Please post the original picture...Ford already denied you so theres nothing to lose!!
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How can water enter the engine?
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At this point I think you have created a hole that you cannot dig out of with respect to warranty coverage. I'm guessing you took your Bronco to an independent dealer after the incident because you didn't want Ford / dealer to document you had water in your oil/engine and void your warranty. If you would have taken it straight to the dealer you could have shown them...Here's the water line, it's below Ford's limit, and there is water in the oil...Cover it under warranty. This would have given the dealer a chance to follow their procedure to purge the engine and also let them look for the entry point of the water. The engine was running at that point.
Unless you have explained this whole situation to them they do not know you had water in your engine and the flushing fluid / methods used to clean the engine. Even if you truthfully told them this whole story they'll just say "you didn't follow our procedure and you drove the vehicle prior to following our procedure which led to this failure. ".
It sounds like the dealer has a dead engine with limited history. Therefore, they have to assume the water got in the engine from the top end since that is all they know about/see. Why would they be looking for things that failed leading to water entry into the oil system?
As far as them voiding your powertrain warranty if you take it straight to another Ford dealer....First, they've denied you warranty already so you have no engine warranty. Second, I'd be taking this up with Ford arguing you are being held hostage by this dealer. There is no reason your warranty would be void if you towed it directly to another Ford dealer. The issue you will have is again, you will have to explain this whole muddled situation and likely be denied warranty because of the work the independent service dealer did.
Unless you have explained this whole situation to them they do not know you had water in your engine and the flushing fluid / methods used to clean the engine. Even if you truthfully told them this whole story they'll just say "you didn't follow our procedure and you drove the vehicle prior to following our procedure which led to this failure. ".
It sounds like the dealer has a dead engine with limited history. Therefore, they have to assume the water got in the engine from the top end since that is all they know about/see. Why would they be looking for things that failed leading to water entry into the oil system?
As far as them voiding your powertrain warranty if you take it straight to another Ford dealer....First, they've denied you warranty already so you have no engine warranty. Second, I'd be taking this up with Ford arguing you are being held hostage by this dealer. There is no reason your warranty would be void if you towed it directly to another Ford dealer. The issue you will have is again, you will have to explain this whole muddled situation and likely be denied warranty because of the work the independent service dealer did.
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Did you ever check the coolant level? Its pretty clear that you didn't take water in through the intake. Anyone who thinks so has never seen the inside of their airbox after driving on a dirt road.
Also you guys seriously need some better understanding on the difference of the crankcase vs the intake/combusion path if you want to comment on posts like this. Some of these comments are alarming.
To OP shooting from the hip here but I have a few ideas:
I think the dead alternator could have caused some of the rough running and the shady "oil flush" is what killed the bearings. This leaves the water in the oil unexplained though. (Your fault/indy shops fault)
Your engine crankcase has an external leak below the waterline. The engine running in the water creates a low pressure in the crank case and you slowly sucked water into the crank case while idleing in the deep water. Pretty unlikely, but could happen. The water logged oil then wrecked your bearings that took a few miles to show. (Fords fault, indy shop voided powertrain warranty)
Your engine was one of the 2.3 that had the issue with the head gasket/oil heat exchanger and you pushed coolant into the crank case. This was the "water" that you drained out. The coolant logged oil then wrecked your bearings that took a few miles to show. (Fords fault, indy shop voided powertrain warranty)
In any case. You likely need a lawyer, a better indy mechanic, and a tear down to determine the root cause. In any situation, running a oil detergent flush will void the warranty and your only option will be either accept the responsibility or go after the indy shop. I don't see any way that Ford covers this unless you find VERY clear evidence of the wrong headgasket or a clear water ingress point to the crankcase.
Also you guys seriously need some better understanding on the difference of the crankcase vs the intake/combusion path if you want to comment on posts like this. Some of these comments are alarming.
To OP shooting from the hip here but I have a few ideas:
I think the dead alternator could have caused some of the rough running and the shady "oil flush" is what killed the bearings. This leaves the water in the oil unexplained though. (Your fault/indy shops fault)
Your engine crankcase has an external leak below the waterline. The engine running in the water creates a low pressure in the crank case and you slowly sucked water into the crank case while idleing in the deep water. Pretty unlikely, but could happen. The water logged oil then wrecked your bearings that took a few miles to show. (Fords fault, indy shop voided powertrain warranty)
Your engine was one of the 2.3 that had the issue with the head gasket/oil heat exchanger and you pushed coolant into the crank case. This was the "water" that you drained out. The coolant logged oil then wrecked your bearings that took a few miles to show. (Fords fault, indy shop voided powertrain warranty)
In any case. You likely need a lawyer, a better indy mechanic, and a tear down to determine the root cause. In any situation, running a oil detergent flush will void the warranty and your only option will be either accept the responsibility or go after the indy shop. I don't see any way that Ford covers this unless you find VERY clear evidence of the wrong headgasket or a clear water ingress point to the crankcase.
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Thanks for the replies.
On the last visit I did see the coolant reservoir was full, so it wasn't that. At the time all this was going on the only known problem was the alternator. I mean, I found the water, but figured I'd better take care of it myself. I didn't want any water in the engine one minute longer than it had to be. I was kind of panicky and didn't even consider that leaving it as is for Ford to see it might be the best option, but it probably was. The Jeep guy I was with worked with an independent mechanic and he happened to be working on a Saturday afternoon/night, so I figured that was the best place to take it.
