Is a used MK2.5 Kuga a "no go" at any cost?

[pt22]

Hi 

I've just reserved a 2019 Ford Kuga from Bristol Street Motors in Bromley. It's a MK2.5 1.5L Petrol Manual with 32k miles on the clock. I thought I had done a decent amount of research on the car and decided it was right for us at the agreed price. Joining here I now have gone down the rabbit hole of the 1.5L Ecoboost petrol issues, the US market TSB, and I'm starting to have doubts. I will be able to walk away if necessary.

I try to use forums to help educate, not to make decisions. This is a decent chunk of change (cash purchase) and I'm unsure of people's thoughts on the viability of a Kuga as a reliable used family car option. We won't rely on the car for daily use, but certainly we have plans to use it for semi-frequent weekend holidays and I do not want to be stranded with catastrophic engine failure. I will be getting a 3-year dealer warranty with the car with roadside assistance. 

Is this a bad idea, or am I overthinking this?

Thanks

[DaveT70]

All I'll say is, it will absolutely drink fuel.

All the lads I knew, who had them because they were cheap and heavily supported, moaned like crazy about fuel economy 

[pt22]

12 minutes ago, DaveT70 said:

All I'll say is, it will absolutely drink fuel.

All the lads I knew, who had them because they were cheap and heavily supported, moaned like crazy about fuel economy ( I won't mention disgraced 70's pop stars again, as there's a sense of humour issue on here)

Thanks. I've factored that into the decision. This wont be a heavy daily driver. I'm much more concerned with overall reliability of the engine. With that context, are you staying away?

[alexp999]

@JW1982 Is quite knowledgeable on this engine.

I also believe that the block was changed in 2019 to improve the headgasket contact patch by switching to cross drilled instead of slotted coolant channels. I don't know if there is an easy way to know when in 2019 and if the car you are looking at has the newer block.

[DaveT70]

The 1.5 4-pots can suffer with head gasket issues, that's all I know.

I would stay away, yes, but for different reasons

[pt22]

I just thought I'd add an update here. I've continued with my research, and I'm confident the Kuga was good choice for the family car. I'll keep an eye out for any coolant level issues, but otherwise the car does exactly what we need it to, and I'm a big fan of the manual transmission, the ride, and the styling. Crossing my fingers for decent reliability, but I also have a 3 year warranty to help. Looking forward to contributing here.