Ford refusing to honor Bumper to Bumper Warranty

[NotBudule]

If a part fails while your towing it , codes will be set I imagine, a towed Ranger has no warranty methinks ...

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[D Fresh]

No I'm right. Ford has a presence in every state they have an authorized dealership in. They profit from and do business with everyone of them. . But okay. You're right.

You're absolutely right that you are not a lawyer. Your understanding of the legal system and laws pertaining to business are flawed at best.

Riddle me this riddler. If you wanted to sue Ford and you lived in Arizona, where would you have the papers served?

You are trying to make this way too simple.

We can certainly agree to disagree, but I hope you never have to reconcile your IDEA of how the legal system works with reality.

 

[D Fresh]

You seem to be definitely taking this a bit the wrong way , it did not mean often as in fatal issues but often as overall issues that often if ignored by the company as they are too hard to sue.

Now on the fatal design flaw part I do believe the Ford rollover issues got a number of sizeable settlements after many years of litigation , but I guess you say that they settled out of convince and their tire explanation was correct.

The kia/Hyundai fire thing has also been going on for a while without much comment from them as well.

But like I said I may have misrepresented my statement to you. And obviously know more about the codes on this situations.

Pretty sure the Explorer problem was laid squarely at Firestone's door, not Ford's.

So if this went down as I suspect and the truck had a low or failing battery it could have easily been avoided had the OP researched a bit before towing. When you ASSUME that everything will go just so without taking the time to learn how it operates you risk things like this.

It's obvious by the OPs posts that they have no idea what is going on and they're just upset. Rather than that, why not question what they could've done to avoid it.

This situation is over and done with. They can either learn from it and move on. Or continue to play the victim.

Rarely is something entirely somebody else's fault. There are always steps that can be taken to mitigate damages. Whatever they are.


Also, I'll give you partial credit on the Kia/Hyundai fires. Not sure how dumb a person would have to be to die in one of those fires, but they are happening.

 

[D Fresh]

this is a Canadian article and refers to franchise's.
I personally think dealerships fit the franchise designation.
The reference to independent contractor might be the key.

I hope this helps with the discussion.

https://financialpost.com/entrepren...anchisors-liable-for-their-franchisees-wrongs

Ford built the transmission.
It operated as designed

Until something went wrong with flat towing.

Since Ford controls the base warranty, they have ultimate decision on whether a part is covered or not. This is why you see Service shops waiting for Fords input on many issues we see.
there isnt negligence from the dealer ship, so the problem is solely between Ford Corp and the owner of the truck.
The dealership was strictly the technical advisor in the middle on what they found.

If this were me in this case, I would lick my wounds, and be more diligent in the future.
This incident might also push me away from Ford overall, or at the very least finding an alternative to flat towing. to me it's no different that rock climbing with your Tremor and barfing the transmission gears out the bottom. Risky play has risky consequences.

Is it the snark? Sometimes.


Is it the self depreciating humor? Sometimes.



What IS it then that makes us love our curmudgeon RP?



It's the LOGIC!

 

[JesseS]

Ford puts a flat tow mode in the truck for a reason, so it can be flat towed! If after taking all of the proper and prudent precautions the Tranny ate itself and ford refused to cover it (either base or extended ford warranty) I would be pissed as hell, the truck would go bye bye after repair and I would never darken Fords door again, that's for sure. One of the major reasons I bought the Ranger was for its flat tow mode combined with off road ability. If ford won't stand by their warranty then why the hell should I stand by them? That being said I now have 5K miles flat towing without issue, if being in Aviation taught me anything it was to do things by the numbers and have a checklist to follow. I towed my CRV 35K without any issues, we will see how the Ranger holds up.

 

[D Fresh]

Ford puts a flat tow mode in the truck for a reason, so it can be flat towed! If after taking all of the proper and prudent precautions the Tranny ate itself and ford refused to cover it (either base or extended ford warranty) I would be pissed as hell, the truck would go bye bye after repair and I would never darken Fords door again, that's for sure. One of the major reasons I bought the Ranger was for its flat tow mode combined with off road ability. If ford won't stand by their warranty then why the hell should I stand by them? That being said I now have 5K miles flat towing without issue, if being in Aviation taught me anything it was to do things by the numbers and have a checklist to follow. I towed my CRV 35K without any issues, we will see how the Ranger holds up.

On the flip side of that.


You did your research, protect against battery drain, and document your procedure.


The OP did none of that.


So in my mind you've taken prudent steps to protect yourself and your property. Therefore you should expect Ford to stand behind their product.

 

[9zero1790]

i may be behind the times or just old but its hard for me to fully trust that the lil display on the dash saying its in flat tow neutral etc is actually true. its reassuring to be able to feel the difference physically. I love the user friendly gadgets. electronic shift on the fly and locking hubs that dont require me to get out of the truck are the bee knees! but- computers often freeze or glitch or have power failures and so on. plus its very easy to feel 4wd is doing what its supposed to. i do not know what flat tow mode should feel like. id assume free rolling like a 2wd truck with trans in neutral? id be hesitant to flat tow the 5g without knowing all the ins and outs of how and what in detail. switching to 4wd low requires stopping shifting to neutral and waiting before going back to a gear. i wonder if some folks that have issues with flat tow just didnt wait long enough for things to be mechanically free or if a sensor may have given them a false "ok"? i know if you switch to 4 low and shift back into a gear before the trucks ready it not happy and no worky lol. if you do not wait long enough going to flat tow before shifting to park does the truck give a warning?

