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No appointments at dealerships
Dang! I’m venting and asking if anyone have the same problem. I called two local dealerships in my area and both do not take appointments. I have a bad tire sensor and a door lock recall and neither will take appointments. I also want them to check on my 34 gallon diesel tank issue (2017 6.7l)and one of the dealer said just to bring it in and they’ll get to it when they can, most likely a week in their shop. In the meantime, no truck. I haven’t bought a new vehicle in years and I’m just pi$$ off about this. Is this how it is now? Thanks for listening. |
Where are you located?? I’ve had 2 new fords in for service in 3 different states (VA, CA & ME) in the past 4 years and have never had an issue getting an appointment. There have been times when the closest dealership was going to be a week or so to get it in and I’ve called another and gotten it in within a couple days, but a week is about the max Ive had to wait. And it’s always been an appointment for a specific time, not drop it off and we’ll see when we can get to it. Maybe give the service manager a call and ask if this is the normal process for service at that dealership. I bet it isn’t. Did you buy it from one of the two? Not that it should make a difference. |
I've never really understood the automotive dealer appointment system. I don't usually have a problem getting an appointment, but I'm not sure what advantage there is to getting one. When I show up for my appointment, the service manager writes up the problem from scratch just the same as when I drive up without an appointment. I don't feel like I get any priority getting checked in or with service. My best luck seems to be in line first thing in he morning (15 to 30 minutes before they open) and then tell them that I'm going to wait for the repair (if it is something that is simple and shouldn't take too long - such as wheel alignment, computer re-flash, rear manual door lock replacement, etc). No real advantage with having an appointment.
My biggest complaint with dealer service is when I know that a part is going to need replaced and that they will probably have to order the part. I don't mind taking the truck in, but when they want it for the whole day just to tell me that a part will need to be ordered and they will tell me the part comes. I would like them to do a quick check that it needs the part and send me on my way. Jim |
Pretty much the opposite around here. If you don’t have an appointment, they’ll get to it when they can. My dealer has free loaners, which makes it alot easier. |
Around here you pretty much need to make an appointment for an oil change. Bring it in that morning and it's done that day sometime. Same with Tires. Generally they are 2-7 days out.
I've never had an "emergency" so not sure how that would work. Waiting a few days to bring in for oil or tires is no big deal. |
Same here, you need an appointment or you get pushed to the back of the list, and they MAY get to it that day, depends on how many appointments they have ahead of you. My dealer also services all our City and utility vehicles so an appt. is necessary.
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I've had that problem before. I made an appointment with the local dealer, went to the appointment and was told it would take a week to 10 days for them to get to it. What's the point of an appointment? I called around and found a different dealer to deal with my issue in a timely manner.
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So far, I've always had an appointment. The service writer that makes the appointment is the same one that meets me the day of the appointment. He doesn't schedule appointments for days he isn't there. I always use the same guy.
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Most dealer service appointments are simply an appointment to see the service adviser and is rarely an appointment that affects where in the pecking order your vehicle is serviced. Vehicles aren't put into a service queue until after the repair order is created. Where a vehicle ends up in that queue will depend on the type of job, techs available, how busy the service department is, etc. Each dealer can manage this workload differently. Some dealers don't take appointments because in reality it rarely makes any difference. Some dealers may have limited bays, others might be short on techs. Then you get some dealers that don't have nearly enough work and can get yours into a bay immediately.
Some dealers have preferred customers, or you may have a relationship with your service department and they can work to put yours to the front of the line. Every dealer and every customer is different. Then of course there's parts availability. Some repairs require parts that might not be available, backordered, or have limited availability. Sometimes dealers get loaded up with repairs that leave vehicles stranded on the racks and the techs are sitting around waiting for parts and losing hours they can log. There's so many variables. Basically what I'm getting at is appointments rarely matter. Best advice is to be friendly, explain as much detail about the problem with the service adviser, and understand that most other customers want the same thing you want.... to go to the front of the line. Each and every dealership can only handle so much workflow. |
In the DFW area we have a lot of Ford Dealers.. If a Dealer would not take an appointment I would not go there. The wait is sometimes 2 weeks though. With my 18 had a problem and it was a 2 week back up in that dept. Made my appt dropped off the truck when it came up, got a loaner and left. Pretty simple actually but there are still dealerships operating in the service area the way they did 20 years ago. Sad actually when there is a better way but many small town Dealers do not have the volume or maybe the capital to do so.
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I am usually 3-4 days to wait for an appt and yes I can make appts. Typically I make an appt for a drop off and because I have 1st day rental, I just drive off but my dealer always has appts.
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Always make an appt. If it's something like an oil change where it's straightforward - you can tell them you'll wait, in which case they put you in a time slot they know they can hold to. If it's a troubleshooting type thing, I normally drop it in the morning or night before and get a loaner. Normally never have to wait more than a few days to get an appt. And if they end up needing to order parts, it's normally next day delivery and they'll have me out the door again. I've also have them ask me to just stop in so they can take a quick look to confirm what parts are needed and then order them so that they don't have my truck when I could be driving it.
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What I can’t understand is why I can’t get an appointment and keep my truck until they are ready to work on it. As for the oil change, I decided to do my own. I don’t like to to it but a least it’s cheaper and I can put the type and/or brand I want. No to mention, I know it’s done right. I’m going to call the service manager and talk to him about the no appointment rule especially. Hey thanks for all your support and advice. I’ll let you know the outcome. |
Originally Posted by Dannyboytn
(Post 18241841)
What I can’t understand is why I can’t get an appointment and keep my truck until they are ready to work on it. One big reason - because that would make for an extremely inefficient service shop. Vehicles already there at the dealership for service are pretty much guaranteed revenue and are placed in queue, techs complete the job for the vehicles they are working on and rotate the next one in the queue. Each job varies greatly in hours, from minor fixes to engine replacements and everything in between. So the queue has to be carefully managed to maximize available tech hours, and put the correct techs on the correct jobs that they are qualified for. A service manager won't put a senior master diesel tech on a tire rack to replace a TPMS sensor when a Quick Lane lube tech making less than half can do the exact same job. Dealers make appointments all the time, and find that many customers may show up early, late, or not at all. In other words, appointments are not guaranteed revenue because the vehicle isn't there. So putting this all together.... Let's say your truck is scheduled to come in and the dealer has a tech immediately ready with an open bay, but you either come in late or never show up. That tech, and the shop, is losing service hours logged because that bay is empty waiting for you when they could be working on something else. Now multiply that by a hundred late or no-show customers a month. See how it can add up in a hurry? That's an extremely inefficient way to manage a shop, and it would make for very angry techs sitting around and not getting paid. That's just one example of why appointments are only with the service adviser, not with the tech. Repair shops have to be profitable, and being efficient with tech hours is one of the best ways to remain profitable. Hopefully this makes sense. And my advice would be to talk to the dealer service manager or whoever can make decisions and let them know that you cannot be without your truck for an extended period of time. Often times dealers can try to work around your schedule. |
Your explanation makes perfect sense in an imperfect world. We learned some new realities in this thread.
Thanks Bill and Carole |
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