So, the other week I had my Mk8 serviced and MoT'd by the local branch of Ford.

I booked online on Ford's own site- 8am service, necessitating the car being collected late the previous afternoon. No worries.

The branch phone the day before, saying that the pick up will actually be on the morning of the service. Right, ok.

Car is collected with a promise of return later that same day (as was the case the year before). Later on we get a call, they are a technician short and the MoT will be the following day. Right...

The car is MoT'd the next morning (at an independent garage nearby, not at Ford) and (eventually) delivered back to us. Half the paperwork is wrong somehow- still bearing either the previous reg No. which we have told them about more than once, or, our reg but incorrectly entered.

The plastic trim inside where the pollen filter is accessed isn't put back right.

There is oil spilt across the engine.

The oil life indicator hasn't been reset.

The locking wheel nut key has been slung back into the boot, sending my set of nuts for the space saver to the four winds.    

The washer fluid- filled up and capped before the car left- is virtually empty and the cap is loose.

The coolant cap wasn't on properly.

All tiny things, but my point is it doesn't inspire confidence and you wonder what you pay for!

1 hour ago, BlueMike2021 said:

All tiny things, but my point is it doesn't inspire confidence and you wonder what you pay for!

I would seek out a local independant garage for future work. They usually rely on a decent reputation, whilst the dealership just relies on Henry's original branding!

Local independents here seem to rely on a captive audience.  Tried several that I'd never use again.  

Basically, if you want a job done well, do it yourself!

6 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

Local independents here seem to rely on a captive audience.  Tried several that I'd never use again.  

Basically, if you want a job done well, do it yourself!

I'm really lucky, I have a 'local' that I'd trust with my life. He's not the cheapest, but I know whatever the job is, it'll be done right, and often to a higher spec than I requested!

Yes, ideally, DIY will ensure to your own satisfaction, but for those of us that lack the facilities, and more importantly, the knowledge, hard to beat a reliable garage...

7 hours ago, StephenFord said:

I would seek out a local independant garage for future work. They usually rely on a decent reputation, whilst the dealership just relies on Henry's original branding!

Yup, stay from the dealers.Fully concur.Mine never goes near a dealer, & never will.

I must be one of the lucky ones.   I've dealt with Sandicliffe Ford at Stapleford, Notts for many years.   I've had a lot of cars off them (including every Fiesta I've ever owned) and always have them serviced by them.   Simply can't fault them and wouldn't consider going anywhere else.

1 minute ago, Bobr said:

I must be one of the lucky ones.   I've dealt with Sandicliffe Ford at Stapleford, Notts for many years.   I've had a lot of cars off them (including every Fiesta I've ever owned) and always have them serviced by them.   Simply can't fault them and wouldn't consider going anywhere else.

With dealers it is all about turnover, getting vehicles in & out quickly.Major jobs in most instances just don’t interest them, unless it’s a recall (which they have to adhere to)or warranty work, & even then they will often pass the buck on things. There are some very good dealers out there, no doubt about it.I have had many, many Fords,( Falcons, Mustang, Kuga( terrible thing!)Capri, Escort twin cam(many years ago).But doubt I will ever go back to the brand.The last being the Fiesta I own which is just a runabout nothing else.If you are happy with who services your vehicle, & have a good relationship with them stay with them.

Sorry to hear that, Mike, but not completely surprised.  I have had pretty much all of those things happen to me at  Ford dealers .... but spread over several different occasions. 

I agree - go to a garage that local people recommend, but (and this depends how much energy you've got) I think that is worthy of a formal complaint to the dealer.  You've already written out the text above, so not much more work needed.  But demand a refund of 33% of what you've paid them because of their mistakes (and the work you've had to do etc).  I think that's reasonable. You can hint that their details will be mentioned on this site if you like, but that's up to you. And don't accept a voucher for future work with them .... cos you won't be using them again, will you!

19 hours ago, StephenFord said:

I'm really lucky, I have a 'local' that I'd trust with my life. He's not the cheapest, but I know whatever the job is, it'll be done right, and often to a higher spec than I requested!

Yes, ideally, DIY will ensure to your own satisfaction, but for those of us that lack the facilities, and more importantly, the knowledge, hard to beat a reliable garage...

I have used the same garage for 22 years. The people working there know me and my car and always do a great job. They will ring me to tell if anything major needs doing. So if you can find a reliable garage stick with them.

9 hours ago, alanfp said:

Sorry to hear that, Mike, but not completely surprised.  I have had pretty much all of those things happen to me at  Ford dealers .... but spread over several different occasions. 

I agree - go to a garage that local people recommend, but (and this depends how much energy you've got) I think that is worthy of a formal complaint to the dealer.  You've already written out the text above, so not much more work needed.  But demand a refund of 33% of what you've paid them because of their mistakes (and the work you've had to do etc).  I think that's reasonable. You can hint that their details will be mentioned on this site if you like, but that's up to you. And don't accept a voucher for future work with them .... cos you won't be using them again, will you!

