Frustrated With Ford Dealers (RANT)

[F150ROD]

Im having all kind of issues with this truck, mostly software related

- Electrical battery drain, Service Required (Again)
- 360 Degree Camera on Center Screen half the size
- Sync Screen unresponsive, went Green this morning and then came back
- Audio unavailable
- Chimes every time I get in the truck
- Electrify America saying I am a Mach-E Driver

I call the Ford EV hotline to see if they can assist with getting this scheduled. Which they do, thank you. I am at 44,500 miles, out of bumper to bumper warranty, but have Extended Warranty with a $50 Deductible. I show up to my appointment this morning and the first thing the SA asks me: "Why do you keep contacting Ford?". I tell him I contact them so I don't waste their time if there is a fix coming our way through OTA. He asks me what issues I am having, after describing everything he pulls out a calculator and shows me a $760 total for diagnostics if none of this is covered under warranty. He says it's $190 per diagnostic. I ask why is this not covered under my extended warranty and he tells me, "Well we won't know until we find out what's going on." "I can't guarantee that any of this is covered under warranty.

WTF @Ford Motor Company , are dealers not given access to what will be covered or not?

Sorry for the rant, I am a big Ford supporter but can't deal with this crap anymore and no, I am not going to buy a Tesla. I can look for another dealer but chances are the same thing is going to happen. The dealer closest to me says it will take them a week to even plug it in to see what is wrong.

@Ford Motor Company I hope you find a way to provide better service to EV's.

BTW, if anyone is interested in some Volk TE37's let me know. They'll be for sale soon.

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[Daragh]

Sad to hear of your predicament.

I’m not one to stand up for the Ford dealerships, anything but, they are scavengers who are rewarded financially for draining every penny they can out of “customers” aka cash cows. At least thats been my experience here in the Raleigh area.

BUT!!!

The sad reality is the dealership mechanics have zero knowledge of the electronic systems outside of what FDRS tells them, it’s not their fault, and if you’ve ever used FDRS it’s basically an automated if then else flow chart method of diagnostic and repair.

This is probably the worst debug mechanism known to man. It generally results in multiple false negatives or false positives based on the issue. You need a knowledgeable technician (not a car mechanic) to truly debug, this is where Fords internal “Hotline” kicks in and in past experience it’s only ever successful 50% of time or less on first attempt. I experienced this with an F250 Power Stroke that spent weeks in the dealership going back and forth with the hotline, finally getting resolution as they shotgunned the debug with some addition Lemon Law pressure!!!

Ford won’t reimburse dealerships for any work they do that falls outside of what FDRS and or hotline tells them hence why the dealership aka stealer ship is doing a CYA and saying they won’t know costs until they know issue.

I got the best results when I attempted to invoke “Lemon Law” based on how long they had my truck, this lit a fire and ironically I also got given a no cost ESP for 8 years 100,000 miles with $100 deductible from them. Truck never had any additional issues.

Don’t give in challenge them on everything, contact Ford directly as needed and get what is and is not covered under your ESP. Document all interactions with Ford and the dealership, write it down in a note book or on a computer, with dates times and names of folks you spoke with.

I hope you get it fixed, nothing more frustrating than not getting appropriate support and being told how much that lack of support could potentially cost.

I’m a Ford guy even after my one true bad experience but sadly Ford and Ford dealerships are two completely different factions. I wish Ford would do away with closed garden dealership model and open their hotline to any certified vehicle repair entities, that would create real competition and better customer support!

Good luck!

 

[F150ROD]

Sad to hear of your predicament.

I’m not one to stand up for the Ford dealerships, anything but, they are scavengers who are rewarded financially for draining every penny they can out of “customers” aka cash cows. At least thats been my experience here in the Raleigh area.

BUT!!!

The sad reality is the dealership mechanics have zero knowledge of the electronic systems outside of what FDRS tells them, it’s not their fault, and if you’ve ever used FDRS it’s basically an automated if then else flow chart method of diagnostic and repair.

This is probably the worst debug mechanism known to man. It generally results in multiple false negatives or false positives based on the issue. You need a knowledgeable technician (not a car mechanic) to truly debug, this is where Fords internal “Hotline” kicks in and in past experience it’s only ever successful 50% of time or less on first attempt. I experienced this with an F250 Power Stroke that spent weeks in the dealership going back and forth with the hotline, finally getting resolution as they shotgunned the debug with some addition Lemon Law pressure!!!

Ford won’t reimburse dealerships for any work they do that falls outside of what FDRS and or hotline tells them hence why the dealership aka stealer ship is doing a CYA and saying they won’t know costs until they know issue.

I got the best results when I attempted to invoke “Lemon Law” based on how long they had my truck, this lit a fire and ironically I also got given a no cost ESP for 8 years 100,000 miles with $100 deductible from them. Truck never had any additional issues.

Don’t give in challenge them on everything, contact Ford directly as needed and get what is and is not covered under your ESP. Document all interactions with Ford and the dealership, write it down in a note book or on a computer, with dates times and names of folks you spoke with.

