Hi

Fiesta 1.0 Ecoboost 2014

There is corrosion on the top of lower of the two (stainless steel?) pipes at the front of the engine (about 10mm diameter 90 degree swept bend).

The car has a full Ford service history but is of course now 8+ years old.

I have waded through a lot of the posts on the previous 22 page/530 reply thread mentioned elsewhere, but am still somewhat unsure as to the best course of action.  I would now be very grateful if someone could quickly answer the following questions:

1. Has the corrosion come from inside or did it start externally?

2. Will I get anywhere asking Ford to rectify it at their cost (as it's a common issue was there a TSB? I have seen reference to 16-2088 mentioned, which I THINK calls for a protective coating to be applied, but I have Googled away and I cannot find the TSB itself).)

3. If my best bet is to paint the pipe with heat resistant paint, what paint should I use? Rustins? Rust-oleum? What temperature should I be looking for on the tin?

4. If I paint it, should I use emery paper to clean off the corrosion first? I would hate to be too vigorous with the emery and actually cause a hole to appear by my own actions!

Thank you.

1.  Starts from the outside.  The corrosion inhibitors in coolant prevent the inside from rusting.

2. I doubt Ford will be of any help at 8 years old, but there's no harm in asking them.  

3.  Doesn't really matter.  Even Hammerite will be fine.  Halfords do some proper 'very high temp' engine enamel if you want to be absolutely sure it's heat proof.

4. Yes, clear any rust off first.  Don't forget the coolant is pressurised - if the metal is thin enough for you to accidentally rub through with emery paper, the pipe isn't serviceable and needs replacement rather than repair.

 

A pic if you can get one might get more informed comments.

1. Pretty sure this is external corrosion from all the posts we've seen.

2. Where Ford have offered help, this seems to have been just outside warranty - about 4 years or so and responses seem to vary. A mate of mine reported this on his car well within warranty, (including recording all conversations with service on his phone!) and had still got nowhere when he parted with it at 5 years old. So I wouldn't be hopeful at 9 years but you could always give it a go.

3. Most members on the marathon thread seem to have gone for a VHT paint, Halfords being popular.

4. Yes, remove (carefully!) all traces of rust before painting with emery.

If it is too bad, replacement turbos now seem to be around £850 for a new unit.

I painted mine with halfords heat resistent stuff and its still holding up fine. Idk if I cleared all the rust off properly though. Its a pain in the ***** to get to some of the spots on that pipe.

Thank you both so much, Tom and Eric.

You've answered my questions fully, and I appreciate your comment, Tom, about if it goes through with a bit of light sanding then it's a liability anyway. And of course, if a hole appears while it's stationary on the driveway that is preferable to a hole appearing while driving down a motorway on a hot day!

.... and thank you Jack Pigeon too. You posted your reply while I was typing.

On 4/26/2023 at 11:47 AM, alanfp said:

Thank you both so much, Tom and Eric.

You've answered my questions fully, and I appreciate your comment, Tom, about if it goes through with a bit of light sanding then it's a liability anyway. And of course, if a hole appears while it's stationary on the driveway that is preferable to a hole appearing while driving down a motorway on a hot day!

Yes, fully agree this perspective. Furthermore, the fact you're asking about the 'best' way to do this suggests you'd likely do a better (more careful/thorough) job than a mechanic who is on the clock so I wouldn't even consider going down the TSB/recall route.