how is the ford 2.5 liter engine?

[jstert]

how is ford's non turbo, 2.5 liter engine found on the escape s? i prefer simple and proven reliable over powerful and complex.

i chose my 2013 passat over a 2014 precisely because the former has vw's venerable five cylinder 2.5 non turbo. despite the professional automotive journalists' disdain for vw's 2.5, it has been reliable and peppy, getting 25mph surburban and 35mpg highway on east coast. no issues with my passat but i may need to transition to a small suv.

thanks in advance for your thoughts.

 

[dogememe]

Excellent engine, very reliable. Just not very powerful... I miss my V6 and V8 vehicles. I'm on my second Escape, my previous one was an 08 that my coworker now has with over 220K miles on the original drivetrain with no major repairs.

 

[SirTanon]

Ford's 2.5 NA engine - the 'L5-VE' engine, technically a "Mazda L engine" - is a solid, reliable, and durable engine. Not what I would call a powerful engine, but it will run and run.. and run.. Maintenance is low, and parts are cheap and easy to find.

Fuel economy is decent too, especially since they're pretty much always mated to the 6F35 6-speed transmission.

FWIW, Ford has been using this engine in multiple vehicles since at least 2009. It has received some tweaks here and there, but it's basically the same engine it was back then.


Also, FWIW - the Fusion in my signature still has the original 2.5 engine in it at 263,000 miles, and still gets me back and forth to work - 55 miles each way - daily.

 

[JLTD]

Originally Posted by SirTanon
Ford's 2.5 NA engine - the 'L5-VE' engine, technically a "Mazda L engine" - is a solid, reliable, and durable engine. Not what I would call a powerful engine, but it will run and run.. and run.. Maintenance is low, and parts are cheap and easy to find.

Fuel economy is decent too, especially since they're pretty much always mated to the 6F35 6-speed transmission.

FWIW, Ford has been using this engine in multiple vehicles since at least 2009. It has received some tweaks here and there, but it's basically the same engine it was back then.


Also, FWIW - the Fusion in my signature still has the original 2.5 engine in it at 263,000 miles, and still gets me back and forth to work - 55 miles each way - daily.


Good writeup. Numerous UOAs here on the 2.5 and always good...solid engine.

 

[benjy]

i too prefer lower tech, but like turbos WITHOUT DI. girlfriend had the VW 2.5 in her 08 Jetta good average mpg's which were better than her 2.5 DI 13 malibu!! i would opt for the 2.5 ford as well, as one DI cleaning will buy a LOT of gas!!! + surely DI related parts are quite $$$$

 

[badtlc]

It is the same as the 2.3L that preceded it and very close to the 2.0L that preceded the 2.3L.

 

[pbm]

I bought a new Escape in 2016 and opted for the 2.5 for the reasons that you cited (reliability and simplicity). I have seen some of these Mazda designed engines with very high miles....like over 400K. I only have 22K on it but it has been very reliable and decent on fuel on longer trips (28-30 @ over 70mph). I would still buy one over the turbo 1.5.

 

[mrsilv04]

Nothing but oil changes every 5,000 miles on the 2.5 that I maintain. It is in a 2011 Fusion SE with 101,000 miles.

 

[SirTanon]

Originally Posted by mrsilv04
Nothing but oil changes every 5,000 miles on the 2.5 that I maintain. It is in a 2011 Fusion SE with 101,000 miles.


Just an FYI - These engines can easily handle 7,500 mile OCI's if you regularly get them to highway speed for more than 5-10 minutes.

 

[mrsilv04]

Originally Posted by SirTanon
Originally Posted by mrsilv04
Nothing but oil changes every 5,000 miles on the 2.5 that I maintain. It is in a 2011 Fusion SE with 101,000 miles.


Just an FYI - These engines can easily handle 7,500 mile OCI's if you regularly get them to highway speed for more than 5-10 minutes.


Oh, I realize that I'm likely changing it too often. The car confirms it, as the oil life monitor on it is usually right around 50% at the 5,000 mile mark.

Why 5,000 mile changes? This is my sister's car, and a 5,000 mile OCI makes it easy for her to tell me when it needs an oil change.... I change it on the 5's and 0's. She's in her 50's and divorced, so there's no one else to look after the car for her. If she happens to go a bit over on miles before I can get it changed (an extra week or two) , then there's still nothing to worry about.

It also gives me the opportunity to look the car over, so maybe I can catch a small issue before it becomes a big issue.

I just looked at my spreadsheet, and she's putting right at 25,000 miles a year on it. A bit fewer than you, but fairly close. She'll likely drive this car 3 more years before getting rid of it.

 

[Number_35]

Our '09 Mazda 5 has the 2.3 litre Ford/Mazda Duratec, the smaller predecessor to the 2.5. It's been a good engine - no repairs required at this point (154xxx km, so about 96K miles). It has enough power for the application, and is easy on fuel.

I have never changed the PCV valve because the intake manifold must be removed for access. I changed plugs once, around 100K km.

The one strange thing is that the oil always gets dark quickly. This is after over 100K km on synthetic with changes averaging about 8K km, so I can't imagine that the engine is dirty..

 

[dogememe]

Originally Posted by Number_35
Our '09 Mazda 5 has the 2.3 litre Ford/Mazda Duratec, the smaller predecessor to the 2.5. It's been a good engine - no repairs required at this point (154xxx km, so about 96K miles). It has enough power for the application, and is easy on fuel.

I have never changed the PCV valve because the intake manifold must be removed for access. I changed plugs once, around 100K km.

