I have been having some problems with my truck & have gone to the service dept where I made my purchase. In dealing with these people I have learned that they do not pay attention at all when I described my problem with the steering wheel shimmy. I told 4 different people that the shimmy happens intermittently between 60 & 70 mph.

When they had the Ford Tec there they told him it happens all the time. He drove the truck (1 person said for 1 hour, another person said he drove it for 20 minutes & a third said the tech drove the truck for 30 minutes) and forum no problems. So when I said well how long did he drive the truck 20, 30 or 60 minutes they said nothing & I said I would put money that he never drove the truck. The service manager said that he did drive the truck and reported no problem I asked him did he get up to 60-70mph for 5-10 minutes to see if the steering wheel shimmied & he said I don’t know but Don (this is the service adviser that took down a description of my problem) let him know about the problem & that the steering wheel is shimmying all the time.

WTF this place sucks. I got so pissed that I said I should bring a tape recorder when I come here because everyone has either a bad memory or they just don’t listen. Well I called Ford customer care & let them know the problem I had & also what I said word for word. Well now the service dept is telling me they don’t want my truck in there service dept ever again for any reason. Now because they can’t do there job & I reported a complaint I can’t bring my truck there? Also another reason I purchased the truck there is every third oil change is free but I guess I’m screwed out of that now.

I dealt with the owner of the dealership when I purchased the truck (discount because I’m a Fireman) so I left her a message asking for her to call me back she should be in tomorrow. Sorry this is so long but does anyone have any advice?

 

I would go to a service department at a different dealership. If they run their shop in the same manner, I'd switch again... and again until I found a service department that payed attention to me and fixed the problem. I'd even take the service manager for a ride myself and let him see what you're referring to. That way, there's no disputing what's happening.

RE: Well now the service dept is telling me they don’t want my truck in there service dept ever again for any reason.

I'd say "FINE ! I WON'T BE BUYING ANOTHER VEHICLE FROM THIS DEALERSHIP EVER AGAIN, FOR ANY REASON... AND NEITHER WILL ANY OF MY REFERRALS."

It just sounds like a shotty service department. Not much to do but find another one.

 

Yeah I had my first oil change at a diff dealership very nice people I also told him about the shimmy and he took the truck for a ride & said he noticed it but not to bad because he did not go 60 mph it was snowing told me he road forced the tired for me & there fine & that I should take the Ford Tech out. I have an appt. with the Ford Tech on the 16th of January 1:00p.m. so I will show him what I'm talking about then let him drive the truck with me in it. I have to say everything about the truck I love but it is the worst handeling truck I have ever owned, I had an 03 SC lariat that drove better so something must be wrong.

 

Keep taking it to that dealer. If they give you a problem notify the better business bureau. A dealer tried this with my buddy when he showed up with a printed complaint he filed with the BBB everything changed.

 

i would also let Ford know about this service department and their decision to refuse their truck. bad publicity is usually taken seriously by big wigs, even if it is just a service department. they sound like little bitches to me. I mean, they get mad at you for telling the parent company that they provide *****ty service. that is very unprofessional. you are the customer. they are treating you like their little brother who went and told mom on them. man, now i'm pissed off and it didn't even happen to me! my service dept is good! try the phone numbers here:

www.blueovalnews.com

 

Thank you for the help

 

how about FU

I bought a Ford product at a Ford authorized retailer and this is a Ford authorized repair centre. I will stop bringing it here when you can show me written documentation from Ford stating that you dont have to fix my truck for a legitimate warranty claim.
And if you dont like that you can take down the giant Ford sign on your front lawn.


Thats how to handle it.

And make sure that you are present when the owner chews out the service advisor.

 

Hell yes I can't wait to take my police test

 

heck you dont need to take a police test. it is your right as a customer of this dealership to chew out the service loser that doesn't know how to catalogue your complaints.

And if they dont like it, as I said above, its their right to not sell you a truck in the first place. But they did so now they have to live up to the after sale service.

 

How bad is the wheel shimmy? It's wierd that three people drove it and nobody noticed it, or they all thought it was normal. Unless it's like you say and they are lying in your face. My truck handles perfectly so don't let them tell you it's normal.

 

My last dealership with my car tried a similar stunt. They sayd... Yes, its a problem, but we are not going to fix it.

