NHTSA Complaint #11550740 — 2016 FORD MUSTANG

My car is a single owner car, that has documentation of regular oil changes, engine upkeep, and general maintenance since its purchase in 2016. No major issues had been experienced until August, 2023. While driving the car home from work, I felt an immediate loss of power from the engine, my a/c went out, and an error flashed saying the temperature sensor for the cylinder heads showed the engine was overheating. So, in 100+ °F weather, I pulled the car over and turned it off. I let it sit for just over 15 minutes before turning it back on, only to find the car was still in failsafe mode. With less than five miles to return home, I drove, a car that refused to get up to 25 mph in the blazing heat (and no a/c), back home. I immediately called my local Ford dealership and set up an appointment to bring it in the next week, their soonest available appointment. In the meantime, I had to find people to carpool to work with. The next Monday, the car is brought in, and that day I’m informed the cylinder head cracked and I’d need a new engine. I couldn’t believe it. I’d always taken care of my car, never put it under any type of undue stress, how could the cylinder head have cracked? The dealership explained the damage was due to a well-known defect in the design of the engine. I was still flabbergasted. The engine fails, not through fault of the user, but from bad design on the part of the manufacturer, and I’m still the one responsible to pay $8,000 for a new engine? I am disappointed Ford put out a car with engines that WILL eventually fail, and then chooses to force their customers to be financially responsible for their error. My engine losing power with absolutely no notice could have resulted in a life threatening car accident had I chosen to drive the freeway that day, or could have forced me into unsafe situations had I been traveling. I will never buy a Ford again based on this experience and the business practices displayed.