I recently found out that after 2018 Ford started plasma lining the cylinder walls on their mustangs. What exactly does this mean & how does that affect the reliability of the vehicle? Looking to buy a brand new V8 Mustang and trying to get 300K+ miles out of it and was just concerned.
DO NOT BUY IT.
@Daywalker linked one of my many posts on this subject.
Until 2018, Ford had only done plasma lining in their limited edition Shelby vehicles. It wasn't working there either as you can read on the internet about the Shelby 350 and 350R oil consumption problems. For whatever reason (saving money), they still decided in 2018 to start using the process on all of their 5.0L V8 vehicles. It has been nothing but a nightmare since. Oil consumption is the number 1 complaint on 2018+ F150's on carcomplaints.com with an average starting mileage of 5,600 miles.
Since you are specifically talking Mustangs, they have the same issues and a few additional including:
1. A/C failure
2. Transmission issues across the range
3. Oil consumption
4. The "BBQ" tick
Here are some links where members of the Mustang community are discussing these issues:
https://www.stangnet.com/mustang-forums/threads/2020-mustang-gt-abs-problems.917514/
https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/threads/engine-replacement-warranty-process.128606/
And a couple of YouTube videos:
And here is how well Ford stands behind (they DON'T) their product:
2/5/2019 7718 - 2011-2019 Mustang/F-150 - 5.0L Tick Tap And/or Typewriter Noise At Idle
Some 2011-2019 Mustang and F-150 vehicles equipped with a 5.0L engine may exhibit a ticking noise at idle after an engine oil change. It is often referred to as typewriter noise because of its similarity to the sound of a mechanical typewriter. The noise in question may be heard on some engines when engine temperatures reach 150°F (65°C) or higher and engine speed is at idle up to approximately 1700 RPM's. It can typically be heard at the front wheel well, and is often isolated to the transmission bell housing or oil pan area. typewriter noise is not detrimental to engine function or durability and has no short or long term effects on the engine. This an operating characteristic of the 5.0L engine and no repairs should be attempted.
Typical aluminum engine blocks are manufactured with cast-in-place dry sleeves (in each cylinder). The cylinder sleeve is basically placed into the mold when the aluminum cast is poured to form the cylinder block. On some aluminum engine blocks there are no sleeves; instead, the aluminum cylinders are coated with a nickel silicone alloy or some other special plasma coatings that are supposed to resist wear and offer longevity, durability and a improved ring seal. However, this is causing some issues in Ford’s Coyote V8 engines in 2018+ MY Mustang GTs (including Ford F-150s). See the post below by one of our esteemed members Mod_Man. But right now it is hard to recommend the Gen 3 Coyote to anyone, esp. if you plan to keep long term.
Link: https://carkiller.com/scottykilmer/qa/2018-ford-mustang-5-0l-questions/
