Ford Ecoboost Engine Failure (TWICE)
Discussion
J4CKO said:
I suspect that your 118 probably needs a full set by now, wear and serviceability is not always indicated by leakage, by that mileage they will all be way past their best whoever made them.
It does, but at 80k they were still dry. The car still drives fine but the MOT picked up 'light misting' on one rear.A job for next month! It will get all four, no point messing about. But I don't accept that three out of four dampers are leaking (therefore unroadworthy) after just 80k. One (like on mine) perhaps. But three? That says to me they aren't fit for intended purpose.
J4CKO said:
it isnt like BMW dont have their own reliability howlers on occasion.
Tell me about it! The BMW it's a combination of stupid design and extended service intervals. In the case of Ford, it will be pruning that last 2p off bought in parts such as dampers. But BMW etc are going the same way.J4CKO said:
Do you think there could there possibly be a connection between best selling (over four million Fiestas sold so far since it was introduced) and the number of complaints ?
This is certainly a factor. It's non trivial to tally up the sales figures by year with the number of reports for a particular model.By way of comparison the Polo and Juke (also in the top 10 SMMT sales figures) also have a lot of faults, possibly a similar proportion of faults per car as the Fiesta.
The majority of faults for the Juke appear to be with the diesel engines and CVT gearboxes, didn't look at the Polo. Most cars seem to have their weaknesses.
Then you see this:
http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/best-cars/driver-powe...
and the Fiesta is almost at the bottom. As you say, there have been a lot sold, so this shouldn't be a statistical anomaly.
The other side of the reliability equation is cost. Ford have sold a lot of cars with the 1.6l engine too.. I remember reading that the 1.0l Ecoboost crate engine costs approximately £4500, as against ~£1600 for a Sigma 1.6. I've heard that the 1.6 has at least it's fair share of head gasket issues, but I assume those are relatively cheap to fix. The 1.0l Ecoboost is designed to warm up quickly, so has a low coolant capacity and a hot turbo bolted to the head. When the cooling system is compromised they reportedly get reduced to expensive scrap very quickly.
Then there's the shabby customer service. Ford appear to be doing everything they can to wash their hands of the issues that people on this thread have had. They coolant pipe on the early Focus was a defective design, and the TSB fix hasn't reached all owners. Many will be blissfully unaware. There also seems to be a tendency to blame faults on the customer whenever possible, even when the car is on a replacement engine.
J4CKO said:
as another poster has said, some of those issues look like user error
True, there have been stop-start "issues" with some cars, but mostly I thinks it's down to a lack of understanding of how the systems work.J4CKO said:
My wife has one, I didn't want it, couldn't think of anything I wanted less than a bloody Fiesta but I have to say I love it now, 18 months in and no issues.
I can fully understand why you like it, they are good cars to drive and cover most bases well for a lot of people. I hope it continues to be a good 'un. You've taken a small risk with the remap, but on the plus side I expect you check the car over often enough that you stand a chance of catching any issues before they get really expensive.J4CKO said:
Do you think there could there possibly be a connection between best selling (over four million Fiestas sold so far since it was introduced) and the number of complaints ?
This is pretty much the main factor. I can't think of many credible analytic methods (including your Lean and 6S methodologies) that don't take defects per {numberMade} into account. It'd be fools errand otherwise, much the same as concluding that Cancer is mythical because you tested 10 people and none of them were affected.from honest john
"Early reports of 1.0 EcoBoosts cooking their turbos because drivers switched the engines off when the turbos were almost red hot."
I thought the days of having to let your car run on after a journey to cool were long gone! Surely this just requires a temp sensor to allow the fans to run, at worst the fitment of an electric aux water pump?
"Early reports of 1.0 EcoBoosts cooking their turbos because drivers switched the engines off when the turbos were almost red hot."
I thought the days of having to let your car run on after a journey to cool were long gone! Surely this just requires a temp sensor to allow the fans to run, at worst the fitment of an electric aux water pump?
strath44 said:
from honest john
"Early reports of 1.0 EcoBoosts cooking their turbos because drivers switched the engines off when the turbos were almost red hot."
