Subframe recall - 98s36 NHTSA complaint lodged.

[93rev2sev]

Ford refuses to perform the subframe recall on my 93 SHO. The car was originally purchased in Ohio. The VIN number was included in the recall. Visual inspection shows that the recall has NOT been completed. Ford recall center records say that it HAS been completed.

My service writer at Village Ford in Dearborn agrees that the recall has yet to be completed but cannot get authorization from the "adminisphere" to complete the work.

I am attacking this issue by trying to climb the ladder at Ford (I have some decent contacts there) and by lodging a complaint with the NHTSA.

This is sure to turn into a merry little adventure.

Wish me luck.

It's sad to see how Ford takes care of it's customers...yes, I am(was) a customer.

I hereby pledge to never buy ANYTHING from a Ford dealer...EVER again.

Perhaps this should be "SHO related"...But will this show up in searches on that forum?

 

[Phoenix]

Probably the dealer claimed all recalls available in their database , that way Ford pays them full $$ , while the job is not done.

I've seen this once , dealer got cought and he almost lost his dealership due to that.

 

[Johnny_Eye]

That sounds like a good plan, 93rev2sev. Keep us posted. I'm sitting here with what looks like a very similar situation (subframe has come apart from undercarriage due to rust and Ford claims the recall work was done).

 

[93rev2sev]

In my situation, I was able to pull up the carpet to see that there were no holes cut into the floorboard per the recall instructions.

Every Ford representative I have spoken to has told me to lay an egg.

I hate to say it, but I will never buy ANYTHING from Ford Motor Company or it's dealers EVER again.

Toyota/Honda/Nissan Here I come.

 

[morebhp]

AMEN!!

The message from Ford to those of us who have kept our cars for a long time is "screw you suckers!". Plain and simple. They continue to operate as a poorly managed megalyth whose every decision hinges on nothing else but eeking that last penny out of the customer.

I had a subframe bolt snap on my '90 back in 1994. Paid $400+ to get it fixed. I wrote a letter to Ford and they would not help with a penny. About a year later, the recall came out. :hpoop:

This is my last Ford. Frankly, sometimes I don't know why I keep it. Can't even replace parts on it anymore without fabricating my own or walking around Dearboarn with a metal detector. Is this a Ford or a Skoda?

Beam me up Scottie.

 

[JEM]

I hate to say it, but I will never buy ANYTHING from Ford Motor Company or it's dealers EVER again.

It took you that long to figure this out?

I bought my black '91 in 10/91 with 2000 miles on it. First took it for service to a dealer closer than the one I bought it from for a number of minor issues, most of which came back unfixed, including a loose steering-column pinch-bolt - "it's normal". Tried again, same result, Went through three dealers the last of which needed five trips and a pile of service receipts from another SHO owner for similar repairs to figure out that the AC compressor was leaking.

I've had trouble with dealer service in other brands, the service department of the dealer that sold us our '92 Saab 9000T was crooked and appears to have routinely billed Saab for work not done, and a (not our usual) dealer that replaced a transmission in our '92 Infiniti Q45 screwed up the job leading to another failure shortly thereafter (which our usual dealer fixed) but I've never seen the perpetual inability/unwillingness to actually fix anything that pervaded Ford service.

Of course, that was all over ten years ago now, maybe they've improved? What was the old line - fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me? I've got other Fords, but none bought new or subject to the tender mercies of Ford warranty service.

Infiniti warranty service (at least in those days) was something to behold; take the car in for something and they'd pretty much go over the car with a fine-toothed comb looking for anything else that needed replacement (and, of course, billing back to Nissan) at the same time. Scratched-up sunroof switch, a small warp in the leather-covered dash pad up near the defroster vent, etc. And of course you'd be puttering around in their loaner car while they wrenched.

BMW hasn't been quite so helpful, though they did find "oil on the clutch" while the transmission was out of the M5 to fix a noisy release bearing, so I got a new updated clutch (and, at least in theory, rear main seal) out of that job. But they've at least been competent and comebacks have been few.

