2.3EB Prospective Purchase Questions

[ZX4ST]

Hello everyone as the title suggests I'm looking at buying a 2.3 car. Specifically a 15' vert premium with the 6r80.
I've heard good and bad about the 2.3 and really just want to get an objective opinion overall.

Good:
- Only has 47k miles
- One owner, older guy
- Immaculate interior/exterior
- Amazing price (in house, I work at the Dealership) Book is 19k and they will sell it to me for 14
- the Dealer offers a purchase inclusive "lifetime" warranty on powertrain (8yrs-300K)

Bad:
- Some of my techs say the engine is absolute garbage, others simply recommend that you be mindful of LSPI (as you should with any small displacement 4pot)
- it is a convertible (soft top is in great condition, It has rained the last three days I've taken it home with no leaks)
- Sacrilege however I can't justify a 5.0 I drive 120+ miles daily.
- This has the Valencia built motor and I've heard conflicting opinions regarding that


The main draw for me is low miles, not abused, and I could get out from under my current loan, negative equity included for the price of purchasing one at retail thru another dealer.

Who here has had good and bad experiences?

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[ModernSVO]

My eb hhp has been rock solid. but is only at 9500 miles. The truck 2.3 turbo has 220 thousand miles on it. Other thn basic normal care. it's been solid.

 

[ORRadtech]

'18 2.3 premium convertible here. My head gasket went between 3 & 4 at around 83k miles. It's a common EB issue. If you don't catch it soon enough it will take out the catalytic converter too. It was fixed under warranty and has been ok since. It's sitting at 107k ish now.
15 thru 17s were known for some other things as well. The AC evaporator leaking and the back-up camera are a couple that come to mind. The camera is a recall but the evaporator is not and the dash has to come out to fix that.

 

[Paris MkVI]

Since it is a 2015, it may show the "teething" issues of the new design (like the camera harness or AC evap). Mine had 51k on her when I got her, and still had a few "first year/new model" things pop up. But mostly, been quite reliable.

My personal rule of thumb on the the Ecoboost engines is, all other things being equal, I would consider the 2.0L and 2.3L engines, but wouldn't touch the smaller ones. My bride has driven a couple of Escapes with the 2.0L, and they've done fine.

We make sure we're faithful about the engine maintenance. You just can't mess around with these pressurized power plants.

 

[ZX4ST]

I agree I work in service and have had my fair share of 2L's with intrusion come in. I actually owned an escape that received a long block at round 70k so that definitely is worrisome.

 

[ZX4ST]

One of my techs said the same thing lol, not 100% on the 2.3 but I do know that the 2.0 has been updated and we haven't seen a comeback from a new engine installed. I'd say the 2.3 and the intrusion issues (outside of it being a vert) is the biggest turn off. While I do have access to a complete Ford shop, and experience working on this platform of engines prior (the 2.5) I'm not exactly thrilled at the thought of pulling the head. Then again the price is a major plus so I'm sort stuck on the fence at this point.

 

[DRU842]

If the car is unmodified and well maintained I think you'll be OK. My July 2017 manual build has been custom tuned & parts modded at about 6 months. Now at 135,000km I'm upgrading to a Monotune head-gasket for peace of mind & a head check/clean by my tuner. She's a keeper!

 

[MrMike]

If the evaporator is original, there's a chance you will have A/C issues.

Biggest concern is coolant intrusion on 2.3s earlier than 2020. It's not a 100% chance as other's have posted. The engine warranty would make me feel better.

If you are comfortable with those two concerns, then go for it.

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