 

[VAMike]

I know one thing: there's no way I'd ever take a chance flat towing a ranger.

 

[P. A. Schilke]

Hi Folks,

I would like to refocus this a bit. The transmission is the the end result, but neutral tow is in the transfer case, not the transmission. I find folks that trashed their transmission has the transmission in Park.... not neutral. Thus they did not follow the exact procedure as they claim. Transmission is to be in neutral too.

Best,
Phil

 

[9zero1790]

so i read the bulletin and watched the video from ford. seems the key stays on during flat tow. makes me feel like if procedure was followed correctly maybe low / no battery power or sensor issue is a possible cause?

 

[NeptuneRanger]

In the simplest of terms, what causes catastrophic transmission damage ? Your position is it was NOT the tow, it was just a coincidence that it failed after the tow. Or your argument is Ford gave you a false sense of security that towing the car (after following directions in the manual ) is without risk and you relied on this assumption to your detriment. It is you verbal word versus the digital codes. Not thinking you can prove breach of contract as long as codes present.

It is not unusual for cars/trucks to suffer such damage after being towed. I have seen it a lot. While several posters had towed with success, I personally would only do so on a flatbed.

 

[JeeperCreeper]

I know it might be added weight, but it seems like the Ranger is better off being towed on a trailer.

I wonder if Jeeps have the same problem, most of the time i see a motorhome pulling a vehicle, it’s usually a Jeep.

Agreed, I feel bad for the owners that have had issues, but I def wont be flat towing my Ranger from lessons learned from others.

As far as Jeeps, the older, as well as the new Wranglers, have manual transfer cases with a mechanical shifter. Most go 2Hi, 4Hi, N, 4Lo with the Neutral being a tow mode.

Even if the transfer case uses vacuum, if it's in a gear, any loss in power or vacuum should keep it in that gear.

So Neutral is neutral.

As far as I know and remember.

Jeeps do well for flat towing.

 

[Augie81]

You're absolutely right that you are not a lawyer. Your understanding of the legal system and laws pertaining to business are flawed at best.

Riddle me this riddler. If you wanted to sue Ford and you lived in Arizona, where would you have the papers served?

You are trying to make this way too simple.

We can certainly agree to disagree, but I hope you never have to reconcile your IDEA of how the legal system works with reality.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/25/us/politics/ford-supreme-court-liability.html

"unanimously ruling that courts have jurisdiction over lawsuits filed in the consumers’ home states notwithstanding that the products were made and sold elsewhere so long as the manufacturers did substantial business in the states."

"Ford argued that the courts lacked jurisdiction because the company did not have a relevant connection to those states."

"Justice Elena Kagan, writing for five justices, said Ford’s activities in the states provided ample reasons to let the company be sued in them."

“By every means imaginable — among them, billboards, TV and radio spots, print ads and direct mail — Ford urges Montanans and Minnesotans to buy its vehicles, including (at all relevant times) Explorers and Crown Victorias,” she wrote. “Ford cars — again including those two models — are available for sale, whether new or used, throughout the states, at 36 dealerships in Montana and 84 in Minnesota.

“And apart from sales, Ford works hard to foster ongoing connections to its cars’ owners. The company’s dealers in Montana and Minnesota (as elsewhere) regularly maintain and repair Ford cars, including those whose warranties have long since expired,” she wrote. “And the company distributes replacement parts both to its own dealers and to independent auto shops in the two states. Those activities, too, make Ford money. And by making it easier to own a Ford, they encourage Montanans and Minnesotans to become lifelong Ford drivers.”

"It did not matter, she wrote, that Ford made and sold the particular vehicles in other states."

And here is a case where a person took Honda to small claims court:

https://jalopnik.com/how-you-can-sue-an-automaker-in-small-claims-court-and-5881497

She lost but here is an interesting bit from that:

https://jalopnik.com/heather-peters-loses-small-claims-court-appeal-owes-ho-5908946

"In the ruling, Superior Court Judge Dudley W. Gray II ruled that even though the plaintiff, former lawyer Heather Peters, had standing to bring the case in state court"

So let's summarize:

1: The Supreme Court ruled that a company can be sued in the consumers' home state as long as the corporation does substantial business in said state.

2: The Supreme Court ruled that Ford does substantial business in Montana, Minnesota and elsewhere. Which is what I argued from the start.

 

[NotBudule]

If your towing a Ranger exactly as instructed, and the " keep it in neutral " solenoid fails , and it goes in gear ,and trashes everything, wouldn't that set codes ? Even though you did it right ?

 

[rcairflr]

If your towing a Ranger exactly as instructed, and the " keep it in neutral " solenoid fails , and it goes in gear ,and trashes everything, wouldn't that set codes ? Even though you did it right ?

Lets assume you are right. So What? Now what does the Op do? Ford refuses to pay for the new transmission. Yeah, he could take them to court but that could cost a lot of money with absolutely not guarantee he would win. So now he is out $6300, do you gamble and maybe be out another $10000 or much much more?

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