Brake and tire issues on week 5 of CPO’d SHO

[Plane224]

My frustrations are mounting as it seems small issues pile up within the first 5 weeks of ownership. I purchased this vehicle on 9/23/19 and was very happy and confident with the vehicle especially considering it’s a CPO with only 28k miles. However that confidence has been nothing short of evaporating as the days tick by..

The initial issue I’ve had is with the right rear tire. When I test drove the vehicle the tire pressure light was active, didn’t think much of it with the cooler weather coming through and it had probably been sitting for a bit. Paperwork finishes up, car comes back from clean up sticker free and no tire pressure light. Great, they aired it up for me. Come to find out, I’m having to put air in it almost weekly as I’m fighting a slow leak. It’s going to the dealer Monday morning on a scheduled appointment for an inspection of the tire with no guarantee they’ll even take care of the problem.. yet this is a CPO vehicle that insinuates they thoroughly inspected the tires amongst other parts. They're practically brand new for gods sake.

Issue number 2 is with the brakes. On my way to work this morning, approaching the first stoplight I hear the sound of squealing coming from my car. I couldn’t believe my ears, had to be somebody else’s car. Nope, it’s my car. And it’s fairly loud. It’s ready for a brake job and I just bought this car 5 weeks ago. I haven’t contacted the dealership on this issue yet, I intend to first in thing the morning.

Not to mention the various paint issues I’ve found since I had purchased this all black vehicle during the evening approaching night time. The deep scratch running down the middle of the hood, what appears to be even paint transfer on a small piece on the driver side rear wheel well. A multitude of rock chips (in abnormal locations, e.g. doors, trunk lid, etc. not typical highway chips) I couldn’t have found in the minuscule amount of time spent with the vehicle itself. Oh, and the bottom of the front bumper, those ‘pins’ aren’t even popped in correctly, looks as though it was forced on and a couple of them actually broke. I’m ****** about the entire thing. In my opinion, this is entirely unacceptable.

How should I handle this? Obviously I will be contacting the dealership as the brakes going out is my last straw. If they’re uncooperative, contact ford next? Never thought I’d have to deal with all of this madness on a CPO low mileage vehicle. Sigh. Can a man just enjoy his boosted boat? Cheers..

 

[SHOdded]

Welcome to the community! What year is your SHO? Can you post pics of the damage you have posted about?

CPO isn't really a guarantee that the vehicle is up to new vehicle standards. It meets Ford criteria for mechanical competency, so it should be safe, but does not mean it will not be worn. Paint, tires, wipers, etc are all wear items and not covered. CPO simply gives you "greater" peace of mind, plus allows you to get a better priced longer term warranty extension. If you notice on online dealer warranty sites, just because you have 28K on a vehicle does not mean you are eligible for the full 150K limit on warranty. If your vehicle is say 7 years old, you might only be eligible for 78K in your case. Age plays a factor.

Slow leak could be a bad bead on the tire, OR a cracked wheel. Some tires are known to leak and have to be replaced with other brands/models.

Brakes - changes in weather can expose problems, especially in humid conditions. Still, after the first few minutes of driving/braking, and wearing off surface rust, brakes should be quiet. Squealing is unacceptable.

Paint - 5 weeks later - IDK. He said/she said may apply, all depends on the dealer.

Definitely raise all these issues, see where it goes.

 

[GHNorth]

The initial issue I’ve had is with the right rear tire. When I test drove the vehicle the tire pressure light was active, didn’t think much of it with the cooler weather coming through and it had probably been sitting for a bit. Paperwork finishes up, car comes back from clean up sticker free and no tire pressure light. Great, they aired it up for me. Come to find out, I’m having to put air in it almost weekly as I’m fighting a slow leak. It’s going to the dealer Monday morning on a scheduled appointment for an inspection of the tire with no guarantee they’ll even take care of the problem.. yet this is a CPO vehicle that insinuates they thoroughly inspected the tires amongst other parts. They're practically brand new for gods sake.

I had a slow leak in one of my tires, also. Turned out to be just a loose valve stem. I already had the valve stem tool, and I have a compressed air tank, so it was simple for me to remove the valve stem, check for damage (none), reinstall, air up, and monitor.

 

[Plane224]

Welcome to the community! What year is your SHO? Can you post pics of the damage you have posted about?

