Ecosport TDCi 50k km service:
Our 2016 Ecosport Titanium + tdci went for its 50k km service last month. The car was running perfectly before the service except for one small sound that was irritating me. I first observed the sound a few months ago during a highway drive, there was this slight ringing kind of sound that was heard every time I lifted off the throttle. The sound was more noticeable when driving in a highway at night time, with low outside noise. Anyways since the sound was very minor, I decided to get it checked during the upcoming 50k km service.
I took the car for servicing (at CHAND FORD) & made my SA take note of the issue. I also asked them to get the EGR cleaned once, as it has never been cleaned & I personally believe 50k km is long enough to get the EGR cleaned.
Then went on a test drive with the main technician & made him listen to the ringing sound. He acknowledged that a faint sound was there & he would take care of it. First they changed the engine oil & the filters, finally one technician was assigned to take out the EGR & clean it. The EGR in the 1.5 TDCi engine is located in a difficult to access area, it's placed near the firewall. Finally the EGR was out & as expected it was a bit clogged.
Since all the major things were taken care off (except the ringing sound), I went home. Then in the afternoon my SA informed me that they have found a leak from some O ring in the driveshaft, the O ring would need replacement & transmission oil would need to topped up (the damaged O ring was leaking transmission oil). I gave them a go ahead. Finally late in the evening the car was ready for delivery. I was curious to find out what they did about the ringing sound, to which my SA told me that it went away after cleaning the EGR. As it was getting late & I trusted my SA, I took delivery without taking a proper TD.
The final bill was Rs. 6908, which is a bit on the higher side. But consider the fact that the EGR was cleaned, one oil seal was replaced, & transmission oil topped up, 7k sounds reasonable.
The final bill:
The immediate effect after the EGR cleaning was reduction in black smoke under hard acceleration, though I couldn't find any noticeable increase in performance after the EGR cleaning. Then the next day on an early morning drive, I noticed that the ringing sound was still there. Furious, I took the car back to FASS, & asked them to properly check the issue. I had some work to do, so didn't stay with the car & went home. After 2 hours or so I received a call from my SA, asking me to come over as one of his seniors wanted to have a word with me.
The guy in question, the floor manager was adamant that there was no sound & asked me to accompany him for a test drive. I declined & asked him to put the car on ramp & put it in gear. Sure enough, the ringing sound was easily noticeable every time the driver lifted off the throttle. So, finally they asked for some time (or days) to diagnose the problem.
Next day they called me & informed me that they think the turbo might be faulty. So, I visit the service center & find that they are fitting a new turbo in the car. After that we go for a test drive, everything is same as before including the ringing sound. It is now confirmed that my turbo is okay, so they fit back the old turbo.
After some more diagnosis, next day they took out the timing belt & checked for tensioner bearing sound. Of course the timing belt tensioner was in good condition, it was only then it dawned on me that they were clueless about the problem. Then I requested my SA to take help of Ford India since the mechanics were clueless.
Then the next day they informed me, that they are swapping the whole exhaust system (including the EGR) & if it doesn't solve the problem, they will seek help of Ford India. The circus of taking the exhaust out & fitting it back took two days. Unfortunately as I had some work, I was not in Guwahati on that day. So, my Mom called them for an update & my Mom wasn't convinced with the explanation they gave her. I finally thought enough is enough, sent an email to the customer care explaining the whole situation.
Within a hour or so after sending the mail, someone from Ford India contacted us & told that the problem would be solved at the earliest. Then a panicked SA called me & assured me that they have contacted Ford India for help & any further action will be taken after consulting Ford India.
One day later they finally inform me that after consulting with Ford engineers, they have come to the conclusion that this sound is present in some Ecosport diesels & there is nothing to be worried about. My Mom was quite impatient by then & she gave me firm instructions not to drag this any further, as the ringing sound didn't have any noticeable effect on the car's performance.
So, I went to FASS to take delivery & also asked them to show proof that the ringing sound was also there in other Ecosport diesels. They had specifically made two videos (one of my car & one of another Ecosport diesel) to show the ringing sound, sure enough the sound was also there in that Ecosport (though it was a bit less than our car). I checked the other car's history, it was 2 months older than our car & had a similar 47k km on the odometer. Not willingly to drag this further, I took delivery of the car. Finally I asked them why did they keep my car in the workshop for 1 week, when they could have checked with another Ecosport of my vintage, to which I was told that this was the first time someone (i.e me) had bothered about this sound .
Since then we have done around 2k kilometers & there is no change in the car's performance. So, I have made peace with the ringing sound & hopefully it won't have any ill effect in the long term.
Here are the videos which the SA shared with me, guys please listen to the videos carefully & tell me what do you people think about the sound. The ringing kind of sound is heard after lifting off the accelerator pedal.
Video 1 is of my car: Video 2 is of my car:
Video 3 is of the test car: