Ecoboost Engine Blown?

[Steeeliskt]

Damn. Sorry this happened. I would definitely keep putting pressure on Ford.

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[GT Pony]

Welp, this puts a pretty sour taste in my mouth from Ford... Shy of throwing 40+lbs of boost at it nothing should make the car blow up like that.

Edit: NM... 2 tunes too many...

I think the OP said earlier that the engine had an oil leak, so I'm still thinking the root cause was low oil which caused a rod bearing to fail and throw a rod or two through the block.

OP ... did Ford give a reason why the failure occurred? Like an oiling problem?

However, if there was a boost controller added to increase boost pressure, how do we know something didn't go hay-wire with that system and cause an over boost situation?

Rods don't blow holes through the sides of an engine block without a major problem causing them to fail.

 

[Mattrix]

Performance Modifications:
JMS BoostMax Module - Adds +5 PSI on 93 octane, up to an additional +44rwhp and +52 ft-lbs
JMS PedalMax Module – Improves Throttle Response and Decreases Turbo Lag
MMR Cold Air Intake w/K&N Filter
Steeda Throttle Body Spacer
Steeda Strut Tower Brace
SCT X4 93 Octane Tune

You have this mod list on one of your videos... you have a tune and a boost max...

I have a tuner with a preloaded SCT tune but was not using them in conjunction at this time or any extended time. I did apply the SCT tune at one point because I was curious if the car shifted any better. I applied it and removed it less than an hour later. I spent more time loading and removing it then I did testing it. It wasn't any better than stock and I realized with it being a base tune I was expecting too much from it and would have to get a good custom tune to make it worth it.

I'm not sure why I left that text in there when I copied it from car shows build sheet, I was just lazy. I've attached the last version of this sheet for reference but I had removed that line after the video was made. I was falsely claiming I was using something I wasn't because I was planning to. I was going to work with MRT to have a tune made around the modules but then I decided to not even bother. I was going to do more mods to remove some not so robust stock components like the blow off valve and intercooler then get a custom tune from Adam. I was going to remove the JMS mods from the equation. The whole point of the JMS mods was to not tune the vehicle.

I've been honest with the dealership about this as well and it is still up to Ford to prove anything I did to the car caused this problem.

 

[Legionofone]

Once tuned, always tuned. They can find it and will find it and void your warranty.

First thing they probably did was download/ship off your ECU.

May wanna talk to Roush as it may not look good on them having one of their cars blowing up.

 

[Mattrix]

I think the OP said earlier that the engine had an oil leak, so I'm still thinking the root cause was low oil which caused a rod bearing to fail and throw a rod or two through the block.

OP ... did Ford give a reason why the failure occurred? Like an oiling problem?

However, if there was a boost controller added to increase boost pressure, how do we know something didn't go hay-wire with that system and cause an over boost situation?

Rods don't blow holes through the sides of an engine block without a major problem causing them to fail.

They have not given any reason. The haven't even sent anyone out to look at it. For now they're going off of what the dealership sent them. The dealership has no idea what exactly is broken because they don't tear them down.

The oil in the car was fine. I had made sure it was topped off after the first leak and then kept checking it. That is how I discovered the 2nd leak. I caught it quick and hadn't lost a noticeable amount of oil.

Is it possible the BoostMax went hay-wire? Yes it is, but is it the cause in this case? That needs to be determined before the warranty can be voided. After talking with people from JMS they have only seen issue when people use the module and then custom tune for crazy boost. I did apply the canned SCT tune that is on my tuner. That was well before I started having issue and it was only applied for a very short time to test. That test resulted in disappointment that the car in automatic mode didn't shift any better. I love the paddle shifters but I always expected the shifts to be faster and crisper than they are in auto.

 

[Mattrix]

Once tuned, always tuned. They can find it and will find it and void your warranty.

First thing they probably did was download/ship off your ECU.

May wanna talk to Roush as it may not look good on them having one of their cars blowing up.

I asked the service manager about that. He said that they found U codes in the log with the date stamp of Saturday the 7th and mileage of 4018. So we believe the print out shows the date it's read because the engine blew on Thursday the 5th and has been in there shop ever since at 4018 miles. He says U codes point to tuning, yet the car wasn't tuned and it's been over 8 weeks since I had applied and removed that tune.

I don't know enough about this, you'll find so many contradicting things on the web about it. I talked to my guy at Roush today and he is going to help me the best he can. He told me a story about a guy with a stage 3 from a couple years ago that modded the hell out of his engine and it blew. This was back when Roush did something to the engines other than add superchargers. Roush denied the guys claim but Ford ended up honoring it. You hear stories about guys with K&N drop in filters being the cause of warranty denial.

In the end we have the Magnusson-Moss act to protect us. If they can prove my mods caused the issue then I have no choice but to accept full blame and responsibility.

 

[Rough Hollow Man]

I was afraid of this BS from Ford. On one hand Ford likes to tout the Modability of the Ecoboost to boost sales, but on the other hand they deny warranty coverage. LAWYER UP DUDE...you'll need to. Sorry but something happened like this to me in the early 1980s and it took me until 1984 to pass the Lemon Law of Louisiana. Satisfaction feels so good. Please fight for your rights here. We are pulling for you and the manufacturers of the mods should weigh in on your behalf also.

 

[Mattrix]

Thank you for the support Rough Hollow Man, I appreciate it. I should know more by the end of the week. Until then I'm going to try not to get to stressed out and let things continue to unfold.

 

[Ehdrian]

Some advice from a guy who ended up getting an engine replacement fully covered outside of warranty... Put all your efforts into drafting up a well written letter to Ford Service and the executives. Be very professional and keep your facts straight. You might not even need a lawyer.

 

[jpilone]

As a professional in the biz, I can tell you that you have a major battle ahead of you. Auto manufacturers will deny coverage in a heartbeat to a modded car. Had you not had any type of device over boosting the engine past what it was from the factory, you prob would have been ok. This is for everyone: Don't ever expect a dealer to hide anything for you. No dealer will be willing to commit warranty fraud just because someone with a modded car who is nice blew up his stuff and can't afford to fix it.

Harsh reality, best of luck to you. Usually the one good thing is if you make enough noise to the right people. You will get what you desire.

 

[Brad]

:eyebulge:

 

[BOOSTED-SVO]

Some advice from a guy who ended up getting an engine replacement fully covered outside of warranty... Put all your efforts into drafting up a well written letter to Ford Service and the executives. Be very professional and keep your facts straight. You might not even need a lawyer.

This^^^

Sent from my SM-G928V using Tapatalk

 

[15RRGT]

When you said in the first post your car "isn't really modded out yet" I was like there goes your warranty..... Then seeing the pix with the oil all over the place I knew you were doomed. Sorry man but you got to pay to play. Anyone who thinks ford should or would chip in a new motor is living in a fantasy world unfortunately.

 

[brandonsmash]

Isn't there a way to determine what exactly caused the failure before denying warranty out of hand? If, for instance, the oil leak caused oil starvation which robbed the bearings of oil that will be apparent in chatter marks and scoring. That would be unrelated to boost.

If the pistons are chowdered and the valves show signs of overpressure or extremely high operating temperature/pressure, that's a different story. Are there bits of piston ring in the oil or something?

I agree that Ford shouldn't have to warranty something that's been really befuckered, but some customer sensibility tends to go a long, long way towards keeping people around (ahem).

 

[GT Pony]

If it was an oil starvation or oiling issue, there should be crap caught in the oil filter if bearings were going. I'm sure Ford will be cutting the oil filter open to inspect for metal/bearing material, etc.

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