Ford Backup Camera Class Action Lawsuit Filed In New Jersey

[peterk9]

https://fordauthority.com/2024/07/ford-backup-camera-class-action-lawsuit-filed-in-new-jersey/

Peter

 

[blwnsmoke]

Nothing but a cash grab.

 

[FordFlintrock]

Nothing but a cash grab.

Could be but Ford is supplying the ammunition.
I worked as a Ford Class A flat rate CMAT in the early eighties before becoming a Fleet Mgr. for a few years spending the next twenty as a driver and have always been Ford, Ford and more Ford until recently taking a step back somewhat. The last five years before I retired I was the head mechanic under the Fleet Mgr. of a private entity consisting mostly Ford so I have an up close view of what has gone on through the decades.
The problematic 6.4 diesel which ended the long standing collaboration with Navistar International in 2010
The DPS6 transmission Focus/Fiesta problems
The small EcoBoost head gasket turned engine block problems
Internal water pump early failure of the 3.5
The oil/timing wet belt issues of current production
These are some of the big issues not to mention all the smaller ones and as owner if had to pay out of pocket it is a hard pill to swallow for the working class. The folks who get new vehicles every few years get it repaired for free and shrug it off up to a point before realizing the Dealer Service Department personnel are now on a first name basis and in speed dial. A certain number of vehicles will always be problematic I am just saying Ford has to get those numbers down.

Poor design, poor engineering, poor pre-production testing, poor quality control, low ball outsourcing, lack of parts, useless Ford tech hotline which goes through verbatim from the shop manual what the technician has already done on a troublesome vehicle are all in the mix. The real eye opener for me are the numerous TSB's for the same problem, twenty in fact just for the DPS6 transmission. Clearly, clearly this shows a level of incompetence or dysfunction within the organization that might be on the verge of collapse, who knows?

If Ford does not make some major changes to their structure they might go the way of Yugo.

 

[blwnsmoke]

Could be but Ford is supplying the ammunition.
I worked as a Ford Class A flat rate CMAT in the early eighties before becoming a Fleet Mgr. for a few years spending the next twenty as a driver and have always been Ford, Ford and more Ford until recently taking a step back somewhat. The last five years before I retired I was the head mechanic under the Fleet Mgr. of a private entity consisting mostly Ford so I have an up close view of what has gone on through the decades.
The problematic 6.4 diesel which ended the long standing collaboration with Navistar International in 2010
The DPS6 transmission Focus/Fiesta problems
The small EcoBoost head gasket turned engine block problems
Internal water pump early failure of the 3.5
The oil/timing wet belt issues of current
These are some of the big issues not to mention all the smaller ones and as owner if had to pay out of pocket it is a hard pill to swallow for the working class. The folks who get new vehicles every few years get it repaired for free and shrug it off up to a point before realizing the Dealer Service Department personnel are now on a first name basis and in speed dial. A certain number of vehicles will always be problematic I am just saying Ford has to get those numbers down.

Poor design, poor engineering, poor pre-production testing, poor quality control, low ball outsourcing, lack of parts, useless Ford tech hotline which goes through verbatim from the shop manual what the technician has already done on a troublesome vehicle are all in the mix. The real eye opener for me are the numerous TSB's for the same problem, twenty in fact just for the DPS6 transmission. Clearly, clearly this shows a level of incompetence or dysfunction within the organization that might be on the verge of collapse, who knows?

If Ford does not make some major changes to their structure they might go the way of Yugo.

Low ball outsourcing I agree on. They really need to stop focusing on the pennies saved.

However, this took a while for Ford to figure out. They thought it was software. Come to find out it was hardware and had to have a new supplier make them. That again took time.. but the recall issued for the camera and harness replacement fixed it.

There is zero need to sue over this... again, a cash grab.

 

[Spacey]

I don't know... They likely knew it was a hardware issue very early on and chose to make multiple attempts to "fix it in the software" because it was cheaper; until they finally conceded this wouldn't work. There were multiple recalls; recall stops; etc., including at one point removing the 360deg camera functionality and giving customers like $1.95. Many people took their vehicles in multiple times for this losing use of their car, sometimes having the fix be worse than the problem, and never got a rental vehicle to use or any sort of compensation. To this day, my dealer, who I like, has never been able to clearly describe whether my car will lose any functionality after the "fix" has been made. The times I have tried to get this done parts aren't available. Since mine works about 80% of the time I stopped bothering to get it fixed, and the 20% of the times I get a blue screen I use as a reminder to not buy a Ford product.

