I have got to vent!!!

Of course, I own a 04 Expedition with 6500 miles. My wife loves the vehicle, and I get to drive it on weekends. We have a problem with mildew odor, and my wife stopped by two weeks ago to address the problem. The service manager without looking at the vehicle tells my wife that some people don't like the leather smell. My wife states, "Mildew and leather are two different odors, please get in a smell it." He smells it, and doesn't say much. My wife then asks, "Are there any Technical Service Bulletins pertaining to this?" She gets a blank stare followed by, "I don't know, I will have to look." He then takes the VIN number and a contact number and says he will call her later in the day. Two days go by an no call! So, I call and speak to the service manager. I talk to him, and he said he forgot. He then states he will have to order an new evaporator and when it comes in he will schedule a service date.

This past Tuesday was the service date, and my wife drops off the vehicle and they give her a rental. The car is supposed to be ready by the end of the day. I get a call Tuesday afternoon, they need one more day. I say no problem as long as it is fixed properly. Wedneday afternoon comes, still not ready. Thursday afternoon still not ready. Friday (Today) at 1400 the car is ready! My wife who is pregnant and has our 6 and 3 yr old with her goes to pick up the vehicle around 1600. She gets the vehicle and it is FILTHY! Carpet and seats are covered with dirt and grime! My wife tells them she is not taking the vehicle since it is not being returned in the same condition. The service manager says to bring it back on Monday and he will have it detailed, it will take 2 hours. My wife responds, "just keep it and I will come get it when it is ready." He says, since you are going to be that way about it, I will clean it now, but it will not be as good!!!!!!! She gets the vehicle handed to her again, and only the drivers seat has been swept off, and the car is still filthy! Now my pregnant wife with two kids is shaking mad, and stressed. (If I were not at work, I would have been down there with a baseball bat!) She goes over to the showroom to see the General Manager. By now it's dark, and you can't see how dirty the car is. The GM says bring the car in tomorrow and he will have it cleaned in 20 minutes. My wife expresses her anger about being treated badly by the service manager, and the GM says nothing. My wife loads up the kids, gets back in the Expedition and heads home since she is not feeling well due to the aggravation. As my kids get into the back seat, they find TOOLS!!!!!!!!! And screws!!!!!!!! WTF!!!!

Needless to say, I am now going down there tomorrow to handle this. Overall, I get a dirty car back with mechanics tools and loose screws left in the back seat! And now I have a very upset pregnant woman to calm down.

My wife wishes we never bought our vehicle at that dealership! They have rude management and crappy service.

Thanks for letting me vent.

Joe

 

Look in your owners manual and you will find the phone number and address for Ford customer service. I would take some pictures and write them a letter. I would also find another dealer to take it to.

 

Thats teriible. I dont see how they can stay in business with treatment like that. I would never go back there again. BTW I hope they got your original problem fixed. Report this problem to Ford. There not too keen on this kind of treatment. If there blueoval certified they could take this designation away from them. That would cost them dollars and business. There are good dealers out there. You have happened to just had a bad experience. Hope you get things straightened out right. Keep us posted.

 

Go to the salesman who sold the vehicle and tell him in no uncertain terms that if the shop foreman isnt straightened out then you will take the vehicle elsewhere and will probably end up buy elsewhere. A good salesman doesnt want to lose repeat business and will take up your cause. If not , then definatly go elsewhere. Ford Motor Co doesnt give one hoot about your beef with a service advisor. Been through it.

 

What a crappy experience... even more so because of the wife's condition. I know how that is.

In order to avoid future experiences, check out what the owner's manual has to say regarding mold in the ventilation system. Basically, you should always turn the controls to "vent" (with AC off) before turning the vehicle off. This will let the cabin "breathe" and dry out the vents/ducts so mold can't grow.

 

You can say that again!@!!!
Been there (service advisors, service manager, Regional Ford Rep, Ford Arbitration board, Ford Customer Service...) done that...didn't even get a stinkin' T-shirt.

I must be CRAZY for still owning, driving Fords...the problem is - it's NOT just Fords.

Scott

 

My vehicle has been in at least three times to correct the mildew odor.

1st try they disinfected the A/C
2nd try they replaced the evaporator. Took 5 days.
3rd try they removed old "jute?" sp,

Yesterday I checked under the carpet and it is WET again! They once again offered to find the leak and replace the carpet.