A nice letter to the head office of the dealership will often get you results. In the past I've had to do this with Vauxhall dealerships (twice) and now Ford. A letter sent recorded delivery always seems to work - you know they've received it, and they know you know they've received it, if you see what I mean! Sample letter (redacted of course) attached

Redacted Customer Services 20220101.pdf

Good, clear letter....  did you get any comments back?  Or any compensation?

Just had to replace a tyre today which had a nail in it which was causing a slow puncture for a couple of weeks. Last week had car for mot and service and they never mentioned it. Thought they may have?

8 minutes ago, CraigJ123 said:

... Last week had car for mot and service and they never mentioned it. Thought they may have?

Why would you think they would check for a slow puncture??

5 minutes ago, StephenFord said:

Why would you think they would check for a slow puncture??

I think Craig meant he thought they would check for damage to the tyre - like having a nail in it.

I have recently bought an ecoboost with a full service history from the supplying dealer that I strongly suspect, based on my skill and judgement to be entirely fraudulent. I expect the oil to be 27,000 miles old, like the rest of the car. I have ordered the necessary items to carry out a full 36,000 mile service which I shall do next weekend and at Easter will be removing the sump to check the oil pump. I had no intention of putting myself to such trouble and expense but having been lied to pretty constantly, (and finding it very difficult to find another car to specification,) I am obliged to do the work for my own protection. Allen Ford win this one as I won't be going back but it is the price that one pays for using the Ford Approved Used network.

 

3 minutes ago, alanfp said:

I think Craig meant he thought they would check for damage to the tyre - like having a nail in it.

I've had punctures before caused by nails but only discovered on dunking tyre into a bath of water, I would absolutely not expect an MOT to discover a nail causing a slow puncture, unless it was sticking wildly out of the tire carcass! After all, the owner never saw it!

7 hours ago, alanfp said:

Good, clear letter....  did you get any comments back?  Or any compensation?

I got a phone call from the service manager of the branch, he'd had an email from head office apparently asking why customers were doing theier own warranty fixes. The missing part was replaced, another part which was missing from the car when I bought it suddenly came into existence, suddenly there was a fix for the radio and for the inoperative stop/start etc. etc. Ford contacted me with a letter authorising the 18k service FOC. Now for the next round before the warranty is up ....

That's a good response - I'm pleasantly surprised.

My experience previously (not just cars) has been that unless you specifically ask for something, you won't get anything more than an admission that it's "not up to the standards our customers expect" or " lessons have been learnt" !

Sounds as though the manger has taken things seriously - hope things are better for you at the next service.

12 hours ago, StephenFord said:

I would absolutely not expect an MOT to discover a nail causing a slow puncture, unless it was sticking wildly out of the tire carcass! After all, the owner never saw it!

This is where your NI system differs.  Over here, garages that also sell tyres will go over the tyres with a fine tooth comb looking for any damage that they can advise...  Helps to upsell their products, but it's annoying for those of us that like a clean pass sheet!

I'd pumped the tyre a day before but the tyre was deflating about 4 lbs per day and I never checked the tyre as I thought it was because it was as a result of the tyre hitting a big metal object on the dual carriageway a few days before the issue arose. When they showed me the tyre when changing it was quite obvious.

Usually they go over everything with a fine touth comb to find extra stuff to charge for (as mentioned). They must have been in a hurry 🤭.

1 hour ago, CraigJ123 said:

I never checked the tyre as I thought it was because it was as a result of the tyre hitting a big metal object on the dual carriageway a few days before the issue arose.

I'm wondering what WOULD cause you to check a tyre? 😉

6 hours ago, TomsFocus said:

This is where your NI system differs.  Over here, garages that also sell tyres will go over the tyres with a fine tooth comb looking for any damage that they can advise...  Helps to upsell their products, but it's annoying for those of us that like a clean pass sheet!

Sounds like kwik-fit to me😠

1 hour ago, RMurphy195 said:

Sounds like kwik-fit to me😠

Sounds like them but wasn't.  I haven't used Kwik-Fit since 2009, when they replaced a wheel cylinder but didn't bleed the brakes properly and the pedal hit the floor on the drive home. 

I've had bad experiences with at least 10 garages though, so have to hope I'm just unlucky! 

22 hours ago, anon said:

I have recently bought an ecoboost with a full service history from the supplying dealer that I strongly suspect, based on my skill and judgement to be entirely fraudulent. I expect the oil to be 27,000 miles old, like the rest of the car. I have ordered the necessary items to carry out a full 36,000 mile service which I shall do next weekend and at Easter will be removing the sump to check the oil pump. I had no intention of putting myself to such trouble and expense but having been lied to pretty constantly, (and finding it very difficult to find another car to specification,) I am obliged to do the work for my own protection. Allen Ford win this one as I won't be going back but it is the price that one pays for using the Ford Approved Used network.

 

Dealers are never to be trusted.They would ‘sell’ there own mother to get a sale. It’s the nature of the business.

1 hour ago, TomsFocus said:

I've had bad experiences with at least 10 garages though, so have to hope I'm just unlucky! 

For the ultimate irony, my cooker broke literally while posting that. 

Damn thing's not even 2 years old! I really should learn to stop buying cheap *****, it's a false economy!