Some people are misinformed
some people play follow the leader

 

You really should expand on just what people are so misinformed about Making such a vague statement has no credence if you can't back it up. If that's all you're going to offer, why did you even bother to post?

 

You guys are going to love this one. In the summer of 2001 I had the engine gasket replaced by a ford dealer outside Gainesville, FL (Santa Fe ford--great place by the way) for free, even though the ONB99B29 had expired in March. Not sure how or why they did it but after some complaining and calling regional ford service it happened.

Recently, as in the past few weeks i have noticed the coolant level dropping phenomenon again. I took the truck to an oil change place and I asked the mechanics to help me look for leaks and we didnt see any. We took off the oil cap and there was a milky brown sludge on the cap. guess what? it looked like anti-freeze in the oil, and even smelled like anti freeze! Not again!

So now i am at a crossroads. Do i pay to have it fixed like a good Ford minion, bitch up a storm and threaten to sue, or trade it in for a Toyota (my significant other just got another toyota after having put 150k on her toyota corolla with not a single repair bill except wheels, tires, oil, etc---trust me very little preventative maintenance---and as a side note she gave the old car to her brother and it is still going strong!) so i will never have another problem again.

Decisions, decisions, decisions...

 

What kind of shape is your truck in,other then the gasket issue? Do you still owe on it? Can you afford a new vehicle note? Are you happy with the truck,other then the gasket issue? These are what I would base my decision on.Good luck and keep us posted!

 

here are some things to try
first try contacting ford goto the dealer and ask for the number to the "zone office"
call them and sit on hold as long as you need to when they dont help ask to speak to there boss or manager
basicly sqeeky wheel hets the greese also file a complaint with your local att.genrarl consummer complaint.. also find out if your state has lemon laws dont back off of ford call them write nasty letters to the ceo and you will be surprised at the results
also check a website ...autolemonaid that will conect you with a whole bunch of recalls and ways to get ford to do something

 

I do own the truck outright, bought for cash. I dont like the fact that the truck is a 5spd...it was fine in Tallahassee but its hell in Orlando traffic now, i dont like the regular cab anymore and now i dont like the V6 anymore. The problem is that there are higher priorities in life...such as a house soon so i guess its time to grease that squeeky wheel.

 

Brew,you can call,write,even send smoke signals to Ford about this issue,but they will only kick you to the curb! They dont recognize this as a problem. In other words,you are in the long line with the others,with a blue oval broke off in your a**! Sorry about your bad luck!

 

Just got off the phone with a Ford representative ( They called me) from their executive headquarters. Mrs Dechu Balla Executive Contact Manager 313-322-3000 ext 00.
She has not heard of this problem and stated that they don't always here from their customers about problems in the field.
She said at this time Ford cannot help with the repair costs associated with Ford's defects, even if my engine only had 53,000 miles.
Ford will pay for this in the end!

 

I thought all repairs at a Ford dealer had a lifetime warranty? Thought it was part of "Quality Care." ? You guys that have had the repair done and is failing again might want to look into that. I know the GM dealerships have this coverage.

 

yeah, and she has probably uttered that statement a dozen times that day before she called you. Probably says it to people a couple of dozen times a day, every day.


What you dont understand is that for Ford to come out 100% and admit there is a problem they have admitted guilt in continuing to sell defective engines which equals a crushing defeat in a lawsuit.

If you dog bites someone the dog gets in trouble. If the dog bites someone and you have a "beware of dog" sign YOU get in trouble because you have admitted publically that your dog is dangerous and you then put them in a position to bite someone.

Engines are no different than dogs. Ford can say there have been issues with a handful of engines made on 1 day because of 1 batch of bad gaskets. But for them to say all gaskets in 97 & 98 were bad is a huge liability.

 

Howdy,

Face it guys, we got screwed! I'm still a Ford guy. Ford did have a recall and a TSB and my problem is with the dealership that tried to screw me. They where going to charge me to "find" the problem. Then charge me to fix the problem. At the same time they where going to charge Ford for the repairs. So, my problem is with the dealership.

Paul

P.S. I'm going to keep my truck and save the money for and .