17S09 Recall For 1.6L GTDI Cooling system

[Steve27]

Hi All  My car went in at 8am today and at lunch time was told that ford has halted the recall as the PCM update has caused other problems, according to other owners that have had the work done and until they are sorted they are holding off.

They will contact me when its ready.

[MJS09]

Do you know what problems were being reported after the PCM update? I have had the work done but not the PCM update yet as I have been waiting for Ford to let me know when to take it in again.

[Phil21185]

Ford: "How did you know?! ETIS is not intended for you mere mortals..."

[MLS]

Good and bad news, my car has been recalled due to coolant issues however I have had major problems with loss of coolant last year, so much so that it blew the gasket, I've since had it repaired but it's started to lose coolant again. At the time I phoned ford about the problem and they didn't want to know.  Now I have the recall because of this problem. I'm hoping they will still fix the problem and the head gasket.

[iantt]

They should do , and possibly a new head.

[Ubetcha]

Was in town yesterday (65km away) after some 'touch up' paint.. whilst I was there I inquired about this too...

..."Parts need ordering and then we'll be in touch" - sound promising me thinks

Ironically I've already suffered and fixed coolant loss (search my threads) so actually having a gauge/warning indicator will give me a little more peace of mind.

I'll update on their progress as and when..

[Arwen]

My car was booked in for this on Monday, however it got canceled due to the software updating apparently having a fault and they were waiting on a new version 

[dans34]

do the 2012 vehicles not need this or are we out of luck for this recall ? 

[JW1982]

The recall only applies to the 1.6 ECOboost Petrol engine.

[dans34]

Gah the GTDI bit was what confused me 

 

Thanks JW1982

[5 amp]

i have a 62 plate ford focus 1.6, i noticed this recall on ford etis so i called my local ford who said they will order parts and be intouch, they did get intouch only to tell me they may not be able to do it as they need speicalist tools, i nearly burst out laughing i said oh right what do you need then he said a pressure tester for the cooling system at this point i did laugh i honestly think there winding me up , im no mechanic and i have a something to pressurise the cooling system.i might call back and ask them if they want to borrow it 

[cornershop]

Gents - just joined as a Google search picked out this thread.

Our 62 plate Cmax 1.6T had the coolant 'recall' work undertaken a few weeks ago at Thinkford in Guildford, however it still losing coolant.

My Mrs drives circa 150 miles a week, and i saw coolant was down nearly an inch below the Min mark on the expansion tank after 300 miles.  Note, there was nothing on the dash or any alarm indicating there's an issue, so unsure how low the level much reach before it alerts.

I've tried 'burping' the system by letting it idle, with heater on max for 20-30mins (as RAC did before I google'd and found this thread), but the problem persists;  I also get the occasional whiff of burnt coolant in the engine bay which finds its way into the cabin.

I'm fearing the worst and thinking it could be a cracked block?  Guildford can't take it in for another 4 weeks as Mrs needs a company car, i'm loathe to take it anywhere else as they didn't perform the recall work.

Thoughts appreciated

Shirish

[MJS09]

I also had a coolant leak which I spotted about 2 weeks after having the recall work done. I had driven it less than 250 miles and mine was an inch below minimum too. 

I took mine back to where I had the recall work done and they found that a pipe connected to the thermostat had leaked. Initially tried to charge me £300 to replace the pipe! Told them the system should have been fully checked during re-work and it was to soon for a leak to occur and they finally agreed to fix it for free. 4 weeks later and touch-wood it appears to be okay now. 

Cornershop - i’d take yours back and make sure the recall was done properly and that your entire cooling system was assessed properly when they did the work as mine wasn’t. Its to soon to be leaking after the re-work IMO.

Also despite the re-work being done on our cars, the pcm software update still isnt available as it has some issues. So the coolant level sensor is not yet activated on the car, which is why it didnt warn you. I have contacted Ford for an update on the pcm situation but they have yet to respond. 

[JW1982]

The only software that is not available is the software for the very early version of the 1.6 ECOboost. This engine differs from the later 1.6 ECOboost engines in many ways and because of this also has different software. Vehicles with this very early version of the 1.6 ECOboost are temporarily removed from the recall (the recall is no longer listed on Etis for these vehicles). At a later date when the software is available these vehicles will be added to the recall.

Early 2012 Ford performed many modifications to the 1.6 ECOboost. The software for these later engines is available since January. 

 

Even if the PCM software is not available during the recall the IPC (instrument cluster) can be updated to the latest software version. With the correct IPC software the low coolant warning message is fully functional. Without the correct PCM software the engine power will just not be limited when the sensor detects a low coolant level. 

[Htpearg0]

Mine is going in tomorrow 25/3/18 No coolant leaks at present so will keep a watch post upgrade. Done about 20500 miles

[Steve27]

Hi All    Had my car done on 5 march and all ok. I have been thinking of getting the mountune m-tune 200 kit for a while but now with the new software on my car its now not compatible according to mountune. Its made me think about anyone that's had the mountune kit fitted, then had the recall done but now can't reinstall mountune's software again because it's incompatible. what a bummer !!  

