No News on the F450

Still no news on the F-450. I realized this weekend after reading a complaint from a Ford dealership regarding Ford's advertising of non-Ford collision centers, that perhaps dealerships also feel some of Ford Motor Company's poor customer service. So, I decided that I would give the dealership with the largest piece of history on the vehicle a chance to respond and potentially save some customer relationships.

The letter was delivered to the general manager today which included a cover letter with a brief history and the letter delivered to Ford. Time will tell if Ford or its dealerships will take ownership of the issues and stand by their products.

No news update on 2011 Ford F450

So, still no word from Ford Motor Company regarding the engine surging issues that have been occurring for almost a year that the factory certified technicians have been unable to diagnosis. I was told twice Wednesday alone that someone would reach out to me as soon as possible. Seems more like, maybe sometime if we feel like it. They have known that I wanted to hear from them since November 23.

From Ford Service Facebook Administrator: 

Wednesday, 12/16 - 9:10am - "I've reached out to request that someone contact you as soon as possible." 

3:37pm - "As I requested earlier today, a regional customer service manager will be reaching out to you as soon as they can."

I would think it would not take too long to simply state that they were working on a response. But, I would also think it would be pretty easy to call when you have a customer with a vehicle history like mine, in the shop for over a month. But, apparently that is not part of Ford's #1 goal.

From the 2011 Ford Super Duty Warranty Guide: "Your satisfaction is our #1 goal."

Update on Ford Issues

__________.

That is about all I have heard. I sent a final notification to Ford Motor Company to provide them a final opportunity to come to a mutually beneficial agreement and put this issue behind us. I hope this will come to a conclusion soon, but have my doubts based on the customer service (or lack thereof) received thus far.

The letter was sent multiple methods to ensure Ford Motor Company had as many opportunities to receive it and take action...

First, It was emailed to my regional customer service representative assigned to the case that Ford apparently closed without following up to see if the issue was resolved. I have yet to receive response from her or from anyone at Ford Motor Company since September 21st despite numerous voicemails, emails, and letters.

Second, I sent it to the Ford Service Facebook administrator(s) which I had to drag a response out of them. Then, they would not actually acknowledge receipt like I requested, but rather purposefully attempted to avoid a direct response. Even the final response was an attempt to avoid my question to, "Please acknowledge that you forwarded the previously attached letter as you indicated you provide assistance via social media platforms." The ridiculous response provided was on their FB page and was stated, "Thank you for reaching out. I see Mariel has been in touch, and I see your newest message in our inbox." And, that was after several hours of requesting to respond (their page states they typically respond within an hour). They are quick to respond to posts on their pages though. I can empathize with their social media reps having been on that end myself and having to figure out what to do. But, acknowledging receipt of a letter is pretty easy.

Third, it was mailed, which was received today.

And no, I will not discuss the specifics of my requests at this time other than that I am seeking to replace the vehicle and do not believe that I should take a hit in value because of a defect that occurred under warranty that Ford has not been able to correct. I do not find my requests to be unreasonable and truly feel like I am being quite generous based on the number of family camping trips that have been cancelled and that my children were not able to get to museums, libraries, etc. for all the time we were down to one vehicle. But, I'm not a person, I am just a number, # 7666439.

More to follow...

Ford's Systemic Customer Service Issues

Here are my thoughts on the systemic customer service issues that are based on some forum discussions. I have receive numerous comments echoing my experience over the last few days...

My F-450 has been to three different dealerships throughout the 10 month timeframe totalling more than two months out of service. Hard to explain to kids why so many camping trips and learning opportunities had to be cancelled during that time. Ford Motor Company has always quickly made it clear that dealerships are franchises not owned by Ford Motor Company and they are not responsible for their actions. However, the lack of customer service from Ford Motor Company seems to be emulated by all the dealerships. Not to mention, if you allow a business to bear your logo, you should probably enforce some set of business practice rules (similar experience with Cingular quite a few years ago, however, they were able to keep me as a customer by correcting their franchise's poor practices). I move frequently so my experience ranges more than 30+ dealerships over almost two decades. My sales experiences have always been great, minus one visit about 15 years ago. However, service centers are typically slow, unresponsive and/or incompetent.

