TourGuide

My current edge has this problem and I am pretty sure it is a tire tread pattern issue with grooved pavement. The bridgestones I'm driving on came new with this car (used purchase) and they have three deep center channels that run the circumference of the tire. It is my theory that these channel edges catch the grooves and walk with them until they change direction leading to the 'walk back and forth' motion from the rear end. It is my belief that any tire with pronounced center channels will have this problem. I've driven the same grooved roads before with nokian tires and not experienced the same motion. This is my professional amateur pseudoscientific theory of tire drift on grooved pavement.

A sound that changes with speed and steering direction like that in my experience is usually a wheel bearing. One that loud should be pretty easy for a mechanic to find. Those will often lead to ABS sensor errors when they get really bad. Pretty common problem as a vehicle ages if that is what it is.

It sounds like the former owner(s) of this edge didn't believe in maintaining those parts. The front differential Ford calls the Power Transfer Unit (PTU) and has been notably harder to service when it lacks a drain plug. These can leak over time and either need to be replaced or have the seals replaced to repair them. Sometimes the seal replacement works sometimes not. Rear differential usually just needs to be replaced when it expires. The two problems are usually unrelated to each other. The bottom line is that both tend to be bigger jobs (more $) the last time I saw someone post a figure for the PTU it was around $1800 and the rear differential replacement I haven't seen anyone give a figure for but imagine it would be a similar amount or more. If this is in the budget you want a tech working on this who knows what they are doing and will stand behind their work. Sorry to hear about the trouble - good luck.

He cracks me up with the props - good information there - something I have long suspected now backed up with data.

I ran a can of BG44K cleaner through a few weeks ago. I gained ~2 mpg from this I believe after looking at the mileage. I am pretty sure this edge had never had the injector cleaner treatment before this. So if you have an edge with more than 60K and have never had it done - I would say it is worth it. I also switched at the last oil change to Valvoline restore and protect. I have had good results with my wife's escape on this oil - so I will see how it does in the Edge.

I will admit to being a bit of a maintenance overkill kind of guy. I grew up with a dad who didn't believe in worrying about things like changing the oil in our small engines and such. He seemed surprised every time when it would start 'making odd noises' then stop working. When the current state of our geopolitical situation gets to me - I like to direct my attention to other things - like oil pump belts. It helps me feel more in control of my situation. This belt is a silly design weakness in this engine - similar to the lack of a drain plug in some of the ptu units for the awd models.

If I end up going for this repair and the car has lasted that long trouble free - I would do the sprockets too. The labor involved in taking the front of the motor apart would almost make skipping that step silly I think.

The chain guides system as well as the chain itself are all wear items to a degree (moving parts). In addition to changing out that oil pump belt - which in my case is the main motivation personally - changing out those items ensures that this engine goes the distance for me as I plan to drive this vehicle as far as it will take me. It is a big job since the entire front of the engine comes off - so preventative maintenance I guess is the ultimate goal. My economic assessment is that it is cheaper to maintain/repair than buy new these days. I'll see - maybe someone will arrive on the scene with an EV that is reasonably priced - don't laugh - it could happen....

The only way to get a visual on this belt is to drop the oil pan, or disassemble the entire front of the engine. This video IS an example of an engine that had maintenance neglected - the concern is clearly the mileage of this engine. I look at this video and think - crap - MY engine has 80k on the clock. I was planning to go to 100k before doing a timing set and replace this belt then.

I love my 2.7 for what it is and how much fun I get out of it. The more I learn about the oil pump belt in these engines the more concerned I get. I am putting a link here to a teardown video of another Ford engine - the 3 cyl. 1.5 with the same style belt at 70k. Teardown video. The condition of this belt, at that mileage is - well - verification of the problem I think.

Volkswagen and BMW are off the menu for me. Check this out: OEMs upsell features and horsepower.

I have as well. Thumbs up from me. Mine has information about my ESP, etc. Manual and wiring diagram - love it - pdf format, so it is a big file, but I love that it is searchable.

Michelins seem a good option for climates like Phoenix where you are worried most about things like performance in the heat, rain, and treadware.

Ford must get a deal on the Hankook tires (besides all the other reasons they may pick them), because my original Edge 16 Sport had those on it. I didn't like them - they did not seem to do the job in the winter to my liking. For my climate it is Nokian tires for me. I usually run the WRG5 variety.

The 2.0 is known to be hard on the trans fluid, so refreshing it on the early side seems like a good call. I try to live by the motto - It is cheaper to replace the fluid than the part. In this specific case - a lot cheaper.