A10 / 10R80 Failed, Unsure Next Steps

[ice445]

Update:

I appealed and Ford will not increase what they are offering in assistance to repair the vehicle. They are also not giving me any information about a buyback or anything, no matter how much I ask. Any phone call to my local dealership or customer service ends up with a circular "we'll have to call you back" but they never do.

I called again and finally spoke to the dealership, and they have offered a very low amount to sell the car to them. Alternatively, I have to decide if I pay the huge sum to get it fixed, then sell it, or just try to find some wholesaler to buy it in current condition. Every single question about a buyback is diverted when I ask about it. Apparently, I do qualify, but that it's some long process and they "have to get back to me" but never do. I have some appointment with Ford national to speak to a supervisor tomorrow, I doubt highly this will go anywhere.

Needless to say, I am completely done with Ford. I do not feel they stood by their product. I understand it was out of warranty (barely) and for that reason I am open to paying a portion of the repair, but certainly not 60% of it. I believe this car was defective from day 1 and had I been driving it more (no COVID), it likely would have failed within the warranty calendar timeframe.

Do not know what I am going to do for transportation, but at this point it won't be with that car.

There will never be another FORD in my future, my family's future, and hopefully my friend's future. I cannot recommend them.

At this point the dealership has turned to being a bit nasty. They want me to either get the car fixed or pay storage fees. They also have not provided me with a written repair estimate. I've heard them tell me now many times "they aren't making any money on this" and that it's a problem.

I was told by Ford national, that if I have the car moved from the dealership, I have to petition to get the repair paid partially by Ford again, the process restarts.

RIP. Unfortunately it's not just Ford, most non luxury makes will hang you out to dry if it's out of warranty and a big expense. Dunno why they do it since it almost always loses a customer for life, but I guess they figure they would rather have the quarter profits look better.

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[Aks550]

Update:

I appealed and Ford will not increase what they are offering in assistance to repair the vehicle. They are also not giving me any information about a buyback or anything, no matter how much I ask. Any phone call to my local dealership or customer service ends up with a circular "we'll have to call you back" but they never do.

I called again and finally spoke to the dealership, and they have offered a very low amount to sell the car to them. Alternatively, I have to decide if I pay the huge sum to get it fixed, then sell it, or just try to find some wholesaler to buy it in current condition. Every single question about a buyback is diverted when I ask about it. Apparently, I do qualify, but that it's some long process and they "have to get back to me" but never do. I have some appointment with Ford national to speak to a supervisor tomorrow, I doubt highly this will go anywhere.

Needless to say, I am completely done with Ford. I do not feel they stood by their product. I understand it was out of warranty (barely) and for that reason I am open to paying a portion of the repair, but certainly not 60% of it. I believe this car was defective from day 1 and had I been driving it more (no COVID), it likely would have failed within the warranty calendar timeframe.

Do not know what I am going to do for transportation, but at this point it won't be with that car.

There will never be another FORD in my future, my family's future, and hopefully my friend's future. I cannot recommend them.

At this point the dealership has turned to being a bit nasty. They want me to either get the car fixed or pay storage fees. They also have not provided me with a written repair estimate. I've heard them tell me now many times "they aren't making any money on this" and that it's a problem.

I was told by Ford national, that if I have the car moved from the dealership, I have to petition to get the repair paid partially by Ford again, the process restarts.

Automatic transmission needs fluid change at least around 30k miles, no such thing as lifetime fluid.

If I were you, I would pull the car out from stealership and shop for a good shop to install a used low mileage transmission. $10k is absurd...

I always recommend people to buy new vehicles that have 10 yrs/100k warranty if they plan to keep it over 5 years. I usually don't keep any cars longer than 3 years!

 

[Qcman17]

If it were me I would let them do it. While there may be cheaper options, once you factor in Fords contributions I doubt the difference will be massive. Op owes 4 k on the car add 7k or so for his end and he has a solid vehicle for 10k or so owed.

I sympathize with his plight but I think he needs to make a decision and run with it.

 

[CrazyHippie]

If it were me I would let them do it. While there may be cheaper options, once you factor in Fords contributions I doubt the difference will be massive. Op owes 4 k on the car add 7k or so for his end and he has a solid vehicle for 10k or so owed.