 

[peterk9]

I don't know... They likely knew it was a hardware issue very early on and chose to make multiple attempts to "fix it in the software" because it was cheaper; until they finally conceded this wouldn't work. There were multiple recalls; recall stops; etc., including at one point removing the 360deg camera functionality and giving customers like $1.95. Many people took their vehicles in multiple times for this losing use of their car, sometimes having the fix be worse than the problem, and never got a rental vehicle to use or any sort of compensation. To this day, my dealer, who I like, has never been able to clearly describe whether my car will lose any functionality after the "fix" has been made. The times I have tried to get this done parts aren't available. Since mine works about 80% of the time I stopped bothering to get it fixed, and the 20% of the times I get a blue screen I use as a reminder to not buy a Ford product.

My recall was completed at the factory prior to shipping. After about 10 months of driving the Aviator, there have not been any issues or loss of functionality.

Peter

 

[hbalek]

My previous 2 cameras were fine until about 10K miles or more later then it went blue. This third camera from last several months has been good so far. I think I initially had the software update which didn't fix anything.

 

[FordFlintrock]

Low ball outsourcing I agree on. They really need to stop focusing on the pennies saved.
There is zero need to sue over this... again, a cash grab.

Thank you for the dialogue. I agree.

However, this took a while for Ford to figure out. They thought it was software. Come to find out it was hardware and had to have a new supplier make them. That again took time.. but the recall issued for the camera and harness replacement fixed it.

This was not a lunar landing. A malfunctioning camera in a car should not be so difficult to diagnose and propose a one time repair if the people involved were truly professionals in their field, they designed it for petes's sake. The consumer was beta tester for that piece of trash tech, unacceptable in my view. Is anyone in the organization held accountable when major flaws unfold?
I do see a parallel between Boeing Corp. and the direction FoMoCo could be heading.
I met a gentleman nearly forty years ago who worked at a large multi-national corporation. He wryly acknowledged the corporate culture was to always hire someone dumber than yourself so they cannot take your job.

 

[TBill]

My camera was replaced a good time before the final fix from Ford. It's been fine since, not one failure. I still have the recall order outstanding, dealer told me to hang onto it incase the current camera quits.

TBill

 

[Sgt1411]

Thank you for the dialogue. I agree.


This was not a lunar landing. A malfunctioning camera in a car should not be so difficult to diagnose and propose a one time repair if the people involved were truly professionals in their field, they designed it for petes's sake. The consumer was beta tester for that piece of trash tech, unacceptable in my view. Is anyone in the organization held accountable when major flaws unfold?
I do see a parallel between Boeing Corp. and the direction FoMoCo could be heading.
I met a gentleman nearly forty years ago who worked at a large multi-national corporation. He wryly acknowledged the corporate culture was to always hire someone dumber than yourself so they cannot take your job.

I tend to agree with your assessment. Although many of these issues originate from supplier negligence or QC issues its still incumbent upon the OEM to confirm QC from suppliers. I had a pretty frank discussion with some Ford Engineering staff about the camera issue because I was getting frustrated. While very cautious what they said was somewhat concerning. They were very frustrated with the lack of resources dedicated so solve the issue and that many of the people who had expertise in this area either left or were laid off. The same thing happened with the PIU Hybrid program, no Hybrids for over a year. Large LE customers bought Durango and Tahoe to fill the gap and may not go back. Tahoe has increased production to double and still every production run is sold out now.

My frustration was after a fix was announced my dealership told me they only get 1-2 repair kits a month and they would put me on the list for repairs. WTF!....How about you don't announce a fix without locking down repair kit production inventory.

 

[Rick]

I tend to agree with your assessment. Although many of these issues originate from supplier negligence or QC issues its still incumbent upon the OEM to confirm QC from suppliers. I had a pretty frank discussion with some Ford Engineering staff about the camera issue because I was getting frustrated. While very cautious what they said was somewhat concerning. They were very frustrated with the lack of resources dedicated so solve the issue and that many of the people who had expertise in this area either left or were laid off. The same thing happened with the PIU Hybrid program, no Hybrids for over a year. Large LE customers bought Durango and Tahoe to fill the gap and may not go back. Tahoe has increased production to double and still every production run is sold out now.

My frustration was after a fix was announced my dealership told me they only get 1-2 repair kits a month and they would put me on the list for repairs. WTF!....How about you don't announce a fix without locking down repair kit production inventory.

It is reminiscent of the My Ford Touch issues that plauged the first few years of the 5th generation Explorers. From what I recall, it depended what combinition of components the vehicle recieved from outside vendors as to whether or not the MFT would be problematic.