The one strange thing is that the oil always gets dark quickly. This is after over 100K km on synthetic with changes averaging about 8K km, so I can't imagine that the engine is dirty..

Odd, I do 7.5k-15k ocis on my 2.5 and the oil doesn't look nasty quickly or even towards the end of the oci. Are you the first owner?

 

[Best F100]

180,000 on my 2.5L, 2010, Ford Fusion Hybrid. Still going strong. No engine related issues. I expect another 180,000 out of it (in spite of my NON preventative maintenance minded son driving it).

Timing chain used here, instead of a timing belt equals very little to go wrong.

Used Motorcraft 5W20 blend & Full synthetic the first 100,000 miles. Mobil 1 0W20 from 100,000 to 180,000.

 

[Number_35]

Originally Posted by dogememe
Originally Posted by Number_35
Our '09 Mazda 5 has the 2.3 litre Ford/Mazda Duratec, the smaller predecessor to the 2.5. It's been a good engine - no repairs required at this point (154xxx km, so about 96K miles). It has enough power for the application, and is easy on fuel.

I have never changed the PCV valve because the intake manifold must be removed for access. I changed plugs once, around 100K km.

The one strange thing is that the oil always gets dark quickly. This is after over 100K km on synthetic with changes averaging about 8K km, so I can't imagine that the engine is dirty..

Odd, I do 7.5k-15k ocis on my 2.5 and the oil doesn't look nasty quickly or even towards the end of the oci. Are you the first owner?

No, but we've owned the car since May 2013 when it had only 52K km on it, so if it had been sludged I would have expected it to clean up by now!

 

[SubieRubyRoo]

It's solid. I pulled some strings and got UOA data on over 200 different Ford/Mazda 2.5s and I crunched some quick numbers. There were only 3 cars that had what I would call "catastrophic" UOAs, but I only have the data itself, no background on the usage or failure. The remaining samples all averaged out less than 1.3ppm Fe/1k miles, and between SirTanon and myself we accounted for about maybe 15? of the samples. It's super solid; slap a 20 weight in, change every 7500-10k miles, and drive it forever.

I've gone as long as 17.2k on PUP, but there were 2-3 OCIs that had longer mileage noted than I did, so maybe if I used Amsoil and an EaO filter I'd go 25k... but I wouldn't hit that in 12 months, so it's kinda moot.

 

[Spector]

Originally Posted by Best F100
180,000 on my 2.5L, 2010, Ford Fusion Hybrid. Still going strong. No engine related issues. I expect another 180,000 out of it (in spite of my NON preventative maintenance minded son driving it).

Timing chain used here, instead of a timing belt equals very little to go wrong. Used Motorcraft 5W20 blend & Full synthetic the first 100,000 miles. Mobil 1 0W20 from 100,000 to 180,000.


I have the same engine in my 2012 MKZ hybrid, not sure if the Atkinson 2.5 is the same as the 2.5 placed in other Ford vehicles? Question, are you still on the original hybrid batteries? Dealer is saying it would cost between 4,000-5,000 to replace mine if they go.

 

[Best F100]

Originally Posted by Spector
Originally Posted by Best F100
180,000 on my 2.5L, 2010, Ford Fusion Hybrid. Still going strong. No engine related issues. I expect another 180,000 out of it (in spite of my NON preventative maintenance minded son driving it).

Timing chain used here, instead of a timing belt equals very little to go wrong. Used Motorcraft 5W20 blend & Full synthetic the first 100,000 miles. Mobil 1 0W20 from 100,000 to 180,000.


I have the same engine in my 2012 MKZ hybrid, not sure if the Atkinson 2.5 is the same as the 2.5 placed in other Ford vehicles? Question, are you still on the original hybrid batteries? Dealer is saying it would cost between 4,000-5,000 to replace mine if they go.













Same engine.

Original hybrid battery, original air filter (it is supposed to be lifetime), original timing chain. On Ford Escape Hybrids the hybrid batteries were still going strong at 500,000 miles on NYC taxis. I would not worry about it. Just keep driving. This series engine and car are bulletproof.

One replacement brake pads at 120,000 miles. One replacement 12 volt regular battery @ about $110.

 

[miden851]

yes 2.3l and 2.5l are engineered by Mazda; long lasting and fuel efficient for sure

 

[leeaspell]

The wifes 2013 fusion has the 2.5. Not as good on fuel as the 2013 elantra she had previously but it is a bigger car and we run winter tires year round. Seems like a solid platform, the transmission behind it maybe not so much

 

[Patman]

Originally Posted by mrsilv04


Oh, I realize that I'm likely changing it too often. The car confirms it, as the oil life monitor on it is usually right around 50% at the 5,000 mile mark.

Why 5,000 mile changes? This is my sister's car, and a 5,000 mile OCI makes it easy for her to tell me when it needs an oil change.... I change it on the 5's and 0's. She's in her 50's and divorced, so there's no one else to look after the car for her. If she happens to go a bit over on miles before I can get it changed (an extra week or two) , then there's still nothing to worry about.

It also gives me the opportunity to look the car over, so maybe I can catch a small issue before it becomes a big issue.

I just looked at my spreadsheet, and she's putting right at 25,000 miles a year on it. A bit fewer than you, but fairly close. She'll likely drive this car 3 more years before getting rid of it.


5 oil changes a year sounds like a lot more work than necessary! Why not have her on a 10k schedule? Just as easy to remember, and you'd spend less time working on it. You could still catch the small issues before they become big ones even with 10k inspections, some people don't even get their cars really looked at that often.