Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General General Question about Dealerships

Does a dealership have to give you the phone number to the Regional Manager? I have been working on getting my 2nd dash replaced, with little to no help from the dealership. I have been trying to work my way up the chain of command but the Manager I'm speaking with now says he has no way for me to contact the Regional Manager. I think he's full of ish, but I don't know for sure. Any help or advice would be great.

Thanks,
Aaron

You're on the web. Hit the Ford corporate web site & hunt down the appropriate individual & send an e-mail. Once it's in writing, they generally follow through to some degree.

Good luck.

You may not like it, but he is correct. You have only one path to the Ford reps, and that is through the dealerships.

You might try calling Ford Customer Service, but essentually all they do is turn it back to the dealer for them to respond.

I'm not saying that I like the system, but that is how it works. You need to try to always get the dealer personnel on your side. They are your best ally. Your chances are much better if they go to bat for you. Sometimes Ford just will not be moved though.

I was just looking at my warranty booklet, and it says that if you have a problem that cannot be resolved at the dealership level, please contact the Ford Customer Assistance Center.

The info listed is:

Ford Motor Company
Customer Assistance Center
16800 Executive Plaza Drive
P.O. Box 6248
Dearborn, MI 48121

Phone 1-800-392-3673

Thanks guys. So far I have sent another e-mail from the Ford Corporate site & I will be calling the Customer Assistance number again tomorrow. I called on Friday but they were already closed.

As far as the Dealership goes, the guy I have been speaking with says that I'm not loyal to the dealership because I don't geet my oil changed there. I told him that I just want to find a solution to the problem that both sides agree on, but he doesn't want to meet with me, and hasn't even tried to sell me a new dash. He has been very hard to work with & is very judgemental. I had THIS DEALER, that I'm NOT loyal to , install my DMD, & my water pump. I had my allignment done there, & I have purchased an IMRC, gas cap, & touch-up paint there as well. The car was purchased there & they have done all of my waranty work. Keep in mind the car has just under 60k miles. Which means I need to do a tranny flush, replace coolant, I have a CEL, & a worn belt. Buy not working with me he is sending a loyal customer away, & we all know the dash is flawed. Why is it that people get punished for trying to do the right thing?

That is why everyone calls it the stealership.

Here is a post I made on 9/1/04 about a problem with our Taurus wagon. The repair was made at the $50 cost to us and when my wife picked up the car, our service advisor said that the cost to us would have been in the $800 dollar range. The problem has been fixed. There are good dealers out there.

E-mail I sent to the General Manager of McRee Ford in Dickinson, TX concerning the cowl leak problem with our Taurus wagon...

We ordered a Ford Taurus SEL wagon in Feb. '02 and took delivery in March'02 from your dealer. Within the past year
we have had some water leaking onto the front passenger floor during heavy rains. We have had electical problems with the radio, twice, and the auto climate control, twice. The second of the latter we were charged the $50 deductable because we were out of the 36,000 mile, 36 month bumper to bumper. We are over in miles, not in months because
the car is used in a long daily commute to work. The car has been well cared for as the service record file will show. This past Saturday, August 28, the front passenger side floor was wet again, due to rain, and now the blower motor does not work.

With a little research I found TSB 03-15-6 provides for a free fix of the cowl leak problem, which can cause electrical problems, as long as it is done during the 36 month, 36,000 mile warranty period. This seems
to be a design flaw not a mileage wear issue. So with the above information provided to you, we are requesting your help in this matter as we do not think we should have to pay for the TSB fix or the replacement of the blower motor because we are still within the 36 month window. We are hoping to have this resolved as soon as possible because
we are without any climate control in our vehicle. Please and advise us by replying through e-mail or by contacting us at home.
I will be available to discuss this with you in person anytime during the day Tuesday, August 31st.

E-mail I got in response...

Thank you for taking the time to inform us of your vehicle concern. The information that you have provided is accurate, and we understand your concern completely. We will be happy to extend to you the offer of resolving your concern under our after warranty assistance program with your responsibility for this repair being $50.00, the amount you would pay on a standard ESP policy. The TSB will include the
installation of a Rain Hat Extension Seal and also will include the removal, inspection, reinstallation or replacement of the blower motor, blower resistor or cowl panel. If for any reason this procedure does not completely resolve your concerns, we will contact you with additional
needs and your contribution for additional repairs, if necessary will be 20% of the additional cost of repairs under our Ford warranty parts and labor pricing. Should you have any further questions or concerns, please contact me at anytime. In addition, when you bring your vehicle in for repairs, please print this information and present it to your service advisor.

Sounds like a good deal to me, the car goes in tomorrow. They have a good service dept and free loaner cars.

Call the Customer Service number that Mark (Beachboy) posted.

Since I'm bored and can't sleep, here's my Ford story:

I got a new Explorer back in 2000 that fell off a roll back. It had 500 miles when all the power steering fluid drained out, so I called Roadside Assistance (Ford) and got a tow. While the guy is hooking up my ride the chains let loose and the Explorer fell 4 feet to the ground!

Trashed both front fenders (chains hit them), rear bumper and tow hitch.

I took the truck to my own repair shop for an estimate, $4500 and that was before it went on the lift to check for further under carriage damage. The truck actually sat crooked and had a vibration in the front end.

I called CS number and got Mr. Jones on the phone. I told him that I wasn't keeping this ride and to hook me up with another Explorer. I also told him that I would be calling him every day until the issue was resolved. It only took 4 days of phone calls to get me a new Explorer.


Moral of the story...be persistant!! Make your complaint, get the CS reps.'s direct line (or extention) and then continue to follow up with this rep., don't wait for them to call you.

Good luck!

UPDATE-
I was at it again today. I called the 1-800 number & the woman I spoke with said that the only thing I could do was set up an appointment with the dealership & have them inspect the car. She told me I would have to pay an inspection fee & the dealer would tell me if I needed to buy a new dash or not. I told her I already tried to meet with them & they don't want to, but she didn't believe me. I told her that all I want to do is find a permanent solution for the problem that both sides feel is fair. She asked if I wanted financial support, & I said I just want to talk to someone who cares to fix the problem. Next, she called the dealership to try to set up an appointment for me, but she couldn't get ahold of the Customer Relations Manger.
Next, I called 1-800-FORD-SVT & I'm currently working with a contact there who has asked me to fax him all of my information so he can see what he can do. He said there is an employee there who owns a CSVT & he is having the same problems I am with the dash & they are working on getting it taken care of too.
Thanks for all of the advice guys. I'm being very persistant & I think they are starting to see I'm not going to quit. So far the hardest part has been staying calm with some of the rude people I've dealt with. They treat me like I'm dumb & they don't listen very well. I just wish I could speak face to face with someone because it's a lot harder to be mean when I'm standing right there in front of them.