Adequate service is as simple as a phone call when an oil change is completed or a call to say, we are still working on your issue but have not identified it yet. How do you explain Ford Motor Company's Regional Customer Representative that was assigned to my case not following up as promised, not returning any emails or voicemails, or asking if the issue was addressed? 

Two weeks I went without any updates from Ford Motor Company or its franchise dealership that was diagnosing the vehicle with a 'technical assist' from Ford Motor Company. The end result was a simple phone call from the dealership stating it was ready for pick up. Ford Motor Company has still not followed up to close out the case. 

I will contrast this with my experience with Volkswagen. Four dealerships so far in the last three years for purchase and service. I have felt like I owned a luxury vehicle with my experiences at every dealership I visited. The salesman was the only one that I felt had a little less knowledge than he should, but he was fairly new. It is hard for any salesman to know everything and I do not expect that since I heavily research any vehicle I consider purchasing. And, I just bought new tires and had service performed for free, not because my car has actual issues, but because VW wants to reassure customers due to the recent TDI claims. I love that car and I doubt that it actually pollutes anywhere near what my F-450 does, but that is off topic.

So, now we are at a point where it is completely in Ford Motor Company's hands until they respond (there is a time limit). I was going to include the discussions on a Ford Motor Company Facebook site, but it appears to have been removed and I did not think to print early enough (you got me there). However, I still have plenty of examples of bad service. I have provided my final notification to the email provided by my assigned regional customer support representative that has not contacted me since September 21st despite emails and phone call attempts and a letter that was received by Ford Motor Company on November 23rd. I also sent it to the message thread from the Ford Service Facebook page administrator that has asked at least twice about my vehicle 'for clarification'. I am sure that it is unclear if it is at a dealership when the response is 'no'. I realize their job is to fish for documentation rather than to actually support a customer and that the recorded phone calls are not to ensure customer service. Supposedly, the page administrator will reply within an hour (typically). The hour is up since receiving the letter and no acknowledgement that it was received as I requested.

So, now off to the post office...

Thoughts of Craig Schmatz, Chief Engineer of Ford Super Duty?

As another day has began and I have yet to receive any attempted contact from Ford as I discussed in previously regarding the F450 engine surging and Ford's terrible customer service...Actually, that is not true, Ford Service Facebook Page asked for my contact information (which Ford case # 7666439 was included in the posts and they have my contact information provided in multiple letters).  I looked for the thread on facebook, but it seems it may have gone missing...hmmmmm. I do have the message with my reply, timestamps and the lack of Ford's response even on Facebook (claim they respond within an hour, HA!). However, after immediately providing the requested information more than 24 hours ago, no attempts for contact have been made.

But, I digress. As I have been half working on my final paper for the semester and cruising social media; I was developing thoughts for a construction question and found myself wondering what Craig Schmatz's opinion on this issue would be, a fellow engineer (not sure if that's engineer or Engineer since his bio does not bear the post-nominal title of an Engineer... https://media.ford.com/content/fordmedia/fna/us/en/people/craig-schmatz.html).

Let's equate this to an engineering problem. If a facility such as a Ford Motor Company's manufacturing plant or office building were constructed and a defect was found, I am quite certain that Ford would demand that the issue be resolved. This would be especially true if it occurred under the contractual warranty period. Imagine if the constructor of designer of record refused to provide the required customer service and address the issue. I am sure Ford would be quick to threaten legal action and I doubt that the contracted firms involved would leave their client in the dark for months hoping the issue would go away.

There is an obligation for engineers to conduct their practice in an ethical manner just like all other professionals. So, what are your thoughts Craig Schmatz on Ford's response to my issue so far? I would love to hear them.

I could spend a lot of time discussing this issue, but you get the idea and I have a paper to finish...

2011 Ford F450 Engine Surging Follow-up

I wanted to follow up with my Ford Super Duty engine surging. I was fortunate enough (sarcasm for those that do not know me) to have my truck at the dealership for over 30 days. Ford Motor Company regional customer service provided regular updates (weekly or more) for the first few weeks. After that, silence. Nothing from Arrow Ford of Abilene, no response from the customer service rep assigned to my case by Ford Motor Company. No response at all, not to multiple emails, not to phone calls and now not to my most recent letter.

