- Ford is heading to court against owners of cars from 2013 through 2019.
- All of them own (or owned) a car with a small EcoBoost engine that failed.
- They allege that Ford knew about a defect and didn’t inform customers.
Small turbocharged engines are all the rage these days. Their popularity has grown over the last decade or so, and that’s around the same time that Ford introduced some of its own. EcoBoost engines with displacements ranging from 1.5 to 2.0 liters are the subject of a new lawsuit. Plaintiffs allege that the Blue Oval built these engines with a defect and didn’t alert owners.
var adpushup = window.adpushup = window.adpushup || {que:[]};
adpushup.que.push(function() {
if (adpushup.config.platform !== “DESKTOP”){
adpushup.triggerAd(“0f7e3106-c4d6-4db4-8135-c508879a76f8”);
} else {
adpushup.triggerAd(“82503191-e1d1-435a-874f-9c78a2a54a2f”);
}
});
The suit includes owners of the Ford Escape (2013-2019), Fusion (2013-2019), Edge (2015-2018), Lincoln MKC (2016-2019), and Lincoln MKZ (2016-2019). Specifically, it alleges two major things. First, Ford failed to notify owners that these engines have a defect that allows coolant to leak into the cylinders. Second, the carmaker didn’t inform owners about how this can cause a potential safety concern.
More: Ford Pulls Mustang Mach-E From Sale Over Dangerous Door Lock Flaw
Owners who filed the suit say all of the affected engines leak coolant from the cylinder heads into the cylinders. As that process continues, the engine suffers from a lack of coolant. When it gets low, the engine overheats and can end up broken beyond repair.
In the suit, the plaintiffs are quoted as saying, “Ford has not satisfactorily or effectively addressed the source of the defect for those consumers, including for those whose vehicles remain in warranty. Instead of replacing the engine block, Ford merely applies superficial stopgap, ‘Band-Aid’ remedies such as installing coolant level sensors.”
Obviously, getting an alert to refill coolant is better than a ruined engine, but an engine that doesn’t leak coolant trumps all. If the allegations in the suit are true, Ford knew about the issue before it ever sold these engines. Notably, Ford issued a technical service bulletin in 2020 to replace the short block and head gasket on Ford Fusions and Escapes over coolant loss issues.
The plaintiffs say that actions like replacing the engine don’t fix the issue since the replacement has the same defect. One technician familiar with the issue shows off what they see as a defect below. The head gasket appears to fail between the cylinders. Have a gander below and let us know your thoughts. Is this a design defect in your eyes or just the result of normal wear and tear?
var adpushup = window.adpushup = window.adpushup || {que:[]};
adpushup.que.push(function() {
if (adpushup.config.platform !== “DESKTOP”){
adpushup.triggerAd(“bb7964e9-07de-4b06-a83e-ead35079d53c”);
} else {
adpushup.triggerAd(“9b1169d9-7a89-4971-a77f-1397f7588751”);
}
});
VEHICLES INCLUDED IN LAWSUIT
- 2013-2019 Ford Escape
- 2013-2019 Ford Fusion
- 2015-2018 Ford Edge
- 2016-2019 Lincoln MKC
- 2016-2019 Lincoln MKZ