Hi all,

We have a 2020 ford Edge that we bought new. This is our second edge and until recently we loved this car. We got it with the tow package and it tows our boat with out complaint. 

 However, a couple of weeks ago I picked up a nail in one of the tires and brought it to the Ford garage to have it plugged. They plugged it but told me my tires are all wearing at different rates and at least one won't pass inspection. They suggested an alignment and all new tires. This seemed strange as the car just turned 18,000 miles, but I checked the tires and yep, there is not much tread left. So, new tires and an alignment are in our future for one thousand plus bucks.

 This week a " check charging system" warning came on, so back to the garage. Now we need a new alternator, with diagnosing and R&R the alternator going for eighteen hundred bucks. I looked it up and the average life of an alternator is supposed to be 6-8 years at 80,000-120,000 miles. As I said we are losing confidence in this car especially as I'm a nut for maintenance and always keep the fluids and tire pressure up. Is this the best we can expect from cars in this day and age? We are at the point we are thinking maybe we should trade it for a newer car?

 So if you would be so kind as to offer an opinion, what would you do? Put the money into this car and hope nothing else happens with it, or spend the  $$$ for a newer car. We are not really well off, ( on fixed incomes) but this is our only car and we need to depend on it.

       Thanks

   

Well it's definitely premature wear on the tires and premature alternator failure.

 

The wife's last car " Hyundai Santa Fe" behaved similar and she got sick and tired of driving my Jeep while her car was at the dealer.

Fast-forward -

We sold it and bought a dependable Honda CRV.

I can understand normal maintenance but parts failing well before there time can be frustrating and sometimes intolerable.

Good luck 

I am the type who, like you, maintain my vehicles well, put a lot of miles on them and expect them to last.  You say you are on a fixed income and that indicates you are watching your $$$.  In my world, the price of a repair is directly related to the value of the vehicle.  When the repairs are getting near the value, it’s time to go.  BUT….there is something to be said about the “devil you know” vs starting over with a new vehicle.  With your issues so early on in ownership, I would be at the dealer asking some serious questions.  If I couldn’t get any good answers or possibly a “Goodwill” discount, I’d be pressing them for top dollar trade in on a different model.  I have a 2016 Silverado High Country with the 5.3 and 8 speed transmission.  It currently has 105,000.  I bought it brand new.  There are some known problems with the lifters and the transmission in my truck.  Things that are beyond my control through proper maintenance.  All you can do is keep your maintenance up to date and your fingers crossed.  My truck has paid for itself with the mileage (almost all towing boats) so I may shoulder one of the major failures but not both. 

Thanks for the replies. We had planned on this vehicle being with us for the long haul, now I'm not so sure. As you can see we put only 18,000 miles on it in almost five years , so very low mileage per year. We are both retired and don't travel much.

 As an update-- We just heard back from the ford garage. The alternator they ordered got lost in the mail ( so they say) and is now in Tennessee. They say they ordered another one but now our car won't be done until late Mon. or Tues. Never thought an alternator was so rare of a part to get😒. At least we have a loaner car to use.  

that is low miles.  I would fix it.   it is weird all the tires went wonky separately.  could be anything.   the alt?  yea..bad apple probably.  I bet your battery is limping at this point with bad-love from an alternator.   the alternator isn't covered by the Ford Warranty?  any suspension bits like bushings that went bad and trashed your tires sound like warranty stuff as well.  or did all that expire?  I dont buy fords, so I dont know their warranty details.  

 

some (very) friendly constructive criticism if you dont mind.  you say you are a nut for maintenance on your vehicles.  you gotta keep an eye out for uneven tire wear.   i almost habitually look at tire treads.  even if I get into a friends car for lunch, I've been known to comment, "oh..almost time for tires?"  when I wash my cars, I finger the tire tread.  always.  I am also a nut for maintenance.  and I get them rotated.  

 

back to your ford.  if you are not under warranty, I would get an independent shop to look into the troubles.  

3 hours ago, Darth-Baiter said:

 you gotta keep an eye out for uneven tire wear.

