I bought a new 2001 F150 from Crystal Ford in Silver Spring Maryland. I will never deal with them again! Just after signing the deal and going outside to get in the "just detailed" truck I found scratches all over it, and damaged from bumper (really obvious too!). They were in such a hurry to get us out of there without doing the final inspection. Good thing I looked. When the truck was brought back in for the undercoating they oversprayed it all over the lower part of the body as well.
I also caught them in several boldface lies about the truck. When I confronted the manager, we (wife & I) were told to come back another day so the general sales manager could talk to his people and have everyone at the scheduled meeting to discuss it. When we came back in we were shifted to the sales manager who said he couldn't do anything. When we asked to speak to the General Sales Manager, he said we needed to make an appointment!!! What a crock!

There are several other issues with this dealership concerning the lies that were told. I'm not going into them here (legal issues).

DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND AVOID THIS DEALERSHIP. THESE PEOPLE SEEMED GREAT BEFORE THE SALE. THERE ARE TO MANY FORD DEALERSHIPS IN THIS AREA TO HAVE TO VISIT THIS ONE.

I currently have a complaint in with the BBB, Ford Customer Service, and an in-process complaint with the Maryland Consumer Affairs.


------------------
2001 F150 XLT Supercab Flareside "Sport"
Black
5.4
Smittybuilt step bars

 

Hey LowRiderHD2000, I'm not surprised with your dealings with Advantage. I've never taken my '97 F150 XL there and I don't ever intend to, judging by how I was treated with past vehicles there.

Before I got the truck, I owned a 1988 Taurus wagon, and I worked in Midnapore. So Advantage was the closest dealer to me. I took the car up there one time for an oil change etc., and they balked at it because my mileage was 337,500 or something like that and "our computers won't accept a value higher than 275,000 kilometers". They put it in as 275K and carried on with it, eventually.

Later I was having some engine trouble (roughness, etc) and asked to make an appointment to check it out. They scheduled me at 9:00 in the morning on a Thursday. So I was there at 8:45 with the car, and parked it in front of the service bay doors. After I finished handing them the keys, a tech got in and moved it out to the spillover parking on the street.

I walked into Deer Run (took me about 2 or 3 hours) and did some stuff, then came back, and since they had said it would only take a couple hours, I figured it'd be done. I should've known when I saw it still on the street in the same position, that it was going to be a while. "Not yet, but it's next up."

So I went to that Cineplex just south of the dealer and saw a movie, then came back. Still parked in the same spot. Again I asked them how much longer it was going to be, well, not much longer, it's next up.

So, it being a warm, sunny day, I sat myself on the little hill directly across Lake Fraser Drive from the dealership and did some reading and such.

At 4:55PM they finally pulled the car inside, and it was back out within 25 minutes. All they did was change the spark plugs, and my rough idling was still there.

I have never returned to Advantage, and won't let them even see my truck. I bought the truck used from a Suzuki dealer, and I have already had it in for service (a bad (read: gears = destroyed) rear end that the selling dealer said they'd checked and found to be fine) with Universal Ford on Barlow Trail NE. My father has used Universal for years and is part of their Customer For Life program. They haven't done either of us wrong yet.

 

Have to agree with BD,Sound Ford is one to steer clear of,ya ever use the term "land sharks" for salesman,they come after ya in pack ready for a feeding frenzy.

------------------
99 XLT 150 Ext-cab
5.4 stock so far
ORP 4x4 3.73
Wedgewood
17"Steel Chromies

 

Stay away from
Bill Collins Ford in Louisville, KY.

Took my truck in for collision repairs. My truck was hit at the rear wheel passenger side. Wheel was bent, body panel bent. Dealer promised to repair the body replace wheel and check everything else out.

First time to pick up the truck:
Truck has a flat tire and is missing a center cap.

Second time:
Everything looks ok. Driving away from the dealer something doesn't feel right. A guy beeps at me and tells me my wheel is wobbling. Bent axle. This is after it passed a 4 wheel alignment!

