Block Heater

[elitek9]

Just went to the nearest Ford dealership and they confirmed that Ford forgot to install a block heater at factory..... uugghhh.....

Now we have to wait until Monday for our dealer to contact Ford and figure out how to solve this. Guess the poor Explorer gets to brave the -40 temps this weekend!

Any insight into this from the Ford reps on this forum?

 

[Riley]

Just went to the nearest Ford dealership and they confirmed that Ford forgot to install a block heater at factory..... uugghhh.....

Now we have to wait until Monday for our dealer to contact Ford and figure out how to solve this. Guess the poor Explorer gets to brave the -40 temps this weekend!

Any insight into this from the Ford reps on this forum?

Are block heaters standard on all Canadian Explorers? In the US they are only available in certain states unless you're a Fleet buyer.

 

[Sgt1411]

Are block heaters standard on all Canadian Explorers? In the US they are only available in certain states unless you're a Fleet buyer.

I was told yes the Block Heater is part of the "Canadian Content"...but when I asked the SPORT model was not in production so it may be unique.

I will ask my friend at CAP next week.

 

[Ridetherock]

Of all things to forget to install on a car up here. This should be taken care of promptly and free. good thing is, its usually not a big deal to install the things. pop out a frost plug and pop in the block heater.

 

[elitek9]

Are block heaters standard on all Canadian Explorers? In the US they are only available in certain states unless you're a Fleet buyer.

The block heater is listed as a standard feature on our window sticker and build sheet. The Sport is built in the U.S. so I'd imagine the factory builds lots without block heaters for the warmer states, and ours just got missed.

Mistakes happen. I think what irritates us the most is that our dealer checked off "block heater" as being checked/good on the pre-delivery checksheet....... obviously they didn't actually check!

Our dealership is 6 hours away, so we will have to take it to a closer one once they get approval from Ford to fix this, and approval for a rental vehicle in the meantime.

 

[elitek9]

Of all things to forget to install on a car up here. This should be taken care of promptly and free. good thing is, its usually not a big deal to install the things. pop out a frost plug and pop in the block heater.

They said 3 days for the parts, 6 hours for the install. I'm not sure how long "approval from Ford" will take, though. Supposed to warm up to -8c this week luckily.

 

[Ridetherock]

6 hours to install a block heater? thats madness and about 5 hours to much. at 180 bucks an hour that would be almost 1100 bucks in labor alone here in mac...for a simple block heater lol.

 

[Dr Plastic]

You may think it's madness but it isn't a simple job. The engine cooling system has to be drained and re-serviced. that means you have to ensure there are no air pockets in the heads or heat exchanger in the cabin or you will crack a block or be left with no heat! That in itself will take two hours. Plus there may be come disassembly required to access the proper freeze plug.

 

[peterk9]

The block heater is listed as a standard feature on our window sticker and build sheet. The Sport is built in the U.S. so I'd imagine the factory builds lots without block heaters for the warmer states, and ours just got missed.

Mistakes happen. I think what irritates us the most is that our dealer checked off "block heater" as being checked/good on the pre-delivery checksheet....... obviously they didn't actually check!

Our dealership is 6 hours away, so we will have to take it to a closer one once they get approval from Ford to fix this, and approval for a rental vehicle in the meantime.

All Explorers are built at the Chicago assembly plant. My 2011 has a block heater and it is not listed on the window sticker or another sheet I have that has various codes/letters on it (build sheet?).
There could be a few reasons why it didn't get a block heater but the bottom line is that it isn't there. If it was checked off by the dealer as being there, I wonder what else may have received the same type of attention.:scratch:

Peter

 

[Sgt1411]

The block heater is listed as a standard feature on our window sticker and build sheet. The Sport is built in the U.S. so I'd imagine the factory builds lots without block heaters for the warmer states, and ours just got missed.

Mistakes happen. I think what irritates us the most is that our dealer checked off "block heater" as being checked/good on the pre-delivery checksheet....... obviously they didn't actually check!

Our dealership is 6 hours away, so we will have to take it to a closer one once they get approval from Ford to fix this, and approval for a rental vehicle in the meantime.

If you get any resistance from the dealer I would start the conversation about accountability, and what they plan to do with the person who didn't actually check for the block heater.

Ask the Sales Manager point blank "Is this a case of incompetence or is it simply fraud?"

I do know that if you complete the after purchase customer satisfaction survey with a "less then satisfied" rating in some areas it will be an issue for the dealership and salesman.

Thats a pretty significant mistake given the climate your in.

 

[elitek9]

So an update.... I called my dealership this morning to follow up, they had a meeting with the sales manager, general manager, and our salesman to discuss this.... The salesman calls me back and says "we decided that this is Ford's mistake, so you'll need to contact them directly to deal with this".... what the heck!?!? So I politely explained to him that THEIR dealership's service department signed off saying there was a block heater and it was good to go, prior to me taking delivery of the vehicle, and that THEY are my go-to people and THEY need to deal with Ford and make arrangements to have this fixed!

Luckily the Ford customer satisfaction survey is sitting on my desk right now and I haven't had time to send that in yet, so I let my dealer know it wouldn't be very good if they didn't address this.

I also called Ford customer service, so hopefully they are able to help as well. Still waiting for a call back from my dealership........

