2011 Mustang Frustrations

[BizTerp]

So, I've been posting on Allfordmustangs.com about the various issues I've had with my 2011 Mustang GT. I'm just kind of venting here but looking for input on one particular issues that is very troubling to me and I'm sick of the "mine doesn't do it, its your fault" fanboy responses on the Mustang forum. I really enjoy the group of MM owners we have here and feel like this is one of the best auto forums I've been a part of, so I just want to blow of some steam to a respected audience.

Anyhow, the first issue I've had with the '11 GT is the MT82 1-2, 2-3 synchro grinding issue that many of you have probably heard of. No one (including Ford) seems to know what's going on there. I'm confident though that there are enough open cases out there that it will be eventually sorted out.

The second issue I discovered yesterday that has me in a twist is that I went to check my oil (car only has 3.5K total miles on it) and to my horror, the dipstick was almost completely dry. I had previously checked the oil at 1K and 2K miles without issue. I borrowed my wife's car this morning to run out to grab a few quarts of oil. It took 4 quarts of oil to return the oil level to the mid mark on the dip stick! The engine holds a total of 6 quarts. I'm freaking out because I have no idea if my engine has been damaged and what could be causing this level of consumption. I worked on a 4-stroke engine development program at work and fully understand that oil can only escape the crank case though one of three ways; 1) the PCV breather, 2) rings (cylinder blow-by), 3) leak in crankcase or oilpan. There's no oil to be found on the garage or driveway, so that leaves option 1 or 2. I'm taking it to the dealer next week to have it looked at. I'm definitely pretty stressed.

Derek

[fastblackmerc]

Sucks to have that happen with a new car....... :(

[RF Overlord]

Derek, I absolutely feel for you...it's very disheartening when something you spent that much money on lets you down. I do have to be honest and say that it's fairly widely known that a brand-new engine *can* use more oil until it's broken in, but your experience does seem out of line; if it used no oil at 1k and at 2k, why would it suddenly use 4 quarts at 3k? I don't have an answer other than there may be some faulty assembly...like all the ring gaps are lined up...that didn't manifest until the motor began to wear in. Dunno...I hope the dealer can find something obvious.

[Ktorres1]

Join performance.com they have plenty of good info on this and seem to be a pretty mature site.

[Ktorres1]

Svtperformance.com

[dohc324ci]

S197forums.com take that sob back to the dealer ASAP.

[GAMike]

Did you take a sample of the remaining oil, before refilling with fresh?

Just wondering if that sample could tell you something if you could get it tested......

Good luck with your investigation. I would be interested to learn what you find out.

[Blackened300a]

So, I've been posting on Allfordmustangs.com about the various issues I've had with my 2011 Mustang GT. I'm just kind of venting here but looking for input on one particular issues that is very troubling to me and I'm sick of the "mine doesn't do it, its your fault" fanboy responses on the Mustang forum. I really enjoy the group of MM owners we have here and feel like this is one of the best auto forums I've been a part of, so I just want to blow of some steam to a respected audience.

Anyhow, the first issue I've had with the '11 GT is the MT82 1-2, 2-3 synchro grinding issue that many of you have probably heard of. No one (including Ford) seems to know what's going on there. I'm confident though that there are enough open cases out there that it will be eventually sorted out.

The second issue I discovered yesterday that has me in a twist is that I went to check my oil (car only has 3.5K total miles on it) and to my horror, the dipstick was almost completely dry. I had previously checked the oil at 1K and 2K miles without issue. I borrowed my wife's car this morning to run out to grab a few quarts of oil. It took 4 quarts of oil to return the oil level to the mid mark on the dip stick! The engine holds a total of 6 quarts. I'm freaking out because I have no idea if my engine has been damaged and what could be causing this level of consumption. I worked on a 4-stroke engine development program at work and fully understand that oil can only escape the crank case though one of three ways; 1) the PCV breather, 2) rings (cylinder blow-by), 3) leak in crankcase or oilpan. There's no oil to be found on the garage or driveway, so that leaves option 1 or 2. I'm taking it to the dealer next week to have it looked at. I'm definitely pretty stressed.