Third time:
Looks ok, drives ok, but wait what's that going on when I put on the brakes. Rear drum brake is damaged from the accident. Also missing plug in body panel and paint job has small specs of dirt in it that has now started to bubble.

Miscellaneous recurring problems:
Took them 30 minutes to find my truck each time I came to pick it up.

They sent me place to place looking for my truck.

The performed recall work without me asking them to do it. I would never give them more work.

Still waiting on them to make my truck right.

[This message has been edited by Steamdriven (edited 04-29-2001).]

 

Diehl Ford in Bellingham WA. Oldest dealership west of the missisippi. They are not nice salesmen however the service dept is pretty good. Tried to buy three vehicles from them in three years. Nope. Bought them all from Vern Sims ford. Bought the last one in 35 minutes. Nice when you can deal with the owner.

------------------
'00 EB AWD.K&N,Whitewalls turned in.
K&N Cat-Back

 

This is a good place to vent!

I was looking for a specific used truck over a year ago. Late model used f150, sc,lb, 4x4, loaded, color that I could live with. You can't believe how hard it is to find a truck like this. I had been looking all over the state, watching the paper, for a year. Thats right , I was on a QUEST!!!

One morning, drove buy the Ford dealer a few blocks from me and there it was. Front row, *THE* truck. I swung in and c a l m l y asked about the truck. Took it for a test drive, everything seemed to check out. It was a 99 but had kinda high miles on it. But I was still interested. Then they told me the price, it was ridiculous! (Had they seen through my poker face)? I had been looking so long I KNEW exactly what the truck was worth. So I made them an offer and they came back with a just slightly ($500) less ridiculous counter offer. I was not going to pay a ridiculous amount even though I had been looking for so long.
Days turn into weeks, weeks to months, every day I drive buy the lot and the truck is still sitting there in the front row all through the winter.

Over 3 months go by. Then one day I drive by and see they're having a HUGE sale. I ask the salesman what the price is for the truck. He tells me and its a full $1,000 less then I had offered them 3 months ago! I decide on the spot that I'm going to buy it but want to drive it again just to be sure it's OK. He comes back and tells me there's a guy signing the papers as we speak. My heart sinks. I tell him that if the deal falls through call me and I'll buy it. He says "oh, I know this guy, it's not gonna fall through".

Next day, salesman calls me at work at 11am. "Your not going to believe this, but the deal fell through"! I said "OK I'll be in at noon to write a check, consider it sold". As I'm putting on my coat at 11:45am my cell rings. Salesman, "Your not going to believe this, but there,s another guy writing a check as we speak for the truck". I said "well tell him its sold!" "Sorry man, its the whole bird in the hand thing. How do you think I feel, I just lost a sale!" I didn't tell him "ya, but you haven't been through the emotional roller coaster that I've been on."

Continued my quest and a few months later found another truck locally even better than the one I'd lost.

Moral to the story..........................
I don't know. But don't you just hate saleman!!

 

Kemp Ford in Thousand Oaks, CA sucks big time. Had a check written for final price and in their hands when F&I weenie tells me that there's a $600 alarm in the truck that I could think about buying or making an appointment the next week to come in and have them remove. F&I weenie also had said he didn't believe I really was a recent college grad and had had me write a second check to cover the $400 Ford recent grad rebate that he would tear up when I furnished proof (this was BS since their Internet saleswoman had a .jpeg of my diploma). I grabbed both checks and walked out.

Next up was Magic Ford in Valencia, CA. Just as slimey. Same price, they say their alarm is modular and will let me watch them pop it out. I say I want to pay with a check, should I get a cashier's check? They say personal check no problem. I get there (75 miles away from home) and the weenies make me fill out a credit application. They want to know my occupation. I say "what in the hell difference does that make, I'm GIVING YOU A CHECK FOR THE FULL AMOUNT. I tell them I'm a drug dealer :-) (Not true BTW). I do a side letter saying that when my check clears they rip up the credit app. Sales manager signs the side letter. Then the F&I weenie says I owe more 'cause I'm from Santa Barbara county and tax is different. I tell the weenie that the sales idiot assured me on the phone of my final price and he knew quite well that I was in Santa Barbara. They cave on this. I get the truck finally at 10:30 that night, last one off the lot. I get home and next day realize that right rear mudflap is missing.

