We have always kept maintenance up with the truck since we bought it new, so when Check Engine light came on we went straight to a dealer. They said the #4 cyl had no power, and the options were to replace the heads at $12,500 or buy a remained engine from Ford for $9500. WHAT??? BEFORE THE FIRST TUNE UP???? Furthermore, since I had 87k miles on it (I'm a traveling nurse and COVID has kept us hopping), and we had bought it 7/4/2017, it was out of both the Ford and the extended warranties...

We assumed they were trying to scam us, so we took it to an independent mechanic with a super reputation for being a straight-shooter. Sad news? The dealer was telling us the truth. While the indie did say he could replace the heads for less than $12k, he also said it had to be both heads, because the truck has an aluminum block and replacing just one can cause uneven heat response and blahblahblah. He did point to another Ford in his shop with the same engine, same problem. He said the problem is not rare with the Gen 1 2.7 Ecoboost. Ford fixed the issue in 2018... so they knew it. He recommended contacting Ford and giving them the chance to make it right.

So I wrote Ford a letter. Sent it in November. In January I got a response, dated December 18, telling me to call or chat with their customer service team, and how important the satisfaction of their owners is... (insert throat clearing sound here). So I hopped on chat. They asked about the problem, took my VIN number, and advised that I take a copy of my letter to my local dealer; that Ford would work with/through them. Ok. Followed directions.

When I hadn't heard in a couple of weeks, I contacted my Ford dealership Service Manager and said Hey, haven't heard - any news on your end? She said she hadn't heard anything and suggested I contact Ford again.

So I opened a chat with Anastasia at the Owners site. After going through the whole story, she tells me that she can open a new request for financial assistance, but that the problem has to have been diagnosed in THE LAST 30 DAYS. Given that it took them more than that to respond to my first letter, that automatically made any 'request' I could file null and void. So I told her that this was not a 'request for assistance' - it was a request to fix a problem that they knew existed when I bought the truck. I told them I wanted the new heads or the remanned engine - or they could take the crappy thing back. I had bought new so I would NOT need a new engine before the loan was paid off!!!

Before anyone says "Any manufacturer would do that" - No. Subaru covered a repair of a manufacturer's defect when the car was 7 years old... so there are honest makers out there...

She said that "unfortunately" the vehicle and the problem were 'too old' for either repair assistance or buy back. So sorry.

I will bandaid the problem and get out of this POS asap. And I will buy another vehicle - but it will not be a Ford. Never ever again. And I tell everyone I meet about this new definition of "Ford Tough". It means "new engine before the first tune-up". They should market that. "Never needs a tune up!" Because you need a new engine first...

Years ago I saw a hat pin that parodied the "Ford: Quality is Job 1" slogan. It said "jab 1". It seems less funny now that I've been on the sharp end of a 'jab' of Ford "quality".

They could have stood behind their vehicle AND had a free feel-good ad story. About how they helped a frontline health care worker stay in the fight against COVID. Instead, they showed what their commitment to owner satisfaction really means. They sell crap and then figure you will pay the money to keep it running and eventually have so much into it that you will lose your hiney getting out of it. Problem with that is that for some of us, principle is more valuable than money. I will shell out more money for a different vehicle rather than keep paying more and more to Ford. Now when people ask about my "pretty blue truck" they get an earful! Short version of what I tell them is Don't buy a Ford! Tell all your friends and family!

Problem occurred at about 5k miles. Check engine light would come on, after a few days go off. Dealer could not reproduce it. This went on for 6+ months. At the beginning of June 2018, just before I had owned the truck for 1 yr, the light came on and blinked. It was on for 1.5 weeks. Took it to dealer, they diagnosed it as Coolant leaking into the engine, but, they would not be able to fix for at least 2 weeks. I took it back to the dealer I purchased it from and the light was off, they could not reproduce it after having the truck for 3 weeks. 2 days after I get it back, the light is on. I take it to a different dealer in August and they diagnose it as Coolant leaking into the engine. They cannot look at it for 2 weeks. 2 weeks go by, now it will be another 1.5 weeks as there are other vehicles "in front of me" to have engine work done. No loaner available during this time.

The truck is not even fixed yet, but, this is terrible customer service. Ford Customer Service seems to be outsourced and they do not really care. I find it interesting that there are so many engine issues with Ford vehicles lately. I had called more than 1 dealer and they were all backed up.

Update from Sep 25, 2018: I picked up my truck on 9/17/18. It was completed on 9/14. So, over a month in the shop. After explaining to the Dealer Service Manager all of the hassle this truck has been, he spoke with their Ford Rep and they offered me a Premium extended warranty. Nice, but, given this is a brand new truck with major engine problems, offering that warranty is a minimum. Does Ford care about their customers? Who knows. While this was going on, my Chevy Traverse had the check engine light come on. I took it to our Chevy Dealer and the experience was "night and day" dfiferent. Top Notch customer service and communication along with a loaner ready when I arrived.

The 'fix' was a replaced short block. I requested a long block based on the issues but, they again paid no attention to my request or took it into consideration. We'll see if it is fixed long-term.