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Comments
tidester, host
BUT.. You've got more miles than I did (31K vs. 16K) and I assume your tires are NOT under recall otherwise they would have been changed by your dealer long ago -- so you've got less leverage.
IF the tires are the proven reason for your issue, and IF you've had your truck regularly serviced through your dealer THEN you have a good case to get new wheels at a very good price. Think about it, every time you take your truck in for service, they perform their "quality" inspection, and if your tires were wearing poorly (or going bad for that matter) they SHOULD have mentioned it to you long ago. If the tires have suddenly gone bad then it suggests to me there's a factory defect with them and your tire warranty should cover them. If you have not had your dealer service your truck regularly however, then you are probably on your own.
At the very least, check in your Lincoln Warranty papers, there's an often-overlooked booklet in there that has the specifics about your tire warranty. If I remember correctly, in my '00 gator it was a little blue and white booklet. Check it out to see what other protection you may have.
Good Luck!
NVBanker: the service has not been great, almost disappointing, although I did get a follow up call today with out having to call them.
I have also heard about the brake dust problem - any news on that front? Mine cakes up terribly and is hard to remove.
Any experience in buybacks anyone?
Concerning Lemon Law/Buybacks: thankfully I've never had to look into this too carefully. From what I gather it's a "three strikes your out" policy. I'm not sure if it would apply to tech accessories (radio, liftgate, etc.) or if it must be a driveabilty issue that has not been fixed after 3 tries. I would HOPE Lincoln goes to bat for you and accommodates you. Just try to stay calm and composed throughout your "discussions" with them -- and forget about phone calls; for issues this serious I'd be sending certified letters to everyone concerned.
Over on the Lexus GX board I've read that some customers are getting their SUV bought back from Lexus because they messed up on the weight of the vehicle (listed it as 6001 pounds vs. 6000) and it has had bad tax implications for some folks. Also, I've read in other Lexus boards that some people are clamoring for buybacks due to some vibration issues that have not been resolved successfully.
Either way, I'm certain having ANY vehicle buyback accomplished is not an easy task. Let me know what happens... and good luck!
If a buyback is warranted, they will offer you a new truck off the lot, no extra charge, your current lease or loan if it's Ford Credit stays in place as is. If you don't like what's on the lot, they'll build your new truck for you. If you want to upgrade, they'll adjust your lease or loan for the extra equipment you want on your next one. I don't know what they do if you paid cash or have outside financing.
They take the old truck to the morgue for an autopsy, and have the engineers dismantle it to see why it couldn't be fixed.
I agree with gteach though, stay calm, but persistent, and escalate each time until you get to Bill Ford. It's a hassle, and you shouldn't have to, but it seems you do sometimes to get satisfaction. Unfortunately, how the manufacturer handles problems often is more influential about future purchases than how the car performs. My tech is a huge Ford fan now because they handled him so well, and he loves his new Excursion!
If you look at some of the Ford vehicles for '04, you will notice that various things might have changed, and while they might look minor, in the end it's for the better. Even the Taurus received real wood trim in some higher trim levels.
Instead of just pressing buttons to see IF they work, they concentrate on HOW the button feels, how it rocks as you touch it. How the figure can grab and identify it in a easier manner. If a driver can execute it's action, without moving his eyes off the road. And that process continues into, how the assembly of the button works, can their be a better placement for it, how the mechanics work, how to upgrade the item itself for reliability issues, what pieces can be improved within it, following down to the wire...how it connects to the computer/electrical system, etc.
It's a very long and tedious process. They mainly work with items that show a history of break down failures, or issues that might arise soon after a release. While ONE vehicle that's produced (and they test) might not exhibit flaws, one in which a customer has acquired and had issues with, are the one's the concentrate with, mainly because we all have different ways of treating vehicles. Therefore they are made to drop everything, to fix whatever known problem there might be on a vehicle.
1) Power liftgage intermittantly won't close without forcing it down by holding the button in. Does anybody know if a TSB has been issued on this problem yet?
2) Rear A/C works property when controlled from the front, but puts out heat when controlled from the rear. Obviously, I just use front controls for now.
3) Liftgate window has lost a stop grommett on lower right - probably car wash popped it out cleaning.
These are what I consider second tier issues because I have a temporary solution until I need my next service. Or until something serious happens that makes me go in. I dearly love the truck - but you can tell it's a new design. It's not built like my old 99 was.
