1.0 Ecoboost timing belt replacement

[Alex.S]

I’ve just read about a Mk4 owner, timing belts snapped at just over 60,000 miles. Charged them £2.5k to fix it! That’s a new engine I’d imagine. Even without service history you’d think it’d be the manufacturer liable to fix it. It’s them that set the intervals after all. 

[JW1982]

The new 1.0 ECOboost in the Focus MK4 has a timing chain between the crankshaft and the camshafts.

There still is a wetbelt between the crankshaft and the oil pump (and balance shaft on the automatic transmission version) but there is no replacement interval for this wetbelt. 

 

A new engine will cost much more than £2.5k. A brand new bottom end from Ford alone cost approximately £5k.

[unofix]

5 minutes ago, Alex.S said:

Even without service history you’d think it’d be the manufacturer liable to fix it

I surpose that they have to insist that the correct servicing has been carried out, otherwise people would buy a new car, never bother to get it serviced and then claim that the manufaturer should fix anything that fails before the mileage/age that it should have lasted too. I know that it's unlikely that most would buy a new car and not get it serviced but there are always some that would try it on.

I do agree however that if something like a timing belt snaps before it was due to be replaced and the vehicle has been serviced and maintained in accordance with the manufactures instructions then there must be a good case that the 'product' was sub-standard and not fit for purpose, and the repair should be foc.

[Vela19eric]

Hey, writing from Texas. My oil pump wet belt shredded. I decided to tackle this job myself. Got the replacement belt, took the sump/ oil pan out, brought the pump out, cleaned it, attached new belt. Now, how do I remove the crankshaft to put on the belt? I know I have to take off the timing belt and crank pulley to get to the crank shaft and be able to slide the belt in there. Anybody have instructions I could follow? Maybe a repair manual or any info on where to get these instructions? Thank you. 2018 Ford eco sport se 1.0l 3 cyl. 

[unofix]

Hello Eric, did your timing belt snap ?

Even for a main Ford main dealer service department it takes between 8 to 10 hours to replace the belt. You also require at least one specialist tool to be able to complete the work. This is why many garages who are not equiped with the full range of Ford ecoboost engine tools will not even quote to do the job.

[Vela19eric]

No the timing belt didn’t but the smaller wet belt that runs the oil pump. I need to figure out how to wrap it around the crank shaft. I got the time, tools, and patience, just don’t have the money to pay a shop to fix it 

[unofix]

Hi Eric, good that the timing belt didn't snap or that would have been the end of your engine.

There are a couple of guys on the forum who may be able to help you if they see this post.

@MasterTechTip or @DaveT70

[EcoboostMatt]

Hey people, I’ve just got myself a 2016 ST-3 with 29k miles on it, does anyone have any info on when the timing belt needs doing on a 2.0 (250ps) is it even a timing belt? Or is it a chain?

many thanks 

[MSalens]

On 6/29/2021 at 12:29 AM, jlawes20389 said:

Any oil you use should meet spec WSS-M2C948-B and should be 5W-20. As long as it meets the spec that should be ok, I wouldn't think brand would matter too much.

Would it be detrimental to add 1 Liter of 0W20 oil in the winter that is not the exact 948B spec? (There is only 1 visc. available in 948B so...) 

[jlawes20389]

I would say yes. The WSS-M2C948-B spec has been specifically designed for the wet belt and is the only oil that should be used on the Ecoboost. Any other type could lead to the deterioration of the belt causing premature failure.

For the same reason, engine flushes etc should not be performed on the Ecoboost engine. 

If the wrong spec oil is used it is recommended to replace the belt.

[Johnkzn]

Hello. I am in South Africa. I am currently busy doing an engine on a Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost. It came in with a misfire on no 3. Someone else had run a compression test amd compression was low on no 3. I thought it may be excessive carbon build up on valves. Removed head using special tools which owner of car had bought at a cost of just under R3000.00. Valves were all ok. Continued to remove sump and timing cover. Found pieces of piston ring in pickup of oil pump. After battling to loosen crank pulley bolt locking crank using a block of wood wedged up between block and crank. Removed all three pistons to find that no 3 skirt just below top ring on part of piston had broken off. Decided to remove block from car as bore on no 3 was scored which a light hone had not removed. The head and block is now with engineer. the valves will be refaced if necessary and give head a very light skim. Block will be bored to 20 thou as only standard and 20 thou pistons available here in SA. Another engineering shop i spoke to who has done a few of these engines say they torque crank pulley bolt first to 60 degrees making sure pin is kept in place on crank pulley for timing position. They then torque a further 90 degrees then another 90 degrees. They have had no crank pulleys coming loose. I had done an earlier Fiesta engine which had tapers on crank and cams. just made sure surfaces had no oil and torque correctly. Never came loose. Yes it is a difficult engine to strip and assemble but no different than many other modern day cars. Hope this can help someone out there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[kennethhogan]

 

Hi I am looking for some feedback. My sons 2015 1litre eco boost with 107,00 genuine kilometres(checked by main dealer )has snapped its wet belt causing catastrophic engine failure. We have been in contact with ford u.k. who are denying anything wrong with their engine. They accept that their specification is 240,000km or10 years old but state this is only a recommendation.  Surely this is a failure on their part. They say they only cover up to 72 months which is convenient.  Why say 10years and only cover up to 6years.

Any advice how to proceed before going legal with them . Thanks Ken.

