2012 FORD SUPER DUTY trailer

Seating and Safety Restraints 157
Seating 157
Safety restraints 172
Airbags 184
Child restraints 199
Tires, Wheels and Loading 220
Tire information 222
Tire inflation 225
Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) 240
Vehicle loading 248
Trailer towing 255
Trailer brake controller-integrated 260
Recreational towing 267
Driving 269
Starting 269
Brakes 275
Traction Control™ 278
AdvanceTrac279
Hill descent control 285
Transmission operation 291
Reverse sensing system 300
Rear-view camera system 302
Roadside Emergencies 322
Getting roadside assistance 322
Hazard flasher control 323
Fuel pump shut-off 324
Fuses and relays 324
Changing tires 334
Wheel lug nut torque 350
Jump starting 351
Wrecker towing 355
Table of Contents
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2012 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

Warning symbols on your vehicle
When you see this symbol, it is
imperative that you consult the
relevant section of this guide before
touching or attempting adjustment
of any kind.
Protecting the environment
We must all play our part in
protecting the environment. Correct
vehicle usage and the authorized
disposal of waste, cleaning and
lubrication materials are significant
steps towards this aim. Information in this respect is highlighted in this
guide with the tree symbol.
CALIFORNIA Proposition 65 Warning
WARNING:Engine exhaust, some of its constituents, and
certain vehicle components contain or emit chemicals known to
the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other
reproductive harm. In addition, certain fluids contained in vehicles and
certain products of component wear contain or emit chemicals known
to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other
reproductive harm.
PERCHLORATE MATERIAL
Certain components of this vehicle such as airbag modules, seat belt
pretensioners, and button cell batteries may contain Perchlorate Material
– Special handling may apply for service or vehicle end of life disposal.
See www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate.
BREAKING-IN YOUR VEHICLE
Your vehicle does not need an extensive break-in. Try not to drive
continuously at the same speed for the first 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of
new vehicle operation. Vary your speed frequently in order to give the
moving parts a chance to break in.
Drive your new vehicle at least 1,000 miles (1,600 km) before towing a
trailer. For more detailed information about towing a trailer, refer to
Trailer towingin theTires, Wheels and Loadingchapter.
Introduction
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2012 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

If you calculate your average fuel economy by dividing distance traveled
by gallons of fuel used (liters of fuel used by 100 kilometers traveled),
your figure may be different than displayed for the following reasons:
•Your vehicle was not perfectly level during fill-up
•Differences in the automatic shut-off points on the fuel pumps at
service stations
•Variations in top-off procedure from one fill-up to another
•Rounding of the displayed values to the nearest 0.1 gallon (liter)
1. Drive the vehicle at least 5 miles (8 km) with the speed control
system engaged to display a stabilized average.
2. Record the highway fuel economy for future reference.
It is important to press the RESET button (press and hold RESET for
two seconds in order to reset the function) after setting the speed
control to get accurate highway fuel economy readings.
MPG (L/km)
This displays instantaneous fuel economy as a bar graph ranging from↓
poor economy to↑excellent economy.
Your vehicle must be moving to calculate instantaneous fuel economy.
When your vehicle is not moving, this function shows↓, one or no bars
illuminated. Instantaneous fuel economy cannot be reset.
TIMER
Timer displays the trip elapsed drive time.
To operate, do the following:
1. Press and release RESET in order to start the timer.
2. Press and release RESET to pause the timer.
3. Press and hold RESET until the timer resets.
TBC GAIN (if equipped)
Displays the level of trailer brake gain or if the trailer is not connected.
EXHAUST FILTER (diesel only)
Refer toDiesel exhaust system: oxidation catalyst/diesel particulate
filter systemin your diesel supplement for more information.
Instrument Cluster
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2012 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

