I have ~186k miles on my '05 Escape XLT with the V6. Yesterday, while doing some hard acceleration to get on the interstate, the revs got a little rough and, once I got to speed, it was sluggish to accelerate. When I exited the interstate a few miles down the road, the engine died as I was slowing down. It started right back up, but I had to hold the gas to keep it at idle. I put the windows down to see what I could her, and there was a noticeable "rattle". When I started moving again, the engine acted as if it were missing a cylinder.

I dropped it off at the Ford dealer last night, and they looked at it this morning. The only thing they said they've looked at so far is the engine oil, and they found metal shavings. Their conclusion, from that alone, is that the engine is shot. At 186k, it wouldn't surprise me, but should they dig any further, or is that truly the "tell all"?

The service advisor is going to check on pricing for different options on an engine replacement. What can I expect for pricing on a replacement engine, whether it's a re-man or a used engine? Is it gonna be worth it to go this route, or should I just bring the truck home and sell it for parts?

Thanks in advance!

 

I hope they dig into it further before just saying its the engine. At least they should run a compression test. My daughters 04 had a similar issue suggish and no power and it was the convertors (it has 3)that had distigrated causing an exhaust restriction hers happened at 95,000 miles.
Good Luck

 

Thanks. I suppose I should ask them to dig further and check for other causes of the sluggishness. The compression test would reveal a dropped/stuck valve, right? And, what if it's just a bad fuel injector? I probably won't put another engine in it, but I can get by with spending less than $500-1k, I'd do that just to get another 6 months from the truck, while I save for another ride.

 

A compression Test and a Cylinder Leakage test will verify how well the indvidual cylinders are pumping and if you have a bad/stuck valve. If I remember correctly there should not be more than 10% difference between the cylinders.

 

Coil(s) could also have gone bad.

 

What could be the source of the metal shavings they say they found? And, why wouldn't the oil filter be able to grab them?

 

Did they tell you where they found them? With 186k they could have come from anywhere. All I am say is rule out the simple stuff before you buy a motor

 

They said they drained some of the engine oil, and that's where they found the shavings. I'm with you; I'd much rather spend $1-200 on diagnoses before replacing an engine. Honestly, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that the dealer's service dept would be so quick to suggest a new motor VS digging a little deeper for a cheaper fix.

 

the bore is alloy! most likily cause of shaveings is a scored bore from carbon build up on the piston crown or from totally worn out bearings. my 07's v6 failed at 90k from scored bores.
loose of power means deeper digging before saying you need a new long block.

 

Thanks. I'll probably just bring it home and try to have someone else look at it. At this point, not sure I trust them to take a deeper look and come back with an honest assessment...

 

Picked up the Escape this evening. To test the coils, injectors, etc, do I pretty much need to have it hooked up to a computer?

 

best if you have a scanner to use in helping out for the electronic part, ie bad injector,senser, ec ec. a compression gauge to check compression due and leak down.
if it's low put a few shots of motor oil in the bore, recheck.if it comes up you have possible bore or ring issues if it dosn't you have a burnt valve. either way there you will have to pull the heads for a better look.
another thing these motors are good for is sludge from the wrong oil causeing pobblem, my 07 would use a qt every 700 miles with normal every day oils, go oil change to oil change with a full syntec.
my personal end was the wife running cheap junk gas that cuased carbon build up and scored the bores, there i was thank full for a good family run dealer and a factory extended warrenty

 

I've been using Mobil 1 synthetic pretty much the entire time I've owned the truck. Not sure if my fuel choices have caused any issues, though. I have noticed my oil level going down between changes, though. Hmmm, probably not worth going real deep into investigation, huh?

So, what can I sell this thing for, in its current state...

 

Not sure what you can get out of it, but a rebuilt engine from Jasper is $3469. If the rest of the car is still in good shape I would think about repairing it. Around here an Escape your model in good running shape will still be worth $6-7500.

 

That engine normally can last well over 200k miles with no problems. The things that seem to go bad are the COPs and the catalytic converters, which die because the COPs fail. The COPs fail because the spark plugs have not been replaced, the gap gets too big, etc. The converters can plug up because unburned fuel from failing spark plugs/COPs is combusted inside the converter, and it melts....
If you have kept up the oil changes, and really used synthetic {do you trust your oil change person to actually use the 'good stuff' or replace with Bob's 20W ...?}, it should not be having problems. If you ever 1)run it hot, or 2) run it low on oil, you can ruin it VERY quickly.
Around here you can find a used 3.0 Duratec for ~$6-700 depending on mileage. Labor would be about 1 day, maybe 1.5 days. With the right tools, and a lift, it could be done in a day, I think.
You can also use a 3.0 from a Taurus/Sable, after changing the front cover and the passenger upper motor mount. They don't seem to command the prices of the Escape Trio, but you'd have to remove and replace the head for access to the mount, and the gasket & head bolts are not free...
Was the oil level up when you checked after the noise? Coolant? A compression test would be the 1st diagnostic after hearing it run, if it will start. Could be something totally unrelated, such as belts/converter bolts/bell housing ... you have to check. If your dealer could see shavings, I'd be surprised. If there were shavings, they could have come from the last time the oil plug was screwed into the pan, if someone cross-threaded the bolt, you'd get shavings... Who do you trust?
tom