PEInc., one of the employees at Interstate Ford said the only truck he would buy is the 5L because it has no Eco Boost. He’s not a fan of them either.
Given the millions of turbos in use with no issues, it sounds like this may be a design issue unique to Ford.
My wife’s Equinox (GM product) has over 100,000 mils with no turbo issues.
My truck with the Duramax has over 250,000 miles with no turbo issues.
But on the other hand,I have had issues with Dealership factory trained technicians as opposed to real mechanics.
200% of blue book value! THAT is total dishonesty/theft or gross incompetence, even if it was hard to diagnose and it took a “while”. In the body shop/insurance arena when the estimate is 50% or greater of blue book, they TOTAL the vehicle. It’s pretty much an industry standard. I would think vehicle maintenance would have similar guidelines.
Sue them?
And I agree, never darken the door of a FoMoCo establishment again, and become their worst nightmare on referrals! Tell anyone who will listen!
I love my Camry!
Gotta say amen to that, Latex. I’m partial to my Toyota vehicles too, though Mazda and Honda are right up there too.
The wife drives a Honda Odyssey, and our experience with that is 
!
I keep an electronic subscription to Consumer Reports. Before a significant purchase I read all they have to say on it. It seems to have served us well.
Agree with that, CR is probably one of the last unbiased information sources left on the planet. Or at least, you know what the biases are. And nobody else collects and publishes reliability information as much/as well as CR does.
Our local library has CR as an online subscription service, if you have a library card you can log in and read them. I like our county library system :).
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Oh my, it’s a mighty issue! It would not surprise me if a big law firm starts a class action suit.
Not sure if this is applicable . . .
fyi . . .
It’s been in and out of the shop but the engine is finally solid. Now it seems the alternator is dead. It is on the side of the road near my home deader than a door knob. Everything is dark. Wonder how much this will cost…
Will get it towed in the morning.
They fixed the oil leak. Then gas vapors could be smelled in the cabin so they changed an exhaust hose, problem solved.
Just can’t get a break from car troubles with this one. But I can’t get another one so I’ll deal with it until I get back on my feet.
Never buy domestic again…not worth the headaches.
What is the old saying, The name goes on before the quality goes in?
@lacajun
I never heard of anyone having so many difficulties w/ auto as you have. Nobody should have to endure what you have been through.
sell it to a teenager who need transportation to/from school and let them pour the $ into it.
i had my episodes with a “fixed or repaired daily” vehicle before, never bought or supported that mfg again.
“fixed or repaired daily” mfg has yet to figure out or resolve flaws.
@boring108
so true!
The Japanese kicked their ass several years ago, time for another round of ass-kicking.
I switched to a FORD several years ago because of issues with GM. My current SUV is about 180,000 miles, and I bought it at about 100,000 miles. I have another that is about two years newer, and besides the hidden problems the dealer did not tell us about, it seems to be fine, but we have not put many miles on it.
I think the problem is with domestic, and some other manufacturers is that they do make some good models, but they also make some lemons, and we don’t know which is which until we drive them for a while.
But in general, if the manufacturers doesn’t support the cars they make, then all the quality can be thrown out the window.
Quality seems to be a thing of the past for many US companies. I watched it become less and less important throughout my career. I expect Found On Road Dead to be no different.
Then again, they sell a lot of them and most seem to be OK.
The most puzzling aspect to me is that a Ford trained technician couldn’t detect an engine failure.
The alternator cost $500 and the labor will be $500+. So another chunk of change out the door. So I will drive the wheels off it then figure out what to do. I may get a subscription to Consumer Reports and read it exhaustively.
Some of my friends have had support problems with Subaru as well as Toyota. That surprised me and they had inordinate problems with the models they bought.
I think it wise to buy the manual and start doing more of my own maintenance again. Sure thought I was beyond this but life can throw some huge curves at us. I forgot to duck more than once. I am such a slow learner. 
I simply don’t expect a lot of reliability from my cars, but on the other hand, I select somewhat older used cars that have earned a good track record for several years. The claims of a manufacturer can’t be verified by the manufacturer alone. The real world is the test. A 5-year old car with a fleet track record of very few recalls, low accident rate, and previous model years lasting well over 10 years, is a winner to me. My current daily-driver doesn’t go between oil changes without a quart or so to top-up, but it’s 14 years old after all and otherwise runs great. Now my second Acura TSX. A luxury Civic, if you will. And a six speed manual. and… 
…I get carried away. My point is; my expectations were low for such an old car. Every day it zips me home is a satisfying end to the trip.
Like the others, I recommend Honda for cars, but if you need a truck, I suggest Chevy. If it’s a SUV you’re looking for, I’m not sure what to recommend because I don’t like them overall. Stay away from the Equinox. Stay away from Hyundai. There are people who like Subaru, but I’m not one of them. I stay away from VW because they tampered with their test results for years (model years in my buying target). I also had a VW Golf long ago and both my wife and I hated it (until its final redemption, by sacrificing its life in a stop-sign collision with a GMC Yukon whose driver was asleep at the wheel).
I forgot to add, I agree that reading CR is probably a very good idea.
I changed the alternator on my previous car and it was only 200 dollars (Canadian). I can’t believe 500 USD for an alternator unless it needed a full day of labor!
Have you considered this as a “bathtub curve” experience?
When you buy a new car you expose yourself to the “infant mortality” phase, whether you expect to or not.
I don’t know why anybody buys new cars.
I got a subscription to CR and am reading. Surprisingly, in 2024 models of trucks, Honda’s Ridgeline is the best mid-size. Best full-sized is Ram 1500.
I’m thinking truck because my house is old enough now to need some work. Hauling is much easier with a truck. But, I can always rent one.
I have considered the bathtub but I don’t have wiggle room right now. With a new engine and a 3-yr, unlimited mileage warranty, it seems prudent to keep it and drive the wheels off. I hoped to get a truck late this year or mid-next year, realistically. I’m going to push that out another year and a half or so. Just not sure because I have so much rebuilding to do. But I am working on it and will get there.
The alternator is $500 and the labor will be $500+. I’m not a fan of the cab forward designs now. It’s too much work just to change the battery on this one. One of my Canadian friends said he paid $500 for an alternator recently. They’ve increased in price, I guess.
I may get the manual and start doing more of my own work. I’m sure the water pump will fail soon. Who knows about the sensors and stuff. Looks like it may keep me busy along with all the other stuff I have to do.
What’s that thing about life happening as we make our plans? So, why plan?
The Ford Escape doesn’t have a good rating.
SparWeb, after scanning CR, your low expectations on reliability are probably valid. I’m surprised ratings are higher across the board. They don’t test every vehicle, though.
Costly to do those tests.
You can round out their reviews with Car & Driver / Road & Track. If you’re hunting for an EV, you can try ARS Technica but I haven’t landed on a site I’m going to trust yet.
Estimate re-sale values with https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/car-valuation
There used to be an annual book called “Lemon Aid” written independently by a journalist that reviewed a lot of vehicles for sale in Canada and the US. You could get the latest copy and see where your current car stood and what to expect from anything else, especially used vehicles. He even scored them on maintenance costs - your current Sisyphean rock. It’s where I first saw numbers showing that cost of ownership between Japanese and German imports were so different, even in “similar” models of car. The author is now retired and I can’t find anything that has sprung up in its place. Still looking.