Where do you bring your car to be serviced?

[Lucille]

It seems like most everyone returns to their original dealer. I've been back to my dealer for one service, however, it's not really nearby. There are other Ford dealers closer. I'm wondering if have to continue to bring it to where I purchased the car?
My next visit will be for an oil change and Sync upgrade.

 

[peterk9]

It seems like most everyone returns to their original dealer. I've been back to my dealer for one service, however, it's not really nearby. There are other Ford dealers closer. I'm wondering if have to continue to bring it to where I purchased the car?
My next visit will be for an oil change and Sync upgrade.

To the best of my knowledge, you can take your Explorer to any Ford dealer for servicing. That is where the dealers make most of their $$. I have a dealer 4 miles from home but chose to lease mine from another dealership 20 miles away because I heard their service is better. I will continue going there and drop in each time to have a coffee with the salesman. Will be dropping in this week to have my Winter wheels/tires installed and for my first oil change.

Peter

 

[Lucille]

I wouldn't mind bringing it to my original dealer, but I have to find a ride there and back. I told them I'd wait for it, but they said it'd be quite awhile.

 

[K1200rsport]

Always to the dealer i bought it from, mainly because he is closer to work. The closest dealer to home is in opposite direction from work.

 

[NEWPORTNJ]

I take mine to the dealer i leased from even when its far from home but i have leased many cars from them and they have a great service personel and great dealership i've been leaseing for about 12 years smith carins ford in yonkers new york !!!

 

[fifthranger]

I typically avoid dealers because they are more expensive than independent shops. However, dealers should be more knowledgable because they deal with only one or two brands. I used to lease from a dealer my parents bought vehicles from about 20 miles from my place. Now, my wife and I purchased our vehicles, and thankfully besides oil changes, tires, and other small misc. repairs, I haven't really needed to use even a local dealer. Our vehicles were recalled a couple times, and the local dealer does that for free. Most dealers as a courtesy offer either a loaner or a shuttle within a short distance to allow customers the ability to get to work or home.

 

[Mello944]

I take mine to the dealer i leased from even when its far from home but i have leased many cars from them and they have a great service personel and great dealership i've been leaseing for about 12 years smith carins ford in yonkers new york !!!

Good to know. I leased mine from Steve there. I'm in Queens and I was debating going back up to Yonkers just for service.

 

[NEWPORTNJ]

good to know. I leased mine from steve there. I'm in queens and i was debating going back up to yonkers just for service.

i leased from charlie falcone great guy.

 

[bluelion]

i'll be taking it to the dealership i bought it at, mainly because they offer discounts for customers that purchased from there. but also because i was not impressed with the sales group at the dealership closer to my house, so i don't want to give their service dept a shot.

 

[peterk9]

I wouldn't mind bringing it to my original dealer, but I have to find a ride there and back. I told them I'd wait for it, but they said it'd be quite awhile.

An oil change etc. shouldn't take that long if you have an appointment. It is likely the upgrade that would be the cause of the delay. You can do this yourself from the Syncmyride site.

 

[aznkidlee]

I haven't had a service yet but I plan to bring it back to the dealer where I bought it from. Watertown Ford, Watertown, MA. They had excellent customer service in Sales so I hope their Service Center is just as good.

 

[Fab]

You can bring your vehicle to any dealer for service. It doesn't have to be the dealer where you purchased your vehicle. I was also very concerned about this as I bought my vehicle at a dealer further away because supplies were limited and they wouldn't swap the vehicle with the nearby dealer. When i first brought my vehicle to the closer dealer for service, i had a conversation with them about my concerns that i didn't actually purchase it from them. They had no problems with it. They did mention that I would receive the same service........but he did indicate that dealers do receive some limited loyalty money or something like that........which they may sometimes use for those that purchased their vehicles with them. I forget exactly what that might entail.....maybe loaner vehicles or something. But they were very receptive to me bringing my vehicle there for servicing.

PS I plan to purchase an extended warranty from an online dealer for a much better price as I feel comfortable that i don't have to purchase directly from the dealer where i plan to bring it for servicing.

 

[Lucille]

An oil change etc. shouldn't take that long if you have an appointment. It is likely the upgrade that would be the cause of the delay. You can do this yourself from the Syncmyride site.

I tried to upgrade myself, but unfortunately encountered a problem. It was such a mess that I'm afraid to try again, even though I'd love to get that done myself at home.

 

[97xxxploder]

i would avoid dealerships. they high buck ya and take there time on everything. i would try to find a good repair shop that has been around for a while. i would post an ad on craigslist to see if people have good or bad reviews for certain places. u could check angieslist.com too, they r pretty popular in bigger cites. not so much where i live (rural ohio) if all ur doing is an oil change then u might wanna just do it urself. its really easy and doesnt take long. u can normally find places that take used oil too. dealerships will more than likely charge more than local shops. just ask around on here how much a dealership wants for parts that u can find on ebay for half the price.

 

[jeeden]

We always bring ours to the dealer. Years and years ago I was never happy with the Jiffy Lube places, they seemed to do a bad job and it wasn't any quicker when you waited for other people.

Make sure you check out both the ford site and your dealer site to get coupons. I don't think I have had any of my fords serviced in the last 10 years without a coupon. My dealer often has "the works" (tire rotate, oil change plus oil and filter, washer fluid, check all fluids, lube, etc) for $19 to $30 with coupon.

 

[bluelion]

i stopped changing my own oil back when i started hearing stories about the dealerships not honoring warranties because the oil changes weren't "proven" because the guys were doing their own oil changes. that's back when i would mod my car though....but once i started going to dealers to let them change the oil, i realized the prices were not much different from when i did it myself. AND it was documented in their computer system so they could never tell me i didn't follow the service manual for oil changes....and if anything goes wrong (forget to tighten oil filter, drain plug, etc) it's in the dealer's hands and they will pay for repairs....you can't have that guarantee if you change your own oil.....

i only had something "go wrong" once with my oil change...the tech forgot to bolt up the plastic skid plate cover and when i drove off onto the freeway, it was dragging the entire time....i exited as quick as i could, busted a u turn, and stormed into service office....they apologized and gave me two free oil changes.....i was fine with that.