Must have been -- I've put everything about that car out of my memory except how much I hated it. Forgot to mention the tranny also blew up. And yes, there was a "modified cover up." When the dealership told me it was going to cost $4,500 to fix the engine (after they'd dismantled it so I couldn't haul it elsewhere) I told them my next stop was my attorney's office. Only after that did they just "happen to notice" the company would pay for some of the repairs. Bad car, bad management, bad company. May it deservedly fry in hell.
That was the non-public Technical Service Bulletin. As I recall, Ford concluded it was cheaper to repair the blown engines than recall them all for prophylaxis. It might have been cheaper in the short run--maybe. But the cost-accountants left the loss of squandered goodwill out of that calculus.
Oh, and the AXOD transaxle was not designed for the power put out by the 3.8l engine. It could barely handle the power of the 3.0l engine. The AXOD was eventually AXED, but not before hundreds of thousands were made.
They should have known better than to make the clutch packs out of Havarti. At least use a drier cheese like Provolone.