 

[Johnny_Eye]

My mechanic (who used to work for a Ford dealership) advised me that the best way to get Ford's attention on an issue like this is to raise **** in a big (many people) and public way. His documentation shows that the second subframe recall involved over 2 million vehicles (so probably ALL Taurus's for several years). That seems like a pretty significant pool of potential affected buyers for a class action lawsuit against Ford.

Thoughts?

 

[SHO#7]

Ford does not care about you. You are just one person added to a growing list. We in the V8 SHO world are ****** about our cams. Ford could care less.

I would seriously think long and hard before I ever bought another Ford. Even if they were to make another SHO. I may not be in line for this one.

Mike

 

[Johnny_Eye]

I'm certain that Ford doesn't care about me. But I'm also certian that Ford cares about a class action against the corporation that spreads bad publicity that Ford does not stand behind its vehicles. It's the last thing they need now, what with Ford and GM losing ground to Toyota, etc.

 

[Bizzy]

Ford does not care about you. You are just one person added to a growing list.

I couldn't agree with you more Mike.

Let me tell you guys a story that happened to me quite a few years ago. Back when I had my 91 I got the recall letter in the mail about the subframe plate nut recall. I made an appointment with Elder Ford in Troy, MI. They kept my car all day for a simple recall that they said would only take a few hours.

Come the end of the day when I had not heard back from them I called them to see the status. Come to find out that they hadn't even done the recall yet because "My car was different than all the other SHOs out there and they didn't have the right parts in stock." So I pick it up and they said they'd call when the parts were in stock.

3 or 4 weeks later I get a call saying the parts are in stock so I drop my car off yet again. They had the car all day and still no call on the status at the end of the day. I call them up and they say AGAIN that they didn't have all the right parts in stock but my car was still in pieces so I wouldn't be able to drive it home. I explained that I had no way to get home and the dealership ended up giving me a free loaner car after I griped to the manager about the service (or lack there of).

They ended up finally getting my car done. Not 6 months later I'm making a left hand turn across traffic at a very busy intersection when I hear a loud THUNK!! and I was unable to turn my steering wheel back straight. I almost got t-boned by oncoming traffic because I had to slow down. If I didn't slow down I would have continued to turn left which would have caused me to hit a car that was coming up to the intersection to stop at the light. It took all my effort to finally straighten the wheels up and limp over to my baby-sitter's house about a mile up the road. Her husband at that time was my mechanic.

He took my car to his work the following day and come to find out that the mechanics at Elder Ford had installed the plate nut upside down. What had happened was that the nut pulled off the plate and then pulled down through the uni-body which allowed the subframe on the driver's rear corner to drop about to 5 inches from the ground which caused the steering to bind. Any of you who have experienced a subframe drop know what I'm talking about.

When talking to the head mechanic at Elder Ford, the manager of the Elder Ford dealership and then to Ford Customer care.....they all told me that I was nuts, that there was no way they could have installed it upside down, that I must have removed the plate nut myself and reinstalled it upside down because ALL their mechanics were 100% competent and would not have made that mistake.

Yeah freakin' right...... At that time I hadn't even learned how to work on the brakes of the car much less mess with the subframe.

So when it comes to Ford taking responsibility for a screw up....don't count on it. And if you think the higher ups there care....you couldn't be more wrong. Ford doesn't give a rats ass about these cars, they're a bastard car to them. And when you find a dealership who will work on it all they see are dollar signs and they will soak you for every last cent that they can if you're gullible enough.

/rant

 

[Johnny_Eye]

WOW! It sounds like one is simply better off just fixing the problems vs. banging away at Ford. Butif I had time and money on my hands (which I don't), I'd love to make Ford's lawyers get off their a$$es and at least answer some court actions.


...so can someone describe for me how much metal (i.e., size or dimensions of the reinforcement plate) is included in the recall kit (98S36)? I can't find a picture of the kit and want to satisfy myself (or not) that it will be a sufficient amount of steel to compensate for what's rusted away before I order me a couple kits.

 

[SHOpoor]

The Nut plate as a rectangle measures 1 3/8 x 2 5/8 x 3/16 thick
The washer plates are approx 3 3/8 diameter.

If the subframe is rusted, you should weld a reinforcing plate on before installing the kit.