I hope you get it fixed, nothing more frustrating than not getting appropriate support and being told how much that lack of support could potentially cost.

I’m a Ford guy even after my one true bad experience but sadly Ford and Ford dealerships are two completely different factions. I wish Ford would do away with closed garden dealership model and open their hotline to any certified vehicle repair entities, that would create real competition and better customer support!

Good luck!

Thanks!! Unfortunately the Ford Hotline and EV team told me the same. “We cant tell you if it’s covered until it’s diagnosed”

I honestly don’t have the energy to fight them. The truck drives great but these issues are slowly creeping up. Being out of the basic warranty and mileage take me out of the Lemon Law category. Cutting my losses now is my only option as I see this becoming more of an issue as Ford slowly leaves the EV world in the U.S.

The most frustrating part is the service dude looked like he had no desire to help or deal with another EV. His “no other EV drivers do this” comment said it all. I elaborated to him that I also allow Ford to send tokens to help with this EV, so yes, I contact the EV team…

 

[RickLightning]

That response - "we can't tell you if it's covered until it's diagnosed" has been delivered by dealers for YEARS before EVs.

 

[F150ROD]

That response - "we can't tell you if it's covered until it's diagnosed" has been delivered by dealers for YEARS before EVs.

Agreed and they need a new line. 8 years 100k warranty for bumper to bumper and battery….. that line doesn’t work anymore

 

[RickLightning]

Agreed and they need a new line. 8 years 100k warranty for bumper to bumper and battery….. that line doesn’t work anymore

Sure it does.

"My front spoiler is gone".

Dealer looks and says "I see scrape marks. You ripped it off. No coverage for you."

"My engine stopped working".

Dealer says "there is no oil in it, did you ever do an oil change?"

"What's an oil change?"

 

[F150ROD]

Sure it does.

"My front spoiler is gone".

Dealer looks and says "I see scrape marks. You ripped it off. No coverage for you."

"My engine stopped working".

Dealer says "there is no oil in it, did you ever do an oil change?"

"What's an oil change?"

Thanks I needed a good laugh

 

[beast]

Sad to hear of your predicament.

I’m not one to stand up for the Ford dealerships, anything but, they are scavengers who are rewarded financially for draining every penny they can out of “customers” aka cash cows. At least thats been my experience here in the Raleigh area.

BUT!!!

The sad reality is the dealership mechanics have zero knowledge of the electronic systems outside of what FDRS tells them, it’s not their fault, and if you’ve ever used FDRS it’s basically an automated if then else flow chart method of diagnostic and repair.

This is probably the worst debug mechanism known to man. It generally results in multiple false negatives or false positives based on the issue. You need a knowledgeable technician (not a car mechanic) to truly debug, this is where Fords internal “Hotline” kicks in and in past experience it’s only ever successful 50% of time or less on first attempt. I experienced this with an F250 Power Stroke that spent weeks in the dealership going back and forth with the hotline, finally getting resolution as they shotgunned the debug with some addition Lemon Law pressure!!!

Ford won’t reimburse dealerships for any work they do that falls outside of what FDRS and or hotline tells them hence why the dealership aka stealer ship is doing a CYA and saying they won’t know costs until they know issue.

I got the best results when I attempted to invoke “Lemon Law” based on how long they had my truck, this lit a fire and ironically I also got given a no cost ESP for 8 years 100,000 miles with $100 deductible from them. Truck never had any additional issues.

Don’t give in challenge them on everything, contact Ford directly as needed and get what is and is not covered under your ESP. Document all interactions with Ford and the dealership, write it down in a note book or on a computer, with dates times and names of folks you spoke with.

I hope you get it fixed, nothing more frustrating than not getting appropriate support and being told how much that lack of support could potentially cost.

I’m a Ford guy even after my one true bad experience but sadly Ford and Ford dealerships are two completely different factions. I wish Ford would do away with closed garden dealership model and open their hotline to any certified vehicle repair entities, that would create real competition and better customer support!

Good luck!

When you say Raleigh area, I’m assuming here in NC. I’m in Wendell and my dealer is Leith ford in Wendell, haven’t had a bad experience yet let’s hope it stays that way.

 

[RickLightning]

Thanks I needed a good laugh

True story. My oldest son was dating a girl that was so stupid she literally ran her engine dry of oil and froze the engine block.

I can tell you that if you participate in a bunch of these forums, and the facebook pages, a large portion of people seem to have never owned a car before.

"I ran over 3 nails. Is that covered under warranty?"

"A rock hit my windshield. Is that covered under warranty?"

 

[F150ROD]

True story. My oldest son was dating a girl that was so stupid she literally ran her engine dry of oil and froze the engine block.

I can tell you that if you participate in a bunch of these forums, and the facebook pages, a large portion of people seem to have never owned a car before.

"I ran over 3 nails. Is that covered under warranty?"

"A rock hit my windshield. Is that covered under warranty?"

That’s true, lol….

 

[Henry Ford]

I honestly don’t have the energy to fight them. The truck drives great but these issues are slowly creeping up. Being out of the basic warranty and mileage take me out of the Lemon Law category. Cutting my losses now is my only option as I see this becoming more of an issue as Ford slowly leaves the EV world in the U.S.