 

[FordFlintrock]

The same thing happened with the PIU Hybrid program, no Hybrids for over a year. Large LE customers bought Durango and Tahoe to fill the gap and may not go back. Tahoe has increased production to double and still every production run is sold out now.

To your point. The Connecticut State Police have been Ford for forty seven years that I can attest to. The CSP fleet garage was around the corner and would send some of their vehicles to the Dealer I worked at from the first 1977 model I personally worked on. BTW no A/C, that option started 1978.
I was shocked to recently see they are no longer Ford only. From crime scene news coverage their cars denoted by WhiskeyHotelKilo on the plates.
Word is getting around about Ford reliability with Fleets a front row seat to the ongoing issues.

 

[blwnsmoke]

To your point. The Connecticut State Police have been Ford for forty seven years that I can attest to. The CSP fleet garage was around the corner and would send some of their vehicles to the Dealer I worked at from the first 1977 model I personally worked on. BTW no A/C, that option started 1978.
I was shocked to recently see they are no longer Ford only. From crime scene news coverage their cars denoted by WhiskeyHotelKilo on the plates.
Word is getting around about Ford reliability with Fleets a front row seat to the ongoing issues.

View attachment 454152

Not always about brand. Price dictates everything IMO. If Dodge makes a really good offer, they will go with it.

Dodge sees the garage quite a bit as well. Many complaints about their quality for police use. Just within the past 2 weeks, articles about oil cooler failures on Poloce Durango taking out the engines..

 

[Sgt1411]

Not always about brand. Price dictates everything IMO. If Dodge makes a really good offer, they will go with it.

Dodge sees the garage quite a bit as well. Many complaints about their quality for police use. Just within the past 2 weeks, articles about oil cooler failures on Poloce Durango taking out the engines..

All true statements, fully agree.

The Durango lost their Tier 1 brake supplier for OE brakes, Dodge couldn't get anything out to garages for almost a year everyone had to go aftermarket. Engines on backorder. Fans were ripping apart radiators for a while too.

Build quality on the Dodge is probably the lowest of the three OEM's, they rattle and squeak after a couple years

When it first came out Dodge Law started selling the Charger so cheap Agencies could get three Chargers for the same price as two PIU"s.

You put a center console with computer in a Charger you have to a midget to sit in the front passenger seat. Sorry to the Liberals I meant "Little Person"

 

[FordFlintrock]

Poor design, poor engineering, poor pre-production testing, poor quality control, low ball outsourcing, lack of parts, useless Ford tech hotline which goes through verbatim from the shop manual what the technician has already done on a troublesome vehicle are all in the mix. The real eye opener for me are the numerous TSB's for the same problem, twenty in fact just for the DPS6 transmission. Clearly, clearly this shows a level of incompetence or dysfunction within the organization that might be on the verge of collapse, who knows?

Is anyone in the organization held accountable when major flaws unfold?
I do see a parallel between Boeing Corp. and the direction FoMoCo could be heading.
I met a gentleman nearly forty years ago who worked at a large multi-national corporation. He wryly acknowledged the corporate culture was to always hire someone dumber than yourself so they cannot take your job.

Looks like CEO Farley is trying a new approach to the ongoing quality problems.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/ford-lower-managers-bonuses-company-155458575.html

 

[1sicbronconut]

Hopefully that helps, I've been a Ford technician since 1988 and a senior master for 20+ years and the warranty claims are through the roof right now with multiple recalls coming out every week.

 

[Sgt1411]

My ST just missed that huge EcoBoost Safety Recall 24S55.

No fix until Q1 2025

 

[FordFlintrock]

And the story continues.

Ford Motor hit with $165 million US penalty over delayed rearview camera recalls

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Thursday Ford Motor has agreed to a $165 million civil penalty after a government investigation found the automaker failed to recall vehicles with defective rearview cameras in a timely manner. Under a consent order...

www.yahoo.com

 

[FordFlintrock]

To your point. The Connecticut State Police have been Ford for forty seven years that I can attest to. The CSP fleet garage was around the corner and would send some of their vehicles to the Dealer I worked at from the first 1977 model I personally worked on. BTW no A/C, that option started 1978.
I was shocked to recently see they are no longer Ford only. From crime scene news coverage their cars denoted by WhiskeyHotelKilo on the plates.
Word is getting around about Ford reliability with Fleets a front row seat to the ongoing issues.

View attachment 454152

I have now seen Chevrolet Suburbans joining the CSP fleet. It appears Ford may no longer be a supplier going forward.