Derek

My friend jut picked up a 11 GT and he has the 1-2 grind as well. He said there was a member on a mustang forum that pulled the trans out of the car in a attempt to fix th problem. What he found was that the shifter is not aligned in the trans and thats why it seems to lock the shifter out of the gate. His fix was to shim it on one side and that aligned the shifter and fixed the issue. Ill try to get a link to the thread. He also has a slight cam cover leak already coming from under the plug cover. Other then that its been fine.

[BizTerp]

My friend jut picked up a 11 GT and he has the 1-2 grind as well. He said there was a member on a mustang forum that pulled the trans out of the car in a attempt to fix th problem. What he found was that the shifter is not aligned in the trans and thats why it seems to lock the shifter out of the gate. His fix was to shim it on one side and that aligned the shifter and fixed the issue. Ill try to get a link to the thread. He also has a slight cam cover leak already coming from under the plug cover. Other then that its been fine.

I did see that post, thanks for mentioning it. Pretty impressive effort in his part. Due to the srtong corredlation to temperature, I'm a little skeptical on the fix. Anyhow, thanks or all of the empathy and helpful suggestions. I'll keep you guys posted. The car is amazing, I just hope I can enjoy it without all the headaches. I think I might try some of the suggested Mustang forums.

Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk

[illwood]

Wow, that is horrible luck you your part. I would definitely take it back to the Ford dealer and see what they can do to help you out. At the very least, I would think that getting this documented would help with a warranty claim if you needed one later on.

[F8LBITEva]

that sucks man. Ive read about this issue and others on SVTP 2011+ section. Must be disappointing. Definitely take it to the dealer and get everything documented. Also try calling the customer service hotline and tell them about this problem. The amount of people complaining about this problem will force them to come up with a solution.

[SpartaPerformance]

My friend jut picked up a 11 GT and he has the 1-2 grind as well. He said there was a member on a mustang forum that pulled the trans out of the car in a attempt to fix th problem. What he found was that the shifter is not aligned in the trans and thats why it seems to lock the shifter out of the gate. His fix was to shim it on one side and that aligned the shifter and fixed the issue. Ill try to get a link to the thread. He also has a slight cam cover leak already coming from under the plug cover. Other then that its been fine.

Jerry's issue is actually 2-3 shift at high RPM. Derek you may also want to check out Stangnet.com and Mustangforums.com. There has been some talk of a the clutch pedal being an issue with shifting also but definately try to find that thread with the shifter plate that Paul wrote about.

[Joe Walsh]

Wow!
Hard to believe that it has 'eaten' that much oil in such a short amount of time/mileage.

Have you looked underneath to see if there is any obvious signs of oil leakage?

Maybe pull the plugs to do a spark plug check and a compression check.

[BizTerp]

Did you take a sample of the remaining oil, before refilling with fresh?

Just wondering if that sample could tell you something if you could get it tested......

Good luck with your investigation. I would be interested to learn what you find out.

I have some on a paper towel that I used to wipe the dip stick. I'm concerned by how dark it is. Thanks for the good suggestion and well wishes.

[BizTerp]

Wow!
Hard to believe that it has 'eaten' that much oil in such a short amount of time/mileage.

Have you looked underneath to see if there is any obvious signs of oil leakage?

Maybe pull the plugs to do a spark plug check and a compression check.

Definitely no oil leakage below the vehicle (I park it in the same spot at my house every day). Great suggestion- I'm certainly going to have the dealer complete a compression test. I hope that it is something simple like a faulty PCV. Still concerned about potential damage though. Errgh.

[BizTerp]

Jerry's issue is actually 2-3 shift at high RPM. Derek you may also want to check out Stangnet.com and Mustangforums.com. There has been some talk of a the clutch pedal being an issue with shifting also but definately try to find that thread with the shifter plate that Paul wrote about.