CPO isn't really a guarantee that the vehicle is up to new vehicle standards. It meets Ford criteria for mechanical competency, so it should be safe, but does not mean it will not be worn. Paint, tires, wipers, etc are all wear items and not covered. CPO simply gives you "greater" peace of mind, plus allows you to get a better priced longer term warranty extension. If you notice on online dealer warranty sites, just because you have 28K on a vehicle does not mean you are eligible for the full 150K limit on warranty. If your vehicle is say 7 years old, you might only be eligible for 78K in your case. Age plays a factor.

Slow leak could be a bad bead on the tire, OR a cracked wheel. Some tires are known to leak and have to be replaced with other brands/models.

Brakes - changes in weather can expose problems, especially in humid conditions. Still, after the first few minutes of driving/braking, and wearing off surface rust, brakes should be quiet. Squealing is unacceptable.

Paint - 5 weeks later - IDK. He said/she said may apply, all depends on the dealer.

Definitely raise all these issues, see where it goes.

I entirely understand a CPO doesn’t necessarily mean perfection, just meeting specific criteria on specific parts for the vehicle to pass inspection and get resold. My concern, however, is how does a tire that consistently loses air pass inspection? How does brake pads that clearly were at the tail end of its life before I purchased the car pass inspection? How does what-is clear damage from either a shopping cart or light contact with another vehicle pass? Somebody along the line sincerely screwed up replacement of the front bumper. I’m questioning if they even looked over this car.

It’s a lot of stuff that just doesn’t add up for me, I’ve bought other CPO vehicles where brakes and tires lasted me another 40k miles before I heard a peep out of them, nothing more nothing less. I’m a die-hard ford fan, but I feel screwed over on this.

 

[SM105K]

Not to be a dick, but your expectations are ludicris. You bought a used car, at dusk, seemingly in a hurry.

Your problems are very small. Use the warranty to get a new tire. If they dont get a new tire. Put new brakes on the car by yourself. Use that as an excuse to upgrade.

The paint can be fixed.

You are making a match flame sound like a 3 alarm raging fire.

 

[SHOdded]

Have you dealt with this dealer before? Having a good standing can make a difference. Definitely let them know how you feel, without being violent LOL.

There are some folks here that work at/have worked at FoMoCo branded dealerships, I am sure they can help better than I can.

 

[Plane224]

Not to be a dick, but your expectations are ludicris. You bought a used car, at dusk, seemingly in a hurry.

Your problems are very small. Use the warranty to get a new tire. If they dont get a new tire. Put new brakes on the car by yourself. Use that as an excuse to upgrade.

The paint can be fixed.

You are making a match flame sound like a 3 alarm raging fire.

It’s the principle behind the issues. I’m not bent out of shape because it needs a new set of pads or a tire(s), and yes paint flaws can be fixed (least of my concerns). They’re all simple fixes, yet would cost me a fair sum of money when I just spent north of 20k. In general, it doesn’t seem as though any part of this car was gone through. How can a CPO vehicle pass inspection with brakes that were less that were so close to the end of their life? Leaky tires that lose pressure quickly?

I wouldn’t have an issue if this was 6 months down the road and 8k miles later, that’s a different story. This is 5 weeks and 1000 miles later. I feel deceived, in a sense. Hopefully you can understand my frustration. Not really asking for answers, there’s no good answer to this situation, more so any similar experiences or woes with CPO vehicles. I’m awaiting contact from a sales manager and I’ve been in touch with a fleet manager from Ford since the original post. I’ll update with how this all blows over.

 

[Plane224]

Have you dealt with this dealer before? Having a good standing can make a difference. Definitely let them know how you feel, without being violent LOL.

There are some folks here that work at/have worked at FoMoCo branded dealerships, I am sure they can help better than I can.

I have not dealt with this particular dealer before. Typically I only deal with a well-known, reputable dealer that I’ve worked with for a lifetime when it comes to new vehicles. However, a SHO was more difficult to find than expected so I had to widen my search to other dealers. Not to say the dealer I purchased this vehicle from isn’t necessarily a good one, they’re well-known in the area and carry a solid reputation locally.

But again, I need to get my hands on final answers from a sales manager or somebody at Ford to truly get a handle on how this all is going down. Could be in my favor, could leave me upset. Time will tell.

 

[luigisho]

The CPO is just a checklist and the quality of the service is about as random as the skill levels found between techs in dealership service areas. I would be miffed too but all you really get is a warranty on broken stuff from what I've seen.

