Here's what I have learn from ordering the new 2019 Ford Ranger.

[DIYAndy]

1. Being FIRST to order a new Ford Ranger does not mean you will receive it FIRST.
2. ROVP - Retail Order Verification Program is a joke.
3. Ford Vehicle Order Tracking - Vin # verification/tracker is not, by no means, accurate.

REF:
(1) Ford Motor Company, pulled from their "hype" playbook and made it so that their dealers
had their Ranger inventory FIRST BEFORE customers orders. They did so, to maximize profits, since
they started with the most expensive vehicle trim (The Lariat) with the most expensive options.
They manufactured the Lariat Supercrews and 4x4's FIRST, then came the XLT trims and last the
XL trim with extended/supercab.

(2) Nov 30, 2018 - Ford has introduced a new program called the Retail Order Verification Program
that allows customers to preorder a 2019 Ranger. Since the 2019 Ranger is expected to have unusually
high demand, the ROVP allows customers to receive their truck as soon as possible. Enough said - the
users on this forum can attest that this program is total BS.

(3) Don't even think that using Ford's Vin # verification/tracker will produce an accurate timetable
of your vehicle in the Ford's manufacturing, shipping and transit process.

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[RedlandRanger]

I'm not sure #1 is completely accurate. I ordered a loaded Lariat and still had to wait a month before it got scheduled. There were orders who were placed after mine that got scheduled before mine, so there was something weird going on with scheduling. It can't be blamed on the ROVP program since mine was approved a couple days after I placed my order. It does appear that lower trims got less priority in scheduling though.

#2 is completely true. ROVP was managed extremely poorly.

#3 seems hit and miss. My tracker was reasonably accurate - I got my truck one day before the ETA, and that ETA only changed once after going to "in production". I know there were a lot of people with very different experience. The tracker needs a LOT of work I think. One thing I don't understand is why they can't add an "detail info" button or something like that to the tracker for transit - just like you can do with any online shipping tracker. It will show you when and where the package was at a given point in time. The screen shots of the system that Ford uses certainly has some pretty detailed info in it that could be used.

 

[DIYAndy]

so there was something weird going on with scheduling

That's an understatement - Ford Ranger XL 4x2 SuperCab - Deal Date: 8/25/28 - Order receipt: 10/25/18 - Next week, I will receive my vehicle - close to 8 months from the deal date!!!!

 

[RedlandRanger]

That's an understatement - Ford Ranger XL 4x2 SuperCab - Deal Date: 8/25/28 - Order receipt: 10/25/18 - Next week, I will receive my vehicle - close to 8 months from the deal date!!!!

Wow - that really sucks..... The good news is that I think you will be happy with the truck once you get it. Make sure and post some photos once you get it!

 

[t4thfavor]

1. Being FIRST to order a new Ford Ranger does not mean you will receive it FIRST.
2. ROVP - Retail Order Verification Program is a joke.
3. Ford Vehicle Order Tracking - Vin # verification/tracker is not, by no means, accurate.

REF:
(1) Ford Motor Company, pulled from their "hype" playbook and made it so that their dealers
had their Ranger inventory FIRST BEFORE customers orders. They did so, to maximize profits, since
they started with the most expensive vehicle trim (The Lariet) with the most expensive options.
They manufactured the Lariet Supercrews and 4x4's FIRST, then came the XLT trims and last the
XL trim with extended/supercab.

(2) Nov 30, 2018 - Ford has introduced a new program called the Retail Order Verification Program
that allows customers to preorder a 2019 Ranger. Since the 2019 Ranger is expected to have unusually
high demand, the ROVP allows customers to receive their truck as soon as possible. Enough said - the
users on this forum can attest that this program is total BS.

(3) Don't even think that using Ford's Vin # verification/tracker will produce an accurate timetable
of your vehicle in the Ford's manufacturing, shipping and transit process.

They lost my Focus ST in 2012, even folks at HQ couldn't or wouldn't tell anyone where it went. I ended up getting a dealer ordered one that was similar to mine, and the one I ordered was delivered to the dealership a month later. They lost basically every Focus ST built the week of 8/28/2012.

 

[RedlandRanger]

They lost my Focus ST in 2012, even folks at HQ couldn't or wouldn't tell anyone where it went. I ended up getting a dealer ordered one that was similar to mine, and the one I ordered was delivered to the dealership a month later. They lost basically every Focus ST built the week of 8/28/2012.

It just amazes me - how do you "lose" a vehicle? They are EXPENSIVE - you'd think there would be more robust tracking mechanisms for them.

