Ford

The address of this page was a stock listing on a used-car dealer site that no longer exists. The stock is gone; what follows is a reference to the marque itself — what you will meet on the UK used market, and what is worth checking. Nothing here is offered for sale.

EcoBoost is Ford’s badge for turbocharged direct-injection petrol engines, used across the range from the 1.0-litre three-cylinder to the 2.0-litre four. Powershift is the dual-clutch automatic. Titanium and ST-Line are trim levels.

The EcoBoost history

The 1.0-litre EcoBoost built in the early 2010s suffered coolant hose failures at high temperature. Ford issued a field service action covering tens of thousands of UK cars, and later agreed to refund owners who had paid for repairs themselves; the remedial work included adding a coolant level sensor with a driver warning. A separate set of complaints concerned 1.6-litre EcoBoost engines and oil leaks.

The practical lesson carries across the family: on a turbocharged direct-injection petrol engine, the cooling system and oil-change discipline determine longevity. Check the coolant level and colour, look for staining around hose joints, and read the service record rather than counting stamps.

Clutches and gearboxes

Reliability reporting on Fords of this era flags a clutch pressure plate fracture on certain EcoBoost engines paired with the six-speed manual, with a burning smell followed by a loud noise as the warning. The Powershift dual-clutch automatic has a troublesome reputation of its own. Whichever transmission the car has, drive it in traffic as well as on an open road.

Recall volume

Some Ford models carry an unusually long recall list. That is not automatically a mark against the car — recalls are how faults get fixed, free of charge — but it makes the DVSA recall check essential rather than optional.