I haven't posted in a while but thought maybe I should add my experience with major parts replacements. I got my 17 AG SCREW Jan 19. Build date was Nov 17. I liked just about everything about it, except to be honest the engine wasn't impressive in those first few days. It always felt like it was jerky and hesitated like it was misfiring or not getting fuel. I took it to the dealer on Day 6 and asked them to read the codes to see if there was anything there. They only found one, saying an oil pressure sensor was stuck in the open position. They weren't familiar with the code and asked to keep it over night while they checked with Ford. Sounded like no big deal to me, replace the sensor and I'm back on the road.
On Day 7 they said they hadn't heard back yet which was very unusual, normally they have an answer back in an hour.
Day 8 the reason they hadn't heard was it had been escalated to Ford Performance and they said it was very interesting because that particular code comes from a part that isn't supposed to be in a Raptor engine. The dealer had a one hour call with FP and the result was Ford wanted to air ship a whole new engine so they could have the old one back and tear it down. It was already on the way.
Fast forward 7 days and they had done the replacement. They kept it one more day to test drive it multiple times, let it cool, check for leaks etc. Then I got to take it home.
The dealer and Ford were amazing. The new engine is very different, very smooth. I did have a problem a few days later with a puddle of engine coolant on my driveway so I took it back, at lunch hour, without an appointment. I must be on their gold star service list because it was on a hoist in under 5 minutes. A coolant hose going into the transmission was leaking so they replaced the clamp. They think the hose might have stretched too much during the replacement so they have ordered a new one to be safe. Strangely when they were looking for the leak they noticed the oil pan had a few drops on it as well and ordered one of those too. I remember back in September when everyone was guessing about the Raptor delivery delays one of the first theories was they had to replace all the oil pan gaskets. Maybe I got a replacement crate engine that hadn't had the mod?
Neither of those parts are in but nothing is leaking so it's fine to drive. Should only be a few more days. I'm scheduled for the Raptor Assault course April 10 so as long as I have it 100% by then I'm happy. I know they use their own Raptors but I want to take mine out to the desert the next day to practice what they teach me and don't want to take a chance on driving it that hard with a couple of dodgy parts.
All in all it was a frustrating experience but Ford has handled it very well. Oh one more thing - when my parts come in I asked if they can turn off the fake engine sounds, the drone drives me crazy. They said sure. I know I'm in a minority but I like the natural engine sound. For me engine performance isn't measured in decibels.