Sevice problems with Ford chassis?

[chf jstano]

Is any one else out there having problems getting service from Ford dealerships or is our problem a isolated one? Just got our first call rig back after 8 days out of service on what we were told would be a "couple of day job." When my asst'chief called to inquire he was told by the service writer "their other customers come first as we didn't by the vehicle from them." This isn't the first time this situation has occured.A while back there were some brake problems with the other rig.We called to make an appointment and were told it would be 10 days.We tried to insist that the brakes were rather important to us, this wasn't just an oil change. Same story ,"sorry we take care of our regular customers first." And these are just two instances that come quickly to mind,there have been others.We've had no problems with the boxes,Road Rescue and Med-tech,they have been very dependable.Needless to say our next ambulance will not have a Ford under it, however we'll still have the newer one around for awhile and have to keep repairs up.Has anyone had similar problems or know who I might write to complain to? Thanks and STAY SAFE!

[Ohiofiremed57]

YES!!! We have had the same problems... Mostely brake problems. has 13,000 miles and been through 3 pairs of brakes. Also A/C problems. Oh and paint problems...was in being repainted for 4 weeks, paint was peeling. Seems that it has been out of service longer than it has been inservice.
MAC

[Catch]

We've had several problems with our 99 F-350s. Mostly small like the dome light switch on the doors going out, the rear main seal leaking oil, or the air ducts to the air filter misrouted. Biggest was the duals coming loose on one side though. Thank God the crew had just dropped of the patient! Our newer 99, a 4x4 doesn't seem to have near the problems. Don't know if they had the problems fixed by the time it was produced or if the 4x4's are made different. As for your dealer problems, I'd go straight to the top dog and complain. Our dealers put us first on the list because we are emergency vehicles. Hope you have better luck.

[pokeyfd12]

You didn't say what type of vehicles you were referring to but I assume they are your run of the mill Ford Van type III or Truck style type I ambulances.

Most mechanics HATE working on these because they are a nightmare of miniature proportions as far as engine space and electrical wiring all over the place.

However, that does not excuse the dealership from putting you on a waiting list. It may be possible that they don't have very many mechanics certified in trucks or vans, some of them may not be certified diesel mechanics. If this is true, it has nothing to do with them not fixing your brakes.

We got away from sending our rigs to a dealer for stuff like oil changes, brakes, a/c service etc. We have a local garage that has agreed to do all of the preventive maintenance and has dropped everything to do emergency repairs for us within 24 hours, less if the parts are available.

If you have a local mechanic, see if he can do the small stuff for you. Otherwise for engine, transmission or other Ford related problems you may be stuck going back to the dealer. in the meantime, I would certainly make some calls, write some letters and create alot of noise regarding this dealers refusal to assist the local emergency services.

Good luck and stay safe.

Lt. Kevin C. (aka Pokey)

[Resqmedic]

We have been working the type II & III rigs out of our fleet with great success. All of our primary ambulances and light rescue are ford trucks. We do love them, and want to punish the dealership for it's crimes agianst humanity. I would suggest taking anything not warranty work some place else other than the dealership, unless you really enjoy a good game of phone tag and bangging your head agianst a wall.

[medic320]

We have had some trouble with our 99 Ford also. It has the 7.3 turbocharged PSD. We go through brakes like I drink water. We have has some other minor stuff go wrong also. The biggest problem is with the dealer who is to maintain our rig. They are snide, snotty, and basically jerks. The figure since we have a second rig, we can wait for this one. We are fortunate to have a new ambulance forman and assistant foreman who works on deisels for a living. He now does most of our work in-house, or takes it to his garage to do it. Saves us a ton of money, in parts, labor, and down time. Good luck in the future

[sthncross]

We're running a F-250 PSD (7.3 Turbo) here and the only major probs we are encountering is a few units (around 3% or less of the fleet) are starting to develop a small oil leak.

As for brakes the city units are getting 50,000km (about 31,000 miles) out of a set of pads.

There have been a few delivery probs such as air cond ducting not hooked into the dash properly but this is an Oz problem since we put the steering on the other side!

We have had one prob from the body builder who didn't reconnect a sender unit out of one of the fuel tanks. When not connected the guage reads full!!!