I sympathize with his plight but I think he needs to make a decision and run with it.

You have a good idea there - refinance the car to pay for the repair........is that actually possible? May be an option for the OP.

 

[kws6000]

I would try to get Ford to provide an extended warranty , consider it a bonus if you get it, pay the $6200 , get the dealer to replace the transmission , and move on.

As much as the op doesn’t like the offer, technically Ford doesn’t have to
give anything.
If a buyback was offered, I wouldn’t expect Ford to give more than the wholesale value less the full $10k
repair bill.

 

[Tucker80]

It's an unfortunate situation for sure, but I'm honestly shocked Ford is willing to do anything on a 5 year old car that's completely out of warranty. Says a lot about them and their willingness to try to make it right for customers. I'd happily take the offer and consider myself incredibly fortunate.

 

[v guy]

In the old days, and likely today..people still buy used transmissions al the time..........remans are about 3k, and used varies from $900 up............usually with 30 day warranty..have you tried a trans shop for rebuild or price a reman installed.?

If you can't do the work yourself.................

You could list the car for sale as is......a .gearhead would have her running soon......or trade it in a a Ford Dealer.........

 

[SMUAlien]

Hi All,

I guess final update.

I ended up getting the repair done. Cost me a pile.
I got the car back and I started noticing problems. The first thing was, the dealership reinstalled my G-Trac brace upside down. Yes, upside down. If anyone is curious, I can attach some pictures of it here. The metal tabs were facing downward, and I'd high center speed bumps. I ended up removing the brace, instead of having further interaction with the dealership.
A few days later, the transmission started oddly shifting, it probably still needed to go through some learning cycle. Engine was racing at times. It didn't feel right at all. I know I have a warranty on the transmission now though, but I was just at the end of it all with Ford and that dealership. I didn't want to deal with it anymore.

Ultimately, I decided I had lost faith in Ford. It's not acceptable for a car to have such a catastrophic failure, with low miles. I no longer trusted this car and the entire experience left a really sour taste in my mouth. I do appreciate that Ford offered some assistance towards an out of warranty repair, but for me, it didn't change the fact I had to fork over a pile of money and the experience was terrible. I went on KBB, did a used car quote request, and multiple dealerships contacted me. I brought it in to a few, got assessments, and negotiated a bit with a nearby Toyota used car lot, who bought the car from me. So, I am done with that car, and I am done with Ford forever.

I think I made a good choice in the end. After selling the car I ended up paying off the repair and buying a different used car that I trust more, that's only a year old, and has a lot of warranty left on it. Unfortunately, my payment horizon is extended far out.

I've decided I won't ever own an out of warranty car again. if a car gets near the end of its warranty, I will sell it. If I do plan to buy a car for long term, I'll likely get an extended warranty. In the end though, this doesn't change my feelings about Ford and the fact their product failed with mid-low milage. After doing a bit of research I concluded that I believe they are selling a flawed design. I did speak with multiple 2 local shops, and both of them said they've replaced the 10R80 transmission in at least 10 vehicles over the past 2 years. One of the shops stated exactly what he thought the problems with the transmission were, and how they should be fixed by Ford to prevent further problems.

Good luck guys. Unfortunately, my Mustang journey is over. The car was fun, and I always dreamt of having one, but ultimately it didn't end well.

 

[GrayMater22]

The 10R80 is a very complex machine and it seems to be very tempermental. The Forum says that a custom tune can really improve transmission behavior but I'm gun-shy about voiding my warranty. I have a close friend who suggested that a tune may actually help avoid transmission problems, implying that somehow Ford's programming may not be up to par. Your retrospective notes of subtle abnormalities are interesting. All the best - hope it works out for you.

I have Steeda tune and it really smoothed out my trans shifts on my 10r80, prior to the tune my trans was extremely violent, I have not doubt that the tune will increase the life of my trans. Ford could of done a lot better with their factory transmission tune. I have a 22 gt premium and I would never take my car to a dealership for anything, my mechanic is very experienced and cut his teeth at a ford dealership, but now owns his own business. The guy is a rock star and honest as the day is long and he had no issues with a steeda tune as they stay within safe perimeters with their tunes.

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