Bad Dealership Experience

[MROCGUY]

Back in March, I had a 920AM appointment on the 80K dealer service menu (oil and filter change, multi-point inspection, fluid top off, and a few more things) I got the car there at 9AM. i opted to take a Lyft home and they would deliver the car to my home when done. I was watching the status tracker and that took awhile to advance to the next stages. Sometime around 1230PM, it switched from "service complete" to "final touches-in progress" i called at 138PM and left a voicemail message for the service advisor (Raela). i called the dealership at 204PM and was connected to her, she said it would be another 10-15 minutes. I received the invoice at 244PM, made my payment by 247PM. I was sent a text at 306PM saying the driver is on their way. My car finally arrived at about 320PM. there were black oily smudges on the bumper cover near the hood, on the driver's door handle and door.0

This ordeal made me late for work by 2 hours. The service advisor said it could take 2-3 hours, OK that was acceptable at the time. the car was there for 6 full hours for an easy routine job and inspection.

one of the things they found was my K&N air filter that i changed out no more than a month ago.
they advised that the coolant needed to be exchanged. i had my upper radiator hose and T-fitting replaced a few months ago at Peoria Ford and that included coolant replacement. i am not sure if one Ford dealer can see what another dealer has done, but that should have been entered into carfax as a repair item and the other dealer should be able to look that up to do their due diligence.
they also advised that my motor mounts and transmission mount needs to be replaced for over $2600 total. OEM parts are $180.
they also advised for spark plug replacement based on mileage for $315 without taking a single plug out. i changed them last year with NGK iridiums.

In conclusion, i will be patronizing smaller shops from now on when there is an issue beyond my reach.

Fast forward to today when i decided to do my own oil/filter change. the drain plug was so freekin tight, they probably used an impact on it (heavy tool marks on it) the threads were ok enough to get it back on and tightened by hand. at least the oil filter wasn't over torqued.

my theory is, is that they waited until they got my response from the $5,000 in additional maintenance before they even started the oil change and since i declined all of it, they were vindictive...the long wait, smudges, oil drip on the drain plug and the over torqued drain plug

Camelback Ford-Phoenix.

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[Skye]

When I cannot accomplish the work by myself, I schedule time at the dealer. Beforehand, I meet the Service Advisor, confirm parts are available and discuss a good date and time to come in. I prefer Tue-through-Thu appointments. Monday, they're slammed by people whose car broke over the weekend. Friday, they're slammed by people prepping for the weekend. For those maintenance items, if we believe the work will take X # of hours, like half the day, I consider the entire day a loss. I don't plan on picking it up until end of day. It's accommodating to them. I have no idea what's going on. And if it's fixed that much sooner, great.

To anyone with a scheduled appointment, I'd clarify with the Service Advisor the timeline of that day. If the car is needed by a certain hour, mention that, confirm that's a reasonable expectation. It's a reminder to anyone involved.

To the dealer smudges, I've encountered same. Now, I photograph any vehicle, with the Service Advisor present. I clean my vehicles before leaving with anyone. That's just how I am. I haven't had problems since. To the smudges, what I've witnessed, I'd clean them myself. Yes, it's wrong and this was a dealer fail. But sometimes, a dealer operating at this level, their "fixes" sometimes make things even worse; it's not worth the risk.

Specific to Ford, I review and update Ford Pass. I also update CarFax. I've confirmed the entire Ford/Carfax/Ford Pass thing is not 100% accurate. For example, when I bought my extended warranty, it appears as though I had my A/C system replaced. For the BCM re-flash, it appears as an oil change and maintenance. For the A/C update, it's a confirmed software bug at that specific dealer. To the phantom oil change, that local dealer did not have a entry available for the recall activity, so they selected something at random. If I see these odd events in Ford Pass, I make my own entry, same date and mileage, then clarify with a note.

To the engine and trans mounts, I can see that. It's akin to a previous throwout bearing replacement I had. The bearing was a hundred dollars. But getting to the bearing and replacing it was an all-day affair. I suspect replacing the mounts is the same. The engine and the trans have to be moved at least a few inches, up, down or sideways. That's going to involve removing and disconnecting any number of things.

The spark plug issue goes back to Ford Pass. I've been making many entries on my vehicle and synching those with CarFax. I'd like to think those are showing up, being sucked into Ford's systems. But I've never checked.

It's unfortunate, but I've encountered same from the local Toyota dealer. In one previous example, the wheel lugs were on so tight, I was genuinely afraid I was going to snap a stud. In another, I noticed one bolt broken-off a belly pan. For general-purpose connectors, the air guns are often set to maximum.

You're right in that the expectation is the work accomplished first should be the work scheduled. I suspect this dealer's process is inspect and pause for confirmation, before doing anything.

My experiences align with yours. To Toyota, that dealer has become so bad I will not return. But to Ford and the BCM re-flash, the field tech was great. There seems to have been a lot of turnover involving mechanics. And most dealers now have divided those mechanics into two broad categories: experienced specialists and routine maintenance techs. To the latter, could be someone like us, a fellow enthusiast. But they could also be someone you wouldn't trust to tie your shoes.

 

[lo-fi]

Mark your wheels before letting them do a tire rotation. It will blow your mind how often that rotation doesn't occur. They "forgot", didn't forget the bill though.

 

[GL95]

Why do you have a drain plug

 

[SBR70.3]

Reason #1,930,029 to do this stuff yourself. All of the mentioned items can be done in your garage or driveway in that 2 hour time frame. Document what you did in an excel/google sheet doc and keep receipts. I despise service/parts departments and can not think of a positive experience I have ever had with them in the 30 years I have been driving.

 

[VoR]

As far as them mentioning the spark plugs based on mileage, I would just let that go. They don't know you changed your plugs (unless you told them?) and are just mentioning it, doing their job.....upselling.
You make your own decisions on what suggestions you want to follow or not.
Did you tell them you needed the car by a specific time? If so, that is a failure in communication on their part.

 

[EFI]

I wouldn't really call this an "ordeal"...they took slightly longer than estimated and tried to oversell you on some stuff. Big whoop. And most of that stuff they just go by the book, they get pop ups based on mileage. They have no way of knowing those were all done especially if you did them in your own garage.

I've seen and heard of real ordeals over months and months. This was but a minor inconvenience.

 

[Chola]

Reason #1,930,029 to do this stuff yourself. All of the mentioned items can be done in your garage or driveway in that 2 hour time frame.

I'll give the OP benefit of doubt in case of lack of time/space/inclination/ability (due to age/ailments) etc. Yes DIY might seem the best option but the convenience of getting it done can be more appealing.

 

[forestg]

Why do you have a drain plug

Because 2016 models have drain plugs.

 

[GL95]

Because 2016 models have drain plugs.

I assumed on e85 with no injectors it was an 18+

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