I take the truck to Mel Clayton here in SB and it's like a different universe. No hassles, warranty repair, they give me a ride to/from work (10 miles each way), mail the paperwork to me so I don't have to hang around any longer than getting into the truck and driving off. Turns out Mel Clayton had the best Internet price for ordering the truck by several hundred dollars, but didn't want to wait and miss out on the $1000 rebate.

Whew, what a vent. Sorry it took so long :-)

------------------
-------------------------
'01 XLT SCab Flareside
5.4L 4x2 Sport

 

Only twenty-three posts on this thread and three of them tell you to stay away from Sound Ford in Renton, WA. When will this dealership get a clue? For thirty minutes following the the firm handshake, my sales rep asked non-stop questions. It wasn't surprising that he ran out of questions, but it was surprising when he just started asking the same questions over again. By the third go-around, I was pretty much ignoring him. Doesn't the car shopper usually ask the questions, and the salesman answer??? Finally, after being shown several trucks that bore no resemblance financially or physically to the truck I wanted, I told him to give me his card. That required a trip to the office. There he emerged, not with a card, but with yet another rep, fresh and rested, and full of questions. His first question was, "Sooo, what is it you want?" My answer was, "I just want to get back to my car, and get the the hell out of this place!" He followed me halfway to the car, still asking questions. Not even free cake, coffee, and ice cream could get me to go back there. Well,maybe... if it was homemade ice cream

 

Empire and Wendle in Spokane, WA. Empire is the better of the 2. Wendle is overpriced and wouldn't sell me anything. They wouldn't even try to get me a loan on a used vehicle. Went to Empire to trade in the 95 I had for a 2001. They were going to give 2,000 over what I owed but they didn't have anything on the lot I liked. They said I couldn't order one t my specifications. WTF. I argued with them about that for a while. They had a ex. cab ranger with the edge package, 4.0 and 5 speed. So I thought about that instead. They said I couldn't be approved for the loan without a cosigner even though the payments for it were lower than what I'm paying now. I didn't need a cosigner for what I have now. I basically said **** you(not out loud) and went to a used car lot that only sells trucks.

------------------
The truck:
Teal 1997 XLT flareside with 4.6L, auto tranny, electronic shift on the fly, 3.55LS and 4x4 ORP.

Performance mods:
Gen. 2 K&N FIPK
Superchip(removed until further notice)
True dual exhaust exiting out the back
2.5" pipe with 18" glasspacks and 18"x4" round chrome slash cut tips

Appearance:
White face gauges
Euro clear corners
01L headlights
Covercraft tonneau cover
Billet pedals
16" Modern© wheels
265/75r16 Wild Country Radial TXR tires
Factory tinted rear windows
Bug deflector
Euro clear corners

Sound system:
Clarion ADX5655z Double Din Cassette & CD
4 Pioneer TS-A6865 speakers

Other:
Bedliner
Bulldog keyless entry/remote start

n6260k@cs.com



<A HREF="http://www.f150world.com/v8speeddemon" TARGET=_blank> </A>

 

Tropical Ford - Orlando, FL Stay away from them!!!

They do not believe in customer service.

They will be nice and helpful up until they have your check cashed and in the bank, then you get as much respect as if you went to BMW to have your Buick serviced.

 

Avoid like the black plague Razarri Ford, Visalia CA.....
Parts guys are great, the rest of the operation is from another planet, not of this solar system.

------------------
Member: Never trust a person over 40 who drives a Chevy club
Flatheads ain't so bad!
Certified backyard mechanic I & II

 

Oh, I can't believe it took this long for me to find this thread... Here goes.