I'll take a look this weekend. Thanks for pointing me to some good sources of info. on the trans issue. My dealer bled the clutch and inspected its operation and couldn't find any issues. The have not looked at the shifter plate though. I'll discuss with them when I take it in for the oil issue. I can't believe I'm even having to deal with this on a $37K car.

[Vortex]

If its not smoking or leaking Ill bet you are checking your oil level wrong.

[BizTerp]

If its not smoking or leaking Ill bet you are checking your oil level wrong.

Eh? Not a greenhorn here, but thanks for the thoughts. :)

I'm taking it to the dealer tomorrow to have them start looking into it. I'll keep you guys updated.

[tbone]

Do ALL the new Mustangs like your model do it or just a few? If only a few do it, then THAT is your trump card with Ford to get it corrected or get a replacement car. Of course, no car should exhibit this.

[mike P71]

May sound obvious but did you ck to make sure the dip stick tube is positioned correctly. It seems odd that 4qts of oil will get burned in 1000 miles

[BizTerp]

Do ALL the new Mustangs like your model do it or just a few? If only a few do it, then THAT is your trump card with Ford to get it corrected or get a replacement car. Of course, no car should exhibit this.

There are only a handful of complaints on the forum, so it does not appear that this is a widespread issue (like the transmission). One guy did need a new engine at 3.5K miles as he did not discover the issue in time. Obviously, we should all be checking our oil level frequently, but the reality is that overall few people are a diligent with their cars as the group we have here. The vehicle should be designed to meet the needs of the average user, not the 95th percentile. The Coyote is Ford's new modular V8, so it needs to be high-reliability, low maintenance platform to be used across multiple vehicles. I know for sure its going into the F-150 and I feel like in an F-150 it will not get the level of attention it receives from its performance minded Mustang customers. An oil consumption issue in an F-150 engine could be a significant quality/warranty exposure for Ford.

[PonyUP]

There are only a handful of complaints on the forum, so it does not appear that this is a widespread issue (like the transmission). One guy did need a new engine at 3.5K miles as he did not discover the issue in time. Obviously, we should all be checking our oil level frequently, but the reality is that overall few people are a diligent with their cars as the group we have here. The vehicle should be designed to meet the needs of the average user, not the 95th percentile. The Coyote is Ford's new modular V8, so it needs to be high-reliability, low maintenance platform to be used across multiple vehicles. I know for sure its going into the F-150 and I feel like in an F-150 it will not get the level of attention it receives from its performance minded Mustang customers. An oil consumption issue in an F-150 engine could be a significant quality/warranty exposure for Ford.

Well I can only speak for myself, but I ahven't experienced these issues with my 2011 GT, like you I only have just shy of 3000 miles on it, but so far it's been smooth sailing. Hope you get everyting worked out :beer:

[BizTerp]

Well I can only speak for myself, but I ahven't experienced these issues with my 2011 GT, like you I only have just shy of 3000 miles on it, but so far it's been smooth sailing. Hope you get everyting worked out :beer:

Thanks! Glad to hear you aren't having any issues with your 2011 GT. Its no fun being that guy at the dealer with constant issues.

[frdwrnch]

SOP at the dealer will probably be a documented oil consumption test. This is where they will change the oil and mark the drain plug and dipstick. They will ask that you return to the dealer when it needs oil added. Keep in mind that anywhere in the crosshatched area of the stick is normal. We are just conditioned that the top of the stick is full and the bottom is a qt. low. I hope there is an easy explanation. I have a '96 Crown Vic that does not use any oil for the first two thousand miles after an oil change but uses one qt every thousand miles after that. Until I change it again...

[PonyUP]

Thanks! Glad to hear you aren't having any issues with your 2011 GT. Its no fun being that guy at the dealer with constant issues.

Dealers tend to treat their customers poorly, so feel free to give it back to them :beer:, I've certainly had some run ins with my Ford dealer, hopefully they will stand up for you and get this resolved. No thread should ever have to come to being titled Mustang Frustrations, so I hope you can get that beast out kicking ass soon.

[tbone]

My Ford dealer has been fantastic. Marauder, Explorer, E-150. Anything I want, no problem.