After two weeks of silence, I finally received a call from Arrow Ford that they performed some tests, including 'wiggle tests' (which is a legitimate test) and it was no longer showing symptoms of the issue. That was the extent of the closure I received from Ford Motor Company aside from a phone survey to see how satisfied I was with my customer service experience (not very good I will say).

So, I had my truck picked up by family since I was out of the area as I cannot sit still for a month because my vehicle is not working and Ford factory trained technicians cannot figure it out. I was hopeful and made room in my schedule to go pick it up a couple weeks later. And not surprisingly, it was not fixed.

I wrote Ford a letter and asked that they respond within 15 days. It has been 21 now and silence (which is what Katie thought would happen). I'm done with this truck and simply want Ford to stand by their product and guarantee private party, good condition on a trade since they have not been able to identify the issue after two months of time and I cannot in good conscience sell a truck with an engine surging because of the safety hazards.

I'm hoping Ford will come around, but the clock is ticking towards seeking alternative actions available to protect consumers that I have been hoping to avoid.

I expect that I will provide frequent updates, in the mean time, here's what my truck likes to do when it's running, including when parking and stopped (imagine someone stepping on the gas when you are on the brake, that's what it is like). I have lots of videos since this issue started, but Ford dealerships seem to have trouble experiencing the issue that I have every time I drive this thing.

#fordprobs

I have been trying to remain patient with Ford Motor Company​ regarding my 2011 F-450. But, Ford's customer service is not making it easy.

Background: The truck started surging when idling back in February. The surging is random, sometimes in excess of 500 RPMs and occurs regardless of the position of the transmission (park, neutral, drive, reverse). That means when you're sitting at a stop light or idling into a parking spot, the truck jumps. Not exactly the safest experience I've had with any of my Ford Trucks​.

I have taken the truck multiple times to multiple dealerships (including Arrow Ford​ and Henderson Ford​.) The first 'diagnosis' was a fan clutch. So, after replacing it, no resolution. Continued worsening and the fan clutch actually went out a few months later. I believe this was mostly due to replacing a perfectly good fan clutch. Although, it is possible that the excessive stress from the engine surging could potentially cause it to fail.

So, after enough irritation and a failed attempt to contact Ford's online customer service request, I wrote a letter to the company in July. August I received a reply that Ford Motor Company would provide technical assistance to Arrow Ford​. So, I dropped it off September 5th. I received one update from the dealership the first week saying they had it in the system and would get to it later in the week. It's been silence from Arrow Ford since then.

I was getting routine updates from the Ford Regional Customer Representative assigned to my case. But, that stopped two weeks ago when I was told that the dealership believed they had an idea what it might be, but had to get it to replicate the symptoms. Now, after multiple voice mails, messages, and emails to both the dealership and the regional CS Rep, silence.

The best part of this is that Ford Motor Company's first response was that the dealerships are not associated with Ford, as they are franchises. This was the same response I heard a few years ago when I complained about another dealership's service department. Meanwhile, the manual says you should take it to Ford Factory Certified Technicians. And, the dealerships bear the Blue Oval and boast of their FORD FACTORY CERTIFIED TECHNICIANS.

If I don't receive response soon, I'll give Mark Fields (businessman)​ one last chance to save a customer. And to answer the obvious question, I dislike the other two competitors so much I've let it get to this point.

Here's one example...



#fordprobs

Catching up.....continued

Ok, I'm going to start today where I left off yesterday. I had thought about putting up some more pictures from our travels, and I really really wanted to post some of all my friends that allowed us to come into their homes and stay with them as we traveled from Mississippi to Virginia. Sadly I realized that most of those pictures were on my phone that Zetta drowned in the dog water a couple of months ago. If I am ever able to salvage the pictures from their watery tomb then I will edit the post and add them.

We are so incredibly lucky to have friends that would welcome us in on a moments notice...even after years of not seeing one another, even though they had busy schedules of their own. We will always always be thankful for their open doors to me, my children, and even my dog....we love you all: Adam and Minina, Deborah and Jacob, Danielle and Nic (even though I missed Nic while he was on a sweet vacation to Africa ;) ), and Tiffany and Matt.

