Things get deleted not because of the problem being brought to light, but because of the pissing matches that they generate which detract from the information available in the thread on the specific problem. No one is trying to hide any problems on this forum, or keep information from coming to light. I'd rather have the problems posted so that when a solution is found, everyone can benefit from it. We're just sick and tired of the pissing matches that develop.
Please also consider that this is an independent forum that is not connected to Ford, and we have no control over their policies or actions. As you know, there are Ford Customer representatives that have joined the forum, but they are not part of the ownership or management of the forum. Our actions on this forum can hopefully help and sway Ford in how they build vehicles and react to customer problems and complaints. The best way we can do that is with a well constructed list of issues that conveys the breadth of the problem to Ford, not a mishmash of vitriolic posts that make it difficult to see the issues and portray the owners as a bunch of jerks out to bash Ford.
Has Ford dropped the ball in many ways with the new Explorer? You bet they have. Are they working on solutions to the problems? I would hope so. Some of them it's obvious they are, others it's not so obvious if they are or are not. However, Ford is a large corporation, and like many large corporations, they have trouble admitting failure publicly and often will keep things quiet about a problem until they have a solution in place. Do I agree with this? Absolutely not, but I nor anyone who runs this forum have control over it and *****ing about it here won't change that.
I personally have had several issues with my '11 Explorer. Most have been resolved because my dealership is responsive and takes action. So far, here is the list of problems I've had (that I can remember off the top of my head):
- MFT Issues (fixed)
- A-Pillar buzz (fixed)
- Oil lines on windows (fixed)
- Center stack cubby hole cover stuck (fixed)
- Driver's mirror water filled (fixed)
- Rear defrosted broken on one line (fixed)
- USB port inoperative (fixed)
- Premature seat cover failure (fixed)
- Speaker cut out problems (fixed twice)
- Cooling Fans (fixed)
- Odor in cabin under acceleration (not fixed yet)
Do I come on here and scream bloody murder about how Ford sucks and no one should ever buy a Ford again? No, I report the problems through my dealership and report them up through Ford customer care, and I keep at it until I get what I want. I'm polite about it, but persistent and I get results. Am I upset that I had these problems. HELL YES!!, but I bought the vehicle and it was my choice to buy it so I can either live with it and deal with the problems, or get out from underneath of it and move on to something else. *****ing about it won't fix anything.
Many of the complaints I have seen on the board (outside of the actual technical problems) have been about dealership customer service. Many of you don't seem to realize, or you forget that the dealerships are independently owned and are licensed to sell Ford products. They are not subsidiaries of, owned by, or controlled by Ford. They are independent business's and can operate however they want. If they have poor customer service, it's not an issue with Ford, it's an issue with that dealership.
If we all work together and present the problems as succinctly and professionally as we can, we hopefully will get results and our problems will be fixed.
