FAT32 on a larger than 32GB Memory Stick issues with Ford vehicle software

Hey Folks


I have a kinda complicated question, that probably has an easy answer, but I just don't know achieve it.


I'm looking to put music on a 64GB memory stick for use in my Ford vehicle. The version of the Ford interface software that is in my vehicle is called SNYC and only works with FAT32 formatted external drives.


I had until recently believed that a 32GB USB drive was the largest that could be used, as the vehicles software won't recognise larger devices than that.


However, I came across this post which claims that it is not limited by the size of the device, but by how FAT32 devices are formatted.


I've since tested this with a 64GB drive and yes the vehicles software will work with it, but only up till a point. The second I put more than 32GB of music data on the drive, the vehicle no longer recognises the stick. However, from the post I have linked to, it is suggested there is a way that you can format a stick in FAT32 that is larger than 32GB and all of the stick remains readable to Fords software.


So does anybody have idea how to do this on Mac? I've tried "Disk Utility" but get the results I outline above.

iMac with Retina 5K display, macOS 10.15

Posted on Mar 12, 2020 6:35 AM

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8 replies

Mar 12, 2020 8:33 AM in response to dialabrain

That's a fair and very valid point. I just assumed that they would be filling it up, otherwise it seems pointless to go the length of publishing an article on it at all.


Yup, I do get this isn't a Ford support forum, but I was asking specifically about FAT32 formatting on Macs in relation to getting it to work in a Ford, per what the article suggested for Windows. My technical knowledge is not very high and does not stretch to knowing whether my issue with it failing to work once the 32GB limit was surpassed on a larger memory stick was because I could not format the drive in way to make it work. I believed that if I was gonna find an answer to that, then someone on here would have that expertise that I sorely lack, rather than on a Ford forum who would turn around and say that this is not a Mac forum.


Thank you again though for making me think about the fact the author doesn't specifically say they go past 32GB of music on a larger drive than that.

Mar 12, 2020 8:49 AM in response to dialabrain

You are likely very correct about Samantha and that's why the author is getting the issues they mention. I'll just need to work within the 32GB limit. My curiosity got piqued when I came that article (can't even remember what I was actually looking for at the time when I discovered it) and thought that maybe I could get more of my music into the car, but 32GB is still al lot of music, so I'll just need to keep doing it the way I have previously have done.


Thank you again.

Mar 12, 2020 8:05 AM in response to Bidge

It sounds like Ford is adhering to a strict "limit" of FAT32. While it can theoretically support up to 2.2 TB by using massively space wasting 512 byte sectors, efficiency really tops out at 32 GB.


Even Windows 10 will only create up to a 32 GB FAT32 partition. If you go back a few years, hard drives larger than 32 GB used to come with a jumper set to limit the size seen by the OS as 30 GB so older systems wouldn't balk at the larger size it didn't know how to handle.


Given the failure of a 64 GB stick, I would say you have no choice but to use a flash drive no larger than 32 GB with that vehicle.

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FAT32 on a larger than 32GB Memory Stick issues with Ford vehicle software

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