 

[peterk9]

So an update.... I called my dealership this morning to follow up, they had a meeting with the sales manager, general manager, and our salesman to discuss this.... The salesman calls me back and says "we decided that this is Ford's mistake, so you'll need to contact them directly to deal with this".... what the heck!?!? So I politely explained to him that THEIR dealership's service department signed off saying there was a block heater and it was good to go, prior to me taking delivery of the vehicle, and that THEY are my go-to people and THEY need to deal with Ford and make arrangements to have this fixed!

Luckily the Ford customer satisfaction survey is sitting on my desk right now and I haven't had time to send that in yet, so I let my dealer know it wouldn't be very good if they didn't address this.

I also called Ford customer service, so hopefully they are able to help as well. Still waiting for a call back from my dealership........

I fully agree with you. You bought the vehicle from the dealership and even if they didn't sign off on the block heater, if it should be there then they should take the required steps to have the situation rectified. Bianca (Ford ServiceCA) is our rep on this forum and you can also reach out to her if you wish. You can use this link;
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/private.php?do=newpm&u=233337
Include your name, daytime phone number, VIN, mileage, and dealership info in your message.
Good luck.

Peter

 

[blwnsmoke]

So an update.... I called my dealership this morning to follow up, they had a meeting with the sales manager, general manager, and our salesman to discuss this.... The salesman calls me back and says "we decided that this is Ford's mistake, so you'll need to contact them directly to deal with this".... what the heck!?!? So I politely explained to him that THEIR dealership's service department signed off saying there was a block heater and it was good to go, prior to me taking delivery of the vehicle, and that THEY are my go-to people and THEY need to deal with Ford and make arrangements to have this fixed!

Luckily the Ford customer satisfaction survey is sitting on my desk right now and I haven't had time to send that in yet, so I let my dealer know it wouldn't be very good if they didn't address this.

I also called Ford customer service, so hopefully they are able to help as well. Still waiting for a call back from my dealership........

It is really no different then a mismatched part. For example, when I bought my 07 F250 (harley edition), one of the captains chairs had a mismatched part. The driver's side was leather on all 4 sides, the passenger was leather on 3 sides and a felt/carpet on the 4th side (inner facing your stomach).

This is no different, dealership submits to Ford for it, Ford approves it, Ford supplies the part, Dealership installs, labor covered by Ford.

For the dealer to say you have to go to Ford, I can tell you without a doubt, Ford will say you need to have your dealer check it out and contact us. They will not take YOUR word for it, they will only accept an answer from a FORD dealership.

Sorry to say, the people at the dealership are complete morons.

 

[elitek9]

It is really no different then a mismatched part. For example, when I bought my 07 F250 (harley edition), one of the captains chairs had a mismatched part. The driver's side was leather on all 4 sides, the passenger was leather on 3 sides and a felt/carpet on the 4th side (inner facing your stomach).

This is no different, dealership submits to Ford for it, Ford approves it, Ford supplies the part, Dealership installs, labor covered by Ford.

For the dealer to say you have to go to Ford, I can tell you without a doubt, Ford will say you need to have your dealer check it out and contact us. They will not take YOUR word for it, they will only accept an answer from a FORD dealership.

Sorry to say, the people at the dealership are complete morons.

I completely agree!

These vehicles are made by people, and I completely understand that mistakes happen... it's no big deal, and it can be fixed.

Just wish my dealership would be more helpful! It's irrtating since we bought 2 vehicles from them at the same time..... and they didn't even have to work for the sales! (We called them and factory ordered our Explorer over the phone, and then we called them to find us an F-150 as well, and didn't even test drive either of them! Just showed up and picked them up... easy sales!)

I will keep you guys posted... thanks for the insight!

 

[Ridetherock]

hey elitek9, could you pm me the dealer you are dealing wit...if it is one in Edmonton?...i am going to be shopping around the city for a dealer when i move there, and watching how they handle this could quickly cross one off the list.

 

[FordServiceCA]

I completely agree!

These vehicles are made by people, and I completely understand that mistakes happen... it's no big deal, and it can be fixed.

Just wish my dealership would be more helpful! It's irrtating since we bought 2 vehicles from them at the same time..... and they didn't even have to work for the sales! (We called them and factory ordered our Explorer over the phone, and then we called them to find us an F-150 as well, and didn't even test drive either of them! Just showed up and picked them up... easy sales!)

I will keep you guys posted... thanks for the insight!

Hi elitek9,

Has there been any updates since your last post? Please send me more information including your VIN, odometer reading, full name, best daytime phone number, and servicing dealer so I can check into this for you.

Bianca

 

[Jiminy]

Yep, it's official. I think they forgot my block heater. I removed the ecoboost cover to get a better view. There is no plug anywhere around the oil cap (just a clip with no wire in it)

How do you route the cord so it’s accessible without opening the hood?

 

[peterk9]

How do you route the cord so it’s accessible without opening the hood?

Welcome to the Forum.
I'd have to go out and have another look at mine to see if it possible to do that. I only ever looked at it once since I can't recall the last time I actually used a block heater.

Peter

 

[JAPeterson]

I haven't looked either but if it isn't long enough just get yourself a short 15ga extension cord. If you can't find one short enough I would just cut one to the length that I want and then place a weather proof plug on the cut off end.

 

[600remguy]

Now, where is the best place to run the block heater cord to the outside? Thanx for yours help.