First, a semi-good experience because it segways into a bad one later. My first Ford purchase was '95 Mustang GT. I was quietly warned away from J.C. Lewis which basically has a monopoly in Savannah, GA. More on J.C. Lewis later. Instead, I went to O.C. Welch in Beaufort, SC just across the bridge to look for my Mustang. I've done all the research, even had a computer program written to estimate payments and other figures. (remember this was in '95 where web-based payment estimators didn't exist, to my knowledge anyway) I was prepared to argue and fight for the best price. As I am dramatically powering up my laptop with that flinty resolve in my eyes, the sales manager said, "Oh, we have $100 under invoice sales promotion. You want one?" I said, "Uhh... Okay..." Sale done, and I was out the door in an hour, which included picking one I liked from the lot, (black Mustang GT convertible with full optoins. I only passed on one of several Cobras because they didn't have a convertible... I come to regret that later) test driving it, financing, and owner education speech. Kinda rushed, but fairly thorough and professional. It felt like they knew they were selling good cars for good prices and they wanted to cram as many customers in a day to maximize the earnings. Ah well, I got a good price so I didn't argue.

After a year or so, I was in Macon for law school, and my Mustang developed a wobble. Steering wheel would vibrate from about 30 mph to 60 mph. I figured bad alignment. Also, one of the tailpipes was drooping. I take it in for repairs at Eddie Wiggins Ford, Macon, GA. To make the long story short, after three days I check back to see if it was done and they said, "Oh I thought you already picked it up!" It's been sitting out in the open, unsecured(!), convinently near to major highways (I-75 and 16) for any dang fool car thieves to steal. On top of that, the tail pipe still droops. I chew out the service manager good. Car is fixed in short order. I drive away vowing never to return, and I don't.

I strayed after that, and didn't purchase another Ford until this year. I went to Marietta Ford (unsure on the name, but it's the only Ford dealership in Marietta on Cobb Pkwy). A salesman swarms me as soon as I pull in. A man later identified as sales manager looks over with interest. Salesman is amiable and I like to think I impressed him with my detailed knowledge about my intended, a 2001 F150 HDS. They even had a L on the lot that I kept eyeing, as well as a King Ranch. Sales manager lumbers over, eavedrops for a bit, and brusquely, and I mean brusquely barks out, "We don't do A Plan on any of those!" and marches off, as if he was pissed off for wasting the time to eavesdrop. It's not like I can't afford to eat if I couldn't buy on A Plan, but I certainly wasn't going to buy from that place now. I drive off. Maybe they're better to full-paying customers, but I won't find out now, will I?

Beaudry Ford in downtown Atlanta was the next place I went. It had the convenience of being only a few blocks way from where lived. I contact the internet sales manager, and we meet. He's a nice guy, and chat. Not much pressure. I tell him that my purchase window in a couple weeks wide, and I'm not hasty. He backs off nicely, but still engages me in low pressure sales talk, showing me the F150 HDS and Sport Trac. He talks frankly about each cars and I am impressed. I ask for a quote with A Plan and am sufficiently impressed at its discount over MSRP. Well, this is a bad dealer thread, so you know it's not going to be all good. I get a call from the sales manager who tells me that the owner vetoed the sale at A Plan price. He's apologetic about it, and I'm understanding because, ehy, most of us work for a boss, and I know that the quote isn't binding legally. He asks me if we couldn't reach a figure somewhere between the A Plan and MSRP, but assures me he'll try to talk the owner into selling at A Plan. I politely demurr, and tell him I'll be in touch. All said and done, I think Beaudry Ford handled the situation much better than Marietta Ford. I know I can't make the dealers sell at program price, because they are completely optoinal. (quick call to my sis-in-law who works for Ford confirmed it) But diplomacy wins. I keep this in mind, and later take my truck in to Beaudry for service. (but that has it own story...)

