Ford Order Name-Match Policy Is Getting More Strict

[Colo_Ranger]

Based on that article, Ford would have to pull all their franchise licenses. That would kill the service side of the industry too. I'm not arguing, just thinking out loud...via text. I highly doubt anyone would allow that to happen. Government would step in (right or wrong) to stop the unemployment that would surge, not to mention the tax dollars lost. What I think would happen is that it would be more likely that you'd order your vehicle, instead of tons of vehicles sitting on the lots waiting to be purchased. The dealer would still get their cut for having the vehicle ordered and delivered to them, and (potentially) the service that comes with the new vehicle. That would be an easier sell than eliminating dealers. That would require a change to federal law.

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[9zero1790]

its a shame more dealers do not just stick to the honest joe thing. if they were fair and gave good service for warranty etc. they would gain customers that came back for life and those customers would bring friends and family. it would be a win win.
i went to one dealer and one sales person for 3 brand new cars in a row, until they hosed me on something. never going back.

 

[Jason B]

Based on that article, Ford would have to pull all their franchise licenses. That would kill the service side of the industry too. I'm not arguing, just thinking out loud...via text. I highly doubt anyone would allow that to happen. Government would step in (right or wrong) to stop the unemployment that would surge, not to mention the tax dollars lost. What I think would happen is that it would be more likely that you'd order your vehicle, instead of tons of vehicles sitting on the lots waiting to be purchased. The dealer would still get their cut for having the vehicle ordered and delivered to them, and (potentially) the service that comes with the new vehicle. That would be an easier sell than eliminating dealers. That would require a change to federal law.

That's a real concern. Already some dealers are reluctant to repair vehicles not sold there, or at least put you at the back of the line.

 

[LT Dangle]

I know of dealers who have refused to honor a warranty claim because the didnt get their car serviced there....

 

[D Fresh]

That's a real concern. Already some dealers are reluctant to repair vehicles not sold there, or at least put you at the back of the line.

I keep hearing people say that but have experienced quite the opposite.

My last 5 new vehicles have exclusively been serviced at dealerships they were NOT purchased at.

I've never once made an appointment somewhere and had somebody ask me where I bought the vehicle.

Maybe in some podunk town where the next Ford dealer is 200 miles away. But I've literally never heard this once till I joined R5G.

It's an urban legend.

 

[Jason B]

I keep hearing people say that but have experienced quite the opposite.

My last 5 new vehicles have exclusively been serviced at dealerships they were NOT purchased at.

I've never once made an appointment somewhere and had somebody ask me where I bought the vehicle.

Maybe in some podunk town where the next Ford dealer is 200 miles away. But I've literally never heard this once till I joined R5G.

It's an urban legend.

I've never had to take my truck in for repairs, only servicing and they didn't balk about where it was purchased. I had previously posted that the repair service writer (not the Quick Lane writer)stated that they don't like working on vehicles purchased from rival dealers. I'll see what happens if I ever need warranty repair.
But it is ridiculous to do that, money is money.

 

[Colo_Ranger]

I know of dealers who have refused to honor a warranty claim because the didnt get their car serviced there....

I have a friend whos mother had an engine fail a few thousand miles outside of warranty. She'd had it serviced at the same dealer since new and they did a goodwill replacement. This is why I stick to one dealer for service. I can push them for a goodwill, if needed.

 

[Jason B]

I know of dealers who have refused to honor a warranty claim because the didnt get their car serviced there....

Was it because it wasn't serviced there or that there was no record of service on the owner's part? Ford will absolutely refuse to do a warranty repair if the problem was caused by lack of service.

 

[Fawnbuster]

Bad for customers who didn't order, so much for the incentives and rebates that stipulate " must take delivery from dealer stock".

Ford can't even supply vehicles as it stands, they should stick to building vehicles and get them to dealers and let the dealers order based on their local metrics and what they know will sell!

 

[LT Dangle]

Was it because it wasn't serviced there or that there was no record of service on the owner's part? Ford will absolutely refuse to do a warranty repair if the problem was caused by lack of service.

was a fairly new car so no service work had been done other than oil changes. but they gave him a hard time because they didnt do the oil changes...

 

[D Fresh]

I've never had to take my truck in for repairs, only servicing and they didn't balk about where it was purchased. I had previously posted that the repair service writer (not the Quick Lane writer)stated that they don't like working on vehicles purchased from rival dealers. I'll see what happens if I ever need warranty repair.
But it is ridiculous to do that, money is money.

Yeah, I don't see any reputable business acting in such a way.

I've had warranty/recall work done on my 2 previous Fords at the the dealership where my Ranger gets serviced. Not one of 3 were purchased there. My wife's Mazda gets serviced at a different dealership than we bought it. That relationship started with warranty work when the selling dealership couldn't properly diagnose or repair a failed rearend. Loaners and everything. The 2 new Subarus I've purchased were serviced at a different dealership than we bought at as well. That's actually every new car I ever purchased.