Just lazy on my part. Need reading glasses to see close up, don't usually have them with me outside, plus bad back, bending over not as much fun as it used to be. Always checked the tire pressure on the dash read out. Guess I added air as needed with out looking at the treads that closely. Guess I thought 18K miles was to soon to worry about tread that much. What's odd is every tire wore evenly across the tire, just each tire has different tread life left. Car is as needed AWD. Now I'm wondering if that somehow contributed to it.

3 hours ago, Darth-Baiter said:

if you are not under warranty,

Car is still under the drivetrain warranty but the alternator is not part of it so not covered. 

A friend of mine who owned an independent auto shop and sold tires, told me a lot of auto companies use cheaper tires with less initial tread to save a few bucks. I wonder if this is the case with your car?

 

In addition to tread depth, tire pressure is something to check regularly as it can also affect wear.

 

 

On 6/13/2025 at 1:15 PM, TOXIC said:

When the repairs are getting near the value, it’s time to go.

I see this a lot. People put thousands of dollars into repairs when the vehicle isn’t even worth the value of the repairs. Over and over and over.

15 hours ago, gim said:

I see this a lot. People put thousands of dollars into repairs when the vehicle isn’t even worth the value of the repairs. Over and over and over.

this makes sense if you dont have the money to plunk down on something newer/better.    prices on good newer used vehicles is tall hurdle for people.    you hopefully chose wisely when you bough the existing rig and keep it on the road, while saving money.   I have some friends that keep kicking the "saving money" hurdle over.  

Sorry to hear of your issues.

 

Wow, I replaced an alternator just recently and it cost around $300 for the alternator. I could have gotten it for 1/3 if I'd had time to order it online. I had it on within an hour though.

 

As a retired mechanic i replaced my dads alternator on his 2002 chevy trailblazer. Bought the alt at oriellys for 200.00 and replaced it myself.

I did go on you tube to watch a couple videoe of it being done  and glad i did as there was a hidden bolt and tough to get to without the proper tool, a wobble extension for 3/8 drive did the trick allowing the socket to move a bit when attachted to extension and then be able to move and get on the bolt head.

 

I have replaced orings in my honda power steering pump which was making a squeeling sound when just sitting at a stop light, i researched you tube and watched how to do it, if i brought it into the shop the dealer would probably have just replaced the whole pump for 800.00 with labor.

When I was poor I took the quanity over quality approach and had a fleet of 20 years old manual poverty boxes you can keep running cheaply idenfinitely.  When one is down #2 becomes the new primary and #3 becomes the backup.  

I used to be a Ford man... until I bought a Toyota. My wife has a 16 Edge and that car is literally falling apart.

On 6/13/2025 at 10:21 AM, jbmaine said:

So if you would be so kind as to offer an opinion, what would you do? Put the money into this car and hope nothing else happens with it, or spend the  $$$ for a newer car.

 

I'm surprised the alternator isn't covered under warranty. 

 

To answer your question, if you can afford to switch brands, I'd go Toyota.  I've driven Japanese cars/trucks since 1991, logged 700,000+ miles between them all and here's my list of repairs: 

1.  Power steering rack on 1991 Nissan Sentra SE-R, covered under warranty.
2. Defective frame on my 1999 Toyota Tacoma.  Toyota paid me $12,900 to take the truck.
3. Trailer brake controller in my current 2017 Toyota Tundra, covered under warranty.

I've worked on almost every brand out there since the late 1980's.

 

Good luck with your car.

@DogBone_384 is spot on with his advice. Previously I owned 11 different Toyota models including Corna, Camry, 4-Runner, Avalon & Celica with multiple Camry, Celica & 4-Runner models. Other than normal maintenance I only had to replace one battery & one muffler. Never any engine parts or suspension parts need replacement. We did trade vehicles between 50-80 thousand miles. 

You guys are making a good point for Toyota. Thanks

My wife had a 97 Cougar that lasted 14 years with just normal maintenance, and a 2011 Fusion that went for 11 years.  The Fusion started to nickel and dime us. Each month something small would go out.  We ended up trading it for a used 2020 Fusion.   I just found out my 2017 Camry, with 116,XXX miles, is going to need brake work done in the front.  

