On the good side of the warranty... for once!

[SpecMiataHauler]

So I bought a tractor a couple a weeks ago and I am towing it home and after a 3 hour ride I stop 2 miles from my home to fill up the tractor with diesel. When I start back up again and get going the CEL comes on in the truck, first time in the 3 years 9 months that I have owned it and it has 45,8xx miles.

So I read but do not clear the code, P0299, turbo underboost. Make an appt. at the local dealer and it turns out that I am about 1 month from it going out of warranty!!!

I get a call later in the day to find out not only are they replacing the turbo but the ICP, (Injector Control ???) and it has an oil leak even though there was never a drip on the ground, all covered. All in all about $3k worth of work. Very happy.

On the flip side, what happened to the US automakers turning out better products? I am a bit disheartened right now. We just got our 2008 GMC Acadia back from the shop that has 48k miles on it. We purchased it new and the transmission went out on it and while they had it they found that waterpump needed to be replaced and the bellows on the steering column was worn and leaking and the engine also had an oil leak. I mean, come on. This was a well maintained vehicle with only 48k miles and my F350 only had 45k and they both needed major work.

We switched from a BMW X5 to the Acadia after the trans went out in the X5 at 109k miles but I towed a race car with that vehicle and I made sure not to get a tow hitch on the Acadia so I wouldn't be tempted So I am really making an effort to buy American but it would be a lot easier if I really could buy some quality products.

[NYC F-350]

Think about it, ALL vehicle manufacturers study every piece and its profit potential...

The manufacturer profits from the sale of the vehicle and the parts needed to repair them.
The dealers make money on the sale of the vehicle, the sales of parts and the servicing/repair of the vehicles.

If the manufacturer makes a vehicle that is too dependable...they and their dealership network lose in the long run.

They make much more if they can manufacture a vehicle that will just make it out of warranty. If there are a few parts that do not last that long, they look at the cost of improving the part and implementing it into the manufacture, versus the failure rate of the part. If it is cheaper for the manufacturer to replace the parts that fail on vehicles sold versus improving the entire manufacturing process, they replace the failing parts. Whatever will net a higher profit. This is not just the American companies, it is the entire industry.

[SpecMiataHauler]

NYC,

I understand the business side of it but what happened to the idea of just building a good product? Maybe a company would just sell more cars if they would last longer.

I have been building and racing Spec Miatas for close to 10 years now and I can't tell you how many time I and dozens of other have picked up a first generation Miata with 120 - 200K miles on the original drivetrain and installed the necessary safety equiptment and suspension and gone and raced it. Last year I built a 1990 Miata that had been sitting for about 7 years. I was going to pull the motor but I decided to see if I could get it running. I drained the tank, replaced the fuel pump because it was gummed up and got it running. The car had 192,xxx miles on the clock. I purchased it from the original owner. I had to do donuts out in the dirt to get the clutch disc to break free from the flywheel while the motor was bouncing off of the rev limiter and it finally did, so I decided to race it and the car performed well finishing 9th with an open diff at Infineon Raceway.

[Rotbody]

IMO Ford doesnt really care about these trucks. They dumped it all on the aftermarket and the buyer to roll the dice with. My 06 is in for a cracked up pipe....I mean a peice of frickin exhaust that your never supposed to replace.

Ford wants these trucks to go away and until they do, they gonna keep raking in money on these things. Either way its a win win. You buy a 40K dollar truck and gotta throw at least another 5K into them just to make the reliable, and thats if you dont have any serious problems.

If my 6.0 goes Im gonna get a 12 valve and swap it in. Then drive it till the wheels fall off. If the manufacturer cant build me a truck that holds together reliably, I will......So since it will be my job to make my truck reliable, Ill stop buying ford and build my own truck.

Your basically at the mercy of the warranty, I never had a vehicle that was so fine toothed combed when going in for warranty work. Its like they are vultures circling how they can screw you out of warranty work.

[Aussiekeeper]

I'll bet most of you are unaware that your factory warranty is NOT free. The average warranty repair costs are built into the cost of any vehicle, and we all pay for it. I remember in the 80's GM added $1,800 into every full sized car to cover the estimated repairs they would need to get it out of warranty. Remember, the 70's cars were some of the most poorly cars built.

[PowerstrokeTech82787]

Originally Posted by SpecMiataHauler

So I bought a tractor a couple a weeks ago and I am towing it home and after a 3 hour ride I stop 2 miles from my home to fill up the tractor with diesel. When I start back up again and get going the CEL comes on in the truck, first time in the 3 years 9 months that I have owned it and it has 45,8xx miles.

So I read but do not clear the code, P0299, turbo underboost. Make an appt. at the local dealer and it turns out that I am about 1 month from it going out of warranty!!!

I get a call later in the day to find out not only are they replacing the turbo but the ICP, (Injector Control ???) and it has an oil leak even though there was never a drip on the ground, all covered. All in all about $3k worth of work. Very happy.

On the flip side, what happened to the US automakers turning out better products? I am a bit disheartened right now. We just got our 2008 GMC Acadia back from the shop that has 48k miles on it. We purchased it new and the transmission went out on it and while they had it they found that waterpump needed to be replaced and the bellows on the steering column was worn and leaking and the engine also had an oil leak. I mean, come on. This was a well maintained vehicle with only 48k miles and my F350 only had 45k and they both needed major work.