I've purchased used vehicles that have been to dealerships for repair and who the hell knows where they were bought.

Granted, since Covid, nobody wants to work unless they get $60k+ to sit on their ass at home, and dealerships are swamped and having parts supply issues. So maybe they are OK with turning down business.

Also I have 16 Ford dealerships within 50 miles of me. There's surely a competition factor here.

If anybody in a dealership service department said "we don't like working on vehicles sold by rival dealerships," I'd give them a "fuck you very much" on the way out the door and knock another of that list of 16. Some people don't have that luxury.

 

[1pt21gw]

There is a certain generation that doesn't want to go to a dealer, they want to purchase online. Look at Carvana, Vroom, etc. They will soon have the most money of any generation. Tesla already has them in their hands, Ford is just following.

Ironically, they dont know how to be social in person, so they are online where they can be whoever they want.

Sorry all, you're the old ones now and car makers are moving on to the youngin's.

 

[wanted33]

What I don't like is it says that bad dealers lose allocations for a month. So doesn't this intern just screw over the renaming customers who have orders at that dealer?

According to "Flip" (Phil) a dealer over on the Bronco forum it's like anything these Corporations and Government do, they never set the pendulum to the middle. It swings all the way from one side to the other. The new policy apparently didn't allow for any variables. He said he had an order where the customer passed, and Ford said "tough shit" it counts against you. It doesn't even account for that customer that decides they don't want their Bronco when it arrives. So my guess is it will affect the folks as much as the dealer as the dealers aren't getting but a few stock vehicles to start with. I'm beginning to think Ford isn't capable of doing anything right these days.

For those saying Ford and others should use the Tesla model of selling cars, my question is where is my local Tesla service center if I buy one? If there's no Ford, Jeep, etc. dealer around for 100's of miles where would one get warranty work? Just wondering........

 

[AzScorpion]

According to "Flip" (Phil) a dealer over on the Bronco forum it's like anything these Corporations and Government do, they never set the pendulum to the middle. It swings all the way from one side to the other. The new policy apparently didn't allow for any variables. He said he had an order where the customer passed, and Ford said "tough shit" it counts against you. It doesn't even account for that customer that decides they don't want their Bronco when it arrives. So my guess is it will affect the folks as much as the dealer as the dealers aren't getting but a few stock vehicles to start with. I'm beginning to think Ford isn't capable of doing anything right these days.

This is exactly what I was afraid is going to happen. We all know how they love to change the rules in the middle of the game so while the dealers aren't "supposed" to get punished for cancelled orders I'm guessing they will.

On a brighter now I spoke with the owner of a Ford dealer I used to deal with back east. My friend buys all his trucks through them too and his wife has a day 2 reservation that is finally getting built next week. He said he has a good number of allocations for '23 and I can transfer mine over to them once they allow transfers again. It'll be at msrp but I'll get it next year. I figure if I stick it out with Granger and don't get one next year, the price protection ends and it's going to cost me way more than the October special we have with them. The 2024 prices are going to be way more than the $2,000 off we're getting so I think I'm going for it once they open again.

 

[AzScorpion]

According to "Flip" (Phil) a dealer over on the Bronco forum it's like anything these Corporations and Government do, they never set the pendulum to the middle. It swings all the way from one side to the other. The new policy apparently didn't allow for any variables. He said he had an order where the customer passed, and Ford said "tough shit" it counts against you. It doesn't even account for that customer that decides they don't want their Bronco when it arrives. So my guess is it will affect the folks as much as the dealer as the dealers aren't getting but a few stock vehicles to start with. I'm beginning to think Ford isn't capable of doing anything right these days.

For those saying Ford and others should use the Tesla model of selling cars, my question is where is my local Tesla service center if I buy one? If there's no Ford, Jeep, etc. dealer around for 100's of miles where would one get warranty work? Just wondering........

I just saw the post by Flip, this is crazy!

I'll put my .02 in. The article didn't quite articulate the penalties which are much stricter that it lets on. Not going to type them all out but if a dealer doesn't take it seriously, strike 3 kicks them out of the ordering process completely. Now, will Ford have the will or legal standing to enforce? That's a different question.

It hurts lower volume dealers like mine especially for Lincoln. Lady placed an order, vehicle got built, lady died. Doesn't matter, still counts against us. Another customer ordered a replacement, got a VIN, had a wreck and couldn't wait for vehicle to come in and had to buy something else. Tough. Won't win on appeal on either of these.

Our bronco name match so far is 100% but we just had a lady bail for no specific reason. We offered to another customer who's currently waiting from the original order group who said she'll take. If she does, the deal is her order (no VIN assigned yet) gets cancelled so everyone else on the list can move up. Looking at it, this would be a wash, still knocked out an old order, right? Nope, going to count against us. The guys gaming the system have basically screwed everyone else trying to do the right thing. Having 3 out of 10 name match violations is a bigger deal than 30 out of 200 but the penalty is the same. Not saying rules aren't needed right now but there needs to be some common sense applied to the appeals process.

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