I drive a 2006 4Runner as my daily driver. 180,000 miles without a major issue.

When we were buying a car for my wife, I always asked the salesmen ‘what’s the best/most reliable daily driver’ and the majority answer across several different dealers and lots including non-Toyota lots was Toyota Camry or Corolla. They’re just reliable and built to take some neglect. 

On 6/19/2025 at 2:17 PM, jbmaine said:

You guys are making a good point for Toyota. Thanks

Just replaced my original front rotors and all 4 corners of brake pads after 136K miles. Still had a bit of life left in them. Aside from tires (1st pair went 75K and still on the 2nd pair) and regular oil changes thats the first bit of money I've had to put into my Toyota Tundra. Rear rotors measured 17.6mm after being cut.

 

I'll be sticking with Toyota anywhere possible going forward. 

I’m somewhat in the Toyota camp.  Wife has a 2016 Highlander that she loves and it’s been a good vehicle.  I looked at the Tundra when I was new truck shopping in 2016 and almost dropped the hammer on a 1794 edition V8 but those who I know had them suffered badly with MPG.  Now they don’t offer a V8 option at all, just the turbo’d 6.  I got the supplier discount from Chevy, plus they offered me 3k more in trade.  The real reason I walked was that the Toyota dealer pulled some very shady crap that I caught them in.  I still have a first year model year Lexus SC430 hardtop convertible that I bought as a fun car when I lived in Florida and I commuted in it when I came back to DC.  Now it sits parked in the garage since I retired and I’ve probably put 50 miles on it in 4 years.  I’ve been toying with just selling it but it’s got a 4.3 liter V8 and is a fun little car.  First year of production, hand assembled in Japan and shipped over before they had the tooling set up here.  In Japan they are called Soarers. 

Honda or Subaru ... very reliable ...

 

2 hours ago, GreenTrout said:

Subaru ... very reliable ...

We must be one of the only families ever to find Subaru a bad car brand. We had two Subaru Foresters. The first blew the head gasket at 60K. The second had a variety of strange  issues. The radio crapped out at 20K, the sunroof at 25K and the weirdest electrical issue was every time we drove past a school zone in our neighborhood the door locks would cycle on their own over and over again. We also had an on going disagreement with the Subaru dealership where we bought it. We had a brake caliper seize up and eat the brake pads just after the initial warranty expired. We wanted the dealership to help with the cost as we thought it had to be a defective part. They refused and said it was because we didn't drive it enough. ( we drove it around 200 miles a week) We paid to have it fixed. A year later another caliper on another wheel did the same thing. We got rid of the car. We'll never have another Subaru.   

@TOXIC, I was going to keep my dad's 2005 Tundra after he passed.  I filled it up on a Friday morning drove it to work, back home, and ran errands over the weekend,  The gas tank on Sunday afternoon showed between 1/4 and 1/8 full.  No way I could afford to fill that tank up 2X a week as a daily driver.  When we traded it for another Toyota, the salesman said Tundras are built solid, they don't have a lot of problem, but they get terrible mileage.

2 hours ago, jbmaine said:

We must be one of the only families ever to find Subaru a bad car brand. We had two Subaru Foresters. The first blew the head gasket at 60K. The second had a variety of strange  issues. The radio crapped out at 20K, the sunroof at 25K and the weirdest electrical issue was every time we drove past a school zone in our neighborhood the door locks would cycle on their own over and over again. We also had an on going disagreement with the Subaru dealership where we bought it. We had a brake caliper seize up and eat the brake pads just after the initial warranty expired. We wanted the dealership to help with the cost as we thought it had to be a defective part. They refused and said it was because we didn't drive it enough. ( we drove it around 200 miles a week) We paid to have it fixed. A year later another caliper on another wheel did the same thing. We got rid of the car. We'll never have another Subaru.   

https://www.consumerreports.org/cars/subaru/

To Each His Own ... 

 

2 hours ago, GreenTrout said:

To Each His Own

 I know, it seems like everyone loves Subaru's. I wish we could have said the same.