I thought the days of having to let your car run on after a journey to cool were long gone! Surely this just requires a temp sensor to allow the fans to run, at worst the fitment of an electric aux water pump?
It's not that. You need to let a hot engine idle for 10-20 seconds to allow the turbo to spool down. Otherwise, the turbo is still spinning at 3000000 rpm and suddenly, there's no oil supply. That's what buggers them. I always make the last mile of a journey nice and easy anyway, but mechanical sympathy is increasingly a thing of the past."Early reports of 1.0 EcoBoosts cooking their turbos because drivers switched the engines off when the turbos were almost red hot."
I thought the days of having to let your car run on after a journey to cool were long gone! Surely this just requires a temp sensor to allow the fans to run, at worst the fitment of an electric aux water pump?
lee_erm said:
Owned 4 modern fords (post 1998). I'll have put 300,000 miles ish on them combined (that includes a 1.0 ecoboost). The only thing I've had to replace that wasn't a service item was a Bosch branded fuel pump on a 17 year old 130,000 mile Focus. I haven't even had to replace a damper 
Ford do have a much improved reliability record in recent times and in the 2016 JD Power survey were way up the table, ahead of BMW, VAG and even Honda. Also, in 2016 Ford UK shifted 120,000 Fiestas, nearly 45,000 more than the second place car, the Corsa. How many of these were ecoboosts? Probably a very high percentage as nearly every new Fiesta I see these days seems to be an ecoboost. Must be a factor in all reports of problems...There is plenty of stuff on the Honest John board, but probably less than there is for, say the E90 3 series BMW which has the longest list of red crosses under "BAD" than any other car ever! Doesn't stop people buying BMWs in their droves.
gweaver said:
The fault reports on HJ often make interesting reading - I've never seen a list this long before.
http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/ford/fiesta-2...
Seems to be mostly gearbox & clutch issues, but some engine cooling system and turbo issues too.
The Ecoboost is an impressive engine, but the impression I have is of a *lot* of issues and very shabby treatment of customers by Ford.
Having read HJ's website in the past, you'd never buy any car based on what gets written on there. http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/ford/fiesta-2...
Seems to be mostly gearbox & clutch issues, but some engine cooling system and turbo issues too.
The Ecoboost is an impressive engine, but the impression I have is of a *lot* of issues and very shabby treatment of customers by Ford.
ECOBOOST ENGINE OVERHEATING PROBLEMS 1.0
If someone has or has the car equipped with this engine should be aware that it has valid warranty extension and / or require deep reviews of the state of the engine. A deficiency is detected in the engine cooling which causes in some cars a peak of overheating of which the panel does not give any warning and burns the gaskets of the motor leaving passing liquid of cooling to the gasoline circuit damaging the whole motor and forcing a repair Which is practically a new engine.
The first symptom is difficulty getting the car to work and losing power without any other indication of the vehicle. Of course, the damage is done right now.
Ford does not assume this manufacturing defect that is already explained in at least one technical opinion of an American company and the owner has no alternative but to undertake a thorough repair in a car that should have a much longer life.
The dealers on their side refer the matter to Ford and say that they only "repair cars" in a very nice way.
Deco has already contacted Ford in my case and they simply ignore the issue by referring only to the fact that the vehicle is not covered by warranty.
BE CAREFUL THEREFORE WITH THESE EXPERIMENTAL ENGINES.
If someone has or has the car equipped with this engine should be aware that it has valid warranty extension and / or require deep reviews of the state of the engine. A deficiency is detected in the engine cooling which causes in some cars a peak of overheating of which the panel does not give any warning and burns the gaskets of the motor leaving passing liquid of cooling to the gasoline circuit damaging the whole motor and forcing a repair Which is practically a new engine.
The first symptom is difficulty getting the car to work and losing power without any other indication of the vehicle. Of course, the damage is done right now.
Ford does not assume this manufacturing defect that is already explained in at least one technical opinion of an American company and the owner has no alternative but to undertake a thorough repair in a car that should have a much longer life.