REAR PARK AID (if equipped)
This feature sounds a warning tone to warn the driver of obstacles near
the rear bumper, and functions only when R (Reverse) gear is selected.
Press RESET to turn this feature on or off. You can also choose to turn
this feature on/off when the vehicle is placed in reverse.
TBC MODE (if equipped)
Allows you to choose the trailer brake mode.
Press RESET to choose:
•ELECTRIC
•EOH (electric over hydraulic)
TRAILER SWAY (if equipped)
This feature uses the electronic stability control to mitigate trailer sway,
Press RESET to turn it off or on.
LANGUAGE = ENGLISH / SPANISH / FRENCH
Allows you to choose which language the message center will display in.
Selectable languages are English, Spanish, or French.
Waiting four seconds or pressing the RESET button cycles the message
center through each of the language choices.
Press and hold the RESET button for two seconds to set the language
choice.
System warnings
System warnings alert you to possible problems or malfunctions in your
vehicle’s operating systems.
In the event of a multiple warning situation, the message center will
cycle the display to show all warnings by displaying each one for four
seconds.
The message center will display the last selected feature if there are no
more warning messages.
Types of messages and warnings:
•Some messages will appear briefly to inform you of something you
may need to take action on or be informed of.
•Some messages will appear once and then again when the vehicle is
restarted.
•Some messages will reappear after clearing or being reset if a problem
or condition is still present and needs your attention.
Instrument Cluster
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2012 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

WIRING FAULT ON TRAILER (if equipped)— Displayed and
accompanied by a single chime if there are certain faults in the vehicle
wiring and trailer wiring/brake system. Refer toTrailer towingin the
Tires, Wheels and Loadingchapter for more information.
TRAILER BRAKE MODULE FAULT (if equipped)— Displayed and
accompanied by a single chime in response to faults sensed by the TBC.
Refer toTrailer towingin theTires, Wheels and Loadingchapter for
more information.
TRAILER CONNECTED (if equipped)— Displayed when a correct
trailer connection (a trailer with electric trailer brakes) is sensed during
a given ignition cycle. Refer toTrailer towingin theTires, Wheels and
Loadingchapter for more information.
TRAILER BRAKE GAIN = XX.X (if equipped)— Displays the
current gain setting for the trailer brake. Refer toTrailer towingin the
Tires, Wheels and Loadingchapter for more information.
TBC GAIN = XX.X NO TRAILER (if equipped)— Displays the
current gain setting for the trailer brake when a trailer is not connected.
Refer toTrailer towingin theTires, Wheels and Loadingchapter for
more information.
TRAILER DISCONNECTED (if equipped)— Displayed and
accompanied by a single chime when a trailer connection becomes
disconnected, either intentionally or unintentionally, and has been sensed
during a given ignition cycle. Refer toTrailer towingin theTires,
Wheels and Loadingchapter for more information.
TRAILER SWAY REDUCE SPEED (if equipped)— Displayed when
the trailer sway control has detected trailer sway. For more information,
refer to theDrivingchapter for more information.
CHECK PARK AID (if equipped)— Displayed when the transmission
is in R (Reverse) and the reverse sensing system (park aid) is disabled.
TRANSPORT MODE CONTACT DEALER (if equipped)—
Displayed when the vehicle is set to transport mode. The transport mode
is used to disable certain vehicle functions to prevent battery discharge
when the vehicle is in the transport/inventory phase and is not driven
long enough to maintain the battery’s charge. This mode can be disabled
by doing the following: Turn the ignition on, without starting the engine.
Press and release the brake pedal fully five times and press the hazard
button four times (on, off, on, off) within 10 seconds.
CHECK LOCKING DIFFERENTIAL (if equipped)— Displayed
when an electronic locking differential (ELD) system fault is present. For
more information, refer toElectronic locking differential (ELD)in the
Drivingchapter.
Instrument Cluster
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2012 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