I bought my F150 2 yrs used and it had a few flaws that I wasn't thrilled with but, used is used, and no one is going to fine tooth comb it.

The brakes I would be madder about but I'm not sure if there is much to do there. Keep in mind this board is also filled with DIYers-- so alot of us don't get as bothered with small self-wrenching projects. Or major self install/repair issues for some. So consider that with some of the responses you may get.

 

[Majestic]

Did you look at the car and do a test drive before buying it?

 

[Jeff2017]

I bought my car in Feb. 2017 as a CPO and found out about 2 months ago that the dealership had not even sent the CPO paper work to Ford. I had to call the dealer I bought it from to ask them why my CPO paperwork was never processed. Basically, dealerships are a sham. Not just Ford but everyone of them. The CPO really means nothing other than a extended warranty. It does not mean they inspected the car brought everything up to spec. If Ford actually did this sort of thing on CPO cars maybe their stock price would be higher.

 

[Plane224]

Did you look at the car and do a test drive before buying it?

Did you read the post or any sub sequential replies? This has all occurred after the fact.

 

[Plane224]

I bought my car in Feb. 2017 as a CPO and found out about 2 months ago that the dealership had not even sent the CPO paper work to Ford. I had to call the dealer I bought it from to ask them why my CPO paperwork was never processed. Basically, dealerships are a sham. Not just Ford but everyone of them. The CPO really means nothing other than a extended warranty. It does not mean they inspected the car brought everything up to spec. If Ford actually did this sort of thing on CPO cars maybe their stock price would be higher.

Well that’s not how it’s advertised nor put in writing. They will take care of the issues. Ridiculousness.

 

[Jeff2017]

Well that’s not how it’s advertised nor put in writing. They will take care of the issues. Ridiculousness.

I test drove a CPO BMW 525i wagon back around 2003 and the steering wheel vibrated so badly at 45MPH that I thought the front was going to fall off. I looked at the salesman and said it seems like maybe they didn't do all the checks specified for a CPO and he just laughed. It's all a big joke to the dealerships.

 

[SHOdded]

I thought that was a warning that BMW puts in there when you go too fast

 

[Majestic]

Did you read the post or any sub sequential replies? This has all occurred after the fact.

Just curious how you didn't notice paint issues. I guess you did the test drive at night?

 

[Plane224]

Just curious how you didn't notice paint issues. I guess you did the test drive at night?

Correct, later in the evening on all black vehicle, was difficult to spot all the flaws that have now surfaced in broad daylight. Really the least of my concerns, I’d imagine a good detailing will solve most of my woes, a little touch up here and there never hurt anybody.

 

[Plane224]

I have not dealt with this particular dealer before. Typically I only deal with a well-known, reputable dealer that I’ve worked with for a lifetime when it comes to new vehicles. However, a SHO was more difficult to find than expected so I had to widen my search to other dealers. Not to say the dealer I purchased this vehicle from isn’t necessarily a good one, they’re well-known in the area and carry a solid reputation locally.

But again, I need to get my hands on final answers from a sales manager or somebody at Ford to truly get a handle on how this all is going down. Could be in my favor, could leave me upset. Time will tell.

Just got back from the dealership, my tires were repaired at no cost. I have scheduled a follow up appointment to get the brakes inspected as well, upon closer inspection of the CPO inspection report it shows that the front brakes were replaced and all the rotors resurfaced/glazed due to noise, so they will be replacing whatever the problem pad is at no cost as well. All is well on my end. Cheers.

 

[PaulTAutoX]

My mom-in-law bought a Camry CPO. A couple of months later I noticed that it was putting out some blue smoke on start-up. This was like a 40K mile car so nothing should have been worn. We took it to the regular mechanic and he said we should go back to Toyota. The valve covers were full of sludge, other issues appeared - apparently the oil hadn't been changed in years! Short version: new engine, on Toyota's dime. So the however many point inspection had been rather incomplete. CPO _does_ mean that they have committed to the inspection, but as others have pointed out some dealers don't deliver on that commitment.

Glad you're getting your brakes/tires handled by them. Paint, bumper fasteners shouldn't have been mentioned, that is on you. Never buy a car at night is a well-known rule. And a CarFax on any car, especially a $20K investment, would seem like a good idea, though the bumper fasteners might have just been a low-speed incident that wouldn't have been reported.