The dealers on their side refer the matter to Ford and say that they only "repair cars" in a very nice way.
Deco has already contacted Ford in my case and they simply ignore the issue by referring only to the fact that the vehicle is not covered by warranty.
BE CAREFUL THEREFORE WITH THESE EXPERIMENTAL ENGINES.
gweaver said:
J4CKO said:
There are millions of the 1 litre Ecoboost engines about now and it isnt like they are failing left right and centre, this thread would be a little busier if that were the case.
The fault reports on HJ often make interesting reading - I've never seen a list this long before.http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/carbycar/ford/fiesta-2...
Seems to be mostly gearbox & clutch issues, but some engine cooling system and turbo issues too.
The Ecoboost is an impressive engine, but the impression I have is of a *lot* of issues and very shabby treatment of customers by Ford.
Cut corners, little more emptive servicing.
Some people moan about the PSA 1.6 diesel but it's in millions of cars across many marque's. It's capable of massive mileage yet you get failures yes. How many of the total and how many were serviced on the button?
hora said:
Maybe it's the demographics of a Ford owner?
Cut corners, little more emptive servicing.
Some people moan about the PSA 1.6 diesel but it's in millions of cars across many marque's. It's capable of massive mileage yet you get failures yes. How many of the total and how many were serviced on the button?
That seems to translate as 'fragile'....Cut corners, little more emptive servicing.
Some people moan about the PSA 1.6 diesel but it's in millions of cars across many marque's. It's capable of massive mileage yet you get failures yes. How many of the total and how many were serviced on the button?
hora said:
Maybe it's the demographics of a Ford owner?
Possibly, but there are millions of cars powered by the previous petrol engines (Sigma, Zetec, Duratec etc) and driven by "Ford owners" yet they don't have a reputation for fragility.Likewise the 1.6 HDi, plenty of other diesel engines that have proven far more robust and longer lived. I rather doubt that most neglectful and useless drivers only choose cars with the Ecotec or 1.6 HDi engine.
Edited by Mr2Mike on Sunday 29th January 22:08
eldar said:
hora said:
Maybe it's the demographics of a Ford owner?
Cut corners, little more emptive servicing.
Some people moan about the PSA 1.6 diesel but it's in millions of cars across many marque's. It's capable of massive mileage yet you get failures yes. How many of the total and how many were serviced on the button?
That seems to translate as 'fragile'....Cut corners, little more emptive servicing.
Some people moan about the PSA 1.6 diesel but it's in millions of cars across many marque's. It's capable of massive mileage yet you get failures yes. How many of the total and how many were serviced on the button?
The modern engine is a complex beast and you can cite failures across all manufacturers. VAG, BMW, Mazda. Have to say, I have yet to hear of any major problems with Hyundai or Kia engines....perhaps why they have confidence to give the best warranties in the industry....
Anyone with a newer version had problems?
I have a 2015 1.0 Ecoboost and it's got a coolant leak, perhaps due to cracking caused by heat damage. I was under the impression that they redesigned the coolant housing due to this very problem. Luckily caught in time and will know more after it's back from the garage having been sorted under warranty.
I have a 2015 1.0 Ecoboost and it's got a coolant leak, perhaps due to cracking caused by heat damage. I was under the impression that they redesigned the coolant housing due to this very problem. Luckily caught in time and will know more after it's back from the garage having been sorted under warranty.
Bunfighter said:
Pity, awesome engine. I was really impressed by the 1.0ecotec engine. Sadly I wouldnt buy a used one 
The thread has been running for nearly three years on a major motoring website yet has only run to 19 pages, we can generate that in two days if leasing is involved but it is feeble for a supposed epidemic of failures for an engine for a major manufacturer, this is because the deluge of failures has failed to materialize, it is a belting engine, that apart from some early issues as documented is performing perfectly otherwise, has Anne Robinson been troubled ? no the failures were sorted, there are MILLIONS of this unit out there and no massive failure rate, it is a success, buy with inpunity and enjoy ! Edited by J4CKO on Sunday 12th February 19:26
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