Fuel Hist.:Press the right arrow key (when in the Fuel Econ. menu) to
reach Fuel Hist. Fuel history shows fuel usage (AVG MPG or L/100km) as a
bar graph based on time. The duration time can be changed as follows:
Duration– Press the right arrow key (when in the Fuel Hist. menu) to
reach the following duration choices.
•5 Minutes
•10 Minutes
•30 Minutes
•Last 5 Resets
Use the up/down arrows keys to highlight one of the choices; press and
hold OK to set your choice.
The graph is updated each minute with the fuel economy that was
achieved during the prior 5, 10, 30 minutes or last 5 resets of driving.
Truck Apps (if equipped)
In this mode, off-road and trailer towing application options are available.
Off Road*
Pitch and bank angle (in degrees). Displays the pitch angle (front to
rear) and bank angle (side to side) of the road surface.
Steering angle (in degrees). Displays the steering angle of the front
wheels after the vehicle has been driven for a period of time.
Differential lock/unlock. Displays the state (locked or unlocked) of the
electronic locking differential.
Energy flow. Displays the operating mode of the transfer case: 4X2,
4X4 Low or 4X4 High.
* If equipped—your vehicle may be equipped with some or all of these
options.
When “Press OK for info” is displayed, pressing OK will give you
information on the following options if equipped (Note:Information is
only available when traveling less than 3 mph [5 km/h]):
•ELD (electronic locking differential)
•Hill Descent Control
•4X4 System
•Traction Control
•Advancetrac + RSC
Instrument Cluster
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2012 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

Trailer:Press the right arrow key (when in the Off Road menu) to
reach the Trailer menu (vehicle must be equipped with factory installed
trailer brake controller). The following information is displayed:
•Active trailer name or default trailer.
•Accumulated trailer distance.
•Trailer gain and output.
•Trailer disconnected
When “Press OK for options” is displayed, pressing OK will open the
trailer options menus:
Trailer
Change Active
TrailerWhen this is highlighted, press the right arrow key
to change the currently selected trailer. Use the up
and down arrows to select a trailer and press the
OK button to choose the highlighted trailer.
Adding a new trailer– Use the up/down arrows to
highlight “New Trailer” from the Change Active
Trailer menu and press the right arrow key to enter
the New Trailer input screen. Use the up/down
arrow keys to choose alpha, numeric and symbol
characters and then press the right arrow to move
the character space over. Continue adding
characters as needed. Press the left arrow to go
back and change a previously selected character.
When finished with the new trailer name, press OK
to accept the new trailer name.
Connection
Checklist (if
equipped)Press the right arrow button when this is highlighted
to show the trailer connection types: Conventional,
Fifth Wheel and Gooseneck. Use the up/down
arrows to highlight one of these choices and press
OK to display the connection checklist. Follow the
on-screen instructions to go through the connections
list.
Delete Trailer Press the right arrow button when this is highlighted
to show currently stored trailers. Use the up/down
arrows to highlight the trailer you want to delete
and press OK to delete. Follow the on-screen
prompts to exit or confirm delete.
Information
ScreenPress the right arrow button when this is highlighted
to display information on the following vehicle
features: Tow Haul mode, Trailer Brake Controller.
Instrument Cluster
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2012 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide, 1st Printing
USA(fus)

Trailer
Rename Trailer Press the right arrow button when this is highlighted
to display saved or default trailers. Use the up/down
buttons to highlight a trailer and press OK to select
it. Use the up/down arrow buttons to change the
characters as needed. When done, press OK to
accept the change.
Reset Trailer
Mileage /
Kilometers (if
equipped)Press the right arrow button when this is highlighted
to display accumulated distance on a given trailer
within the list of trailer(s). Use the up/down buttons
to select a trailer, then press and hold OK to reset
the trailer mileage (kilometers).
Settings
In this mode, you can configure different driver setting choices. Press
the right arrow key (when in the Settings menu) to reach the Driver
Assist menu:
Driver Assist
Rear Park Aid On/Off
Rear View
CameraCamera Delay
Trailer Brake
ModeElectric or Elect. Over Hydraulic
Trailer Sway
ControlOn/Off
Vehicle
Autolamp Delay Off or XXX seconds
Compass Zone Setting (1–15) See the diagram below to
determine your magnetic zone.
Instrument Cluster
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2012 F-250/350/450/550(f23)
Owners Guide, 1st Printing
USA(fus)