Looking at a pristine 2012 F-150 XLT 4x4 with 42k miles. I've always been a V-8 guy (currently have a Shelby and a Corvette), but I am intrigued with the Ecoboost engine. I like the power and smoothness, but have been told by a serious Ford guy who owns his own shop that there has been issues with the turbos burning out around 80k miles. I intend to get the extended warranty, but I know how reliable the Ford V-8 engines are, and am wondering if I should be concerned...

 

Hi Shelby GTC and welcome to the forum. I moved your thread from the 2015+ forum to the 2009-2014 forum. Since the truck you are considering is a 2012.

I'm sure if turbos were "burning out" at 80k miles, the EcoBoost would not still be in production. You should get some good advice from the guys here with early first generation EBs.

 

I had the same concerns 8 months ago........ Bought a 2013 ECO with 75K miles..... I was wondering about the turbo life... several comments here about the LACK OF POSTS and DATA to confirm turbo failures......... I really don't see ANY posts of failures... Very Minimal problem......... I have 85K now .......... don't burn a drop of oil.

 

There are no big failures with either the 2.7 or 3.5 engines. Every truck/engine has the potential to have a problem, but there are no widespread turbo issues.

Your guy was wrong on this one.

 

I have a job #1 2011 Ecoboost with 94K miles and nary an issue. No oil usage, no noises, no leaks and no drama. Then again, I did buy the truck with only 2 miles on the odo.
Turbo failure should be the last think on your mind.

Your first concern should be to find the maintenance history. If not available then don't sweat it as the truck has low miles anyway.

Change the oil every 5000 miles even though the owner's guide states that you can follow the OLM, Oil Life Monitor which typically will allow for a 10K mile dump cycle. Be sure to use the 5w-30 oil and we won't get into brands as that's not an issue.

The biggest issue with early Eco's is condensation build up in the intercooler. Moisture gets sucked into the intake and can foul that sensor which gives you a sensation of a misfire or going into limp mode. Either way when pulling or hauling a load, there's no joy in that. The best and most fool proof fix to mitigate condensation build up is to drill a 1/16th weep hole in the lower driver's side of the intercooler. When you hammer the throttle, it will blow that moisture out instead of sucking it in. THERE ARE NO ADVERSE AFFECTS IN DOING THIS, just don't exceed 1/16th in size. Perhaps yours has been done, check it out first. If so, there will be an oily stain on the air dam or in the vicinity of the hole.

The next biggest issue is to change plugs and BOOTS between 50,000 and 60,000 miles or she very well may experience a misfiring event under load.

These are not a big and will mitigate all future misfiring type events. If they've been changed already then that's a score. Mine were changed at 61K miles because I hammered the throttle and teh dash lit up like Tokyo and the truck started stumbling climbing a mountain. You live and learn then you're happy.

So in summary, and I know that this is going to make the V-8 guys mad, sorry guys, but, the early and current 5.0L V-8's have and are suffering from big issues. Oil consumption, out of round cylinders, coating coming off newer engines, etc.

Hope this helps. There are other perspectives on what I've stated and these should all be considered as well.

 

I'm a V8 guy myself, hence why I wanted the 6.2L. But at work we have a 2013 F-150 Super Crew 4x4 3.5L EcoBoost. it's got 85k miles on it now, mostly one salesman driving it since 18k.

We've done plugs at 66k miles due to a misfire
Brakes and tires once
Most recently 84K the lead frame in the transmission had to be replaced due to known issues, Ford has covered that all under warranty and re-programmed the transmission.

Otherwise it has just had fluid changes as needed, oil changes every 5-6k miles. She runs like a top!

Now it doesn't get great MPG, it's only about 1mpg better than my 6.2 in the same conditions, but that doesn't really matter for us.

 

I am at 120k miles and I have one turbo making noise at start up so it's life may be short. It still runs like a beast without issue. I wouldn't worry about turbo issues.

 

I heard timing chain tensioner issues were common???

 

Why is it that guys come here, go through the process of signing up, ask a question and then never return?

Rhetorical question, I know. But I just don’t get it. At least there are others who will see this thread and find it useful.

 

No kidding, and its gotten worse with time.

 

I joined a Subaru forum a couple of years ago to aid in my research. I think I left the forum with less than 20 posts and never went back. I found myself unimpressed with the product and the people who are Subaru purists. BTW, Subaru purists pretty much talk smack about ecoboost trucks and yet the Ford ecoboost is wildly more reliable than Subaru's turbo engines and produced in far larger numbers than all Subaru's combined.

And for the record, my ecoboost truck has been a gem and if she blows tomorrow, I've enjoyed eight blissful years and accumulated 94,000 trouble free miles.

 

169,000 miles on my 2011. No issues other than blend door actuators. Love it!! Love the power. Pulls like a mule.



It'll stay around for quite awhile longer. It got new shoes yesterday.