Polecatt Posted August 27, 2013 Report Share Posted August 27, 2013 Is anyone able to provide some guidance on possible options for dealing with a dealership who won't issue a warranty claim? The service manager told me he would check with his local rep to see if they would issue a refund for work performed because he refused to submit the issue as a warranty claim. I got the impression he just wanted to get my money and get me out the door. Sure enough it's been a month and I haven't heard anything from him. Is it up to a local dealership to decide if a repair should be covered under warranty or can the decision be overruled by someone at a ford head office. I am in Canada btw... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omar302 Posted August 27, 2013 Report Share Posted August 27, 2013 (edited) Contact Ford? http://owner.ford.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Owner%2FPage%2FContactUsPage Canada: http://www.ford.ca/service/customerSupport/ Edited August 27, 2013 by omar302 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ls973800 Posted August 27, 2013 Report Share Posted August 27, 2013 Care to share what the issue was that needed attention? Perhaps someone else had the same problem and has documents that it was covered under warranty. Your current vehicle shows a 2013 SEL, I can't think of too many things not under warranty unless you are over the mileage/kilometer limit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted August 27, 2013 Report Share Posted August 27, 2013 First I'd go back to the dealership and talk to the service manager, general manager and dealer principal if necessary. Did they give a reason why they didn't submit it as a warranty claim? Sounds like shenanigans to me. If you don't get anywhere with the dealer contact Ford at the links above and tell them you have a dealer charging you for a warranty repair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polecatt Posted August 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2013 (edited) Thanks for the suggestions. The challenge with this is that it is not a clear cut warranty issue. The work performed was for rotor replacement which would typically fall outside warranty coverage after 20,000 km if I understand correctly. Service initially misdiagnosed my actual problem which was a failed brake booster and assumed that a rotor replacement would fix my issue. I question whether the rotors required replacement because they were 14 months old with 21,000km. I know I don't drive like a madman on the brakes so premature wear on the rotors like this seems extremely unlikely. The brake booster was replaced under warranty after the rotor replacement did nothing to fix the problem. I don't think I should have to pay for the rotors first because the brake booster was actually the problem and second because I expect to get much better performance than 21k from my rotors. Do I need to adjust my way of thinking and get used to replacing rotors every 21k?? Edited August 27, 2013 by Polecatt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted August 27, 2013 Report Share Posted August 27, 2013 First you need to start spelling BRAKES properly. I'd say it's not a warranty issue at all since the dealer simply misdiagnosed the problem. So you're stuck dealing with the dealer on the rotors. I can't think of anything the booster would do that would cause the rotors to be replaced or why the dealership would suggest doing that in the first place. Bottom line is they badly misdiagnosed the problem and they really shouldn't be charging you for an unneeded repair. But you may end up having to take them to small claims court to get reimbursed. But I don't think it's a Ford warranty issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polecatt Posted August 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2013 Good point! I'm at work on my phone so not completely paying attention to what I'm typing... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polecatt Posted August 27, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2013 (edited) As for the dealership, is there any oversight of dealer practices or complaints by ford head office? Do they care when things like this happen? As for the diagnosis, service report said that they measured the rotors and found them to be warped and so replaced them. I will not be impressed if the quality of ford parts is such that I need to replace my rotors every time they are just past the 20,000 km warranty period. Edited August 27, 2013 by Polecatt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ls973800 Posted August 27, 2013 Report Share Posted August 27, 2013 I don't know if warranty is different in Canada as to what a dealer will or will not do. I have read posts on this forum from US owner's who have had rotors replaced under warranty at no cost. I have also read about owner's who had to pay to have them replaced, even when within the new car warranty period. I've never really looked into what mileage limits may or may not be in place for the rotors. I would suggest you contact a customer service rep office for Ford in Canada. Perhaps they can help you better. Sounds like the dealer did a check of the rotors and found them out of spec. How this could have mimicked whatever problem your brake booster was causing is hard to imagine. Was your brake pedal giving funny vibrations, or hard and soft pedal when applying the brakes? This is usually a problem with the rotors which can be cured in many cases by turning them, unless they are way out of specs. I don't know if a leaking or failing brake booster would cause a similar complaint, perhaps the pedal feel being different during braking. How soon after the rotors were replaced was the booster replace? If within a week or so, I think you might have a good argument. If you noticed no difference with the new rotors but continued to drive for a while, that might be a factor not in your favor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 Ford U.S. warranty covers brake pads and rotors for the first 12 months/12K miles. If they were indeed warped and outside the warranty period then the dealer was correct to charge you initially. Not sure you can definitively say the booster caused the rotors to warp although it may be likely. Best bet at this point is to let the dealer negotiate with Ford to cover the initial repair as being related to the booster and see what they say. How much control does Ford have over the dealer? Very little due to state franchise laws unless the dealer is acting unlawfully or against Ford rules. But it never hurts to ask. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