Good Luck

 

[sho'd]

now you can see why i do all my own work, these people don't give a damn that there messing with peoples lives, Bizzy, it's luck you were able to regain control, you had a angel on your shoulder that day.

 

[Rockledge]

Probably the dealer claimed all recalls available in their database , that way Ford pays them full $ , while the job is not done.

IMO, that would explain why a lot of people are given the runaround by dealerships regarding the subframe recall.

93rev2sev, good for you! Keep at it and let us know how many feathers you end up ruffling.

 

[1slickRED89]

Ford refuses to perform the subframe recall on my 93 SHO. The car was originally purchased in Ohio. The VIN number was included in the recall. Visual inspection shows that the recall has NOT been completed. Ford recall center records say that it HAS been completed.

My service writer at Village Ford in Dearborn agrees that the recall has yet to be completed but cannot get authorization from the "adminisphere" to complete the work.

I am attacking this issue by trying to climb the ladder at Ford (I have some decent contacts there) and by lodging a complaint with the NHTSA.

This is sure to turn into a merry little adventure.

Wish me luck.

It's sad to see how Ford takes care of it's customers...yes, I am(was) a customer.

I hereby pledge to never buy ANYTHING from a Ford dealer...EVER again.

Perhaps this should be "SHO related"...But will this show up in searches on that forum?

In my situation, I was able to pull up the carpet to see that there were no holes cut into the floorboard per the recall instructions.

Every Ford representative I have spoken to has told me to lay an egg.

I hate to say it, but I will never buy ANYTHING from Ford Motor Company or it's dealers EVER again.

Toyota/Honda/Nissan Here I come.

why not pay $18 for the recall kit yourself. if your trying to prove something to ford you will only get more frustrated. also If you think you will get better service from anyone else your in for a surprise, all car companies are the same. the only thing that may save you is if you find a dealer that has good staff and management, but that's independent of the models they sell. you name the make I can find a story about a terrible service experience online somewhere, there was just a post about a BENZ SLR that was in for two days for some simple repair.

 

[inverse1216]

why not pay $18 for the recall kit yourself. if your trying to prove something to ford you will only get more frustrated. also If you think you will get better service from anyone else your in for a surprise, all car companies are the same. the only thing that may save you is if you find a dealer that has good staff and management, but that's independent of the models they sell. you name the make I can find a story about a terrible service experience online somewhere, there was just a post about a BENZ SLR that was in for two days for some simple repair.

exactly it doesnt matter what car company it is they all lack when it comes to service and quality. like he said you can find gobs of stories on the net regarding service, recalls etc. for any make. face it cars today dont have the quality put into them like the oldies. its all about how many they can push out the door and then they dont want anything to do with them.

 

[93rev2sev]

I'm certain that the time they've spent telling me to go lay an egg has exceeded the amount of time and money they would have spent fixing it with a smile. I am perfectly competent when it comes to replacing my subframe nuts. Thats not the point. My father worked for Ford for 36 years, my brother works for Ford currently...going on 10 years. Both of them seem surprised at my predicament.

I have no dreams of taking big bad Ford down a notch, I just want them to know why they are losing market share left and right. I was blindly loyal to Ford my whole life. My dad always brought home brand new cool cars and would brag about "Job 1". I was naive...I admit it. The problem as I see it is that they just want to see new cars leaving the lot. They don't ever want to see them again. Period. If they do see it again...the just want to make more money on it. God forbid they spend 12 seconds on anything that isn't billable...but they ARE spending time on this. And they will continue to waste service writer time telling me to go lay an egg.

I will be tearing into the subframe bushings myself here in a little bit and will be video recording the entire thing. That video will be sent to the NHTSA as an ammendment to my complaint. Because god knows...as soon as I fix it, they will want me to take a day off and bring it in for an "inspection".

 

[93rev2sev]

I was running across my old posts, looking for something and ran across this one. I never did get anywhere with Ford. I took care of the recall myself for about $30 (retail prices) including the hole saw, in about 40 minutes. The staff at Village Ford spent about 6 hours (of my free time) argueing about it.

I know, digging up old threads is baaaaad...but someone DID ask to be updated up there.