Fords are built different

[meep]

Yeah, the first time I opened the hood when I was buying my Focus was a bit of a shock... Not too pretty! But that was 12+ years ago and it all still works! No crumbly wires or made with rodent attractant insulation, all the black plastic seems to not get brittle, no plastic cracking coolant junctions... No head gasket problems or timing chain issues. Its not pretty but it seems to work well. (knock on wood)

I think that’s where I’ve settled too. The first time I pulled the engine cover off mine to do some work I noted that the wiring was not as neatly or thoroughly dressed as on other makes, but it was well-secured from vibration and to its credit hasn’t been a problem. Securing it from vibrations is huge for longevity.

The worst wiring looms I’ve encountered was a 97 Nissan pathfinder I owned. Yet the one that was damaged through normal use vibration was a Chrysler. Yet a Jeep from the same generation, with the same engine and control modules, had one of the best run and protected wiring harnesses I’ve seen. Dodge seemed to do well also.

That said, even Lexus hides some mess under their engine beauty covers. It’s kinda funny. I’ve been spoiled by a few vehicles in my past that did wiring very well. And were simpler, that’s part of it.

 

[doublebase]

I think manufacturers are very cyclical.

I worked in a fleet from 2000-2010ish, only Ford, GM and Chrysler. Ford was the best in that timeframe. We’d buy everything from the manufacturer…compacts, midsize, SUV, and trucks. The only “major” issues we had from Ford (at that time) was the Windstar mini-vans…Intake manifold leaks. Not too bad honestly. Also on the 4.6 crown Vic’s some check engine lights because of the delta pressure differential sensor - they’d fill up with condensation from the exhaust, easy fix. Rear struts in the Taurus’s. But not a lot of tranny issues, not a lot of check engine lights or engine failures. Very minimal AC issues or steering racks. For those reasons I loved Fords. Weren’t the best driving vehicles in our fleet…acceleration wasn’t great, suspension felt kind of lifeless in a lot of them. And driving F-250’s back then was like wrestling a crocodile (moving left and right, trying to keep it centered).

GM’s (in the time frame) were probably the worst is terms of little things nickel and diming us. Intake gaskets, steering racks, PS pumps, check engines light…misfires, crank sensors, evap. Front struts, rear struts, exhaust. Over and over again (except with their trucks and big SUV’s - those things were bullet proof). And we didn’t experience a lot of tranny failures.

Chrysler (at that time) had a lot of transmission issues. I swear I was putting a tranny in something every week. A lot of AC system issues. Some engine stuff…intakes, fuel rails, check engine lights…misfires, O2 sensors, EVAP. But in my opinion they looked nice and they drove nice.

But now you can take all of that and flip it on its head^^^. And in a few years flip it again. Recently I saw a 50k dollar Ford Edge come in and I opened the hood and the writing on the engine cover was upside down! What! I forget what fancy title it held…maybe EcoBoost…but it was upside down. And the cover was installed correctly. Not a game changer, but come on. And the inside door step had this pretty written in red (if I remember) logo of something…can’t remember, maybe Ford Edge something. Well, the passenger side had nothing. No writing. Here we have a 50,000 dollar special edition Ford Edge with leather and red highlights inside…and they forget to install the fancy plastic foot piece on the passenger side. Either that or they didn’t the fancy plastic to be on the passenger side at all?

 

[2002 Maxima SE]

I love my 2000 Ford Taurus wagon with the Duratec V6. Its been highly reliable at 25 years old (manufactured in Aug 1999), comfortable for long distance travel and simple in its ergonomics and engineering.

I'm in a 2023 Ford Edge for a trip. What I don't like is the aforementioned tablet for HVAC and the lane change mitigation that shakes the steering rack. My 2023 Nissan Frontier will buzz the steering wheel, which is fine, but this feels like a wheel is coming loose in the Edge.

 

[Number_35]

Recently I saw a 50k dollar Ford Edge come in and I opened the hood and the writing on the engine cover was upside down! What! I forget what fancy title it held…maybe EcoBoost…but it was upside down. And the cover was installed correctly. Not a game changer, but come on. And the inside door step had this pretty written in red (if I remember) logo of something…can’t remember, maybe Ford Edge something. Well, the passenger side had nothing. No writing. Here we have a 50,000 dollar special edition Ford Edge with leather and red highlights inside…and they forget to install the fancy plastic foot piece on the passenger side. Either that or they didn’t the fancy plastic to be on the passenger side at all?

In 1980 I drove a new leased Ford truck for my summer job as a herbicide applicator.

Besides a number of mechanical problems over three months, the D in FORD on the front of the hood had been installed upside-down.

 

[tig1]

Perhaps this is a troll. The engine may be from an early 2000 as it doesn't have VVT. If so Ford didn't have electric PS at that time.

The Focus came out with electric power steering in 2012.

 

[tig1]

My 2017 Ford Fusion has 167 K. The only mechanical issue I have had was a front strut bearing problem at 150K.

 

[M1Accord]

My 2020 Corolla with over 250,000 miles is doing quite well.

At this rate, you’ll have 500k miles by 2030.

You should create a thread with pics on maintenances, repairs, and driving routine for folks to admire and learn from.

 

[SevenBizzos]

A pretty entertaining thread here. Certainly a YMMV sort of thing.
My Mustang was in one time in 2003 for a rear tail shaft seal leak.
The Edge has been in one time for the automatic liftgate not working properly.
That's it.
And the Sonata was back one time in 2010 for the sunroof not operating properly and I put $1500 into it at 150k on various issues. I'm not going to be bashing Hyundai for those. LOL.