 

[t4thfavor]

Well I mean, in their defense they eventually found it I think they were commandeered by the EPA for testing, and Ford didn't want to spook anyone into cancelling and buying off a lot.

 

[Floyd]

I'm not sure #1 is completely accurate. I ordered a loaded Lariat and still had to wait a month before it got scheduled. There were orders who were placed after mine that got scheduled before mine, so there was something weird going on with scheduling. It can't be blamed on the ROVP program since mine was approved a couple days after I placed my order. It does appear that lower trims got less priority in scheduling though.

#2 is completely true. ROVP was managed extremely poorly.

#3 seems hit and miss. My tracker was reasonably accurate - I got my truck one day before the ETA, and that ETA only changed once after going to "in production". I know there were a lot of people with very different experience. The tracker needs a LOT of work I think. One thing I don't understand is why they can't add an "detail info" button or something like that to the tracker for transit - just like you can do with any online shipping tracker. It will show you when and where the package was at a given point in time. The screen shots of the system that Ford uses certainly has some pretty detailed info in it that could be used.

A month?a MONTH??? I had ROVP and have now waited more than 3-1/2 months and...
Still in processing! It might get built in another month???
Less Priority for XLs?... try NONE!
The tracker is obviously just a diversion to cut down on complaint calls.
As for detailed information? That would be nice if they just once got it right!

Ford Marketing has clearly substituted VOracity for VEracity and decided to sacrifice Ford's good name on the Altar of Greed.
I think they know just how far they can push before they have a class action complaint.
Its going to take an apology and some time to win back my lifelong trust.

 

[RedlandRanger]

A month?a month??? I had ROVP and have waited more than 3 months and...
Still in processing! It might get built next month???
Less Priority... try NONE!
The tracker is obviously just a diversion to cut down on complaint calls.
As for detailed information? That would be nice if it if they just once got it right!
Ford Marketing has clearly substituted VOracity for VEracity a decided to sacrifice Ford's good name on the Altar of greed.

I know some of you had a LOT worse experience than I did. The lack of (or contradictory) information on orders just astounds me.

The fact that in many cases NO ONE seems to have answers for delays is even worse. How can Ford have such a poor grasp of their in process inventory? Someone at Ford has to have the answers, otherwise, it seems they are incompetent at managing their supply chains. At least that is how it looks from the outside.

 

[t4thfavor]

I honestly don't believe there is ever a point in an order where the actual physical whereabouts of a built vehicle is unknown to Ford. I believe there are just things that happen that they are unwilling to share with the purchaser or dealership. How many of you would like to hear that your vehicle had to have an appointment with the technician because the engine blew up upon testing, or your brand new truck is in the paint correction booth, etc. I waited 6 months or more for my Focus, it was exactly like the Ranger as it was a first of it's kind in the USA, and the first global run of this new build configuration.

 

[RedlandRanger]

I honestly don't believe there is ever a point in an order where the actual physical whereabouts of a built vehicle is unknown to Ford. I believe there are just things that happen that they are unwilling to share with the purchaser or dealership. How many of you would like to hear that your vehicle had to have an appointment with the technician because the engine blew up upon testing, or your brand new truck is in the paint correction booth, etc. I waited 6 months or more for my Focus, it was exactly like the Ranger as it was a first of it's kind in the USA, and the first global run of this new build configuration.

That would be my expectation (they know where things are), however they could do a MUCH better job of creating some sort of "cover story" with a reasonable ETA to give to the dealers and/or customer. Saying "I don't know" is just a complete failure. It is all about managing expectations. The classic "under promise and over deliver" applies. I know there is a bit of that in the tracker today. The internal tracking tool gives a range of delivery dates and the tracker uses the last date in the range as the ETA.

 

[gfitzge2]

I know some of you had a LOT worse experience than I did. The lack of (or contradictory) information on orders just astounds me.

The fact that in many cases NO ONE seems to have answers for delays is even worse. How can Ford have such a poor grasp of their in process inventory? Someone at Ford has to have the answers, otherwise, it seems they are incompetent at managing their supply chains. At least that is how it looks from the outside.

OK, So I am not trying to speak for Ford or even defend them. For full disclosure I am a retired hourly employee. I can tell you that building vehicles is a pretty complicated process. There are literally thousands of parts that must come together at just the right time. Many of these parts come from suppliers that are smaller and sometimes have production problems of their own. Scheduling sends build orders to the assembly line only when they are sure that all the parts to build that vehicle are in the right place in the plant. Modern assembly plants are actually logistical marvels when you think about the complexities. That being said, yes there can be glitches. Especially when an entire plant is retooled to build a new (to that plant) vehicle as was the case at Michigan assembly.

