My 04 FX4 blew a front tranny pump seal at 96 miles. It got fixed and blew again at 103 miles. Now, the dealer says Ford has authorized a brand new transmission. I have the following options:

1. Take the truck once the transmission is replaced (and hope nothing else goes wrong).
2. Take something else off the lot and pay the difference (all the remaining 04s are $1000+ more expensive).
3. Upgrade to an 05, pay ~$3K more, due to lower rebates.
4. Go to a different dealer, get a similar 04 (dealer WILL NOT trade for one).
5. Give the truck back and buy a Ram

 

Wow grumpsy... sorry about your troubles. I can relate to how frustrating it can be as I've had similar problems with one of my older vehicles (since traded).

My suggestion is to go ahead and go with the new transmission and hang on to the vehicle. While I too would be very antsy about going for something of this proportion on a vehicle that is that new, I do trust in most of the mechanics out there (well, some at least).

Another option that you didn't mention is along the 'Lemon Law' boundary however; I'm not very versed in individual state laws and thus, I'd have to recommend that you contact someone else about that.

Best of luck with your decision. I know it's a huge pain in the rump but, in the end, it'll all come out in the wash. Hopefully, you'll be on the winning end of everything and you'll be happy and feel secure in the decision.

Best of luck again and let us know if we can do anything to help out!

RP

 

If it was me, I would probably be thinking of another truck. Once something bites me hard, I don't want anything to do with it again.

 

Oh man, I feel for ya.

If the truck was what I really wanted, I would keep it but push Ford to provide a comprehensive extended warranty for free. Maybe OLF's for life too.

It seems flukey, but I would have the jitters in the back of my mind that something else was going to go wrong and would want that security of the warranty.

Good luck-

 

I would either get another 2004 and hope for the best OR get the new tranny AND get them to throw in an extended warranty...... A Ford extended warranty to be specific. Not some aftermarket warranty.

If you already have an extended warranty then either get it extended even longer (if thats possible) or get some other concession like free scheduled maintenance for 3 years or something like that....

 

I would let them replace the tranny. Make sure you have copies of all the work done up to this point, just for future reference. I wouldnt be too worried about it. Look at it this way, many guys rebuild trannys and motors all the time on older cars and never have problems with them. I know this is brand new, im just trying to make a point. Or look at this... I deal with million dollar yachts all day and have many problems with new engines. We were going to deliver a 61 footer the other day and the engine wouldnt start. Come to find out the ECM fried, blew up some breakers and did some other weird stuff. The guy who was about to take delivery of this boat, although dissapointed, didnt try to get money back or cancel the deal or anything. He had faith in the engine and the technicians doing the work and was glad to hear its all fixed now. I guess in a long drawn out kinda way, im saying have faith in Ford, get the new tranny and enjoy the truck. If you really need something out of it for your troubles and all tell them to extend the warranty on the power train, if not than at least the tranny. If they wont do that tell them you want a full tank of gas a nice Ford hat and a cool jacket or something. And just think, after all this and you still take the truck, just think of the service you will get from here on out. You'll be treated like gold. Good luck and let us know how it all works out.

 

That is an EXCELLENT idea Todd!

With the vehicle that I had tranny trouble with a few years ago, Ford actually replaced the trans at their cost and added an extended warranty. Might I add, the vehicle was 12K out of warranty and they still did it?!?

It certainly gave me HUGE piece of mind knowing that, for another 50K miles, I had full coverage if anything was to go wrong. Further, I investigated the warranty that they gave me and it turned out to be the PREMIUM FORD WARRANTY so, in short, I had BUMPER TO BUMPER coverage for the remainder....

RP

 

How would I go about getting an extended warranty? My salesman and service advisor both told me Ford won't do that for me.

 

My service adviser scored mine for me. Must have been the right day and the right time of day... further, Jupiter and two of its moons must have been aligned in the right way...

Not sure what to tell you on that one...

RP

 

Ask them if they want to make a sale or be stuck with a truck that probably won't sell due to the fact that the tranny has already gone bad. Make a an extended warranty a condition, not an option of the sale. If you walk away, you haven't lost anything more than your time. Just my dos centavos...Kevin

 

I decided to ask the dealer for an extended warranty. The Service Manager referred me to Ford Consumer Relations and told me they could help me out. The lady at Ford said the Service Manager would have to make the request on my behalf. I left a message for the SM this morning explaining what Ford said. Anybody else know of a shortcut I can take to get this done? I really don't want the truck unless 1) I get some extra "piece of mind" and 2) get some sort of compensation from Ford.

Any ideas?

 

Find out who the owner of the dealership is and talk to that person directly. I had some issues with a used mustang I bought at a Ford dealership once and ended up getting a Brand new Cobra for 10K off the sticker for my troubles. They bend over backwards now when I go in there. I talked to the owner at length and he said that he was glad the issue was brought to his attention as he is always looking for a way to make his dealership better than the next.

Him taking an hour out of his busy day to listen to me and then take care of what was wrong spoke volumes as to the customer relations he likes to have.

You can never go to high in a dealership when your having problems. Take it to the TOP!

Get and extended warranty out of it.

Good luck!

 

My brother in law had a similar problem on a new BMW motorcycle. The head on the engine leaked oil like mad. He took it back to the dealer and they replaced the gasket. Few days later, big puddle of oil, back to the dealer, replace the gasket, repeat problem. Finally he got them to check the face of the cylinder head and they found it wasnt' flat. New cylinder head, no more problems. It might just be that simple with yours. A new transmission would probably be the ticket. Get the extended warrantee and be happy.
I wouldn't blow $3000 on a new 2005, with depreciation, that $3000 will go up in smoke.

 

That was exactly my thought...does not seem to be any significant difference from 04 to 05. The extra $3K would mean nearly nothing when it comes to trading or selling in a few years.

 

Have you signed the papers for the truck with the broke tranny yet? If not, considering the trouble with both truck and dealership, I would consider going somewhere else and get a deal on another '04.