Lenn

No, used to (hence the Coast Guard logo in the sig). I also stated that not all dealerships are great. You have to look around (especially with domestics for some reason). I thurougly (sp?) enjoy tinkering with my truck but I also think that WHILE ITS UNDER WARRANTY, its mostly hands off. All three Ford dealers near me, as well as my wife's Mazda dealer do not allow you to schedule an appointment for an oil change. They do "drop in only". Also for scheduled service, they like to know when it's coming in but only about 2 days in advance. Sorry to ruffle feathers but I highly believe that on "enthusiast forums" such as this, dealers don't get enough credit.

dplummer87

Um, an oil change takes 10 min...And i have never heard of a dealer that does not offer a shuttle to get you back to your work, or if you are having a repair, will not give you a loaner (if under warranty)

dplummer87

Oh, and thanks for all the back up fellas! thought i was gonna have to go this one alone

Jason8691

I dont think people would complain if they got decent service and not a lot of hassle. It wouldnt matter to me if I had to get a new engine every 6 months if I didnt have to argue with someone and provide a mountain of proof that I maintained it properly. The problem comes from getting shafted by the very place you bought the thing from, not the vehicle itself. This is my 6th Ford, so obviously I love Fords, but I dont like dealers that act like its a hassle for them to honor a warranty.

Lenn

I completely agree. The problem lies in that the dealers have a obligation not only to you as a customer to represent you to the eyes of the big daddy Ford but also have an obligation to Ford to prove why the company is at fault. They have to play both sides of the fence. Don't forget that. If you don't have the vehicle serviced there so that they can submit these records that are required for them to get claims paid at the time it is reported to Ford, then the responsibility lies with you, the owner, to prove that you are infact taking care of the vehicle. There are no magic crystal ***** at the factory or in dealerships that can say "Yep, this is a good'n".

Lenn

People think they are getting a run around and a hassle when their 2 year old 25-30k mile vehicles have problems that the dealer won't just automatically fix with no questions asked. It doesn't work that way. If you want to save a buck and take the vehicle to a "Bob's Lube and Squirt" to have an oil change and brakes done, be prepared to have to prove your case and show the people that you are wanting to shell out all kinds of $$ to fix your pile that you actually take care of said pile even though it was not done there.

billw

I am sorry but that is a load of something stinky. I have worked for two dealers and as long as there is no evidence of wrong doing on the customers part then there is no reason to deny or question warranty. To clear this up as well I was a service mechanic and supervisor and worked closley with the warranty claims people. Any self respecting mechanic can tell when a vehicle has been abused. If you bring me your truck and you have only done an oil change every 20k I will know. It will show and you will pay. However, I am fully within my right to do all my own oil changes from day one. Now you can say anything you want but the bottom line is that the dealer would much rather make you pay list price for parts and 100% on the labor rate than get the 80% labor and no mark up on parts that warranty pays. Don't kid yourself, many dealers will try almost anything to not have to file warranty claims and make you pay. Some are even low enough to double dip and file the claim after you already paid the bill. This is a big reason I don't work for a dealer any more.

Lenn

Yes, right you are. Any self respecting mechanic can tell if a vehicle has been abused. However, we are not talking about 5-7 year old 50-100k vehicles. It is much easier to disguise a neglected vehicle when it only is a few years old. Remeber, we are talking about WARRANTY claims. This implies that a vehicle has less than or just over 36k.
Obviously the Volvo and Dodge dealers I worked for are a rarity then. Never would a dishonest tech nor a "double dip" go unpunished. I started as a car wash bitch, moved to service advisor, then to service manager and I can tell you with 100% certainty, any ticket that came thru my warranty window got an internal audit and checkover before it got submitted for payment. Customer pay tickets got tracked and trends were evaluated before anything got out of hand. Just about ALL trending repairs were validated by the shop foreman (who was paid a flat salary, no commission) before the service writer called the customer to "sell" the work.

wxmcpo

Exactly! It's up to the dealership to show that the cause for the warranty repair is because of some neglect on the owners part, not the other way around. I should not have to take my truck to the dealership and pay their outrageous markups and then keep all of my receipts just to prove I did my oil changes according to my owners manual. That is definitely not something that is implied either by their warranty. Much like when you add an aftermarket part to your vehicle and dealerships try to deny a warranty claim because of the part. They have to show that the addition of the aftermarket part caused the reason for the warranty claim.

There are a lot of dealerships out there that care nothing about the customer once the sale is complete and the truck is off the lot.

Lenn

Unfortunately, you are wrong on two key points.
1) If you take your truck to the dealership and pay (on average) $10-$12 more than Jiffy Lube (wich I don't find unreasonable for factory certification and updated training with each new model) you do not have to hang on to your reciepts. That is what I have been saying all along. Sometimes it is just worth the extra $$ to have FACTORY trained techs working on your truck and an established entity such as a dealer keeping up with your records for you. It's when you don't bring it there that you must prove that you actually do the maintenance.
2) On average, 70%+ of a dealerships profit comes from the service department over the lifetime of a vehicle, assuming you bring it there to have it worked on. As such, most dealers only make $3k-4k profit total off your sale from the point you buy it until the maturity date of the loan. Think about it. Did you pay sticker price for your truck?? NO!! Nobody does. But when you buy a new truck, the price is set by the manufacturer, not the dealer. That same concept goes to what that particular dealer pays for that truck on a monthly basis. The difference is that they can not "haggle" with the factory. I have been on the "inside" of the belly of a dealer and the sales department is little fish.