This seems like an overreaction to a $1,000 repair. I had an exhaust manifold replaced on my last F150 for about $1,000. Things break.

That's not to say dealerships don't suck. A dealership charged me $150 to diagnose an "air charge temperature sensor" failure after I told them the car needed an oxygen sensor. An air charge temperature sensor is a nonsense way to describe an oxygen sensor. I diagnosed it myself in three minutes with a $12 Bluetooth OBD interface but mistakenly thought it was covered by the power train warranty. Needless to say they didn't get my $400 to change a $30 part. Maybe look for a different dealer.

 

[TaxmanHog]

When you say Raleigh area, I’m assuming here in NC. I’m in Wendell and my dealer is Leith ford in Wendell, haven’t had a bad experience yet let’s hope it stays that way.

Look at member profiles, some folks have useful details in them, other not-so-much...

 

[BennyTheBeaver]

Cutting my losses now is my only option as I see this becoming more of an issue as Ford slowly leaves the EV world in the U.S.

With all due respect, it's not your only option. It seems you're too upset to consider the alternatives. Good dealers do exist, it does sometimes take a little effort to find a good one. Finding one that does the right thing, instead of the most profitable thing is the key. I stopped going to the one close to my house because the sales/finance department are a bunch of crooks. There are other dealers within 25-40 miles that are decent that I now go to.

To Ford's point, until they diagnose the issues there is no way of knowing what is or isn't covered. An electrical issue in a module could be because rodents chewed through wires and is causing a short. I'm not saying that's the case, but you get the idea. These dealers are still getting tooled up with their service departments. A bad experience with a dealer soured my attitude towards them as well, but I wouldn't give up my truck for it. Do you think service with Rivian is better? Tesla? There are owners waiting months for parts/mobile service to visit them.

Where Ford really dropped the ball is not, effectively, tooling up dealers and training technicians while the Lightning was in development. This, unfortunately, is what we all signed up for with early adoption of a brand's new technology. For me, it's a worthwhile sacrifice, but it is a matter of opinion. If I was in your situation I'd keep exploring options/alternatives before I gave up my truck. To each their own though.

Ford is definitely NOT leaving the EV market in the US. Ford is #2 in EV sales. Are they slowing their growth down? Yes. Leaving? No.

 

[F150ROD]

This seems like an overreaction to a $1,000 repair. I had an exhaust manifold replaced on my last F150 for about $1,000. Things break.

That's not to say dealerships don't suck. A dealership charged me $150 to diagnose an "air charge temperature sensor" failure after I told them the car needed an oxygen sensor. An air charge temperature sensor is a nonsense way to describe an oxygen sensor. I diagnosed it myself in three minutes with a $12 Bluetooth OBD interface but mistakenly thought it was covered by the power train warranty. Needless to say they didn't get my $400 to change a $30 part. Maybe look for a different dealer.

Sure, you’re right. I am overreacting. I should go ahead and pay the $1k for software related issues just so they can tell me it’s a software related issue and then tell me what the cost to repair will be….. that’s after I paid for extended warranty that would supposedly cover said issue.

Im not trashing the truck or Ford. I just needed somewhere to vent. That’s it. I’ve had nothing but praise for what Ford is doing and for what the Lightning is.

 

[invertedspear]

Sure, you’re right. I am overreacting. I should go ahead and pay the $1k for software related issues just so they can tell me it’s a software related issue and then tell me what the cost to repair will be….. that’s after I paid for extended warranty that would supposedly cover said issue.

Sarcastic sentence followed by over dramatic read on the situation. Maybe you didn't intend the sarcasm, but it reads that way.

Are they charging you the $760 that you're rounding up to $1k up front? Doesn't sound like it, sounds like he's giving you fair warning that in case this turns out to not be a warranty issue, this is what you're on the hook for. Is that price ridiculous? yes, and it should be negotiated if it does have to come out of your pocket. It's also ridiculous they want your truck to sit there for a week before even diagnosing anything. I've had the same experience at 2 dealers in my area, I found that bad reviews on Google will sometimes get them to suddenly find room in their schedule and oh look we also have a loaner car for you. But the fact of the matter is that a service center that is treating you like this doesn't want your business.

Last time I used a dealer service I drove 30 minutes across town to a new place. They seem to care, had me diagnosed and resolved in about 4 hours, bundled my 10k service cost into whatever they charged the warranty for the repair and I was out the door with nothing out of pocket. THEY want my future business. The guys 5 mins away do not.

Ford is not McDonald's. At McDonald's you can get a Big Mac at any location that will cost the same and taste the same, and likely take just about the same amount of time to get through the drive through. Ford doesn't have that kind of control over it's franchise dealers. So a truck may cost wildly different amounts from one location to the next, same thing in the service department; costs vary by location. So does the customer service. The dealer you're going to does not want you there, so take your truck to a dealer that does. It's not easy to find, but ask the specific question of the service advisor you talk to: "Will you have it diagnosed today?" if they say anything but yes, hang up and try the next dealer.

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