T
txktom
UPDATE EMAIL ADDRESS
My Thunderbird came with a damaged driver’s door panel. The dealer ordered me a new one and replaced it about a week or so after delivery last February. About six weeks ago the arm rest (the black plastic insert that forms the the handle) cracked at the spine right behind the window switches and poked up about 3/4" inch. The dealer ordered another one.
When the part came in he left a message on my answering machine at work while I was on vacation. The part was in. Affer I got back in I finally remembered to schedule an appointment, and took it in for repair.
I also asked them to have another look at a wind leak directly in the driver’s ear that has gotten progressively worse. (I had had it looked at in April, but they said they needed the hardtop to fix it.) This time I showed them where the leak was—in the side trim, not the top seal. They said they’d look at it.
When my car was “ready” I picked it up. The first thing I noticed was that the arm rest insert was still broken. Then I looked at the statement they had given me. It said “reordered part.” Well thanks a lot “Blue Oval” certified dealer for leaving me an answer on my machine, returning my part without making any attempt to contact me again, and then not bothering to tell me that they had sent the part back (or warning me that they were going to ship the part back) and allowing me to bring the car in and leave it for another wasted day.
Then I noticed the other part of the invoice, which said “Unable to adjust window to seal convertible top any tighter.”
I again showed both the service writer and the service manager the spot where, if you look closely, you can visibly see the hole where the air is coming in—believe me it thrums at 40-45 mph, like you had the window down just a hair. I pointed out that the rubber sealing trim on the passenger side did not look anything like the trim on the driver side when the window was up. Finally the service manager agreed, but he said they couldn’t adjust it any more. I suggested that they order me a new top and trim. I thought he was going to faint. He said he would talk to the Ford representative the next time he was in. I asked when that would be. He wasn’t sure.
There’s more.
The steering was clicking when I got the car and they “fixed” it after two service visits by replacing the entire steering column a couple of months ago. About eighty percent of the clicking (you can both feel and hear it) is fixed—the part that occurred when turning on a perfectly smooth parking lot. However it still clicks when turning a corner if the pavement is uneven, for example going through the rain gutters at every intersection in the United States. Still, that is minor compared to the original clicking, so I just ignore it. However, there is a scratch in the steering wheel that I don’t think was there before they worked on it (neither my wife nor I wear rings), and with the wheel centered dead on, the car steers slowly to the right. Again, that's minor, but my '79 Chevette never did that.
So now I am driving a roaring and clicking $40,000 car with a scratch in the steering wheel that slowly pulls to the right.
But hey, I'm rejoicing because it’s “Blue Oval Certified!”
When the part came in he left a message on my answering machine at work while I was on vacation. The part was in. Affer I got back in I finally remembered to schedule an appointment, and took it in for repair.
I also asked them to have another look at a wind leak directly in the driver’s ear that has gotten progressively worse. (I had had it looked at in April, but they said they needed the hardtop to fix it.) This time I showed them where the leak was—in the side trim, not the top seal. They said they’d look at it.
When my car was “ready” I picked it up. The first thing I noticed was that the arm rest insert was still broken. Then I looked at the statement they had given me. It said “reordered part.” Well thanks a lot “Blue Oval” certified dealer for leaving me an answer on my machine, returning my part without making any attempt to contact me again, and then not bothering to tell me that they had sent the part back (or warning me that they were going to ship the part back) and allowing me to bring the car in and leave it for another wasted day.
Then I noticed the other part of the invoice, which said “Unable to adjust window to seal convertible top any tighter.”
I again showed both the service writer and the service manager the spot where, if you look closely, you can visibly see the hole where the air is coming in—believe me it thrums at 40-45 mph, like you had the window down just a hair. I pointed out that the rubber sealing trim on the passenger side did not look anything like the trim on the driver side when the window was up. Finally the service manager agreed, but he said they couldn’t adjust it any more. I suggested that they order me a new top and trim. I thought he was going to faint. He said he would talk to the Ford representative the next time he was in. I asked when that would be. He wasn’t sure.
There’s more.
The steering was clicking when I got the car and they “fixed” it after two service visits by replacing the entire steering column a couple of months ago. About eighty percent of the clicking (you can both feel and hear it) is fixed—the part that occurred when turning on a perfectly smooth parking lot. However it still clicks when turning a corner if the pavement is uneven, for example going through the rain gutters at every intersection in the United States. Still, that is minor compared to the original clicking, so I just ignore it. However, there is a scratch in the steering wheel that I don’t think was there before they worked on it (neither my wife nor I wear rings), and with the wheel centered dead on, the car steers slowly to the right. Again, that's minor, but my '79 Chevette never did that.
So now I am driving a roaring and clicking $40,000 car with a scratch in the steering wheel that slowly pulls to the right.
But hey, I'm rejoicing because it’s “Blue Oval Certified!”
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