As for the tracker. I had a friend sending me daily reports, he can see the same thing the dealer can see. In comparison, the tracker was usually pretty close. Sometimes just a day or so behind and of course not quite as detailed. At least it gives you a chance to keep your dealer honest, and you are not completely at his mercy.

I can't speak to any theory about Ford wanting to sell high end packages first, I just don't know. But it is my opinion that they want to sell all the vehicles they can and have no reason to screw with you.

I ordered on Jan 15th. Built on April 6th, Delivered to dealer on April 11th. Ready for me to pickup on April 15. Pretty loaded Lariat. So far, well worth the wait.

That's my 2 cents worth.

 

[Geoff]

I don't have an issue with the ROVP program (other than dealers not understanding it or enrolling folks when the order was placed). As soon as the ROVP order was approved it was permitted to be scheduled for build [and every week one can find out what week those orders would be built]. Before January approved ROVP orders were scheduled with stock orders -- non-approved/custom ordered vehicles were not scheduled until after January sometime. Ford actually followed thru as promised on the ROVP program and many of our trucks were scheduled for build before January which was not possible if you didn't have an approved ROVP order. That was the intent of the program. Ford met this.

Now the ROVP program did not give us priority over any vehicles....it was ONLY the mechanism that allowed our orders to be scheduled. It wasn't like Ford was going to build ROVP orders and no stock orders. Now, there were lot of vehicles with extended "in production" times but those evidently failed final QA for whatever reason (something not working, parts missing, etc), but blame the new production line for that, not the ROVP program.

 

[Floyd]

OK, So I am not trying to speak for Ford or even defend them. For full disclosure I am a retired hourly employee. I can tell you that building vehicles is a pretty complicated process. There are literally thousands of parts that must come together at just the right time. Many of these parts come from suppliers that are smaller and sometimes have production problems of their own. Scheduling sends build orders to the assembly line only when they are sure that all the parts to build that vehicle are in the right place in the plant. Modern assembly plants are actually logistical marvels when you think about the complexities. That being said, yes there can be glitches. Especially when an entire plant is retooled to build a new (to that plant) vehicle as was the case at Michigan assembly.

As for the tracker. I had a friend sending me daily reports, he can see the same thing the dealer can see. In comparison, the tracker was usually pretty close. Sometimes just a day or so behind and of course not quite as detailed. At least it gives you a chance to keep your dealer honest, and you are not completely at his mercy.

I can't speak to any theory about Ford wanting to sell high end packages first, I just don't know. But it is my opinion that they want to sell all the vehicles they can and have no reason to screw with you.

I ordered on Jan 15th. Built on April 6th, Delivered to dealer on April 11th. Ready for me to pickup on April 15. Pretty loaded Lariat. So far, well worth the wait.

That's my 2 cents worth.

I ordered my STX SuperCab two weeks before you with an Approved ROVP.
It is still in processing with a predicted delivery five weeks after yours.
I don't blame production. I blame marketing.
Both our stories are anecdotal, but both support the bias.

 

[kjbeggs]

As far as the online tracker, my guess is that Ford's position would be "We offer this as a courtesy, if it becomes a problem we'll just do away with it". (Yes, I'm sure their intent was to lessen customer calls as much as anything).

And I agree that a big problem with the ROVP program was dealership ignorance.
When I first asked about placing my order (early November), I was told they weren't quite ready to take orders yet, but I'd need to make a $500 deposit when the time came.
Got a call in late November to come in and order, showed up checkbook in hand, and went through picking the options with my sales guy. "Manager" came over and told me he wasn't asking his "good customers" to pay the deposit (okay, whatever), and that I should receive my truck in late January (Later appended to early February).
Turns out, he was only off by two months.

I don't see any of this as poor performance by the salesman, he did what he thought he was supposed to do. Called me with updates, let me know when the VIN was assigned, etc.
More, a proper training-issue from Ford.

I mentioned this before, but the last vehicle I pre-ordered (in 1999 or 2000), was from a different company.
They didn't tell me about tracking online, but I found that I could.
What my salesman did do was send me multiple "care packages" while I waited. (CD holders, die-cast cars, koozies, caps, t-shirts, etc.)
It was still a long wait, but those little gifts made it more tolerable.

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