- Ford is still facing a lawsuit over the 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine despite issuing a recall for it.
- The council representing the plaintiffs is now consulting more Ford owners of models with the same engine.
- The judge could still throw out the case at a later stage.
Late in 2023, the NHTSA began investigating reports of a defect in Ford’s 1.0-liter EcoBoost engine. By January of this year, the automaker issued a recall of almost 140,000 cars. Now, a judge just greenlit a case about the potentially defective engines to continue.
The class action suit filed in the District Court of Delaware includes 13 plaintiffs. Each of them owns a Ford EcoSport with a 1.0-liter three-cylinder turbocharged engine. The suit alleges that Ford failed to disclose a defect that could destroy the engine and lead to a repair bill that exceeds the value of the engine itself.
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In the January recall, Ford specifically admitted that a problematic oil pump belt tensioner could cause engine failure. “The engine oil pump drive belt tensioner arm may fracture, separate from the tensioner backing plate, and/or the oil pump drive belt material may degrade and lose teeth, resulting in a loss of engine oil pressure,” it said.
Having issued the recall, Ford moved to dismiss the suit. “[none] of the named plaintiffs have taken advantage of the 2023 recall,” reports CarComplaints.com. According to the judge, that argument isn’t sufficient for dismissal since the plaintiffs are also seeking damages for “diminution in value of their vehicles, towing costs, rental car costs, and other out-of-pocket expenses.”
Ford also took issue with the fact that the lawsuit includes Ford Focus and Ford Fiesta owners with the same engine even though none of the current plaintiffs own either of those vehicles. According to the firm handling the case, “We are currently speaking to other class members who purchased or leased a 2016 or later Ford-brand vehicle equipped with a 1.0L EcoBoost engine, including 2016-2017 Ford Fiesta, 2018-2021 Ford EcoSport, and 2016-2018 Ford Focus vehicles in order to add their claims to the case.”
To that end, things could get a lot more expensive for Ford than simply having to repair or replace the engines in question. Of course, it’s possible too that the judge will throw out the case at a later date if Ford can prove that it’s meeting its legal requirements to these customers under the recall. The judge already dismissed claims by the plaintiffs regarding express warranty claims.