We switched from a BMW X5 to the Acadia after the trans went out in the X5 at 109k miles but I towed a race car with that vehicle and I made sure not to get a tow hitch on the Acadia so I wouldn't be tempted So I am really making an effort to buy American but it would be a lot easier if I really could buy some quality products.

thats not major work, thats common issues with 6.0s. major work would be if a piston cooler jet broke lose and needed a short block. 6.0s up here the oil pans are rotting just as bad if not worse than 7.3s ever did some 6.4s are just as bad. the pan gaskets leak on the 6.0s and the oil also leaks out of the glow plug harness's i see that to be the most common issue for oil leaks the other rare occasions ive seen the intake gaskets leak, the pump cover leak and on early build 6.0s the icp sensor leak oil into the harness.

[PowerstrokeTech82787]

Originally Posted by Rotbody

So since it will be my job to make my truck reliable, Ill stop buying ford and build my own truck.

haha thats why i drive a silverado thats fully loaded... and i beat the **** out of it still under warranty and only had to do a front left hub covered under powertrain. All though i beat the snot out of it, i also take care of it maintenance wise, oil changes since i bought it every 2800-3000 mobil 1 5w30 tranny filter and fluid every 25000 miles, rear and front diff fluid and reseal every 15000 and ill be doing plugs soon.

I never had any luck with any engine from ford when i was 16-19 i owned a whole bunch of lifted trucks and cadillacs wouldnt drive anything else. I give credit where its due, 351 and 302 windsors are absolute garbage. i had blocks crack while mudbogging and theyd crack down the cam tunnel or through the main webbings in the block, Ive had the water pump cover bolts break off into the block and could never get them out because ford had them go into coolant jackets. I had a nice 85 or 84 F150 lifted 5 inches had 38s on it. Went through 5 351s then i bought a 351 cleveland and a 4 speed for it and swapped the 351w and 4 speed for the 351c and holy crap was that a truck! had a 73 or 74 F350 dump truck that i bought for 50 bucks a guy advertised in craigslist couldnt get it running put a brand new carb in it new fuel pump spark plugs wires cap and rotor but the stupid bastard never checked the gap in the points and i had a running truck with brand new carb and ignition system i beat the hell out of that old pig and if you popped the clutch at 3500 in 2nd gear itd lift the front tires. I wanted to swap the motor into a fox body and sell it for a quick buck.

I had lifted chevys and dodges too! a 350, 327 400 small blocks no issues, had a 89 K2500 reg cab long box that had a 454 tbi engine and cracked the block on that, dodge 318s couldnt hurt them. had to do a timing chain in one 360s if it wasnt tied up to a stick shift i was replacing transmissions.

had an 02 5.4 had no balls, sucked gas, manifolds cracked plugs blew out of the head on the drivers side after i just did the manifolds. I ended up rolling that one because of a deer jumping out in front of me. and it was the last ford id ever own. I only own GM never had any issues with anything they ever built unless it was something small like a wheel bearing or lack of a/c, nothing catastrophic nothing that would leave me on the side of the road.

[Eric21]

Well atleast the fords ain't government owned like chevy. That's why I will not own a chevy they can't even keep there heads above water!

[PowerstrokeTech82787]

Originally Posted by Eric21

Well atleast the fords ain't government owned like chevy. That's why I will not own a chevy they can't even keep there heads above water!

At least they keep thier vehicles running, opposed to about 90% of repairs i make are base engine concerns. If you ask me id rather support a company that despite corporate screw ups, still builds stout reliable and powerful engines transmissions. Not 1 that builds(4.6 5.4 6.8) and installs (6.0 6.4) garbage engines, decent transmissions at best, but i will give them credit for the dana rear ends. At least those of which have posi dana rears...

Thats 90% of the work i do in a month i see over 100 trucks. F250s-750s 650s and 750s no real engine work have replaced a turbo on a CAT motor though that had 390k on it. 6.0s-constantly comming in for what starts out as a simple turbo service turns into a complete turbo because the chra housing is warped, rough idle lacks power, find a crush washer at the base of the injector cup disintegrated and blow by all over the injector, turns from a simple r+r to doing an injector cup and injector, FICM failures that will leave customers stranded, issues with customers complaints of engine runs rough replaced thier own fuel filters and end up being compression getting back into the fuel rail and fuel filter housing and having to perform injector mist tests along with baloon tests and isolate the cylinders 1 at a time on each bank with moving a glow plug from cyl to cyl to isolate which 1 or more have compression feeding into the fuel filter housing.

And i havent even started on 6.4s yet... I could go on for days on that abomination. I cant wait til ford releases a TOTAL recall on 6.4s to be brought in and repowered with 6.7s, or another engine...

[NYC F-350]

And if we talked to a Chevy tech, he (she/they) would be saying exactly the same thing about Government Motors.
No Auto manufacturer is "better" because they all run on the same principals. They all suck.
But you have to admit that Ford got all of its eggs in the right baskets YEARS before Government Motors even began to see the writing on the wall. Thats why FORD didn't need the Corporate Welfare check by the US of A.