The contact owns a 1997 Ford F-150. The contact stated that a rod punctured the oil pan and ruined the engine. The vehicle is unable to be driven and has not been to the dealer. He has discovered several other people who have experienced the same failure. The VIN, speed, and mileage information were unavailable.

- Caponsville, MD, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford F-150. The contact noticed flames coming from under the hood while the vehicle was parked. The dealer has not inspected the vehicle to determine the cause the vehicle was deemed totaled. Updated 09/05/07.

- Lindenwold, NJ, USA

I own a 1997 F-150 Ford pickup with the Triton V8 4.6L engine. After having 10,5000 mile schedule service to replace spark plugs and tune up the number 4 cylinder plug began to pop-out" of the block. So far no damage to the vehicle, but it was not fixed yet. I knew this was a"common problem that was investigated before, but I wanted to document that the problem continued, and Ford needed to acknowledge the defect. I was told by my Ford dealership that if I drove with number 4 cylinder misfiring for an extended period it may cause hydro lock or fire damage to the engine. That was pretty serious and sounded like an admission from Ford dealers that there was a serious problem. The dealer has been very helpful, and was working to fix the problem so I have no complaint against the dealer. However, just because there hasn't been a fatality with this defect did not mean there shouldn't be an admission by Ford of the design defect, and a recall to fix the problem without charge to the customer.

- Chesapeake, VA, USA

I went outside one early morning to start up my vehicle when I heard a loud pop that originated from the engine of my 1997 Ford F-150 XLT. I took a look at the engine; however I am no mechanic. I attempted to start the engine again, but the engine would not turn. I later found out that the engine was locked because of the coolant leaking from a gasket into the cylinder causing one of the rods to bend. My mechanic informed me that the liquid was not allowing the rod to fully compress because of the pressure caused by the liquid. Needless to say, he told me that the Ford pick ups' engines have that problem and I would just be wasting my money repairing the original engine. He advised me to search for a rebuilt engine that had a warranty on it. Due to the expense, my pick up is sitting there with a defective engine. This is the second Ford I had purchased because I was so pleased with the first Ford vehicle. However after this disappointment, I purchased a Nissan instead. I make sure that I tell all my friends and relatives of this experience with Ford and the unsatisfactory product they have put out. No wonder the Toyota Tundra and Nissan titan are leaving Ford behind! "built Ford tough, right....

- Del Rio , TX, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford F-150. While driving 60 mph, the contact heard a loud popping noise coming from the vehicle's hood. He was able to drive the vehicle home, but was unable to restart the vehicle once he shut it off. The vehicle was towed to a mechanic who stated that coolant was found in the cylinders due to a cracked head gasket or a crack in the cylinder. The mechanic installed a remanufactured engine and there have not been any more failures. The current mileage is 99,600 and failure mileage was 98,780.

- Baltimore, MD, USA

The contact owns a 1997 Ford F-150. While driving 45 mph, the contact heard a knocking noise coming from the engine. The vehicle was brought to the dealer and the engine was replaced. As a result, the engine began to overheat and a significant lost of coolant resulted due to a reservoir failure. At 80,000 miles, the contact began to experience oil pressure failure, which the dealer stated was caused by a bent piston rod on the crank case. The manufacturer would not assist the contact because the VIN excluded the vehicle from the recall. Ford claimed to have only issued a partial level B recall. The failure originated 6 weeks ago, but has been ongoing since June of 2006. The technician suggesting waiting until the engine fails to have it replaced again. The current mileage is 850 and failure mileage was 108,000.

- Colombus, OH, USA

V6 4.2L engine: Gasket failure causing water/fluid fill up the cylinder which causes the rod to blow.

