Ford Problems

There are lots of potential causes for this sort of behaviour, starting with an alternator that is not working properly or even a body computer that is on the way out. But these symptoms are also a classic indication of a very simple problem; a poor earth somewhere on the car. A modern car has multiple earthing points, and if one is a bit sketchy, it can throw the whole car into chaos. Flickering lights and gauges and warning lights on the dashboard are classic indicators of a bad earth. If that’s the case here, an auto electrician should be able to chase down the fault and fix it permanently.

Ford’s EcoBoost engines have a bit of a track record with blown head gaskets thanks to the fundamental design of the crankcase where it meets the cylinder head. Given the relatively high turbo-boost pressure some of these engines use to produce their impressive performance, the head gasket can fail.

But it’s also fair to say that this engine design has also seen its share of overheating problems, blown turbochargers and coolant leaks (often into the cylinders). With that in mind, don’t bother guessing what the problem is, allow a mechanic to inspect the engine and give you a professional opinion based on facts.

There was a recall for a batch of manual-transmission Rangers built between 2015 and 2016 which had a poorly installed clip on the gearshift cable on the production line. Your car is from an earlier batch, but it’s not inconceivable that the problem is the same one.

The cable clip in question could allow the cable that operates the gear changes to make contact with the car’s driveshaft. At that point, gear-changing could become difficult or even impossible, which sounds pretty much like your symptoms. Check with a Ford dealer to see if your vehicle was covered by this recall.

It doesn’t take much of a leak to allow enough rainwater into a car to wet the carpets. Given your car is a 2018 model, I’d be surprised if the rubber seals have deteriorated to any great extent. The best bet is to open the doors and hatch and have a close look at the surface of the seals. If there’s a nick or a cut in the rubber, you’ve probably found the problem. But also look for a twig or other piece of rubbish that could be stuck to the rubber and be forming a gap for the water to enter.

If the front floors were wet, the advice would also be to check the drain hose for the air-conditioner, but if it’s the rear floors, it’s almost certainly rainwater. Don’t forget the obvious stuff like a window that looks closed but is actually open a fraction.

Some Ford Ranger owners have reported that the hoses that carry coolant to the engine’s EGR valve have failed, allowing coolant to escape. This is one of the more common ways for this engine to lose coolant.

The problem with no warning showing up on the dashboard has more to do with physics. The warning light is triggered by the temperature of the coolant it’s submerged in. If the engine loses enough coolant, the sensor is suddenly not contacting the hot water and it ceases to give a reading or, therefore, trigger a warning. This is not a Ford Ranger thing, but a common problem faced by car owners over many decades.

This transmission has a finite lifespan and when they die, they sometimes just stop working as yours appears to have done. An automatic specialist will know the telltale signs of this and should be able to diagnose the problem.

But don’t give up hope; you might find the problem is simply a low fluid level in the transmission. Low fluid can certainly provide the symptoms you’re seeing. However, if that’s the case, then you’re chasing a leak, because these transmissions are a sealed system and shouldn’t need periodic topping up.

When you say you have fuel, spark and air. How sure are you? These are not complicated engines and given all three of those things are present, the thing is kind of obliged to run. For instance, while you might be able to hear the fuel pump running (suggesting that fuel is being supplied) have you checked the fuel volume and pressure at the injector rail? Similarly, while there may be power at the coil packs, are the spark plugs actually doing their job?

Beyond that, you need to start looking for an alternative problem and, in engines like this one, you’d probably start with things like the crank-angle sensor which supplies information to the computer to allow the engine to fire. If this – or any other – sensor is dodgy, it can put a stop to play. An electronic scan might reveal more clues.

The symptoms here point to a stuck flasher relay. This is the electrical component that not only powers the indicator lights, but makes them flash (and produces the steady clicking sound you hear when the indicators are on). The contacts in these units can become stuck at which point the lights can become stuck on.

Why does it still happen when the ignition is off? Because the flasher relay is powered up even when the ignition is not. That’s so you can have the emergency hazard-warning lights flashing even though the vehicle is locked and the keys in your pocket. A new flasher relay unit should fix it.

It might be a case of super-fast overheating, but one would expect the temperature needle to take more than 15 seconds to go from normal to dangerously hot. You could have a broken or faulty gauge, a short-circuiting wire somewhere in the gauge’s wiring or even a temperature sender unit that is giving false readings to the gauge once it gets to a certain temperature.

The first thing to do is work out just how hot the engine really is getting. You can do this with an external temperature gauge or an infra-red thermometer that can be bought for a few dollars. Aim the infra-red beam at the top tank of the radiator, or the top radiator hose and see what reading you get. You should see a value of between 85 and 95 degrees Celsius. At which point, the engine wouldn’t appear to be overheating (provided your new thermostat is working properly).

By the way, the coolant being under pressure when the engine is at operating temperature is perfectly normal. It’s why you shouldn’t remove the cap on the expansion tank when the engine is hot as you can easily get burnt by the escaping coolant. Modern engines pressurise their cooling systems to actually raise the boiling point of the coolant and make their cooling systems more efficient.