I drive over to Carey Paul Ford, Decatur, GA. A Plan accepted. And only thing left to negotiate is trade-in value. First they offer a few hundred bucks less than what Beaudry had offered. I make like I'm going to walk out, then they revise the offer. Back and forth it goes. An enjoyable experience! Both of us know that I'm going to drive away in a new car. Rest is just some details. It ends about an hour later, with a fairly handsome trade-in figure. I had dinner appointment at 7pm, so they rush the rest. A whirlwind of activity and I'm out of there! (too fast, as it turned out, since I forgot to claim my condo keys from they keychain I gave them) They also add free oil change for life! I guess Carey Paul Ford belongs in the good dealer thread, but I'll keep it in here so I do't get too depressed.

A week after my F150 HDS develops a problem. Dang seatbelt sensor breaks and the seat belt chimes keep dinging even when I have my seatbelt buckled. I take it to Beaudry Ford, and walk to work. Beaudry assures me they'll have it finished before the end of the day. well, no one calls me at work, so I call around 5:55pm, and a girl in service puts me on hold while she checks it out. 6:05pm, line clicks off. I call again, and someone answers, but as it turned out, she's actually a customer who's waiting for a ride! She tells me that service dept is closed. I call again, and someone at sales picks it up, asks me who I am holding for and I answer "service." She tells me service dept closes at 6pm, and everyone's gone. Wonderful. I guess customer holding on line doesn't mean a whole lot to someone itching to check out. Eventually, a sales manager in with cordless phone walks over to service dept, and checks through the worksheets and tells me since my worksheet is not among the finihed folder, mine must not be done. Sheesh... I had to run some errands so I call my girlfriend to come and lug me around, which amuses her to no end because she's always telling me about her friends who always seem to date the wrong guys with no cars who need to be lugged around. She calls me a "carless bum." I laugh weakly. She cackles like the last time Macy's had a shoe sale. Next day, I call and they say it's done. I walk in, they bring out my truck, and I drive off happily... No, couldn't be since it's a bad dealer thread. That familiar maddening "ding, ding, ding!" I turn around, get out, and quietly but firmly demand to see the service manager. I tell the manager everything that happened in a calm, collected manner, and tell him I do not need the added aggravation as I'm preparing for three trials starting two weeks from now. I also tell me that I'm due to leave for a week of vacation to the Key West tomorrow and I need the car to drive. Maybe the prospect of me demanding a loaner car for a round trip to Key West scared him, or maybe this guy has a conscience. He promises all will be fixed. And it was. Turns out, they needed to order the parts, and instead, they yanked one out of one of the trucks on the lot to replace mine. So far, truck drives perfectly.

Now a few words on J.C. Lewis of Savannah, GA. I dad has Expy with WIlderness AT. Originally, they were the types not covered in recall. So my dad replaced them at his own cost when he saw some major signs of tread separation on May 12, 2001. Later, Ford starts the massive recall, and my dad's eligible for full refund because of the date. I take the receipt to J.C. Lewis, and they tell me two things. The first is a blatant LIE. J.C. Lewis tells me Ford needs my dad's old tires before they will authorize a refund. No, no, no! Ford does not require that. I shudder to think how many people were turned away from J.C. lewis with that lie. Remember that people who replaced the tires before Ford's own complete recall were pretty much resigned to the fact they had to get new tires and that they had to eat the cost. Now they had their ray of hope extinguished by J.C. Lewis's lie. I bet many of them took it at face value and went home. I mean, they were resigned to it before right? I almost did. I mean, this wasn't my car, and my dad can certainly afford new tires. But I don't like being bull*****ed. I made a few calls and learned the truth, so I went back to confront the guys at the service. Gee, they seem to readily accept my correction, almost like they already knew that before! None of the, "We'd need to see it in writing, sir," or "We'll need to confirm it ourselves, sir." Just, "Oh really, okay, I guess that's how it is." I ask to see in writing anything, an internal memo, or Ford directive, anything at all, that mentioned the requirement for old tires. J.C. Lewis cannot produce anything.

