Investigation into Ford engine failures wraps up after over two years; warranties get an extension
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has concluded its investigation concerning more than 411,000 Ford and Lincoln SUVs and pickup trucks that potentially had engine issues leading to power loss, according to a report released on Monday.
The inquiry began in July 2022, focusing on Ford Bronco models with 2.7L EcoBoost engines. It later expanded to cover the Ford Edge, F-150, Explorer, and Lincoln Aviator and Nautilus models from the 2021 and 2022 production years that had either 2.7L or 3.0L EcoBoost engines.
The agency believed there might be a flaw in the engines’ valvetrain. However, Ford contended that not all valves within the timeframe of concern were defective, and that the failures reported were in vehicles with low operational time, as stated in the report.
Most reported failures occurred before the vehicles reached 20,000 miles, with over half of the incidents happening before the 5,000-mile mark.
The findings from the NHTSA’s analysis were largely consistent with Ford’s own evaluations, indicating that most problems with defective valves were already experienced by the vehicles, according to the report.
Ford extends warranty for 90,000 affected vehicles
In August, Ford announced a recall for 90,736 vehicles equipped with “Nano” engines produced between May 2021 and October 2021. Recently, the company has stated that it will extend the warranty for these recalled vehicles to 10 years or 150,000 miles, whichever comes first.
The recall notice issued on August 23 encouraged owners to bring their vehicles to a Ford or Lincoln dealership to check the longevity of their engine cycles. Cars that did not meet the necessary standards were inspected further for possible ineffective intake valves and were offered engine replacements.
According to Ford, vehicles manufactured after October 2021 come with a different material for the intake valves.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration confirmed that there has been a noticeable reduction in the number of reported valve-related failures since November 2021.
