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2017 Ford Escape Ecoboost Vague OBD Code

kmakar

kmakar

Janitor
My wife's 2017 Ford Escape SE Ecoboost with 66k on it comes up with a code P2601, so I try and research the issue and find "Coolant Pump 'A' Control Circuit Range/Performance".

Coolant Pump? Isn't that the same as a water pump? I'm guessing not. What ever happened to simplicity in the design of a car so the average guy could diagnose it and fix it easier.

So I call Ford this morning and ask the service guy and he says to me, "Oh, that's one of those codes that's vague", and I respond, "No, really?". So I ask how long it'll take to diagnose and fix and he said he didn't know until they hooked it up to a computer.

He says I'll need to bring it in for service, so we'll drop it off this afternoon. He says to me, "Don't know what the problem is yet, but it'll likely be a few hours between diagnosis and fixing, so it'll cost a few hundred or more", to which I respond, "Yeah, I bought the platinum service plan which covers bumper to bumper for 5 years / 100k miles, so I ain't paying a thing", and he responds, "Well, that's up to the dealer" and I respond, "Yeah, it's not a consumable part like tires, battery, brakes, or wiper blades, so it's covered under the service plan".

I'm waiting to see if they come up some excuse why they won't cover it, and if they do, it'll be a bad day for them I can promise. I spent $2,700 on that plan, so they better honor it.
 
We bought a new Jeep Grand Cherokee Altitude (all black) in 2019 and they tried their best to sell me an extended warranty plan. I said "no thank you". I'll buy one later, and the guy said to just let him know before 36 months is up (which will be next summer). We only have a bit over 3,000 miles on it so I ought to be able to buy something resaonable "hopefully". This Jeep has the dreaded start/stop battery which is never charged up (what a joke!), but that's the only problem I've had with it. I hate the computer crap in cars these days...my 2015 MINI JCW (very fast little beast) is one of the very few 2015's imported with 6 speed manual transmission and I love it, but no oil dipstick...I can only tell oil level electronically! No CD player either....so I loaded up my old favorites onto a USB stick and let it play away! I'm getting old! :)
 
I had the option for EcoBoosts in my 2018 Fusions, I said no thank you and both have the 2.5L engines. Like the 2013, when we bought it we could have purchased one with a 1.6L. Again I said no, it too has a 2.5L. I know the people who bought the 1.6L, it had to have an engine replacement, recall. They have since sold it.
 
We just dropped it at the Ford dealer. We'll see what they come up with.

Lisa liked the Escape, so I bought it for her (after we just gave the Mazda CX5 to our youngest). Lisa wishes we would have gotten another Mazda CX5, but I had gotten a great deal on the first one that I knew they wouldn't do that again.

I argued for an hour (they had a sales ad) and finally got a brand new one off the lot fully loaded CX5 out the door for $22,010.

I'm sure it'll be an easy fix for Ford, and I'm sure as hell not paying for it.
 
So Ford called me a little while ago.

Seems the code is coming from a lack of coolant.... #2 cylinder is sucking in the coolant and he said it's done damage to #2 cylinder, so he said since this was a first gen engine that has had issues, they are putting a new second gen engine in to the tune of $8,100.

He couldn't tell me if it was a blown head gasket or not, but they scoped the engine (all 4 cylinders) and that's what they found.

Not going to cost me a penny, and they told me to come down and get my rental (free of charge), but I declined (for now since I have other vehicles). He said it'll take them 10 days to get it done because Ford engineering guys want to see it first.
 
Just picked Lisa's Escape back up after they installed a new engine. Lisa's happy to have her car back.

Ford is extending the bumper to bumper warranty (which expires in June this year) another 2 years and unlimited miles beyond the extended warranty we purchased that ultimately paid for this new engine.
 
You would usually get a misfire code from that issue due to water in the cylinder. The blocks crack in the cylinder wall causing it. Some get a shortblock, some a longblock depending on model year and engine. Its a lot more common problem that I'd like to see, even though as a service advisor, I make money on it.