It gets better. After I jumped that hurdle, I'm ready for my refund. The service guy disappears to the back and comes back, "We don't do refunds until July, and til then, we only do replacements." Huh? I had already confirmed that J.C. Lewis is an authorized recall dealer in Savannah. Sheesh... I turn a few options in my head. I could demand that they put that in writing, including their original old tire requirement trick. That opens up a few options. But I doubt they'll furnish that in writing. So I consider lingering and arguing the point until they tell me to leave (which they can) and then remaining on the premise until police is called. At that point, the only thing police can do is give me a criminal trespass warning, and I can insist the police write an incident report incorporating my story as well as witness statements. This would be nearly as good as the first option. Then I think, man, this isn't worth my time... I still have to drive back to Atlanta, and this isn't the way I'd like to spend the last two days of my vacation. But needless to say, J.C Lewis is added to the list of dealers I would never deal with.

I'm going to go to Beaudry Ford for the tire refund. As I see it, the service manager still owes me something. :P

My goodness this got long. Okay, if you read thorugh all this, get yourself an extra six-pack at the groceries as a reward. Thanks!


------------------
Early 90's Ford Probe -- mods: stereo stolen to reduce total weight. Speed gain negligible, unfortunately.
Late 80's Honda Spree scooter -- mods: plastic milk crate tied to the back to carry one and a half bags of grocery. Custom-made cafeteria tray-like hard plastic tonneau cover to keep the grocery bags dry in rain.
'89 Honda CBR600F1 -- mods: Newtonian Physics mod, courtesy of 30 mph collision with a VW Rabbit. Suitably chagrined.
'92 Toyota 4Runner -- mods: Rugged Exterior Package, of mud and occasional dings and dents. Free of charge.
'95 Mustang GT Conv. -- mods: hey, no joking around this one. This was my baby.
'99 Lexus RX300 -- mods: Good looking girlfriend mod. Costs continues to add up. Honk and throw money.
'01 F150 Harley. mods: Beautiful gf mod climbed off Lexus and climbed on F150. Darn! (j/k, honey ) Dealer mod: an ugly dealer plate holder in front. Gotta... get it... OFF!

 

I went to Sentry Ford in Medford, MA... Someone mentioned 'lot lizards' ... these guys were terrible... I was looking at a 98 XLT 4x4, and all I got was the slimy-est treatment I'd ever seen. After telling him that I could find a nice '99 or even an '00 with the same options for less, he gives me the requiset 'let me talk to my manager' crap. Then I say, maybe I'd better look into a new truck. He wants nothing of it, I'm sure he didn't want to lose his cut.. So I leave.. doesn't the guy call me once a day for a week.. he just won't take no for an answer...

So after that fiasco, a friend of mine is a landscaper and has bought 7-8 superduties from Bonnell Ford in Winchester, MA.. He says they are great in both sales & service, so I check them out.. It was like Night & Day.. I couldn't beleive these guys were only a a few miles apart and they were so different in style... The Bonnell guy lets me walk around all day, I looked at a '99 and a new '01.. I ask a thousand questions, still in shock from the other guy... he was great.. I end up looking at the new '01... The guy is ready to get it down to $100 over invoice...

Anyway, you know where I'm buying from...

 

In Tucson, AZ. there are 2 ford dealers. Jim click ford was really bad. They wanted $1000 over invoice for a truck I didn't want. Holmes Tuttle Ford was great. I got it for $52 over invoice ($18,763) then they took off the $2500 in ford money, so the price was $16,241 from MSRP of $20,700. Holmes Tuttle is also the local Motorsports parts dealer.

 

Joe Meyers in Houston, absolutely the worst once you buy the vehicle. They told me that everything I had added on when I purchased the truck would be covered under the same warranty as the truck. What a load of crap. I sent them a certified letter and they never had the decency to give me a call a letter, nothing. When it came to getting my radiator changed I had the Ford area rep allow it to be done thru someone else. I will never set foot in there again. The buying experience was great but once they had my check it was like C"Ya. Joe Meyers Jersey Village Hwy 290, Never Again!