software. So enjoy the new iPhone 5 and the Ford Sync system.