How should I proceed? According to FL Lemon law I need to officially notify Ford ASAP. Do I let them repair and fill out arbitration paperwork? Do I officially notify them and do all of the above? Overall, I like the expedition, just not the one I am driving. What is the best way to do this?

Bottom line is that my family has been exposed to a nasty smelling vehicle for over 5 months. My wife started asking me if we should be concerned about our health and breathing the milder odor.

Thanks,

Joe

 

I HATE TO SAY THIS BUT MY WIFE DRIVES A GM PRODUCT TODAY BECAUSE OF FORD'S ATTITUDE, YES, CORPORATE FORD, OVER A COUPLE OF PROBLEMS I HAD WITH A NEW 94 RANGER 4x4, AND A NEW 95 MUSTANG GT. THE DEALER WAS AT A LOSS, THEY DID EVERYTHING THEY COULD, THEY COULDN'T EVEN GET FORD TO DO ANYTHING. THE 95 MUSTANG WAS THE LAST NEW FORD I HAVE EVER BOUGHT. I OWN AN 86 F250, IT NEVER SEES A FORD DEALERSHIP< AND I NOW LIVE IN A TOWN THAT HAS A GREAT FORD DEALERSHIP, DELONG FORD. ANYTIME I NEED INFO THEY ARE GREAT TO SEE I GET WHAT I NEED. CALLING FORD FROM MY EXPERIENCE IS A WASTE OF TIME. IF YOU CAN'T GET A PROBLEM FIXED BY THE DEALER NETWORKS THEN YOUR OUT OF LUCK.

 

ITs a lemon...Contact ford repeatedly until they give you a new car...

 

If it were only that easy...been there-tried that.

Scott

 

threaten to sue...also, check carfax & make sure its not a "flood vehicle"...

 

I would try another dealer, I have had bad luck with one in the area and tried another with great success. I have an 03 expy and brought it in for exhaust smell coming into the vehicle, they misunderstood and disenfected the evaporator for mold smell! mistake, I had the mold smell after that until I bought some Lysol and started spraying it in the air intake (grill just below the windshield wipers), it took about five times a few days apart and then about a week for the smell of the lysol to go away, no smell now for several months. I live in Central Florida, so we are still using the A/C. I have been using mainly the A/C on outside air unless I am in heavy traffic, then I switch to recirc and always swith back to outside air when parking. I hope this helps.

 

I've had similiar experiences with my EXPY trying to get things fixed. I had to bring them the TSB which didn't really boost my confidence in their ability to fix problems. And it took 3 days longer than the 'same day' promised and the service manager really didn't seem to care. They are reluctant to admit the car has any problems. You could bring in a vehicle with missing body panels driving sideways, squirting an oil slick, smoking up the service bay so that nobody can see and and exhaust leak so bad nobody can hear and the service guy would still ask 'so what seams to be the problem. The computer says everything is okay.'

I don't know how services managers are paid but having to fix cars under warranty must bite into their bonus. Plus the sale on the car has already been made and new car sales are not the service managers problem.

It's not just Ford though. A lot of car companies treat customers the same way. I have owned Ford Chevy Pontiac and Dodge. Seems all the same. I've been to many different car companies trying to buy vehicles and get the same sleezy treatment. I find that American car companies have salesman that have to product knowledge and Toyota and Honda are very high pressure.

On the other hand I bought an Acura and have not experienced these problems. The sales process was very relaxed. In fact I had to ask them to buy the car and they were very appreciative when I did. I have only had routine maintenance on the car and have always had pleasent experiences in the service department. I have not had any mechanial problems with the car either so it's hard to judge how the service department would treat me there.

 

Keep the tools, there not the dealers, but the mechanics who worked on the rig. Find another dealer.

 

I to have had similiar experiences with my 03 EXPY trying to get things fixed. The sad thing is my wife is pregnant with two children in tow and getting the same old run around with our local dealership in Oregon. After having the battery totally drain after 3 days sitting, it took the dealership two weeks to return our epoxy and all they did was replace the battery ( a band aid of a solution - I think) Worst part is that every personal item in the truck had been stolen. Every DVD and cd was missing, 45 in total. I complained to every manager at the dealership with not so much as a "sorry". I realize that I am partially resonsible for leaving these items in there - but I did not plan on leaving the truck with the crooks for two weeks.Needless to say I will not be returning to that dealership ever again.

Best of luck to all...

KO