omar302 Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 Brake Pads/Linings are covered for 12 months/18K miles. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ls973800 Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 omar302, that says brake PADS and LININGS, not rotors. The other consideration is that the original poster is in Canada, not the US. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 (edited) But pad replacement usually includes replacing or turning the rotors. Mine were turned once. Don't understand why they didn't just turn them since they were new. Edited August 28, 2013 by akirby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waldo Posted August 28, 2013 Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 If you have brake rotors that are warped after 14 months, it's not covered under warranty, unless it was caused by another failed component. But like akirby, I can't imagine how a brake booster could ever cause a warped rotor. The bottom line is if the dealer submitted your rotor claim to Ford, they would almost certainly be denied and they would have to eat the cost themselves. In my opinion this is what they should do, in the name of good customer service and given their misdiagnosis. But ultimately it's entirely up to the dealer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polecatt Posted August 30, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2013 I don't know if warranty is different in Canada as to what a dealer will or will not do. I have read posts on this forum from US owner's who have had rotors replaced under warranty at no cost. I have also read about owner's who had to pay to have them replaced, even when within the new car warranty period. I've never really looked into what mileage limits may or may not be in place for the rotors. I would suggest you contact a customer service rep office for Ford in Canada. Perhaps they can help you better. Sounds like the dealer did a check of the rotors and found them out of spec. How this could have mimicked whatever problem your brake booster was causing is hard to imagine. Was your brake pedal giving funny vibrations, or hard and soft pedal when applying the brakes? This is usually a problem with the rotors which can be cured in many cases by turning them, unless they are way out of specs. I don't know if a leaking or failing brake booster would cause a similar complaint, perhaps the pedal feel being different during braking. How soon after the rotors were replaced was the booster replace? If within a week or so, I think you might have a good argument. If you noticed no difference with the new rotors but continued to drive for a while, that might be a factor not in your favor. I believe the dealer started to diagnose the problem by performing a brake inspection and through the inspection found that the rotors were "warped". The issue i reported was primarily that the brakes would not respond but only at slow speeds. I had to slam on the pedal to get any stopping power. Apparently they started with a road test and couldn't replicate so moved to an inspection. After the inspection and the rotor replacement, the service manager took a road test and experienced the issue and quickly diagnosed the brake booster. This was all done on the same day. Of course by then it was the end of the day and they couldn't order the parts so I couldn't drive over the weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polecatt Posted August 30, 2013 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2013 (edited) If you have brake rotors that are warped after 14 months, it's not covered under warranty, unless it was caused by another failed component. But like akirby, I can't imagine how a brake booster could ever cause a warped rotor. The bottom line is if the dealer submitted your rotor claim to Ford, they would almost certainly be denied and they would have to eat the cost themselves. In my opinion this is what they should do, in the name of good customer service and given their misdiagnosis. But ultimately it's entirely up to the dealer. This basically covers what I'm thinking... But I'm also concerned about the fact that the rotors warped so quickly. I know I don't drive it that hard. Not only did they miss the brake booster which I pretty clearly explained when I dropped it off, they caught it at the end of the day which meant I lost my car for the weekend. This is the dealer I bought the car from so I was expecting a little more support! They have even charged me $30 to plug a nail hole in the past. Technically rotors shouldn't need to be replaced because they are warped they should just be replaced due to wear the same as tires correct?? Or do they all warp as they get thinner ultimately leading to replacement? Edited August 30, 2013 by Polecatt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waldo Posted August 30, 2013 Report Share Posted August 30, 2013 (edited) There's really no such thing as "warped" rotors though, read this for some good advice: http://www.stoptech.com/technical-support/technical-white-papers/-warped-brake-disc-and-other-myths Could also be this same dealer isn't tightening your lugnuts properly. Edited August 30, 2013 by Waldo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JOEHIO Posted August 30, 2013 Report Share Posted August 30, 2013 Had a issue with the brakes on my wife's '09 MKS, had about 45,000 miles on it when I brought it in. It was making strange sounds, not a scraping sound, just weird sounds. The dealership said that there were 2 TSB's, one for front brakes, one for rear ones. Well, they did new calipers front & rear, new rotors in the front, turned the rear ones, and new pads front & rear. Total cost on my part was 0 / nada / nothing ! Don't know if it's just our dealership, or because they like me so much! :hyper: LMAO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lily Posted March 18, 2016 Report Share Posted March 18, 2016 (edited) Can a dealership charge you for repair for a pre existing mechanical issue if you haven't had the car for a month Edited March 18, 2016 by Lily Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akirby Posted March 18, 2016 Report Share Posted March 18, 2016 Can a dealership charge you for repair for a pre existing mechanical issue if you haven't had the car for a month Need a lot more information to answer that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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