first, let me say thanks to everyone who's put so much time into sharing information and helping other people. Hopefully one day I'll have a chance to be the guy who has the right information at the right time and can help turn somebody's project or repair around. Until then, I'm here to learn.
I bought a 2014 PIU with 101k on it's 3.5L in July of this year. I was instantly sold on EcoBoosts and as i learned more about them i became more and more of an EcoBoost nut.
My story, however hit a brick wall 2 weeks ago on my way home from work when I decided that I was going to give it some throttle at the last stop sign before my driveway. Seconds later there was a dull pop and power instantly dropped to almost nothing. I pulled in the driveway and could smell oil burning and saw smoke from the front of my hood. My heart sank when i saw that puddle of oil and a steady stream coming from somewhere behind the grill.
Worst fears were confirmed by the nickel-sized hole missing from the block behind where the AC compressor was. The shop I use found a donor engine with only 10k on it and i officially got back on the road Thursday evening. The mechanic somehow missed the distinct whine that i heard pulling out of the lot, and a leak was confirmed with underwhelming performance when i opened it up. I found a crack in the bottom of my front turbo inlet tube right over the boot connecting to the turbo, so as soon as they can get one in I'll hopefully be back 100% once again.
If there's anything about the failure and recovery you think might help you out, I'll do my best to answer whatever questions you've got.
Thanks again for letting me join your party.
-Nick