I'M IN SHOCK

[REDBIRDSC]

Took my Bird in today for an oil change, intermittent check engine light and a wheel noise from the rear wheel.

Keep in mind she purrs like a kitten and drives great !

Lincoln dealer says three COPS are "going bad". He recommends replacement of those, eight spark plugs and an induction cleaning- $719 !!

The rear noise is the bearings "going bad" -- $1,418 !!

This is hard for me to believe considering how well the car drives.

Anybody smell anything funny here ?

[luvbirdz]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

What milage do you have on the Bird?

COPs does not appear to be as much a problem with 02's as the later years and I have never replaced a bearing in a car in my over 40 years of driving. Just wondering when I might have to be watching out for this ( or getting a repair manual )
Martin

[Gobird]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

Get a second opinion to start with.

[Mintgrn]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

A second on the second opinion.

[Bill Brown]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

Ditto second opinion.

[5bird7]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

luvbirdz - check the cop polls - the 02s are outnumbering the 03s in cops problems on both polls.

[Leroy]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

Sal,
Any of these repairs covered under your Warranty? What is COPS?
Leroy

[MATBird]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

Leroy; It Coils on plugs. Each plug has it's own coil. Some Birds have had problems with them. Use the search function above to get caught up...

[REDBIRDSC]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

My Bird only has 18k miles...

They also hit me with a $140 "diagnostic fee".

Ugggghhhh...

[taflocks]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

my r/r bearing went bad under warranty

[My Raven]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

Second opinion with a mechanic you trust if have one.

[5bird7]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

Jeff, find an independent mechanic that you trust and get that 2nd opinion.

Plugs are good to 100,000 miles.

Coils (c.o.p.s) can go at any time from our experiences on this site but you'd be feeling a loss of power when starting up from a stop if there were 3 bad coils unless you're pussy footing the gas pedal. Do a few quick starts from lights or try going up some hills and see if you feel any misses. Don't be afraid to stomp on it.

Is the intermittent engine light doing this constantly? or just occasionnaly? if either, it might be something else such as the air filter needing changing. or a sensor not working right.

as for the noise from the wheels, I don't have any experience and you need that 2nd opinion for that, too.

[REDBIRDSC]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

The car runs great and does not skip under any conditions. It takes a little longer to start sometimes is the only thing I have noticed- followed by a little smoke from the tailpipes.

The check engine light will come on for a few days and then go off for a few days. Then it will come back on for a while and then go off for a while. It seems to run in a cycle back and forth.

[jettbird]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

I'm a new member but I have owned my 03 bird for three years. At 20,000 miles my rear wheel bearing started humming and the bill was $1400.00. Unfortunately, my warranty from Ford had expired at 36 months; so I forked over the bucks out of pocket. I now have 30,000 miles on the car with flawless performance. I also have an extended warranty now. The car was stored awhile before I bought it and I think that may be the cause of most of the problems.

Good Luck,

Jim (jettbird)

[marcoroo]

Re: I'M IN SHOCK

The price they quoted you is in line with what I paid. You can tell when they're going bad because you suddenly have no power.