(5/25)
I went to the dealership this past Friday with my father to have a meeting with the service manager, John Rinaldi. John could not remember what happened to my Explorer, but he did remember that I had made several dozen phone calls to the owner (who never responded) and to Ford headquarters and said that only slowed down the process. I told him I would have it towed back there and they were to work on it immediately and keep me informed everyday of the status. The Explorer was towed out at the dealerships cost on Friday. Monday afternoon, John called me and told me they didnt have a chance to get to it and hoped to get it in Tuesday morning. I drove past the dealership at 2pm on Tuesday and the Explorer was still in the same spot. I got a call from John at 5pm on Tuesday saying that they found nothing wrong with my Explorer. They said it started up fine and the coolant level and oil levels were normal. I have video tape of the empty coolant overflow and radiator and the watery oil. I asked him how it could possibly run fine and how the coolant was back in the radiator and he said thats how the tech found it. He told me they were going to keep it over night because they wanted to put dye in the coolant and pressure test it to make sure none gets in the crankcase. I went out there around 6pm and all the service people were gone. I drove around back and the shop door was open and I did not see my Explorer in the shop. I looked around the lot and it was not on the lot either. My Explorer was in the drop-off bay which is locked up at night (the place where customers drive into the building to leave their cars for service). The other times when they kept my Explorer overnight they would either leave it in the shop or sit it in the rows between the new cars. It's almost like they didnt want me to get to it. I went into the dealership and the door was open to the drop-off bay. I went in and popped the hood. The motor was warm so I didnt open the radiator, but there was coolant in the overflow. I pulled the dipstick and the oil looked OK.
I just don't get it. I know what I saw and everyone else who saw it knows what they saw. My radiator was empty and my oil level was double what it should have been and was very watery. It stalled out on me after I heard loud tapping and when I restarted it, it ran terrible. What could they have done in three hours to make it better? I'm not crazy and I have proof on
tape of the empty radiator. I'm just dumbfounded that the manager could tell me they found it in perfect working order. Another thing. My battery died hile it was sitting there so any CEL codes that I got when it came on had been erased and the computer had been reset. John told me that they ran the codes because they saw the CEL and came up with an ignition code of some sort and something about a battery disconnect. Now, I never told him that I replaced the battery so that means when they started it up something was still wrong to throw the CEL.
(5/26)
Today was strange. I actually drove my truck for the first time in over a month. I started it up and it sounded fine at idle. I put it in drive and when the RPM's dropped a little I heard a rattle that I have never heard before. I pointed that out to John Rinaldi who was in the passengers seat. I hit the road and it felt OK under normal driving conditions. I got on the highway and gave it some gas and I let off around 4,000 RPM. Just as I let off I heard a rattle for a split second. I did it again and heard the same thing. After the third time I asked John if he heard it... of course he didnt. I asked him to listen carefully and the next time I kept my foot on the gas. It took about 7 seconds for it to climb from 4,000 to 5,000 RPM's and had no power. That range is this motors power band and that climb should be instantaneous. During this time I heard that rattle constantly. I kept my foot on the gas and asked John if he heard it to which he replied Yes. I said, "Would you agree that something is wrong?" He said Yes. I turned around and went back to the dealership driving it easier, but I could still hear the noise at some points... it was getting worse. That is the same thing that happened when I was driving home right before it stalled out. The RPM's were climbing rediculously slow with the tapping noise and then it stalled. I parked it back in the drop-off bay and he said they would look into it further. He said there was a rep coming out tomorrow and he would talk to him about it. He said he thinks its something lower in the motor and doesnt think its related to the recall. Now, I'm not a professional and neither is he, but if you ask me, this is a timing issue. From the research I have done on the guide recall (01M01) it looks like they need to put pins in the cam to keep it from moving while performing the recall... not sure on that though. Timing would reduce the power and would cause this tapping if its valves meeting pistons. Otherwise, it may be a problem with the tensioner or guide and the chain is slapping around. That's my opinion. John's opinion is that it's something unrelated to the recall. He thinks its damage that was caused from the bad tensioner and guide and now that it has new parts, the damage is showing up. I find that highly unlikely, but we will see.
That really sucks, Chris.