- Albany, OH, USA

1. failure of Ford Motor Company and dealer where vehicle was purchased new, family Ford sales Inc., florence, al to notify customer of defect with 1997 4.2 L V6 engine as published in Ford service program, number 99B29 which could lead to engine failure through engine front cover gasket failing and polluting the oil with coolant, resulting in destroyed engine. Further family Ford sales Inc. Diagnosed this problem on this vehicle 11/20/02 and repaired it for $432.08 cost to owner. No mention of the Ford no-charge service program or possible engine damage was given at this time. 2. failure of 1997 Ford F150 engine with 87,522 miles due to a known failure to Ford motor of faulty gaskets (lower intake manifold (Ford tsb 99-20-7) and engine front cover gasket failing and polluting the oil with coolant (Ford service program, number 99B29) neither of which were communicated to the original owner of the vehicle. This action caused $3,061.20 of damage due to replacement of engine long block 1/26/2007 the babbitt was removed from engine bearings, resulting in low oil pressure and engine oil light coming on which was diagnosed by family Ford on 1/5/2007 (cost $73.50). Again Ford servicing dealer/oem selling dealer did not inform customer of any issues with this engine or earlier no-charge service program. Failure to notify or fraudulent actions by the dealer and Ford Motor Company have cost me over $3,500 and the lost time associated with this faulty product. Vehicle VIN is [xxx]. documentation to prove all claims are available for submittal. Updated 07/11/2012 information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Florence, AL, USA

Complaint: Ford Motor Company, poor design of lower intake plenum/manifold gasket in the essex 4.2L V-6. 1: events leading up to this failure originally there were no obvious signs of impending failure. The indications of failure are loss of engine coolant with no visible external leak, and coolant in the combustion chamber. 2: failure and it's consequences this defect allows coolant leakage into the combustion chamber, causing a hydraulic locking condition which will break/bend one or more connecting rods. This renders the engine unusable, and it must be pulled, repaired if possible (some are not), and re-installed. 3: failure correction. In most cases the engine can be repaired by replacing a connecting rod, piston, and crankshaft, and all the other associated parts that are involved with this level of disassembly. In some cases the connecting rod will break and damage the block beyond repair. This happened in my case. The replacement engine was over $2000, not to mention the labor involved in it's replacement. Ford Motor Company is aware of this design flaw, and has issued a technical service bulletin regarding it. However, to this day they will still not offer any aid, in any form, for damages incurred due to this design flaw.

- Camp Lejeune, NC, USA

I own a 1997 Ford F150 4.2L. My truck has been losing coolant for a while! I have replaced the water pump, replaced hoses, replaced thermostats, etc. My truck is now having a ticking sound when I start it in cold weather. I have come to find that Ford Motor Company had previously issued a recall on this trucks engine for a faulty intake manifold gasket. I was never informed of this recall!!! I was informed of other recalls like lug nut failure, cruise control cables, etc, but never about the most expensive, most vital part of the truck the engine. The information of the recall was discover as I was on the web trying to find out how to fix the knocking sound. The web site had over 350 messages of people with the same problem!!! please help!!

- Burton, OH, USA

My 1997 Ford F-150 4.2 L 6 cylinder mysteriously through a rod at 80K miles resulting in the replacement of the entire engine. From what I have read this has been a common problem plaguing many Ford customers, yet Ford has provided no relief. An expensive $4000 repair!

- West Palm Beach, FL, USA

My 1997 Ford F150, 4.2L V6, has been losing coolant since about 2004. My son had a difficult time starting the vehicle one afternoon. Finally I got it started and drove 5 miles home. The next afternoon the car started quickly but immediately started banging away. My mechanic says the engine is dead - bad rod. Now I find out from the internet that this is a known issue with this engine but Ford refuses to acknowledge it. Trade in value on the car is zero because all the 2nd tier dealers know about the engine problem. I'm out the cost of a new engine (seems only fair after my 96 Windstar needs new head gaskets because they wear out at 30K miles) apparently if you know a Ford mechanic, he will tell you the motor has been bad since the day it was first manufactured. This motor should not have failed and had it not been for the faulty gasket leaking coolant into the motor it wouldn't have. From reading web sites I have found that Ford issued a recall on the gasket and then pulled it. I never received a bulletin on the faulty gasket. Don't expect to own another Ford, but some financial help would sure soothe my frustration if someone wants the parts to use to acquire compensation from Ford I can keep the dead engine for a couple of weeks.

- Kent, WA, USA

Hydro-lock on 1997 Ford F-150 with 4.2L V6 caused bent rod. Engine had to be replaced. The Ford on-99B29 was exercised in 2000 which was suppose to prevent this type of failure.

