Ford Dealers are Terrible

[NeedForGreen]

Yes, Volkswagen dealers are very good, Audi included in that VW group, and the service department is a ghost town in regards to the amount of cars being serviced..

I have had 2 VW's. The service department was always swamped because lets face it, VW's arent known for reliability. I went in one day first thing with an appointment for an oil change. After 2 hours of waiting I asked what the deal was. I was told there was only one tech doing oil changes. Why wasnt I told this when I went in? I had to wait 4 hours before I left and they still didnt even rotate my tires. My wife ended up going down to Subaru to trade it in. So far the Subaru dealer out of every car I've ever purchased seems to have decent service even though there was a time my wife was in the hospital for surgery, ended up with a nail in the tire when she was about to get discharged. I told them I might need a loaner.....which is included in some plan my wife got. I was told they really dont have any available. Another customer comes in for work on his car, asks for a loaner, gets asked which one he wants (gives 3 choices). Maybe I'm just jinxed with dealers service.

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[OLdchuck]

Just goes to show that any make could have bad dealers or service departments.
Even with Porsche there are some dealers folks say were not as good as what they had come to expect. I would expect as some brands become more mainstream with increased sales that it will be more common. Example: In the US, Ford sold 2.4 million cars in 2019 in a down year and Porsche sold less than 62,000 but increased almost 4% over 2018. If Porsche does not increase their service departments down the road there will have to be a longer waiting list, less loaners and may result in hiring techs that are not all factory trained and certified...and that could lead to much poorer service.. Just my opinion..

 

[3rdRGR]

I have had 2 VW's. The service department was always swamped because lets face it, VW's arent known for reliability. I went in one day first thing with an appointment for an oil change. After 2 hours of waiting I asked what the deal was. I was told there was only one tech doing oil changes. Why wasnt I told this when I went in? I had to wait 4 hours before I left and they still didnt even rotate my tires. My wife ended up going down to Subaru to trade it in. So far the Subaru dealer out of every car I've ever purchased seems to have decent service even though there was a time my wife was in the hospital for surgery, ended up with a nail in the tire when she was about to get discharged. I told them I might need a loaner.....which is included in some plan my wife got. I was told they really dont have any available. Another customer comes in for work on his car, asks for a loaner, gets asked which one he wants (gives 3 choices). Maybe I'm just jinxed with dealers service.

That should have prompted a request to see the Manager of the Dealership. You’d have been riding in one of the two options the other dude didn’t take.

 

[Spartan1]

Took my car in for it's first oil change at 2,900 miles Wednesday, Quick Lube at the Ford dealer in Flat Rock, MI.

I'd read some of the horror stories here about simple oil changes, and I was lucky enough to have the service tech work on the car in the first bay right in front of me, and it has windows. Watched the poor kid like a hawk the entire time. I had told the check in guy to make sure he knows it's 10 quarts and to button up the bottom shield/cowl when done.

I felt like a bit of an ass, but wasn't taking any chances, and they did a great job. I have the Ford Pass points to use, so might as well use them. Cost would have been $107 with full synthetic, and he said I have enough points for 1 more of those.

But glad I read the warnings here to know what to look for, great info as always.

 

[tom_sprecher]

We have had nothing but good experiences at our dealer with both of our cars. A lot depends on the attitudes of both the service writer and you.

 

[3rdRGR]

Let me shorten the title: Dealers are Terrible. I've said it before, I'll say it again. The concept of a dealership is an anachronism that is wholly propped up by lobbying groups. Manufacturers have tried to move to a direct sales model, but their efforts are stonewalled by legislation bought and paid for by dealership advocacy groups. There's no reason anymore for middleman commission based sales. Tesla does just fine with showrooms and online ordering.

I’ll push back on this a bit. Can online tell you what’s wrong with your car? No. Can it provide you with discounts because they appreciate your loyalty? Perhaps, but I get discounts all the time at my local shop which happens to be a Chevy dealership. I know those guys and they know us and I live in the smallest of "towns" (we don't even have a McDonald's...) and I like to assist our little economy when I can. There is the human experience and you don’t get that from MFG to website. I’m a car guy and have spent hundreds if not thousands of hours over the course of my life pouring over car info. But not all people are like that. They may need a sales guy to walk them through features and benefits as well as drawbacks of certain models to navigate them to what will be best for them.