[TomsFocus]

9 minutes ago, kennethhogan said:

 

Hi I am looking for some feedback. My sons 2015 1litre eco boost with 107,00 genuine kilometres(checked by main dealer )has snapped its wet belt causing catastrophic engine failure. We have been in contact with ford u.k. who are denying anything wrong with their engine. They accept that their specification is 240,000km or10 years old but state this is only a recommendation.  Surely this is a failure on their part. They say they only cover up to 72 months which is convenient.  Why say 10years and only cover up to 6years.

Any advice how to proceed before going legal with them . Thanks Ken.

Has the car got full service history at the specified intervals?  Has it ever missed a service, or had the wrong oil used, or had an engine flush?

[kennethhogan]

1 hour ago, TomsFocus said:

Has the car got full service history at the specified intervals?  Has it ever missed a service, or had the wrong oil used, or had an engine flush?

Yes all confirmed by local Ford dealership

[kennethhogan]

3 minutes ago, kennethhogan said:

Yes all confirmed by local Ford dealership

Ford U.K. have found nothing wrong with the service history, just stating they won't stand over it as its outside 72months. I'm appalled by their lack of support as we are a 3 car Ford family. Methinks all that could change shortly with this treatment. If it was outside of manufactures specifications I would totally understand. 

[TomsFocus]

32 minutes ago, kennethhogan said:

Ford U.K. have found nothing wrong with the service history, just stating they won't stand over it as its outside 72months. I'm appalled by their lack of support as we are a 3 car Ford family. Methinks all that could change shortly with this treatment. If it was outside of manufactures specifications I would totally understand. 

Ok, good to hear it's got full history.  But that does still question why the belt has failed.  Was the car left unused for a long period or only used for very short journeys?  Just trying to work out why the belt may have failed now.  They don't just spontaneously combust, either there was a part failure from a manufacturing defect, which seems unlikely if it lasted 7 years, or something has happened recently, perhaps out of Ford's control, to cause it.  If the cause can't be proven as a manufacturing fault, I'm really not sure how you could get Ford to accept the repair costs.  Most of the vehicle is only under warranty for 3 years, so more than double that for the belt is quite generous in comparison.  

 

[unofix]

4 hours ago, kennethhogan said:

Any advice how to proceed before going legal with them

I wish you good luck and really do hope you get some satisfaction. From the many that visit these forums with the same story, I do tend to think that some 'do spontaneously combust'. Some failures can be seen as poor servicing, wrong grades of oil used or engine oil flushes, but many I suspect are just a result of a poor idea badly executed. If there was no problem and everything worked as designed then you have to ask the question why has the wet belt been replaced with a chain on newer engines?

[kennethhogan]

6 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

Ok, good to hear it's got full history.  But that does still question why the belt has failed.  Was the car left unused for a long period or only used for very short journeys?  Just trying to work out why the belt may have failed now.  They don't just spontaneously combust, either there was a part failure from a manufacturing defect, which seems unlikely if it lasted 7 years, or something has happened recently, perhaps out of Ford's control, to cause it.  If the cause can't be proven as a manufacturing fault, I'm really not sure how you could get Ford to accept the repair costs.  Most of the vehicle is only under warranty for 3 years, so more than double that for the belt is quite generous in comparison.  

 

Why then have a specification of 10 years or 240,000km to change the belt.

[TomsFocus]

11 hours ago, kennethhogan said:

Why then have a specification of 10 years or 240,000km to change the belt.

It's a recommendation, not a specification.  It's not directly linked to the warranty in the way that you're thinking. 

As above (and in many other threads on here) there are so many variables that can cause these failures.  If it's lasted 7 years, that does suggest that a manufacturing defect wasn't the cause here, and as such, not Ford's fault.  Ford has to decide a cut off point for the warranty on all items, and it sounds like that's 6 years now - which is double that of the rest of the vehicle.  

I would push for some 'goodwill' personally but I really don't see how you can get them to cover the full cost so far outside of warranty.

[alexp999]

It's probably 6 years because that is the time limit specified by the Consumer Rights Act, within which you can try and claim a manufacturing defect at the point of sale.

[kennethhogan]

8 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

It's a recommendation, not a specification.  It's not directly linked to the warranty in the way that you're thinking. 

As above (and in many other threads on here) there are so many variables that can cause these failures.  If it's lasted 7 years, that does suggest that a manufacturing defect wasn't the cause here, and as such, not Ford's fault.  Ford has to decide a cut off point for the warranty on all items, and it sounds like that's 6 years now - which is double that of the rest of the vehicle.  

I would push for some 'goodwill' personally but I really don't see how you can get them to cover the full cost so far outside of warranty.

But shh then would you not recommend 6 years then as the time to change the wet belt then ,instead of saying 10 years and you don't have to stand over it. The mind boggles.

[kennethhogan]

Why, not ssh. Sorry predictive text

[elgar]

just looked at what might be entailed on my ecoboost 2012 engine with 60,000 miles coming up. Im certainly not going to spoend £1,000 on belt change after having in one year a road spring, faulty alarm and new pads on front brakes./ Ill do the engine oil change  and any other obvious jobs, and I do long runs in it. 

[alanfp]

31 minutes ago, elgar said:

Im certainly not going to spend £1,000 on belt change after having in one year a road spring, faulty alarm and new pads on front brakes

Are you saying that if you hadn't had to spend out on a new spring and alarm etc, then you WOULD do the belt change to avoid the risk of ruining your engine?

I understand your emotion, but that's not logical.

Your choice, of course....

 

[MrRedman]

I’m in 2 minds as wether to sell mine instead of spending the money on a belt swap as it’s coming up to 10 years old has 29K on it and I only do 40 miles a week so the lack of use could bite me on the @rse