found_on_road_dead
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Here's a fun story for ya'll....
Spent several weeks planning a southern Colorado road trip from my town (Fort Collins) with my family of four. Determined based on the extended range battery, planned itinerary and distance between high speed chargers that we would be able to do the trip in the Lightning (1.5 years old, ~20k miles). Absolutely zero issues the entire trip until our 2nd to last day on the road. Spent the night in Durango, woke up (July 1), topped on the charge to 95% before heading north on 550 (the Million Dollar highway) en-route to Telluride via a stop in Orary for lunch. Made a quick pit stop at Purgatory Resort to get a little extra juice before heading up the pass. Stopped at the Molas pass overlook to take some pictures, got back in the vehicle and when I went to start it the dash alerted "Safely pull over!" and would not start. Luckily I had 1 bar of cell service and was able to call Ford Roadside Assistance. 2.5 hours later the tow truck arrived and brought us back to Durango Ford. Got a hotel for the night in Durango only to find out there are no one-way car rentals in the town to get us back to Fort Collins. Grabbed an Uber to Durango Ford the next morning and hung around for about 3 hours until the service advisor finally told me that they likely would not have a diagnosis and definitely not have it fixed that day. My crew had to be back in Fort Collins the following day so the only option was 4-one way tickets on United at $414 a piece, then a $110 Uber home from the airport. Once I got home I contacted Fort Custom Service and they opened a case for me, stating what others on this board have also stated, they would cover a rental for up to $60 / day for 10 days. They also stated that I could submit all of my receipts (i.e. airfare, $600 airbnb in Telluride I was unable to get to, Uber rides, etc.) that would be reviewed for consideration AFTER my vehicle is repaired and returned to me.
So, here we are, 5 weeks after the truck broke down, it is ~400 miles away from me still in the shop waiting on backordered parts with not ETA. Oh yeah - one more thing - as we were on a road trip we had some food in a cooler in the bed (have a cap on the bed). Obviously we couldn't fly with a cooler or several other things we had to leave behind in the vehicle. At one point a few weeks ago I thought, oh there's got to be some pretty spoiled food in the bed of that truck, I should ask Durango Ford if they can assist getting rid of the perishables. So I called the service advisor at Durango Ford:
Me: Also, odd question, but at this point I've got some pretty nasty food in the back of the truck. Might need some assistance cleaning it out.
Ford Service Advisor: No, no, that shouldn't be a problem any more
Me: Oh great, you already cleaned it out?
Ford Service Advisor: No, a bear actually broke into your truck in the lot and ate the food that was in the back, looked like some chocolate covered raspberries and some other tasty snacks....
So, now - in addition to making my monthly car payments and insurance payments, I am paying out of pocket for a rental (oh, has to be a Ford and those aren't always easy to come by), and opened an insurance claim for the bear incident.
WTF, Ford?!
Also, fyi - the current work order for the warranty work on the truck is at $18k!
I've contacted some lemon law attorneys, but have seen folks mentioning Ford buy-backs. Any other advice, or at the least other fun stories like this?
Spent several weeks planning a southern Colorado road trip from my town (Fort Collins) with my family of four. Determined based on the extended range battery, planned itinerary and distance between high speed chargers that we would be able to do the trip in the Lightning (1.5 years old, ~20k miles). Absolutely zero issues the entire trip until our 2nd to last day on the road. Spent the night in Durango, woke up (July 1), topped on the charge to 95% before heading north on 550 (the Million Dollar highway) en-route to Telluride via a stop in Orary for lunch. Made a quick pit stop at Purgatory Resort to get a little extra juice before heading up the pass. Stopped at the Molas pass overlook to take some pictures, got back in the vehicle and when I went to start it the dash alerted "Safely pull over!" and would not start. Luckily I had 1 bar of cell service and was able to call Ford Roadside Assistance. 2.5 hours later the tow truck arrived and brought us back to Durango Ford. Got a hotel for the night in Durango only to find out there are no one-way car rentals in the town to get us back to Fort Collins. Grabbed an Uber to Durango Ford the next morning and hung around for about 3 hours until the service advisor finally told me that they likely would not have a diagnosis and definitely not have it fixed that day. My crew had to be back in Fort Collins the following day so the only option was 4-one way tickets on United at $414 a piece, then a $110 Uber home from the airport. Once I got home I contacted Fort Custom Service and they opened a case for me, stating what others on this board have also stated, they would cover a rental for up to $60 / day for 10 days. They also stated that I could submit all of my receipts (i.e. airfare, $600 airbnb in Telluride I was unable to get to, Uber rides, etc.) that would be reviewed for consideration AFTER my vehicle is repaired and returned to me.
So, here we are, 5 weeks after the truck broke down, it is ~400 miles away from me still in the shop waiting on backordered parts with not ETA. Oh yeah - one more thing - as we were on a road trip we had some food in a cooler in the bed (have a cap on the bed). Obviously we couldn't fly with a cooler or several other things we had to leave behind in the vehicle. At one point a few weeks ago I thought, oh there's got to be some pretty spoiled food in the bed of that truck, I should ask Durango Ford if they can assist getting rid of the perishables. So I called the service advisor at Durango Ford:
Me: Also, odd question, but at this point I've got some pretty nasty food in the back of the truck. Might need some assistance cleaning it out.
Ford Service Advisor: No, no, that shouldn't be a problem any more
Me: Oh great, you already cleaned it out?
Ford Service Advisor: No, a bear actually broke into your truck in the lot and ate the food that was in the back, looked like some chocolate covered raspberries and some other tasty snacks....
So, now - in addition to making my monthly car payments and insurance payments, I am paying out of pocket for a rental (oh, has to be a Ford and those aren't always easy to come by), and opened an insurance claim for the bear incident.
WTF, Ford?!
Also, fyi - the current work order for the warranty work on the truck is at $18k!
I've contacted some lemon law attorneys, but have seen folks mentioning Ford buy-backs. Any other advice, or at the least other fun stories like this?
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