Front Drive Unit needs replaced

[lindseybp]

Had the dreaded wrench appear last week. Dropped it off at the dealer last Friday. They just called me to tell me I need a new front drive unit. Won't have the part for two weeks and then another 1.5 - 2 weeks to do the actual work. So I may be without my car for almost a month. To top it all off they were out of loaners so I got a non-electric car from Hertz with 72k miles on it and it looks like it has twice that from the outside! Anyone able to explain what this is (front drive unit) and how significant of an issue this is? Is this more common than I think....just don't remember many of these issues popping up on the forum. Have had zero problems up until the dealer did the HVJ replacement a few weeks ago. Nothing like making a payment and not being able to drive it for a month. Thanks.

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[azerik]

It's the front motor. Pretty big deal but a few GT's have had them fail and a handful of premiums as well. Ford doesn't seem to have spare motors sitting around so they have to shuffle to get one rolling for you. Sorry to hear, hopefully things brighten up soon.

 

[AtomicInternet]

Ask if they can take out the front motor while they wait and give it back to you rear wheel drive. I know you can configure the car to be RWD, not sure how hard it would be to configure. I'm guessing they'll deny it simply because they'll have to put it on a lift, take out the motor, then put it back on the same lift in 2 weeks and put the new one in.

 

[phidauex]

Ask if they can take out the front motor while they wait and give it back to you rear wheel drive. I know you can configure the car to be RWD, not sure how hard it would be to configure. I'm guessing they'll deny it simply because they'll have to put it on a lift, take out the motor, then put it back on the same lift in 2 weeks and put the new one in.

That wouldn't be possible - it is a whole different front axle assembly. The purpose behind the integrated drive module is that the motor, inverter and differential are all a single unit. With the motor removed, there would be nothing for the front axles to connect to.

 

[SonicBlue]

It’s a big deal. You get a new motor. Lucky you!

 

[smoke20]

How many miles on your 22 GT?

 

[Just Lurking]

Would you mind asking for and posting the invoice for what this repair would cost for someone out of warranty? I'm guessing many thousands but I'm curious whether it's closer e.g. to a $3-$4k repair or a $8-$10k repair. Good luck; hope they beat the estimates and get it back to you soon.

 

[lindseybp]

How many miles on your 22 GT?

19.5k

 

[lindseybp]

Would you mind asking for and posting the invoice for what this repair would cost for someone out of warranty? I'm guessing many thousands but I'm curious whether it's closer e.g. to a $3-$4k repair or a $8-$10k repair. Good luck; hope they beat the estimates and get it back to you soon.

will do

 

[Doobster6]

I would be interested in knowing the failure rate for this issue among MMEs by year, and then the same for Tesla cars. Domestic companies suffer the well-earned reputation for forcing engineering compromises to save $1.00. On the other hand Munroe Consultants consistently praise Tesla as being the best engineered cars in their price range bar none. Musk supposedly shaves costs by deleting parts, not compromising them.
This is disappointing because there is an implicit promise that the simplicity of EVs, with fewer moving mechanical parts, would be trouble free for many tens of thousands of miles, and with lower maintenance too. This kind of failure, in under $20k miles, speaks poorly of Ford’s, or their supplier’s, efforts. Please share the specific details of the failure mode when they’re available.

 

[Snakebitten]

But there are already plenty of Mach-E's with over 100,000 miles without a drive unit failure. As much as I can tell from this forum, drive unit failures are far from common.

There are drive unit failures on those Munro worshipped Teslas too.

 

[drkgreen6liter]

My 21 select had front motor failure at 29k , the seal between the electronics failed and leaked all the oil out , my cost for the motor at the tome was $2100, warranty did cover it but it took 2 months to fix.i have 55 k on it now .I'm more carefully on inspecting it for leaks now

 

[Ford Motor Company]

Had the dreaded wrench appear last week. Dropped it off at the dealer last Friday. They just called me to tell me I need a new front drive unit. Won't have the part for two weeks and then another 1.5 - 2 weeks to do the actual work. So I may be without my car for almost a month. To top it all off they were out of loaners so I got a non-electric car from Hertz with 72k miles on it and it looks like it has twice that from the outside! Anyone able to explain what this is (front drive unit) and how significant of an issue this is? Is this more common than I think....just don't remember many of these issues popping up on the forum. Have had zero problems up until the dealer did the HVJ replacement a few weeks ago. Nothing like making a payment and not being able to drive it for a month. Thanks.

Hi there! Will you send us a message with your VIN and your local Ford dealer? I can look into things on my end.

 

[Hartland]

I had a similar problem with a whine in my front motor on my 2021 AWD premium. The motor took a week to get from Germany to UK dealer & 2 days to fit however I only drove the car for 2 days as the dealer made me an very good offer to trade in for a new one 2024 same spec

 

[ARK]

I would be interested in knowing the failure rate for this issue among MMEs by year, and then the same for Tesla cars. Domestic companies suffer the well-earned reputation for forcing engineering compromises to save $1.00. On the other hand Munroe Consultants consistently praise Tesla as being the best engineered cars in their price range bar none. Musk supposedly shaves costs by deleting parts, not compromising them.
This is disappointing because there is an implicit promise that the simplicity of EVs, with fewer moving mechanical parts, would be trouble free for many tens of thousands of miles, and with lower maintenance too. This kind of failure, in under $20k miles, speaks poorly of Ford’s, or their supplier’s, efforts. Please share the specific details of the failure mode when they’re available.

If I recall correctly, Munroe actually praised the front motor of the Mach-E. Tesla has had numerous major component failures over the years. Consumer Reports regularly trashes Tesla for reliability.

If you read a car forum, eventually you will see every issue under the sun crop up. It’s an issue of frequency and so far, a motor failure on a Mach-E remains a very rare thing.

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