Farewell to K2272

[Durthol]

I'm sad to say I'm no longer a Bullitt owner as of yesterday. A transmission failure in August of last year led to a whole bunch of problems, and months in service at the dealership, Ford finally offered me enough on a buyback to say goodbye.

I'll miss it tremendously, but even if they eventually fixed it, I'm not sure I could ever trust that Gertrag not to blow up again - so I replaced it with a Mach 1, as the Tremec seems much more bullet-proof (no pun intended. mostly). I've gone from that beautiful, classy, understated Bullitt to something with a much more in-your-face look, but I'll manage.

Wishing you all the best on your Bulliltts - may your Gertrags never fail you!

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[ScottyRyan2018]

Hopefully you made out OK and in the end nice upgrade!

 

[sicilianjg]

I'm sad to say I'm no longer a Bullitt owner as of yesterday. A transmission failure in August of last year led to a whole bunch of problems, and months in service at the dealership, Ford finally offered me enough on a buyback to say goodbye.

I'll miss it tremendously, but even if they eventually fixed it, I'm not sure I could ever trust that Gertrag not to blow up again - so I replaced it with a Mach 1, as the Tremec seems much more bullet-proof (no pun intended. mostly). I've gone from that beautiful, classy, understated Bullitt to something with a much more in-your-face look, but I'll manage.

Wishing you all the best on your Bulliltts - may your Gertrags never fail you!

Sorry to hear the news Alan I have a question how many miles did you have on the Bullitt when started having transmission problems?.................................Joe

 

[Durthol]

Sorry to hear the news Alan I have a question how many miles did you have on the Bullitt when started having transmission problems?.................................Joe

I had just over 18,000 on it when the transmission gave out. I suspect that's earlier than most folks' units fail, but as I'd planned on handing this down to my son in 10 years' time, I just couldn't trust it anymore.

 

[Durthol]

Hopefully you made out OK and in the end nice upgrade!

Yeah, Ford surprised me actually. The rep I worked with was super-helpful and worked hard to advocate for my case. I didn't get all that I'd hoped for, but I got more than I expected.

 

[ScottyRyan2018]

Yeah, Ford surprised me actually. The rep I worked with was super-helpful and worked hard to advocate for my case. I didn't get all that I'd hoped for, but I got more than I expected.

I "lemoned" a higher-end SUV (name withheld due to NDA) that had substantial brake issues. I went through a lawyer and took a substantial cash settlement from the manufacturer. It worked out well and thankfully I had other means of transportation during the process.

 

[MartyM]

Yeah, Ford surprised me actually. The rep I worked with was super-helpful and worked hard to advocate for my case. I didn't get all that I'd hoped for, but I got more than I expected.

The Ford rep may have been trying to help. The big question is were mechanics qualified to actually fix the transmission and other issues?

My 2020 bullet was purchased from a Canadian dealer and came with the speedometer in kilometers per hour rather than miles per hour I took it to my local Ford dealer expecting they would be able to just make an electronic change. After waiting an hour, I asked the service representative at the counter if my car was almost ready. He said they were waiting a call back from the Ford Headquarters to see how to make the change. After 3 hours I finally said I want my car back. I was totally disenchanted when getting in my car I noticed that my gas tank was down one quarter and when turning on the car, the radio was playing a Spanish music station. It seems likely to me that the car was left running the whole time and Mr. Master Mechanic was listening to my radio to keep himself occupied. When this was all mentioned to the service manager he called the mechanic over who denied everything. Not to mention, the mechanic was wearing filthy clothes and had a smudge of grease on his nose and totally reminded me of the character played by Michael J Pollard the hillbilly mechanic Bonnie and Clyde picked up as a sidekick in the 1967 movie.

Since this incidence Bullitt goes to local shop I'd used for 40 years. The owner is the same and takes pride in his operation. The mechanics are clean, efficient and skilled. In addition they've always been there in an emergency and routine maintenance is scheduled in 1-2 days. OEM parts are readily available and I've never felt ripped off.

 

[Schwerin]

Weird that a transmission failure caused that much issue. Sounds like poor tech work. Sorry to see you go.

What went wrong with the tranny? From what I've seen the 2019+ are just as strong as the Mach1/GT350 tranny now that the shift forks are fixed. People are spending 700-800HP through them no problem.

 

[ScottyRyan2018]

The Ford rep may have been trying to help. The big question is were mechanics qualified to actually fix the transmission and other issues?