A cupped tire does rumble, but the only thing I know that causes a tire to cupp is a bad suspension or improper alignment. Just changing the tires will help, but the problem may recurr, even if you vary your route to work... Sheesh, unless you repair what's wrong with the front end.
Ironically, Lincoln placed almost at the top of the list of dealership complaint satisfaction. As in, people were highly pleased with the repairs, when visiting the repair facility.
Also, nvbanker says the tire "cupped" for a reason (suspension,alignment,etc).. I would want to find out from the service rep what exactly caused this cup to happen (besides that the tire sucks), then have it fixed or else it will happen again. Also, wouldn't a "cup" develop gradually over time or would it just suddenly appear? If it happened over time then the "quality inspection" done when you went in for regular service should have flagged it -- if they did not tell you something was wrong then shame on them and they should pony up a new set of wheels for FREE -- you can offer to pay the alignment/balancing etc. Is that unreasonable?PLUS I've got to believe those tires have a better warranty than just 32K with proper care no?
Here's another question - why, on a $60K car, does Ford use CD technology that only allows you to play commercially pressed CD's, and not CD's burned on a home computer?
Steve, Host
Now to get the rear window replaced that I smashed the other day.....
Gteach, it means better fuel economy (just a small tad) better performance overall. If the software is programmed well enough, the revolutions of the engine can be kept low enough when cruising, which would allow a higher fuel economy at highway level. BUT because of the bulky size, aerodynamics will not let it have THAT much of an improvement. But anything, and everything will be an improvement, let alone, stay very competitive.
If it's the V6 Mountaineer, the 5 Speed can easily be tricked into hunting. Usually at each shift, it hits 3000RPM where it pumps out it's maximum torque which is great, to bypass the hunting situation, just SLAM the pedal down and keep it at that level and you will notice it won't hunt as much. If it's the V8 with the 5 Speed, then the issue is not as such. Although let's not forget, around town those vehicles should be driven with O/D off. So often I see transmission failures (across all manufacturer's) because people are choosing to use the fuel saving O/D gear, causing the tranny to work much harder.
Ford's 6 Speed (which I do not have all the specifics yet) will probably feature 2 low gears for improved take off, while higher end gears for relaxed highway cruising. Couple that with a high torque engines (as common in Ford's) and the software can be programmed to allow for a good enough shift into 4th or 5th for instant passing on the highway. Now marry a 6 Speed auto on a low torque engine, like something a Civic would have, and watch that tranny hit 2nd gear to gather enough strength to pass someone on the highway. So in the case of the 6 Speed on something as heavy as the Navi, it's a good idea.
Although I'm really looking forward to the continuing development of ToroTrak Transmissions, which are Infinatly Variable Transmissions. Unlike CVT's which are limited when there's too much torque (currently the Nissan Murano's CVT has the highest CVT torque load at 245HP), the Torotrak IVT can sustain higher torque outputs, and there's currently an Expedition being tested with that transmission. At 60,70,80MPH that vehicle is running at 1000RPM's. Imagine the fuel savings there. They are currently testing that vehicle out, but I see this as a very viable alternative and believe we'll be seeing them by the end of the decade.
Trouble...A couple of days after the service my Navi was parked for good? After driving home and parking the Navi in the garage I found that the truck was stuck in park. It could not be shifted into gear, neutral or anywhere from park. The truck had to be towed to the dealer after "manual linkage was disconected" to allow the truck to roll. The invoice states that "brake position switch" was bad. My dealer quickly fixed the problem and I am rolling again. This problem was really odd and I would guess would not be a common problem.
I have had no other problems with my Navi, no lift gate, radio, tires, etc now that the door panels are fixed!!
Also, while opening the liftgate and I want it to "reverse" back down manually to avoid hitting something (e.g. garage roof) I have to put quite a bit of downward force until it responds. Can the sensitivity of this "auto reverse" be adjusted?
In any case, I'm done giving "safety" demonstrations with my nav.
My next problem is the rear air. Intermittantly (again), it works fine from the front controls, but about half the time, if I put it on the rear control, it puts out hot air instead of the cold air the control is calling for. That'll be fun to try to get the service department to demonstrate or figure out.
Ya, pretty dumb mistake. Thankfully insurance covered it, and NO mechanical damage.