Ok, back to the pictures.

November 2014

Well, it turns out that there were lots of pictures on my phone...including all of November. Basically all that happened that month was soccer and Thanksgiving. I'll have to see if my inlaws have any photos they can send me of my very first, practically all on my own, Thanksgiving meal.

December 2014

Mostly soccer days

A sweet tea party with sweet friends!

There were also a few park days in there.

January 2015

I don't have a lot of photos from this month, but these are the highlight of the month anyways.

Pure joy :D

A big thank you to Meredith for snapping these candid shots of our homecoming :)


February 2015

 We celebrated Steven's birthday a little late. Despite some hiccups in our plans for awesome light sabers for everyone and some other party favors, I think all the young jedi had fun.

And, of course, I had to add a picture of the baby just being the baby!

During this month we also started packing up to move from Mississippi to Texas. It was such a hectic and stressful time there is really not much that I can remember from this month....which is why I wish that I had kept up with our blog better. Well, that or not had my phone broken...either way would have worked I guess.

March 2015

We loved this coach, this team, the parents, the girls...it was a one in a million find and was one of the few reasons I would go back to Gulfport voluntarily. I cannot tell you how much we will miss this.

This tree is the bane of my existence and I am only including it so that I can look back and remember exactly why I don't ever ever EVER want a sweet gum tree anywhere near me.

Last few days in the house...

Our move involved multiple trips to Texas and rather than driving it all in one day, we decided that we could camp one night and continue on the next day. We also picked up a new puppy just before moving out...and it was his and Zetta's first camping trip! You've never seen two creatures that love to dig in the dirt and eat sticks more than those two right there.

Lots of trips to grandparent's and the chance to play with their cousins

More camping on the way back. Although it was a bit more trouble than finding a hotel that allows two dogs, or any dogs for that matter, it was worth the extra effort for moments like these.

April 2015

Moved into an RV again. We spent the time we had left in Mississippi on base in our new RV. It was actually a really nice park, but they didn't really approve of kids walking around anywhere by themselves...which is ridiculous since I could see them from the RV, but whatever. 

The Easter bunny clearly received his change of address card in the mail. I'm not sure how true this is, but I heard that the Easter bunny overslept on this particular Easter and almost forgot to leave the eggs....can you believe that?! It's just hearsay though, we'll never know for sure ;)

Check out that morning hair. She was content with her one egg and a chocolate bar.

I'm going to have to end it here for now. I'll finish up the rest soon. I'm hoping this weekend I will charge my old broken phone and it will magically work, or that we'll be able to save some of the pictures off of it. 

Hope you all have a safe and happy Labor day weekend!

-Katie

Playing catch up...

It seems as though I will never be able to keep up with this blog, or any other, so I'll just embrace it and continue my haphazard and random postings. This particular post is going to be a catch up...for me and you! I love to look back on what all we have done, and there was so much going on in the last year and we didn't post any of it!

May 2014

Our beautiful baby Zetta made her appearance:

June 2014

We welcomed family

Got tatooed

Said goodbye

July 2014

Spent time with dear friends, checked out the New Orleans aquarium, and went to a new-to-us beach

August 2014

Visit from Grandma and Pop and a trip to the Children's Museum

September 2014

October 2014

This was a huge month for us! It probably deserves a post all it's own, but since I'm on a roll today, I'm just going to include snippets from our Spanish adventure.

It started with a trip to the east coast. We stopped and stayed with friends along the way, and it was so great catching up with everyone! We arrived in Virginia and had a birthday party with friends for Adelyn's birthday. Matt made an amazing power ranger cake and all of our family sent presents to their house so she would have lots of fun stuff to open on  her big day :) 

Then the kids and I loaded up our stuff, and drove to see if we could catch a military flight to Rota, Spain to visit Steve. I was so nervous we wouldn't get on. Roll call was around 5pm, which we were right on time. We didn't eat dinner because I honestly just didn't have time and I figured there would be something on the flight...I was wrong, they announced there was no food. They finally called our names at 9pm, just as I was stuffing my dollar bills into the snack machine. Turns out, there were box lunches...go figure. So our crappy $2 cold sandwiches mostly went to waste.