I found the best way to get help was to go in the middle of the sales floor and warn people who are looking at new cars that the service is very poor, and they may want to try another dealership.

Another good way to grab attention is to make a scene in the middle of a busy day about the poor service. Raise your voice, let them know that they are treating you unfairly, and as a customer you deserve to be treated with respect, etc etc... make sure people hear you.

Be warned... no swearing on the sales floor, be creative, but don't swear, they will find large people to escort you out...

The BBB is the best way to get some attention. Magically the regional service manager called me after I sent notice for arbitration intent (or whatever they BBB said to do...) Not sure where you live, but in MA, if you have a car in for 3 times within 15000 miles and one year of purchase, and it is not fixed, Lemon Laws are quite strict against dealers.

My 2 cents. Good luck.

 

jhcir check this bulletin.

Ask your dealer about TSB 03-20-8
Printable View (12 KB)
Article No.
03-20-8 STEERING - STEERING WHEEL NIBBLE AT OR ABOVE 100 KM/H (60 MPH) - VEHICLES BUILT PRIOR TO 8/20/2003
VIBRATION - STEERING WHEEL NIBBLE AT OR ABOVE 100 KM/H (60 MPH) - VEHICLES BUILT PRIOR TO 8/20/2003

Publication Date: October 1, 2003

FORD: 2004 F-150


ISSUE:
Some F-150 vehicles built prior to 8/20/2003, may exhibit a Steering Wheel Shimmy/Nibble at 100 km/h (60 MPH) and greater speeds. The condition is felt in the steering wheel as a side-to-side, or rotational, oscillation. When measured (sensor on steering wheel) with an Electronic Vibration Analyzer (EVA), the measured frequency is between 12-16 Hz.

ACTION:
To service, it may be necessary to replace the Steering Gear. Refer to the following Service Procedure.

SERVICE PROCEDURE
NOTE: BEFORE BEGINNING THIS PROCEDURE, ENSURE THAT THE TIRES DO NOT HAVE FLAT SPOTS. IT MAY BE NECESSARY TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE FOR UP TO 30 MILES TO ELIMINATE THIS CONDITION.



NOTE: FOR 4X2 VEHICLES GO DIRECTLY TO STEP 2.



Check the Integrated Wheel End (IWE) on 4x4 units. Raise the front of the vehicle (wheels off the ground), engine running, vehicle in 2WD mode. The front half shafts should not turn when wheels are rotated by hand. If the IWE is functioning correctly proceed to Step 2. If not, refer to the Workshop Manual section 308-07 to repair IWE first. Then proceed to Step 2.
If road force measurement equipment (Hunter GSP9700/9712, or equivalent) is available, proceed to Step 3. If not, mark the original tire/wheel location on each tire. (i.e. LF, LR, RF, RR) and remove from the vehicle. Check wheel balance, and re-balance as required to achieve a less than 0.25 oz (7g) of imbalance. Reinstall wheels and test drive vehicle. If the condition is corrected return the vehicle to the customer. If not, re-seat the bead on all four tires re-balance as required and test drive vehicle. If the condition is corrected return the vehicle to the customer. If not, proceed to Step 5.
If road force measurement equipment is available (Hunter GSP9700/9712, or equivalent), measure the tire road force variation on all four tires, following the manufacturer's instructions and TSB 02-1-6. If any wheel assembly measures more than the values listed below for R1H or R2H then proceed to Step 4. If not proceed to Step 5.

Tire Type R1H R2H
P Metric Tires 26 lbs. 18 lbs.
LT Tires 39 lbs. 27 lbs.