[Htpearg0]

On 25/03/2018 at 11:56 AM, Htpearg0 said:

Mine is going in tomorrow 25/3/18 No coolant leaks at present so will keep a watch post upgrade. Done about 20500 miles

Oh well Ford main dealer non communication strikes again. Got my recall letter , booked in at main agent (They rang me to say the parts were now in) Delivered car at 9:00 am having arranged a lift from the garage. Mobile rang to say it would probably take 2 days to complete the work and should have been told when I booked it in albeit I did discuss with the agent the length of time it would take. 10 mins later phone rang again....... very sorry but the S/w update will not be available for 6-8 weeks as its being done under warranty ford say not to go ahead with repair untill S/w is availabble  WTF Not impressed

[iantt]

4 hours ago, Htpearg0 said:

Oh well Ford main dealer non communication strikes again. Got my recall letter , booked in at main agent (They rang me to say the parts were now in) Delivered car at 9:00 am having arranged a lift from the garage. Mobile rang to say it would probably take 2 days to complete the work and should have been told when I booked it in albeit I did discuss with the agent the length of time it would take. 10 mins later phone rang again....... very sorry but the S/w update will not be available for 6-8 weeks as its being done under warranty ford say not to go ahead with repair untill S/w is availabble  WTF Not impressed

They should of told you that when you originally booked it , they have known about that for over a week now.

[Htpearg0]

25 minutes ago, iantt said:

They should of told you that when you originally booked it , they have known about that for over a week now.

Hi That dosnt suprise me. Perhaps I should have gone to the other Ford dealer who did my service last time ( reason being is they still did the breakdown cover ) but thought I would use the main dealer , closer to town. I do know an ex ford master tech who refused to change an ECU untill it was diagnosed correctly (the car was owned by someone I knew) so they left before being sacked

[Flatfour]

Got the same response today when I phoned my local dealer to get the car booked in for this recall work. It will be between 6-8 weeks before they are taking bookings for this work to be carried out due to a lack of parts and the pcm / software updates! Apparently the letters sent out to owners where sent in error and we will receive another on in due course !! What a shambles. Still can’t  see why they can’t just change the coolant bottle to one with a sensor / float in it like VAG cars instead of all this untidy pipework. Apparently just one of the many parts needed to carry out this work is circa £520.

[cornershop]

On 24/03/2018 at 10:12 AM, MJS09 said:

I also had a coolant leak which I spotted about 2 weeks after having the recall work done. I had driven it less than 250 miles and mine was an inch below minimum too. 

I took mine back to where I had the recall work done and they found that a pipe connected to the thermostat had leaked. Initially tried to charge me £300 to replace the pipe! Told them the system should have been fully checked during re-work and it was to soon for a leak to occur and they finally agreed to fix it for free. 4 weeks later and touch-wood it appears to be okay now. 

Cornershop - i’d take yours back and make sure the recall was done properly and that your entire cooling system was assessed properly when they did the work as mine wasn’t. Its to soon to be leaking after the re-work IMO.

Also despite the re-work being done on our cars, the pcm software update still isnt available as it has some issues. So the coolant level sensor is not yet activated on the car, which is why it didnt warn you. I have contacted Ford for an update on the pcm situation but they have yet to respond. 

Thanks for this James, sounds very similar.

I thought the thermostat was part of the change, maybe not.

Its booked in for a few weeks time - checking level weekly, it doesn’t appear to get lower than a 3/4 - 1” below Minimum.

Guildford Ford couldn’t tell me how low the coolant would have to go for me to be alerted on the dash.

[Marty F]

I have just fallen victim to Ford Focus 1.6 ecoboost coolant problem. I got the recall notice on Friday 23rd March 2018, car goes on fire on Sunday 25th ... two days later, its almost like the car read the notice.

I did check the coolant level on Monday 19th March (day off for st patricks day) and it was just a little short of MAX, but hardly in need of any coolant.

Drove about 200 miles that week, including 25 mile on sunday to my mothers house. I did hear the electric fan when i stopped but thought, well i was in traffic and some cars do this, not usually the focus though. Two hours later i drive 1 mile , stop at traffic lights and i see smoke coming from the bonnet. I thought it was the car exhaust in front. I pulled over, lifted the bonnet, and there are flames, the rubber boot and the wiring harness to the crankcase sensor is on fire. Temp on dashboard has never changed from normal, no electric fan operating and the car is so hot it is on fire!

Managed to get a resident with a gallon of water to put the flames out, while i switched off the engine. I waited half an hour, and put warm coolant back in in hope more than expectation it would start, no chance!

Car was then towed to a ford dealer (left outside as it was sunday), on monday they tell me they dont want to fix it, but try Trustford. Three Trustford garages tried i get one that might look at it on Thursday, though later they tell me next week, after Easter.

Surely this is something Ford will fix, i have no idea what damage was done, but to just drive a car and it go on fire is alarming, with no warning,. If i had gone shopping and left it after a short drive i would come back to an inferno.

I wonder what you guys think, is this something ford should cover?

So if you get the letter for recall, don't delay, book it in.

[Htpearg0]

Appears the S/W is now available . Had a call from the local dealer now re booked in for end of April ( Was the earliest date available)

 

[Marty F]

Ok, Quick update

Phoned TrustFord, and they have agreed the fire was a result of issues directly related to the recall. They carried out a diagnostics check to come to this conclusion. Car will be fixed under the recall with no cost to me. Now chasing up Ford customer services for a courtesy car,  as parts have to come from Germany, and no idea how long it will be, also chasing up car hire i have paid and two tow vehicles. Will update and see how this pans out.

[cfc]

I had the letter from Ford about a week ago and my C-Max had the mod today, all except the software update. Dealer says this will be about 6 to 8 weeks time,

First registered 2011 so I guess this is one of the early ones with the different software mentioned here.

Should add that I have never had any coolant loss at all in the past.

Some good video can be seen online with the mod being done on a Ford Escape I believe.