Common Second-Gen 3.5L EcoBoost V6 Issues & Failure Points
When replacing faulty phasers in a vehicle equipped with the second-gen 3.5L EcoBoost V6, it’s best to go ahead and address these parts, too.
It’s no secret that Ford’s EcoBoost line of engines has faced its fair share of issues over the years, though those issues tend to vary depending on which particular powerplant we’re talking about. Then there are the generations of each of these engines to consider, and in that regard, the twin turbocharged 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 has received some improvements through each, aimed at rectifying known issues along the way.
In this recent video from Brian Makuloco of the Ford Tech Makuloco YouTube channel, we get a handy rundown of common issues with the second-gen 3.5L EcoBoost V6, specifically, which is great information for anyone that owns a vehicle equipped with that particular engine. Makuloco works on a ton of these vehicles, and he notes that he sees these issues pretty much anytime he’s working on a 2017-2020 F-150 or 2018-2020 Ford Expedition/Lincoln Navigator.
Right off the bat, Makuloco points out that these EcoBoost engines have phaser issues where they’re not locking in, leading to a rattle upon startup until they get oil pressure and lock in. Replacing the phasers requires a lot of disassembly, so Makuloco likes to go ahead and replace all the of the common problem parts one has to remove or can easily access during that process anyway. That parts list begins with a new version of the phasers that eliminates the original’s issues and is used in 2021 and up F-150 models with the 3.5-liter EcoBoost.
Makuloco also likes to change out the chains while he’s doing this, along with the tensioner arms and guides, as well as the intake gaskets, the oil pump gasket, oil ring, one-time use bolts, and thermostat housing bypass gasket. He likes to replace solenoids because they tend to stick over time, along with the high pressure line, which is also technically a one-time-use type of product. Molded connection hoses are also getting replaced in this case because they all tend to fail as well, and in different ways.
There are some bigger parts present here as well, including the water pump, which is a part that leaks and tends to fail quite easily. This is also true of valve covers that tend to crack and leak oil everywhere, along with the thermostat housing, o-rings and gaskets, the oil cap, and the oil pan – which in earlier cases features a two-piece design that has a high tendency to leak. In this case, Makuloco offers a one-piece aluminum oil pan as a replacement.
Of course, doing all of this isn’t incredibly cheap by any means – Makuloco calls it the “$6,000 tuneup” for a reason, after all – but as he points out, addressing these common failure points while doing a timing job will ultimately save one a ton of labor and aggravation in the long run. If you plan on keeping your second-gen 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 for a long time, it’s certainly worth considering, at least.
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