After reading about MBBFord's ordeal with changing plugs, and seeing how much others are having to pay for the routine maintenance procedure of changing plugs, one glaring practice sticks out in my mind, and that is the dealer passing on additional labor costs to the customer for plugs broken by THEIR mechanics. If the truck is brought in for a plug change before 100k, and the mechanic breaks one (or more), I feel Ford should eat the additional labor cost to extract the broken plug/ plugs. After all, the customer didn't break the plug, the factory mechanic did. If Ford needs these plugs changed earlier than 100k to ensure they don't break, then they need to modify their maintenance schedule to reflect this. I can't believe Ford is able to get away with sticking customers with a bill as much as a thousand dollars (or more!) to extract and replace plugs broken by THEIR mechanics, and more incredibly, that no one has challenged them on this practice. What incentive does the mechanic have to work carefully when he knows if he breaks one, the customer foots the bill for the additional labor? I think if you break it, you eat the cost, it's that simple. Thoughts on this, guys?

 

To me, a mechanic breaking a plug is no different than a mechanic dropping a car off the lift (which i have heard of happening before). If a mechanic breaks something he is working on, like he goes to pull plugs and they break, then the shop should have to pay for it. Imagine if a mechanic went to pull the heads off and one of the head studs broke off in the block. Would it be fair to charge the customer for a whole new engine if they couldn't get it out? On the other hand, say a mechanic is looking for a coolant leak while the car is running and the alternator burns up. To me, that is something that would have happened anyway and its actually lucky that the car was already in the shop when it happened. But that also falls on the honesty of the mechanic, cause he could have put a charger on the battery to over charge it and purposly burn the alternator up. But thats why i ask around before I take my truck in to be worked on, i like to hear other people's stories about different places so I now what shops have a good rep.

 

For me, I didn't challenge this because I was told up front before the keys were handed over that would be the case. I had to get it done and had no other options. I still have a huge problem with this and just don't really know how to take it any further. Work is done, money is paid. What you are saying is my opinion exactly and if there's anything that could be done about it, I sure wish it would or could.

 

kevin
i would get the name of the ford service/warranty rep for that dealership and give him a call. i would be very polite but firm and ask for some reimbursment of what you paid as this is a known problem on the 5.4. it might not hurt to document what has been discussed here to validate this. in most cases ford will offer something although maybe not 100% of what you paid but anything is better than nothing. dont make threats or badmouth ford etc because that is a sure way to get no help.
good luck with this
jim

 

For Ford to gain back my respect as a customer, they have to not only fix the plug issue on the new trucks, but for every truck on the road that they sold with this defect. In good faith they need to make sure that their customers don't foot the bill for their incompetence as a truck design / manufacturer.

 

Is this problem only partial to the 04's or does it concern 05's as well. Also it still isn't all that clear to me when the plugs need to be changed for an 05 F-150, Lariat, 5.4L, FX2. Is it 100K, 75K, or 50K? I am at 40 K now and do not notice any limitations that would lead me to believe that a tune up is necessary.

Additionally, if the plug breaks under a mechanic's wrench, my belief is, it is the dealerships liability unless it is written in the service order (fine print). Aren't our mechanics ASE certified? These are credentials to help promote my trust in a mechanic.

 

Because it's a pain in the butt to do, and we have alot more productive things we can spend our time doing. Not to mention it's also dishonest to half-*** something and then make the customer pay for it. That's just my .02 though.

 

Im with you guys the way I see it is, if a customer brings there car to me to fix, I know that they TRUST me to properly fix the problem with there vehicle. If i accidentely break something (and it has happened to ALL of us techs) my shop will eat it. I wouldnt really hold the grudge against the dealership though, the techs just the one turning the wrench, the flaw is on Fords part.

 

Most dealership mechanics work on commission. I was surprised at this fact as well. They're motivated to get your truck out of the shop as quickly as possible.

 

Most techs are paid by the job not by the hour, so the incentive not to screw up is there. They can spend 1 hour or 5 hours on a single car and still get paid the same.I have been dealing with my local dealer for years, they have things down to a science. Ever seen a 20 min front brake job?They can do these trucks (4x4 models with floating rotor) in 20 mins for the front brakes. This includes changing the brake rotors. The service dept runs 30-35 cars and trucks a day in and out of the service bay.

 

Hey ford390gashog - your post would lead me to believe that the mechanics do indeed have an incentive...being paid by the job they naturally would want to get vehicles in and out quickly, more jobs equals more money. Personally, I would be a little uneasy if my front brakes were done in only 20 minutes, I would wonder if shortcuts were taken, such as not repacking wheel bearings, replacing grease seals or needed hardware, or flushing the lines. Perhaps there ARE some shops that can do quality work that fast, but I've yet to find one.

 

Once you do the front brakes on these trucks you will see how little there is to do. There is no bearings to grease or seals to replace. You just unbolt the caliper and bracket slide the rotor off,put new rotor on , caliper bracket,compress caliper,new brake pads and put the tire on. Its really simple on these trucks.

 

in my driveway with no air tools i did front brakes in 35 minutes.....20 minutes with a lift and air tools seems doable

 

Ford will never get me or anyone in my family to buy a new truck/car from them for the rest of my life..... Now, I think their products are great, but they really F-ed up with the plugs on these trucks.

When I buy a truck, it isn't for 100K miles, then trade off the problem to someone else. I would want to use it until I can't stand driving it anymore(15 years 250,000 miles +/-), basically until I feel I got my moneys worth out of it.

It is wrong the customer has to foot the bill!

 

Please help me understand your comment. Are you saying that for you, as a mechanic, it's a pain in the butt to take out these plugs, and there are more productive things you could be doing? Or are you speaking as a customer?