I've been in the service end of the dealership business for almost 40 years, the last 3 at Ford, and as a company, they support us the least of any manufacturer I've worked for, including 25 years at Cadillac and 11 years at Lexus. I've owned a bunch of Fords over the years, including three right now, though.
Bottom line, if you want a trouble free car, buy a Toyota or Lexus, whichever you budget allows. I know a lot of the other Asian cars are good, but consistently Toyota out performs the others. Buy it, drive it, MAINTAIN IT and worry about other stuff.

I've only had two new cars in my life, so I end up with the right car at a the right price at the time I need one, regardless of make, and I like Mustangs, so have had five of them. I also over maintain my cars, and usually get good service from them as a result.
 
SSuperDave said:
You would usually get a misfire code from that issue due to water in the cylinder. The blocks crack in the cylinder wall causing it. Some get a shortblock, some a longblock depending on model year and engine. Its a lot more common problem that I'd like to see, even though as a service advisor, I make money on it.

I've been in the service end of the dealership business for almost 40 years, the last 3 at Ford, and as a company, they support us the least of any manufacturer I've worked for, including 25 years at Cadillac and 11 years at Lexus. I've owned a bunch of Fords over the years, including three right now, though.
Bottom line, if you want a trouble free car, buy a Toyota or Lexus, whichever you budget allows. I know a lot of the other Asian cars are good, but consistently Toyota out performs the others. Buy it, drive it, MAINTAIN IT and worry about other stuff.

I've only had two new cars in my life, so I end up with the right car at a the right price at the time I need one, regardless of make, and I like Mustangs, so have had five of them. I also over maintain my cars, and usually get good service from them as a result.
Click to expand...

I asked the service manager and he couldn't tell me the exact cause, just that it was a design flaw in the first gen 1.5. There were 2 other 1.5 ecoboosts getting new blocks as well at the same time Lisa's was. Lisa's got a short block.

I have all Fords now (daily drivers) and they've been good to me. I do 99% of the work myself (I have OCD issues so I stay on top of stuff), except when I come up with a vague code with no definitive fix, so I call Don first to see if it's something he's encountered, and when I told him the code he told me to bring it in, so I did. They scoped the cylinders and found it leaking in #2, so that was all they needed. Saved me a bunch of extra work, so the $2,700 I spent on and extended bumper to bumper 4.5 years ago paid itself back. I'm good with it.
 
I have always been in favor of a judiciously purchased extended warranty. Don't buy them at time of sale, you may not like the car and get rid of it, but buy it before the warranty expires, your options are greater and its cheaper. The manufacturers offerings are best, if not a bit more pricey, and can be used at any dealer of that marque if you relocate or like another dealer. DO NOR EVER buy any one you see advertised on TV! In almost 40 years of this, I've worked with a ton of warranties, some better than others, but for the first time, we've decided to no longer accept Car Shield or Auto Shield (same company) They are more trouble than they are worth. I had them take 1 days, 9 phone calls totalling 6 hours, and an adjuster , just to cover a water pump. Its not worth the hassle. Sad thing is we get several a week with these and have to turn them away. Its usually lower income people with older cars that pay monthly for this warranty, they are predatory in my mind.
 
I bought a Ford ESP for the Excursion years ago and got my money out of it. I did not purchase ESPs for the Fusions, they have a Powertrain 60K warranty as base warranty. I agree, manufacture ESPs are the only way to go.
 
This video explains the design flaw of the ecoboost engines which was corrected in 2020. Lisa's Escape got a new engine (longblock) and it's been fine since, but we'll never really know.

I've already started looking for an older car for her that I can rebuild for when the Escape shits the bed.

 
kmakar said:
This video explains the design flaw of the ecoboost engines which was corrected in 2020. Lisa's Escape got a new engine (longblock) and it's been fine since, but we'll never really know.

I've already started looking for an older car for her that I can rebuild for when the Escape shits the bed.

Click to expand...
I love watching this guys You-Tube videos.

I am so glad when I got my Fusions I opted out of the Eco Boost engines, all of them seem to be nightmares. It is not just the smaller engines gulping coolant, the V-6 and V-8s have timing phaser issues and internal water pump problems.
 
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