If you get the Ford Gold certified Used vehicle warranty the power train goes to 7 years/100,000 miles. It should be safe to assume that Ford vehicles should last that long or whatever percentage of failures they can get away with.
According to the Wiki page for the Ford 8f(35/40) transmission the maximum torque capacity is 260 # ft. The Eco-Boost 2.0 in the Badlands makes 277 # ft (Ford). The odds aren't in the transmission's favor for longevity unless you drive gently all the time.
Non-profit is a tax classification, not a qualifier of legitimacy. The NFL was a non-profit in 2015. Salaries are irrelevant. CR may not perfect, but it may be the best available information at the moment. It's always a good idea to get information from multiple sources, such as forums...
Terrible news. I agree with not going to the dealer. There must be a low mileage transmission available somewhere that the total cost would be less than the dealer charges. I hope this gets resolved to your satisfaction.
Good Luck.