When we arrived in Spain I was completely exhausted. The kids slept for the entire flight, so they were ok. I slept a few minutes here and there and I was far from ok. We landed and I contacted Steve, only to find out he was still at work and couldn't leave. We went into a nursery they have at the airport and I rested while the big kids played and the baby slept. We were probably there for 2 hours or so before he was able to come see us. I was so happy to see his face....he had been gone for 4 months at this point. My joy was short-lived though...he told me he had a van, but he couldn't take us in it (gov't rules), the bus I was expecting to use was out of service because of construction around the airport, and so we would have to walk to the exchange to find food. He took our bags and the kids and I walked to the NEX. I was cranky, tired, and hungry. Subway wasn't quite the first meal I was hoping to have in Spain, but it was enough to get us through. Steve bought and set up a phone for me...only catch is it didn't have a working language option, so it had to stay in Spanish. (Le sigh) This was only the beginning of challenges for the day. Steve handed me a folder with a map, a handful of euros, and reminded me of a few basic Spanish words to get me to the apartment we were renting for the week. I was not planning to go alone, and you can imagine my frustration as I hopped into a cab with a man I couldn't communicate with to a place I didn't know the location of, and I was supposed to meet two people I didn't know, but Steve programmed their number into my Spanish phone.....oh boy. Luckily, all went well. I met the people in front of the correct apartment complex, they showed me around, gave me the keys, and then I took a nap. I could have slept for a day, but Steve showed up to make sure I was awake and ready to go to dinner. The next day was much better, I enjoyed my sleep, and was feeling much more excited to explore. 

Here is a picture of our favorite cafe. We went in the mornings for a breakfast sandwich, cafe con leche, and pastries. 

Here is a picture of the kitchen in the apartment. Thousands of miles from home, and still stuck doing dishes....at least the view was nice ;)

On a walk we found a fun playground with it's own zipline, and a crazy tall climbing rope thing. The kids loved it. All the Spanish playgrounds seemed to make Steve nervous....which is funny since he is the adventurous spirit in our family.

Picture of the beach from downtown Rota. Steve and I enjoyed some time with Zetta and our pitcher of sangria while the big kids played in the sand. 

Even in October there was some warm sun and beach time....and very cold water. 

We took a double decker bus tour of Cadiz. The kids had a blast. The parents were mainly concerned with not having enough time to see the sights and get back before the last ferry left for Rota. 

Castle in downtown Rota

Indian food in Rota. It was delicious!!

We took a bus to Sevilla for one of  the days. I only regret not staying there multiple days. There was so much to see, one day was just not enough.

Tapas!!! Sardines for Steven, calamari, and I can't remember what else we ordered....and sangria of course :)

So much architecture to take in. It was so breathtaking. Every single building was a work of art.  

Castles, cathedrals, courtyards, oh my!

More tapas, and this time Zetta gets a snack too.

Back in Rota for dinner at Steve's favorite restaurant. 

Next adventure was a drive to Gibraltar. We took a scenic route, following the coastline. It was amazingly beautiful. We made one random stop in a surf town. It seemed like every street had a surf shop. We went in for a snack and restroom break, had some coffee and watch three old me eat sardines and drink beer at 10 am....I feel like this is my kind of place ;)

Gibraltar was really cool. It's a British colony with tons of cute shops, they used the pound, we ate fish and chips, and bought the kids some cute clothes. This was another place that we could have used more time. We did have one very unfortunate accident while there. Zetta pooped as much as a grown man, and of course I was not prepared with extra clothes,...or an extra stroller, or a costco size box of wipes.  I didn't have anywhere to change her, and there are not changing stations anywhere. As a matter of fact, one lady who had just cleaned the restroom I was going to use told me to go somewhere else...she had just cleaned it. Hahaha good times! So we went to a cafe and bought drinks so we could use their restroom, and I did my best to get everything cleaned up. Next stop was new clothes for the baby. 

There are so many pictures....it takes so long to upload them, so this is all you get. I'll continue with the rest of the year tomorrow maybe. 

-Katie