F150 Ecoboost Reliability

My 13 Eco has been great. Not impressed with the Sync system, but it plays my USB iPod just fine, just none of the voice functions work on it... I'll take it into the dealer before the warranty is up on it, but mechanically and all the other things on it, it's been great.

30,000 miles on it now. I have changed the spark plugs in it already, but that was only because of how easy they are to do and reports that they do start to wear out and the gaps make a difference in it's performance.. (6 new Motorcraft plugs only cost $36 and they are a breeze to replace compared to the 5.4 plug changes in my old 97 F150!)

Good luck!

Mitch

Flashman wrote:
Gotta worship that blue oval!

Don't be a hater!

I think they had some teething issues early on but have been reasonably reliable since. I will say that Ford sells a boatload of them; it seems every direction I turn I see one!

You asked about reliability so I thought I would mention issues folks have reported on this or other forums.

1) Condensation in intercooler could result in stutter / mis-fire and possible limp mode when accelerating hard observed by some folks operating in higher humidity areas for model years 2011 and some 2012. They went through a couple of TSBs and ended up using a shield to reduce the efficiency of the original intercooler design by the late 2012 builds. I am not aware of any problems since that time and believe the 2013 has a new design. I have a late 2012 build and operate in Oregon where it gets humid on occasion. I have never had a problem with this.

2) A few folks on the internet have reported timing chain stretch. This is initially noticed as a sound observed at engine startup. I am not aware of anyone personally on this forum who has experienced this but pretty sure you can find it on Ford forum. I have no idea if this is a 1 in 10,000 truck issue or what. May very well depend on how the vehicle is operated, I could not say. If this does occur within the first 80k(?) miles I believe it is covered under warranty as it impacts emissions. I drive with a certain amount of mechanical empathy (I don't romp on it just for fun) and do not expect to see an issue here. If I do and it is after warranty I will invite my son over and we will spend a weekend in the garage taking care of it.

3) A gas direct inject will be subject to carbon buildup on the intake valves because there is no fuel with detergent flowing over them. There is a Ford mechanic who has posted a video regarding this issue on a 2.0L EcoBoost. I am not aware of anyone on this forum who has experienced this personally. One member did post that a police department who was using the 3.5L EcoBoost did have some carbon buildup issues. Likely because they idle for extended periods of time. Main observation here is operator should not use a chemical clean approach that will send vapors downstream and harm the turbos. Again, I am not aware of any of the EcoBoost owners on this forum personally reporting this issue.

With that said, I really like the engine and the truck. And I came from an 8.1L Chevy (really good engine) so I know what a big block is like. I have not experienced any of the issues mentioned and am not concerned. Cruising between Portland to Seattle the vehicle is really quiet. The engine cruises along at around 1800 rpm going 65 and holds the gears due to the to low end torque while delivering ~19.5 mpg. When towing the torque is really nice as it holds a gear longer. Nothing wrong with a gas engine spinning up, but personal preference is I enjoy the quiet power delivered at the lower rpms with less downshifting. I ordered the 8200 GVWR version of the truck with heavier axles and suspension and tow 8K. Expect to run with this outfit for a long time.

From what I have read this engine has performed very well for those who own and operate them on this forum.

Good luck to your friend,
Stu

mich800 wrote:

Flashman wrote:
Gotta worship that blue oval!

First fan boy in.

LMAO....

Flashman wrote:
Gotta worship that blue oval!

First fan boy in.

32000+/- on my 2013. Over 8000towing. Only problem was a battery replacement under warranty. Love it!!

Gotta worship that blue oval!

Numerous threads here on the Ecoboost!

I've had mine over three years with zero issues! Great running truck that is smooth, quite and powerful! Normally, when you read a negative post about the Eco, it's from someone who " heard" about problems, or who's friends....friends, second cousin, had a problem !

I am in no way a "brand" supporter! Going from a GMC, to a Toyota, to the Ford.........but I really do like this truck with my TT !

Good luck with your search!

I have a '13 and it hasn't had a single issue in 32k miles (10k towing).

Per unit sold, the engine has been a very solid one. If you do a search for used ones, you will turn up lots of them with over 100k miles and I've seen a few each time I look with over 200k.