There is no way the engine flush caused this. I'm not sure why a couple of you are preoccupied with that part of the story. If water got in, it would seem likely that sand/silt got in. And if the smallest bit of it didn't get flushed out with the flush and the 4 or 5 oil changes than that could easily cause it.
So in hindsight, yes it would have been best to tow it to Ford and say deal with this all. They Probably would have had to disassemble the engine and clean it out thoroughly. But them sticking to this phony water in the intake thing is what is getting my warranty denied. I'm still trying to find someone to listen to me.
On the last visit I did see the coolant reservoir was full, so it wasn't that. At the time all this was going on the only known problem was the alternator. I mean, I found the water, but figured I'd better take care of it myself. I didn't want any water in the engine one minute longer than it had to be. I was kind of panicky and didn't even consider that leaving it as is for Ford to see it might be the best option, but it probably was. The Jeep guy I was with worked with an independent mechanic and he happened to be working on a Saturday afternoon/night, so I figured that was the best place to take it.
There is no way the engine flush caused this. I'm not sure why a couple of you are preoccupied with that part of the story. If water got in, it would seem likely that sand/silt got in. And if the smallest bit of it didn't get flushed out with the flush and the 4 or 5 oil changes than that could easily cause it.
So in hindsight, yes it would have been best to tow it to Ford and say deal with this all. They Probably would have had to disassemble the engine and clean it out thoroughly. But them sticking to this phony water in the intake thing is what is getting my warranty denied. I'm still trying to find someone to listen to me.
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Something to keep in mind is the air intake box has tubes that run DOWN to the turbos. With the engine running there is a hefty vacuum being pulled on those tubes where they attach to the turbo inlets which are MUCH lower than the air box. The air box could look nice and dry but the turbos and their inlets were submerged with enough vacuum being pulled that water could get sucked in around the air inlet pipes attached to the turbo inlets.
This is my bet on how water got into the engine while the airbox itself was never flooded with water.
I dont think it would get in through the charge pipes pre or post intercooler because that system is under pressure and not vacuum like the inlet tubes.
This is my bet on how water got into the engine while the airbox itself was never flooded with water.
I dont think it would get in through the charge pipes pre or post intercooler because that system is under pressure and not vacuum like the inlet tubes.
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I guess that could be a possibility but I don’t see how that could happen while the engine kept running and the water bypassed the pistons and ended up in the crankcase??
What about through the turbo oil return lines ? The low mount twin turbos are definitely the danger water line people need to keep in mind. Not the air intake box.
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OK you taught me something I didnt know about turbos, thank you. It’s worth considering, if only I could get someone to consider it. 
Thank yoj
Thank yoj
What, like through osmosis? How is water going to get into an oil return line?
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There are tubes with fittings down there. I'm just thinking out loud here... You 1,000% sure it wasnt coolant in the oil ?
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I'm only 100% sure the reservoir was full. I'm losing hope, can't even get calls back from ford customer 'service' supervisor or the dealer. This is the dealer who must have thought it ran good enough to return the truck after doing the alternator that still says that I sucked water in the intake.
BTW, my indy mechanic said that the left front tire almost came off when he drove it back to his shop. The dealer said it wasn't them, they didn't touch the tire when they changed the alternator, the one located behind the left front tire....
BTW, my indy mechanic said that the left front tire almost came off when he drove it back to his shop. The dealer said it wasn't them, they didn't touch the tire when they changed the alternator, the one located behind the left front tire....
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Sorry OP you are going through this and count myself lucky from my infamous dunk in the water. Water can very easily get into the air box. It is not uncommon from all the broncos I have been around that have been off-road. My bronco stalled in the water. Likely the K&N got clogged and it couldn't breathe but once pulled out and the filter box cleaned. It started right up and drove over an hour home. Been going 20k plus miles now since without one issue (alternator included). I count myself very lucky. I have since added a snorkel because water crossings are very prevalent in Florida. I don't think a little water from your air box based on the photo was your culprit. I believe it was through some other means.
It really depends on your service advisor and what they consider will work with warranty and what won't be covered. An engine is not cheap and I think you might want to see if Ford Corporate can work something out with you.
It really depends on your service advisor and what they consider will work with warranty and what won't be covered. An engine is not cheap and I think you might want to see if Ford Corporate can work something out with you.
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Todays conversation with different service department director:
me: Nobody will consider the fact that the engine was running fine, and water ended up in the crankcase. This sort of destroys the whole water in the intake theory - besides the fact that the air filter and inlet tube are completely clean.
"Oh, water can definitely get to the crankcase if it comes through the air intake."
How's it get past the piston rings?
"It's not a perfect seal"
Then how does the piston compress the air fuel mixture to ignite it?
"that's a vapor, water is a liquid" (my personal favorite)
water molecules are bigger than vapor molecules, so... but anyway... it can do all this while the engine is running normally?
"yep"
Kind of explains why I'm not getting anywhere.
me: Nobody will consider the fact that the engine was running fine, and water ended up in the crankcase. This sort of destroys the whole water in the intake theory - besides the fact that the air filter and inlet tube are completely clean.
"Oh, water can definitely get to the crankcase if it comes through the air intake."
How's it get past the piston rings?
"It's not a perfect seal"
Then how does the piston compress the air fuel mixture to ignite it?
"that's a vapor, water is a liquid" (my personal favorite)
water molecules are bigger than vapor molecules, so... but anyway... it can do all this while the engine is running normally?
"yep"
Kind of explains why I'm not getting anywhere.
The world we live in today is brain dead and has no critical thinking skills...
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