I’ve been in sales since 95. I’m not Slick Willy. I spend every moment with my customer's best interests in mind and because of that I’ve done very well. I can’t tell you how many times (thousands) I’ve told a client my product / service is not the best scenario for them. They remember that honesty and come back to me when I am the best fit. I am not alone. My latest car buying experience was awesome and I am very picky and in tune to great customer service. This matters and like everything in life, it’s less than wise to paint with a broad brush.

 

[DRB]

Well, the Tesla drivers I know say that anything other than the most routine service is nearly impossible (and we have a Tesla service center two miles from our office). "They're selling a utility but they act like they're a tech company" is the way one put it. He's pretty happy with the car overall, BTW, but a few months ago he bought a late model Quadrifoglio to daily.

 

[3rdRGR]

Well, the Tesla drivers I know say that anything other than the most routine service is nearly impossible (and we have a Tesla service center two miles from our office). "They're selling a utility but they act like they're a tech company" is the way one put it. He's pretty happy with the car overall, BTW, but a few months ago he bought a late model Quadrifoglio to daily.

Oh I get it. Different strokes and I like that a newer model is out there trying a different way. That Alfa is baaad azzzz!! Absolutely love it and used ones were just starting to creep into my price range. But of course there is a reason for that... You may find your Alfa is in the dealerships garage more than yours... Sweet ride though!

 

[ihc95]

I agree that Ford dealerships are trash for the most part. Yes, the dealerships' shortcomings are not the car's fault, but they both represent the same brand and Ford must do a better job enforcing better service. It doesn't matter if they are privately owned or not, Ford has power over their dealerships. Even worse, most of the talented techs do not work at Ford because of the terrible wages. My friend is a very talented mechanic and a big car enthusiast who takes pride in his work. He left Ford for Mercedes after a year and never looked back. This happens often unfortunately where all the good techs go to higher end brands for better pay. So we are even getting the short end of the stick when it comes to competence and skill to diagnose, service, and repair our cars. It really is sad because Ford makes some excellent vehicles with incredible engineering (apart from the hit or miss build quality).

 

[TheSnowmanMafia]

Snowman, That is how it is at Porsche. I would imagine since VW backs both that is fairly common for their dealerships.

Yes, Volkswagen dealers are very good, Audi included in that VW group, and the service department is a ghost town in regards to the amount of cars being serviced..

Yep, before the Audi I owned a GTI and a Golf R. Both modded, never had ANY issues with my dealer.

Also have dealt with the Porsche dealer's body shop after my Golf R was hit and ran. Great service.

 

[Jmtoast]

Yep, before the Audi I owned a GTI and a Golf R. Both modded, never had ANY issues with my dealer.

Also have dealt with the Porsche dealer's body shop after my Golf R was hit and ran. Great service.

lol, are there actually Golf R's and GTI's that aren't modded? I just assumed that's the way they came. Seriously, though the actual VW tech brought that up when i took my modded Audi in. He was laughing about how modded the GTI's are that he sees.

 

[rob_s]

You had to have a new hood ordered and replaced?

Yeah, in 2018 I noticed the paint bubbling on the underside all the way at the front. Ford warrantied it and the dealer coordinated with a local body shop to paint and install it. Mustang hood corrosion has been a thing at least since 2005. I heard a theory that since they're the only aluminum body panel they outsource production, but they arrive bare at the factory and aren't properly cleaned, so contaminants remain under the primer.

 

[DRB]

Yeah, my last car had that aluminum corrosion thing going on at the front edge of the hood.

 

[Mustang5ohMan]

Yeah, in 2018 I noticed the paint bubbling on the underside all the way at the front. Ford warrantied it and the dealer coordinated with a local body shop to paint and install it. Mustang hood corrosion has been a thing at least since 2005. I heard a theory that since they're the only aluminum body panel they outsource production, but they arrive bare at the factory and aren't properly cleaned, so contaminants remain under the primer.

Paint turned out well?

 

[TheSnowmanMafia]

lol, are there actually Golf R's and GTI's that aren't modded? I just assumed that's the way they came. Seriously, though the actual VW tech brought that up when i took my modded Audi in. He was laughing about how modded the GTI's are that he sees.

Maybe? Some dealers are very anti-mod though. You have to find one willing to do warranty work on tuned cars. I was never TD1'd (corporate ecu flag for tuned cars = warranty deny) on my R.

My Audi actually has a TD1 sticker on the rear quarter windows that the dealer and my indy mechanic find hilarious.

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