Using the tire road force measurement machine, determine the low spot of the wheel run out. Match high point force variation on the tire with the low spot of wheel run out. Re-test the wheel assembly force variation. If the wheel assembly is now acceptable, rebalance and test drive vehicle. If the condition is corrected return the vehicle to the customer. If not, replace the tire and re-check, then rebalance and test drive vehicle. If the condition is corrected return the vehicle to the customer. If not, proceed to Step 5.
Swap tire/wheel assemblies from front to rear and left to right, re-evaluate the vehicle for every combination. If the condition is corrected return the vehicle to the customer. If not, proceed to Step 6.
Replace Steering Gear. Refer to the part application chart below.
NOTE: DO NOT REPLACE THE STEERING GEAR IF LATEST LEVEL IS ALREADY INSTALLED. THE LATEST LEVEL CAN BE IDENTIFIED BY A GREEN PAINT DOT ON THE BAR CODE LABEL LOCATED NEAR THE RIGHT SIDE BUSHING BRACKET, AND/OR BY THE FIRST 5 DIGITS OF THE SERIAL NUMBER ON THE BAR CODE LABEL. IF THE FIRST 5 DIGITS OF THE SERIAL NUMBER ARE GREATER THAN: 21003 ALL CREW CAB AND SUPER CAB EXCEPT 133" WHEEL BASE, OR 21603 ALL REGULAR CAB AND SUPER CAB WITH 133" WHEEL BASE, THE STEERING GEAR IS THE LATEST LEVEL.



PARTS APPLICATION CHART
Vehicles Part Number Part Name
Super Cab & SuperCrew 4x2 4L3Z-3504-AB Steering Gear
Super Cab & SuperCrew 4x4 4L3Z-3504-BB Steering Gear
Regular Cab 4x2 4L3Z-3504-CB Steering Gear
Regular Cab 4x4 4L3Z-3504-DB

 

Yes that is what the truck is doing. But the problem is they either did not listen or don't give a rats a$$. I can drive for 20 minutes at 65 mph & nothing will happen on any given day but other days the steering wheel will shimmy for about 30 sec & up. When I hit a bump or any imperfection in the road the ft tires & steeringwheel shimmy if I haooen to be going around a turn & hit a bump it feels like your going to lose controll of the truck. At this point I will be willing to let anyone that lives close to me that also has a 04 Lariat 4x4 SC take it for a ride just to confirm I'm not loseing my mind. Im in Northeast NJ

 

I just posted this to another thread, but let me recap here. You're having the identical problem to mine, especially in the comes-and-goes department. Sometimes the shimmy (I call it a vibration) will be present for an hour or more, sometimes it will disappear for an hour, at times it will come and go in much shorter intervals. It is not much noticable at speeds less than 70 mph.

I started chasing this problem when the truck had about 2000 miles on it. I took it to my beloved alignment shop, Chet's in Albuquerque, to whom I've been taking my vehicles for years. The tech there told me two of the wheels are out of spec for roundness and should be replaced. The dealership disagreed, told me Chet's screwed it up, refused to replace the tires. Vibration still there even after the dealership re-did the roadforce balance.

At 6k miles I had a local Discount Tire rotate and balance. Vibration unchanged.

Last week I took it to another dealer for this and five other minor problems. They rebalanced the wheels. Vibration still there, and in fact worse.

I took it back last Tuesday for this same problem. The tech rebalanced the wheels, identified one in particular that was out of balance.

Now for the kicker. The vibration is essentially gone. In the last 300 miles of commuting the steering wheel has been nice a smooth, just like it should be.

I was so happy about this I actually went 15 miles out of my way on the way home from work this morning to in-person thank the tech who balanced my wheels this last time.

What I'm thinking is that this steering setup might just be super-sensitive to wheel balance. This could be the sort of steering that one has to look around for a very competent tech to do the balancing. I've had a couple cars like that. Every time I'd get a new set of tires I'd have to have them balanced two or three times before it was right.

So maybe you should just forget about that dealership and find the best wheel man in your town, see what he can do.

 

bikelover

I think you are on to something here. Most of the people I've seen over the last few months have been able to fix any wobbles they experience with wheel balancing and/or alignment checks. Your problem sounds like an extreme case since your wheels were soooo out of spec. I think I remember a post somewhere in here where a dealer actually replaced somebody's tires as well thinking that they might be causing a problem.

jhcir

It's time to write a letter to the FoMoCo and CC your dealer laying out your complaint and ask to be contacted by a customer service manager (not the dealer, you're done with them). I would also light a fire under somebody's *** by contacting the BBB. I wouldn't waste time giving the dealer more chances to screw with you! Don't worry, they'll fix it. It's probably like bikelover said above, you just need to find a tech who know his *** from a hole in the ground and is willing to spend a few hours figuring out what the problem is.

good luck