Cam phaser issue, TSB and dealer responsibility to cover

[FordTechOne]

Sorry to jump into a Raptor forum with only a 2014 Explorer Sport but this and the F150 forums seem to be the only places discussing the cam phaser issue on the 3.5L and 3.5L ** engines. Long story short, I had an intermittent CEL that popped Up last weekend and gave the P0016 code. I took it to the dealership and they are saying that the Explorer is having the cam phaser issues that seem to plague this engine and said that it would either need replacement of the cam phasers at a cost to me of ~$3,800 or possibly the entire engine replaced at a significantly higher cost as per Ford’s recommendation for this problem dependent on the results of their testing. Needless to say, I’m in shock. The engine has 174k in mileage and received regular maintenance within the specified frequencies. I’m trying to sort out wby Ford only covered the engines in the F150 under the TSB and not those other vehicles that share the 3.5L engine and if a broader coverage might occur? Not sure anyone has the answers but it’s worth a try to see if anyone has any insight. I really thought that the engine would last longer without issue but the discussions here and on the other forums have been rather eye opening. Thanks in advance.

The 2014 Explorer Sport 3.5 EcoBoost is a completely different engine. The 3.5 EcoBoost being discussed here is a Generation 2; the engine in your Explorer is a Generation 1 in a transverse application. The cam phaser startup rattle being discussed here does not apply to your engine; they do not share any timing components.

There are no TSBs for timing chain or phaser issues on your engine; those are not common issues. DTC P0016 indicates a crank/cam correlation issue, which can be caused by anything from a faulty sensor to sticking VCT solenoid or VCT unit.

Did the dealer actually diagnose the issue, or are they just guessing throwing out numbers? Where did they document that Ford recommended engine replacement? There are published diagnostics for that DTC, the only situation that would require engine replacement is in the case of low oil pressure due to internal engine damage.

What maintenance schedule did you follow for oil changes?

 

[khildebr]

Thanks for the response and sorry for mixing engine types, which explains why no discussions about it on the Explorer forums. The dealer said that they pulled codes beyond the one I had noted and did additional testing including an oil pump test which indicated the pump was good, so the engine replacement is off the table but am now looking at a $4,000 repair bill. The maintenance was done by the dealer at between 5k and less than 10k intervals and most of the 174k mileage is highway driving with very little city driving and/or stop and go driving.

The dealer offered no explanation as to why the level of repair went from replace the cam phasers, timing chain,etc. to replace the engine beyond that the tech said that if the oil pump test showed low pressure, then the engine should be replaced. So I guess they put their faith in the tech and not anything specific from Ford. While I understand that low oil pressure isn’t a good thing, I would have hoped that they would have looked closer to see if it had resulted in any actual engine damage before going to that step.

 

[gregory295]

Would anyone know of a oil additive that would quiet the cold start rattle so I can get this 18 f150 3.5L sold?? Thank you

 

[Chiefapple]

Would anyone know of a oil additive that would quiet the cold start rattle so I can get this 18 f150 3.5L sold?? Thank you

Why would we help you scam someone....

 

[gregory295]

I will tell them about it as I would any other issue with it but don’t want to scare someone off soon as they arrive to see it. If I had your money, I would get it fixed first. Really sad as this will probably be our last Ford as I have had prolly 15 Ford trucks over the years.

 

[Chiefapple]

I will tell them about it as I would any other issue with it but don’t want to scare someone off soon as they arrive to see it. If I had your money, I would get it fixed first. Really sad as this will probably be our last Ford as I have had prolly 15 Ford trucks over the years.

Well good luck scamming someone.

 

[FordTechOne]

I will tell them about it as I would any other issue with it but don’t want to scare someone off soon as they arrive to see it. If I had your money, I would get it fixed first. Really sad as this will probably be our last Ford as I have had prolly 15 Ford trucks over the years.

Ford released a customer program with extended coverage...you already have over 70k miles on an ‘18?

 

[gregory295]

Yeah unfortunately, just turned 86k

 

[FordTechOne]

Yeah unfortunately, just turned 86k

If you bought it new, often times manufacturers will offer “good will” on a case by case basis for issues like this that are part of a customer satisfaction program.

 

[dirtgod]

my ‘17 with 44k and phaser rattle in for repair today. They will do the software update, follow that with a cold start to document the rattle, and then do the repair. Got a nice explorer to drive in the meantime. I hope they get it right as I want to keep my truck for a long time yet. The dealership owner lives around the corner from me so they are paying a little more attention it seems —fingers crossed.