I am considering a 2012 platinum ecoboost with 171,000 on the clock. It is a clean 1 owner truck with complete records of all service completed at the dealership. The owner just let the dealer perform the recommended service intervals. It is a salesman's work rig with mostly highway miles(hahaha obviously). I know that the ecoboost hasn't been around that long and am wondering what everyones thoughts are?
1. longevity?
2. durability?
3. things to look out for on a truck with this many miles?
4. common problems with the ecoboost?
5. is this too many miles for this engine?

P.S. the seller stated that someone else looked at the truck and told him that it may need timing chains. He told me if I wanted to take it, get it checked out I could. If it was a problem then he would cover the cost of repair.
6. what model years is this a problem, how big is the repair, how do I check for it?

thanks in advance guys.
Jay

 

Timing chain, hydraulic actuators, etc......I would swag anywhere from $2-3k....and then you still have an engine that is not exactly new...the turbos are known for carbon buildup and yes, they are expensive to service and if needed replace...IMHO...look for something else with a normally aspirated engine (no turbo, etc.)

 

The 3.5 is a high performance engine in my opinion. It rewards you with great power, towing and torque not found from most engines in this class. I would consider one if I knew the oil was changed frequently as in less than every 5K. Do a cold start after it has sat for 24+ hours to see if the there is rattle. If so I would walk. If you get past this step, once you get to this mileage the water pump will soon leak if it has not yet been replaced. The turbo's have quick connect fittings that begin to leak coolant when they get brittle. Generally this repair is made with the turbos off. It is also common to see the rear most exhaust manifold stud break off and the manifold warp.

I have one with 170K its been great, it runs amazing but I am hitting that point where I am replacing turbo fittings, water pumps, and exhaust manifolds. No timing chain issues here. I will try to repair and run for much longer. Its fun to drive!

 

Well, let me clarify...No, not just no but "H" NO! Here's why...the EB's are an incredible feat of engineering!!!!! But, it is 100% reliant upon the ECM and other e-controls to ensure the engine doesn't come apart...including over/under boost....this is an engine that runs at up to 16 psi....double what any aftermarket will do...… great for performance bad when it fails...and they do...including pistons/rods through the block. Turbo's carbon build up inside well known...Fords answer....dissassemble and clean... by hand....ok... so there is another $1500 each … and Ford even under warranty considers this "routine maintenance".... and very simply...
If driven around town or very gently, there is every likelihood you are going to have internal wastegate issue from carbon which makes the valve stick closed..... again, pull the turbos for a teardown and cleaning

The turbo's beet the crap out of the oil, just because (for marketing purposes) Ford and others say that oil change intervals are great at up to 10k miles...it's not, and I doubt you could find any mechanic that would say "it's fine".....Every test that I have ever seen shows the oil (additive specific) begins breaking down at about 3500 miles...… how long does it really last.... not even the e-sensors know and are not designed to evaluate this specific information. Relying on "oil analysis" is just about as much "card reader" science as anything else especially considering most of these "labs" are not licensed as such (typically regular businesses so to speak), are absent of ISO industry certification for their particular work..spot checks by 3rd parties on just personnel training leaves little to be desired and consistency, one of the more popular/well known labs was sent 2 separate oil samples extracted from the same oil draw, sent to them from 2 different addresses about 2 months apart....the readings should have been within 2%.... you would have though the samples were from 2 different vehicles with substantially different mileage.

In short...incredible engineered engine that is extremely complex, whose complexity places in jeopardy the reliability of the engine as the older it gets, that routine maintenance IS going to be 2-3X's that of say the 5.0 (if you look and price out ALL routine maintenance items on both engines)...and the repairs, which result because of ECM related system failures...it going and will be mush more expensive. than a NA engine

 

The Ecoboost is a great engine but I will only use full synthetic and change at 4000 miles. 10000 miles on the oil is crazy considering the heat the turbos produce and also some fuel dilation.