Principles of Operation
WARNING: This page is about a different car, the 2005 Mercury Montego, 2005 Ford Freestyle, and 2005 Ford Five Hundred. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.
The message center is a vacuum fluorescent display, which is part of the instrument cluster. The message center electronic functions use both hardwired and controller area network (CAN) circuits to transmit and receive information. As a technician it is very important to understand:
- where the input (command) originates from.
- all the information (messages) necessary in order for a feature to operate.
- which module(s) receive(s) the input or command message.
- does the module which received the input (message) control the output of the feature, or does it output a message over the CAN circuits to another module.
- which module controls the output of the feature.
The message center provides the following features:
- information displays
- setup displays
- warning messages
- system check messages
The message center information can be selected through a set of 3 buttons:
- SET
- INFO
- RESET
The message center buttons are located on the steering wheel assembly, behind the steering wheel audio control buttons. For additional information on removal and installation, refer to AUDIO UNIT .