- Tigard, OR, USA

I have a 1997 Ford F150 pickup. It has the 4.2L V6. I had 84,000 miles on the vehicle and had to replace the motor due to a bent rod. The rod damage was caused by a leaking gasket that allowed coolant into the cyclinder. When the truck was attempted to be started the fluid (does not compress) prevented the piston from full travel and bent the rod. This is a serious defect. Ford is aware of this and denies everything. After this happened, I became aware of many many others with the same problem.

- Landenberg, PA, USA

1997 Ford F150 4.2 motor failure. I have had to add coolant a few times over the past few years and could not find any leak, kept the oil changed every 3 thousand miles. The motor threw a rod and all the oil leaked out of the back of the engine. I found out on the internet that this is an ongoing problem with Ford, and they will not fix the problem.

- Lake Charles, LA, USA

I own a 1997 F-150. I purchased this truck from a private party when it had 52,000 miles. The truck now has about 90K miles. On May 16 I started the vehicle and heard a raucous noise from the engine compartment. On May 17th I had the truck towed to auto specialties, an independent repair shop. They identified the noise as a bent connecting rod. They discovered steam coming from the tailpipe and believe coolant seeped into the cylinder through a blown head gasket. I asked how this could have happened. They said probably overheating. Yet, in the entire time I owned it, the temperature gauge has never registered high, no steam arose from the engine area. I have always changed the oil every 3K miles. I have always maintained correct fluid levels. I have never towed anything with this truck and never carried anything more than a half-ton load. I always let it warm up and drive it gently while it is warming up. In addition, the truck speed control device was replaced by the local Ford dealer on Sept. 14, 2005. In their inspection of the vehicle they uncovered no problems with cooling or overheating. This is the first Ford I have owned, the first american car. I have owned 1 Mitsubishi and 2 Toyota pickups which I bought second hand. I owned them until they had over 125K miles and they needed no repairs other than normal maintenance. I have driven a pre-owned integra to over 140K miles without problems and a Honda civic which I drove from 60K-120K without the slightest problem. A truck with 90K miles should not need a new engine. By just about any maker standards the engine should last over 200K miles. I have contacted Ford customer service and spoke with charles who said Ford was not responsible for the problem, since this problem was not part of a recall. Shouldn't Ford be concerned about a lemon, even if it is not a common problem? I believe Ford should replace the engine, since its failure is premature.

- Tracy, CA, USA

I used to be a proud owner of a 1997 Ford F150 4.2 liter V6. That was until today when my engine hydrolocked for the third time. The truck now has 164000 miles on it, however, the first time happened at approx. 110000 miles. After doing some research it was discovered that this is a common problem with the V6 engines, and that Ford will not do anything do to the "high" miles. I replaced the engine with a complete new short bock, and the recommended by Ford 4mm head gaskets instead of the 3mm that they originally installed. This engine lasted another approx 20000 miles before it hydrolocked again. This time it was repaired under the warranty from the engine supplier...thankfully. Now, however there isn't anything to do but replace the engine again. It's not worth much as a running vehicle do to it's age, but as a non-running one it's really worthless. I just hope the someday Ford will be pressured into making some kind of acknowledgement that they have a problem with these engines and at the very least offer advice that truly helps the consumer not just band-aids the issue until it's too late. On a side not I'm not a disgruntled Ford owner I currently own four other Ford vehicles dating from 2003 back to 1986. I just hope maybe I can help get something done by writing this. Thank you for your time.

- Taunton, MA, USA

Normal use of 4.2 V6 Ford engine oil pressure drops to 0 psig at engine idle after trying to fix the problem my self (25 years auto mechanic 17 years aviation tech) and searching the web for others with the same problem and there are thousands I have found the fix is rebuild or replace the engine $2000 - $6000 fomoco should share in this expense but I have not heard of anyone with help from Ford I will state that many have been and will be injured momentarily.

- Collinsville, OK, USA

: the contact stated while traveling 30 mph, the vehicle stalled and would not restart. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The contact determined the spark plug ejected from the cylinder head. The vehicle has not been seen by the dealership, but the manufacturer was alerted.

- San Diego, CA, USA

Started vehicle in driveway, loud bang, white smoke out of tailpipe, and knocking in engine. Mechanic says the engine is ruined - bend rods. One owner vehicle with 55,000 miles.

- Lewiston, ID, USA