About that Bad Reputation…

http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...702010368/1148

<o></o>Ford spokesman Oscar Suris said, "What is going to drive our reputation is going to be our products. We've got great products in the showroom, and we're working on having even more great products."

Great Products? Is that what earns a great reputation? Was their bad reputation from bad products last year? I guess I’m missing something. I always thought that the customer experience is what makes or breaks a reputation. You can sell a less than perfect product, just look at Microsux, but what earns a reputation goes well beyond the product itself. What do you think was the biggest contributor to their sinking reputation? Is this guy right? Was it last year's product? Or is Ford missing the focus? Or maybe they don't give a damn about that bad reputation.

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That's part of it. Someone here recently said FoMoCo is spending too much time hugging trees and supporting gay rights to do anything else successfully. IMHO, they were right.

 

I think it has become the Ford Mental Asylim, and the nuts are running it. What are they thinking, or are they thinking?

 

IMHO, the biggest contributor to Ford's lousy reputation is the way the customer is treated after the sale. No manufacturer makes a "bullet-proof" vehicle, but if you've ever been caught in the quicksand that separates Ford Corporate (Customer Service = 1-800-2BAD-4U) and Ford Dealers (They all do that, No problem found, Within specs, Not covered by warranty) it'll leave a really bad taste in your mouth. While most everyone on this site is an enthusiast, the typical Ford customer doesn't know the difference between a DPFE and a parking brake, and relies on the dealerships to service their vehicles. Very few people talk about an exceptional experience that they received at a dealer, but everyone will speak about a lousy experience.

If my own local Ford dealer sold Toyota-Honda-Lexus etc., I still wouldn't buy a vehicle from them. Yes, they are really that bad, and living in a fairly small town, I don't have the luxury of shopping several local Ford dealerships.

If this has come off as a "rant" I do apologize. I didn't mean for it to be, I'm just stating my opinion.

 

Toyota/Nissan and Honda sends their dealership personnal to "charm school" teaching them how to deal with customers. At a local Toyota dealer, they keep people by the door to open it for customers, they offer you free soda and coffee in the customer lounge. And whether you buy or not, they will follow up with customers.


My wife leased a '99 Avalon. Never in all my years did I ever see a Ford Dealers personnel treat customers like that. Toyota etc. wants to keep you as a customer, and makes an effort to do so.


Meanwhile, I stopped over at the local Ford store to pick up a part I ordered last Thursday. Salesmen were standing around smoking by the front door. That is a real no no, you won't see that at a Toyota store.


I'll tell you exactly what's wrong with Ford, DCX and GM new car dealers...they are asleep, and don't comprehend the dire straits they're in. They have the additude of...."we've seen tough times before, things will get better." They act like they are doing you a favor. It's a throwback to the "good old boys" mentality.


I'm a Ford guy but IMO, the dealers are bringing a lot of the problems upon themselves. That reflects on the parent company-Ford. A company is only as good as its agents. Times have changed, Ford, GM and DC haven't.

 

Perhaps their rep is in the toilet, but the biggest deal is that they are bleeding cash in a big way? Why? They didn't respond to high fuel costs quick enough. They were too busy enjoying the ride on the big SUV wave. They weren't making a profitable small car, only cranking out trucks that brought them $10k per, and just enough small cars to keep within CAFE. So, when all those middle-high income folks decided they didn't like paying $80-$100 to fill up a vehicle that gets 17mpg, the truck market tanked and Ford was left out to dry. I believe it's just one example of America's inability to remain innovative and efficient in manufacturing. Once a company starts losing profit, if they are short-sighted, they cut service and use aggressive incentives to sell the stock they have.

Yawn.

Jason

 

I can't count how many people have sworn off domestic brands simply because of poor treatment after the sale. Something breaks, and the dealer and manufacturer dance around the root cause instead of fixing the problem correctly the first time.

Ford and GM both could do a ton to improve their reputation by casting some of these bad dealers to the curb and doing more to back their product after the sale. Ford's customer service line should be giving these dealers a swift kick in the *** and not being an additional roadblock to someone getting their car fixed.

 

I have written before about the great service I have gotten from the Ford dealer that I have bought several cars/trucks from. At the check out area is a sign that asks you to see the service manager if you are not totally pleased with the service you have received. When I was installing The Altima leather seats in my Ranger I needed the wiring diagram for the restraint system ... one phone call to the service rep and it popped out of my FAX in 5 minutes. When I was installing my Explorer overhead console, I needed the PCM color code for a signal ... one phone call and I had the answer. They treat me like a valued customer and that is why I keep coming back.

 

I do not have much to add after Droptop's post except maybe visit www.flatratetech.com. Which I first learned about when disenchanted techs where I worked started to quit after losing money working 50-60 hours and getting maybe 40 hours.

I had one tech say to me (and he was the one that worked on my vehicle when I was a tech!) he had a wife and family to support and he could no longer support Ford instead. Then he quit and got a job deicing planes. That gets passed directly to the customer.

I asked a master technican why he didn't clean a customer's battery terminals after replacing a 3.8L in a Taurus (under warranty) and the short answer was Ford wasn't paying for it, he was already losing money, and he would lose more money asking and waiting for an answer which would probably be no. Basically to hell with everyone, it had turned into just a paycheck to fight for I guess and no longer enjoyable.

If the mechanics are not happy, well trained, and well paid, the customer will not be happy when the vehicle needs to be serviced. It is as simple as that.

Want to see how to destroy a rep? Just search here for "CD" and see how NEW customers are tortured over bad CD players for months. It is as simple as that.

imo, They do not even need homosexual issues by supporting homosexual marriage to destroy their business, though that helps.

I -DO- think the exploding Explorer tires and roll over issues really hurt Ford's image. Especially with non Ford owners.

I think what was mostly accomplished was making sure any future Explorer was only worthy for pavement. I was behind a new Explorer yesterday so low to the ground with that new IRS and small wheel wells, I don't see why anyone would bother with getting it in 4x4 anymore. It is truly worthy of AWD now. Also, I thought the stock factory 1.0" (?) receiver was impressive, I bet you can pull any 4x8 trailer with that.