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Investigation into Ford engine failures ends after more than 2 years; warranties extended

Investigation into Ford engine failures ends after more than 2 years; warranties extended

A Ford Bronco goes on sale at the Griffith Ford dealership in San Marcos, Texas, on January 3, 2024.

A Ford Bronco goes on sale at the Griffith Ford dealership in San Marcos, Texas, on January 3, 2024.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced it has closed its investigation into more than 411,000 Ford and Lincoln SUVs and pickup trucks that lost power due to engine failure. It was announced in a report on Monday.

The regulator launched the investigation into Ford Bronco vehicles equipped with 2.7L EcoBoost engines in July 2022. The safety administration later expanded the investigation to include Ford Edge, F-150, Explorer and Lincoln Aviator and Nautilus vehicles from the 2021 and 2022 model years that use these engines. 2.7L or 3.0L EcoBoost engines.

According to the report, the agency suspected a faulty valve mechanism in the engines, but Ford assessed that not all valves during the surge period were defective and that the reported failures occurred in vehicles with short service periods.

Most incidents reportedly occurred before 20,000 miles, with more than half occurring before 5,000 miles.

In the report, the agency stated that the analysis results primarily matched Ford’s assessment, implying that most of the failures in the faulty valves had already occurred.

Ford extends warranty on 90,000 recalled vehicles

In August, Ford recalled 90,736 vehicles produced between May 2021 and October 2021 and equipped with “Nano” engines. On Monday, the manufacturer announced it would extend warranty coverage on the recalled vehicles by 10 years or 150,000 miles, whichever comes first.

The Aug. 23 recall encouraged users to take the vehicles in question to a Ford/Lincoln dealer to have their engine cycle life examined. Vehicles that failed to meet the required threshold were further inspected for possible ineffective intake valves and offered an engine replacement.

According to Ford, vehicles produced after October 2021 are equipped with a different intake valve material.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration confirmed that there has been a decrease in the number of reported failures related to the faulty valve issue since November 2021.

This article first appeared on USA TODAY: Investigation into Ford engine failures ended, warranties extended