NHTSA Complaint #11533105 — 2019 FORD RANGER

See related steering problem report. After Electronic Power Steering Assist went out on vehicle without warning of any kind to owner, dealer's service department diagnostics as best as I can determine did NOT indicate a problem with the parts that were replaced. The parts replaced were: 1. steering gear/rack and pinion/EPAS (which seems to go by various names), and, when installing this new, expensive, and long-in-coming part didn't get the power steering to work, 2. the battery. The scenario suggests that the root problem was the battery, not the steering gear. A representative of another dealer has advised that the first thing they check in cases involving electronic components is the battery. He also advised that Ford does not have a standard operating procedure or service bulletin that says this is something that is to be done. Can this be? Apparently, at least for this vehicle, there was/is no system to check for adequate battery voltage or to warn that electronic components like the power steering may fail if the battery is not replaced. If my research results are correct, the Diagnostic Trouble Codes the Ford dealer repair tech found went to a steering angle sensor in the steering column, and things having to do with the anti-lock brake system. They weren't fixed, but the codes disappeared after the new battery was installed. The diagnostic tools seem to give more misdirection than direction. With so many critical electrical components in today's vehicles, the warning and diagnostic systems seem woefully inadequate. I have read about Fords limiting battery recharging to about 75% and have noted that one of the DTCs involved here, U3003, sets on-demand if the voltage supplies to the ABS module falls below 10 volts. I'm a layman, but these things suggest to me that some of the electronic components require substantial minimum operating voltage which an older battery would not supply, and the recharging cap could exacerbate the problem.