Is Ford Serious? Rant Warning! | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

  • Register Today It's free!

Is Ford Serious? Rant Warning!

Status
Not open for further replies.

Jstcruz

Well-Known Member
Joined
July 24, 2010
Messages
795
Reaction score
3
City, State
Deltona, FL
Year, Model & Trim Level
97 Ex XLT & 84 Ranger
I took my XLT in for the cruise control recall - yes, it is just now getting done after I have had the truck for 2+ years. Ford had my truck for 3 hours to throw this mess under my hood!

Picture1125121123_1.jpg


I didnt see this till I got home. The original harness is pulled so tight you cant move it and they didnt even cut the extra length off the zip-ties?!

After this they hand me a huge list of "issues" with my truck, like, it needs Rad hoses... It wouldnt hurt, but the $470 would! $40 to replace a PCV valve that is 8 months old, $370 for door strikers, $40 for new windshield wipers, $100 to tell me why my check engine light was on - they didnt notice the ScanGauge I geuss... They wanted to rotate and balance the tires that were just balanced and rotated a couple months ago due to needing new valve stems, They claimed I needed to replace my 2 year old, life time replacement shocks for $560... This list goes on. I asked the tech if he was making stuff up because it was an older truck, then asked him why he didnt notice the E-brake didnt work and the axle damper was shot. He did inform me that my 1 month old Gold series battery tested well ;) DUH!!

They must think that ppl are stupid. But, thats why everyone calls them the Stealership :) The guy goes, "well, we can get this in for ya today..." I said for that kind of money I bet you could! Thanks for the "to-do" list and thanks for the free wash!
 



Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.





That's the dealership for you, or any of those "20 dollar oil change" places. They tell you you need all this extra work, and even get pissy when you say "no thanks." I need this recall done, there is some fluid laying around that connector... I guess that's how the fire starts... thus the fuse they put in.

My ex's mom took her Honda to meineke or monroe for a 20 dollar oil change and they told her she needed a bunch of stuff (they wanted to put all new brakes on, it was just a bent dust cover making noise) she said "no thanks" to them. The employee got in her face about it saying she can't come in there for just an oil change, they can't make any money that way. Needless to say she called either the manager or the regional number to report the confrontational employee.
 






They should advertise "we'll do your oil change for $20 and a bunch of other stuff for $100 then lol. I saw a thing on the news a while back about them charging ppl to replace things that they didnt need, and they didnt replace it anyway, just took their money. I only take my truck into the shop for alignments and some exhaust work - thats it. You cant trust any of these shops anymore. The good ol back yard mechanic shops are the best place to go if you cant do the work yourself.
 






In my experience finding a reputable independent shop is worth it's weight in gold. I'd love to do all my own wrenching, but don't have the time nor the space for it.

I do a number of things on my own, but not everything. I have a great local shop for the rest of the stuff I can't do or don't have time to do on my own. I'll pay the extra few bucks for the oil change to bring them my business and in return they are honest and do good work on everything I bring them.
 






i just had the same recall done on my newly acquired 2000 Mountaineer. it an't pretty, but not quite as ugly as yours. they asked me if i also wanted them to do their checklist on the truck and i told them NO THANKS.

the last time i had a vehicle in for a warranty issue (Chrysler) it was returned to me with no dash or tail lights, running on 5 cylinders as they had pulled/knocked off a plug wire (i think pulled in an attempt to generate revenue) and they'd added a wire and fuse from the battery that was pulled so tight it broke as soon as i touched it.

i do 99% of my own repairs and when there's something i don't want to do, i use a local mom & pop shop. they always do a good job and have never overcharged me.
 






So the rant is: you cannot find any shop to do the work for free or paid with other people money? Sorry, is not yet like obamacare, the shops still need to pay wages, 401k, insurance, property taxes, mortgage/rent for the buildings, electricity, retooling, make a 10% profit...

Do your own and be happy.

No, he is just asking for them to be fair and honest. My regular mechanic (when i don't do the work myself) is always fair and honest. Hell, he even returned me my car before saying he didn't see the issue I saw and didn't want to charge me anything for looking at it, and didn't want me to waste my money replacing parts.
 






So the rant is: you cannot find any shop to do the work for free or paid with other people money?

