It doesn’t matter if you drive a beater or a beauty, maintenance is essential. Of course, some engines out there refuse to die, but they’re among the minority. Neglecting a modern turbocharged engine is especially unwise, and if you need proof, just look at this EcoBoost 3.0-liter V6 out of a 2021 Lincoln Aviator. The owner changed the oil only twice in its 70,000 miles of life, according to the CarFax, so it’s no surprise that things ended up like this. The teardown comes courtesy of Eric Berg at I Do Cars on YouTube. He disassembles some real beauties on that channel, and yes, I’m being facetious. The twin-turbo SUV engine you’re looking at here was taken in on a core exchange. Practically zero history was offered when Berg purchased the power plant, but he was able to locate the last eight digits of the VIN stamped on the block. The CarFax report was damning, as you’d expect. While this V6 could have had more than two oil changes, that’s all there’s official evidence for, and cracking it open seems to corroborate that info. Removing one of the valve covers is all it took to confirm that this EcoBoost was junk. “I’ve seen engines with 250,000 and 300,000 miles that look 10,000 times better than this,” Berg quipped. It was practically Sludge City in there, and it didn’t get any better when he cracked open the other side. You can practically take your pick of engine components to see how ignored this sucker was. The variable camshaft timing solenoids were caked with spent bearing debris; removing the timing chain cover revealed a pool of silvery gunk that collected at the bottom; and the oil pan is shinier than a spoon in the sun. That’s just what happens when you forget about simple, little jobs—they turn into big ones. Berg actually applauded the EcoBoost for holding up as well as it did under such horrible, atrocious conditions. The number six bearing is what finally and fatally spun, but it didn’t appear to damage the crank too much. Berg even thinks the compacted graphite iron block is good to reuse. No matter how you look at it, there’s no way an engine should look this bad after five or so years of normal use. I agree with Berg in saying, “If you have the money to buy a new Lincoln, you have the money to maintain it.” At least, I hope that’s the case. Got a tip or question for the author? Contact them directly: caleb@thedrive.com
Liked by Lily Campbell, Madeleine Lewis
Liked by Lily Campbell, Madeleine Lewis
Liked by Lily Campbell, Madeleine Lewis
