Windstar Active Hood Fault

Interesting issue. I had a similar problem on my 2016 Volvo XC60, although the specific system was different. In my case, it was the pedestrian protection system throwing errors and activating randomly. The Volvo system, like your Ford's active hood, uses sensors to detect a potential pedestrian impact and then deploys actuators to raise the hood, creating a crumple zone to lessen the impact. The root cause ended up being a faulty sensor, which was causing false positives. Was the car involved in an accident? Or has any work been done on the front end recently?

No accidents, and no recent front-end work. The car's been babied its whole life. If it was a faulty sensor on your Volvo, how did you narrow it down, and how did you fix it?

Pinpointing the exact sensor was tricky. Think of it like finding a needle in a haystack, but the haystack is a complex network of sensors and wiring. Volvo's diagnostic system pointed to a general area, but the definitive diagnosis required specialized tools and expertise available at the dealer. Given your symptoms and error codes, a defective acceleration sensor is a strong possibility. I'd recommend getting it checked out at a workshop equipped to diagnose such systems. The active hood is part of the airbag system, and if this system doesn't work in an accident, it could be dangerous.

Appreciate the advice. Just got it back from the workshop - you were spot on! Turned out to be a defective acceleration sensor as suspected. Replaced it, cleared the codes, and everything's back to normal. Total cost was 315€ Thanks again!