Wanting good quality work from honest people isn't the same as wanting everything for free...
 






What the heck does Obamacare have to do with anything on this topic?

Bottom line here is no one wants shoddy work or quoted unnecessary maintenance activities.
 






What the heck does Obamacare have to do with anything on this topic?

Bottom line here is no one wants shoddy work or quoted unnecessary maintenance activities.

Because some people will use any excuse to vomit up political nonsense or conspiracy theories.

Also, because the government is hiding the existence of aliens that sneak into our houses in the middle of the night and steal our socks.
 






also, because the government is hiding the existence of aliens that sneak into our houses in the middle of the night and steal our socks.

f***ing assholes!!!!!!!! It's hard to find my size socks!!!!!!!! :(
 
























When I brought my Explorer in for the exact same TSB, the tech did mine in the parking lot, in the rain, and it took maybe 5 minutes, heck the paper work took longer. but on mine, instead of attaching it to the ABS unit, it was to the throttle cable loosely, so it would not mess that up either. they were super nice, and even showed me what they did BEFORE I left.

It sounds to me like you just went to the wrong dealer, my local one, is really quite good. They support the community, and have been in the area for ever.
 












local dealership did my recall, but knew better by the Forum sticker and the knowledge of me doing my own work on this and my previous rig that i can do all my own work,
so they gave me no list,,

:D:D:D:D
 






When I brought my Explorer in for the exact same TSB, the tech did mine in the parking lot, in the rain, and it took maybe 5 minutes, heck the paper work took longer. but on mine, instead of attaching it to the ABS unit, it was to the throttle cable loosely, so it would not mess that up either. they were super nice, and even showed me what they did BEFORE I left.

It sounds to me like you just went to the wrong dealer, my local one, is really quite good. They support the community, and have been in the area for ever.

The people that I dealt with were nice and personable, but I dont understand the price gouging and the crappy install of this harness. Also, if they would have actually looked at some of this stuff - like the pcv valve - they would have seen that it does not need replaced. I know too that the dealerships differ in service, but the pricing is the same as far as I know. It does need new door strikers, but they are not that expensive and any kid with a ratchet and propper socket can replace all of them in a few minutes. Its things like that that gets to me.
 






local dealership did my recall, but knew better by the Forum sticker and the knowledge of me doing my own work on this and my previous rig that i can do all my own work,
so they gave me no list,,

:D:D:D:D

I figured I could get the "to do" list out of it but I didnt think it would take hours to do it. They knew to that I did my own work, and they didnt ask me they just told me they would do the check list. They still asked me if I wanted the work done that day after I asked if they were making the stuff up that it needed lol.
 






My ex-Ford mechanic neighbor told me to never take my Explorer to the dealer, unless it's a recall issue. Plus, I'll drive 35 miles to my next Ford dealer to get my recall done, due to the stories I have heard about them. Similar to the crap above, plus the little things like service people nabbing all the loose change in the vehicle.

I am more inclined to buy the replacement cruise pieces from Rockauto, replace them myself, and forget the dealer altogether...
 



Join the Elite Explorers for $20 each year.
Elite Explorer members see no advertisements, no banner ads, no double underlined links,.
Add an avatar, upload photo attachments, and more!
.





To the OP... Well, aside from the fact that you saw some pretty shoddy work, and poor work ethic, the prices they quote you are the prices for the parts, plus labor at a flat rate. There are books that detail how much time any given job takes to do for an average mechanic under average conditions. These times are what dealerships and many mechanics use when quoting you prices, or even doing your billing. Dealerships don't charge the actual amount of time a job takes, because it is their goal to provide consistent pricing. Technically, they also have a goal of consistently high quality work, but as you observed, some (few and far between) have fairly low standards or mechanics that just do a crap job, and will not last long in their job due to the complaints they will inevitably receive. The only suggestion I can give you is to take your complaint about workmanship to the dealership, as they are being paid to do the job. They do get compensated by Ford Motor Company for performing recall work, so it is not like they are doing it for free, and, given the circumstances and protracted legal battles that lead to recalls, you can be certain that there has been a fair determination that the manufacturer F'ed up, and owes you a repair job.

(edited)
 






Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top