My 2020 bullet was purchased from a Canadian dealer and came with the speedometer in kilometers per hour rather than miles per hour I took it to my local Ford dealer expecting they would be able to just make an electronic change. After waiting an hour, I asked the service representative at the counter if my car was almost ready. He said they were waiting a call back from the Ford Headquarters to see how to make the change. After 3 hours I finally said I want my car back. I was totally disenchanted when getting in my car I noticed that my gas tank was down one quarter and when turning on the car, the radio was playing a Spanish music station. It seems likely to me that the car was left running the whole time and Mr. Master Mechanic was listening to my radio to keep himself occupied. When this was all mentioned to the service manager he called the mechanic over who denied everything. Not to mention, the mechanic was wearing filthy clothes and had a smudge of grease on his nose and totally reminded me of the character played by Michael J Pollard the hillbilly mechanic Bonnie and Clyde picked up as a sidekick in the 1967 movie.

Since this incidence Bullitt goes to local shop I'd used for 40 years. The owner is the same and takes pride in his operation. The mechanics are clean, efficient and skilled. In addition they've always been there in an emergency and routine maintenance is scheduled in 1-2 days. OEM parts are readily available and I've never felt ripped off.

Reminds me of way back in 1987 I bought a new GT. I stopped by the dealership to witness the kid who did their new vehicle prep taking it out and lighting up the tires down the street. I told him after he might want to not do that just in case the new owner of the car was watching. He new I was best friends with the owner of the dealership and begged me to not tell him. I just smiled and told him not to worry.

 

[IPOGT]

Not sure I understand why a complete new trans wouldn't fix the issue.

 

[Duece McCracken]

Not sure I understand why a complete new trans wouldn't fix the issue.

Exactly my thoughts as well.

 

[sicilianjg]

Weird that a transmission failure caused that much issue. Sounds like poor tech work. Sorry to see you go.

What went wrong with the tranny? From what I've seen the 2019+ are just as strong as the Mach1/GT350 tranny now that the shift forks are fixed. People are spending 700-800HP through them no problem.

Yes, I agree however, if there is a weak spot its that stupid loose shifter that was one of the first things I done and I have no regrets!

 

[NGOT8R]

@Durthol, can you elaborate on the transmission issues? How was the car driven and what failed?

 

[Durthol]

Okay, guys, here's the whole story:

Transmission failed when I was getting on the freeway - 2nd to 3rd shift under moderate acceleration (probably around 50-55 mph, if I recall). The dealership replaced it and did a visual inspection on the clutch, and thought it was fine. Gave it back to me, but it most definitely was not fine. Took it back and they ended up replacing the clutch and the slave cylinder - when I got the Bullitt back after that, I thought the car was fine. This was Aug/Sep of 2021.

Fast-forward to January and I bring the Bullitt in for its routine oil change - with my long-time mechanic, not the dealer. They find two metal bits attached to the magnetic end of my drain plug. I take the bits and the car in to the dealer and they were teeth from the crankshaft sensor. We aren't certain that the transmission failure and crankshaft sensor failure were related, but the mechanic thought they could be (for which I am grateful, as that means the Lemon Law was triggered by the August failure and not the January one).

Initially, they replaced the crankshaft sensor, crankshaft, and other timing components. The mechanic didn't like the way the crankshaft was fitting into the block, so he got Ford to replace the short block as well. I got the car back and it started throwing a check engine light almost right away; it was misfiring. They took the car back and ended up replacing the cam phaser. Got it back and got 300 miles before it started throwing codes and misfiring again. Took it in again and this time they finally got a Ford engineer on the case. He thought replacing the wiring harness would solve this issue, so they did that... and it still had the same set of problems. Finally, they authorized an entirely new crate motor, but by that point, I'd accepted the buyback offer and moved on. I didn't think I could ever trust the car again.

As for the reliability of the transmission, there's a reason Ford went with the Tremec for the Mach 1, and I'm glad they did. I may not love the looks of the Mach 1 in comparison with my (dearly departed) Bullitt, but at least I know the tranny is rock-solid in comparison to that Getrag. It will be interesting to see how the class-action lawsuit against Ford proceeds in regards to it.

In the meantime, while I'll miss my Bullitt, I'm grateful for a great repurchase coordinator who helped ensure I was treated fairly. And I'll have fun in the Mach 1, even if it doesn't look quite as nice.

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