"Terrain management not available" after leaving a parking lot

[smurfslayer]

Ford has a serious problem that they need to address

I at least partially agree with this. @FordTechOne has repeatedly lamented numerous owners being victimized by stealership service departments exhibiting very poor customer service. In this thread, it’s just like instant mashed potatoes.

Not. Even. Trying.

You don’t have to win every engagement, you don’t have to resolve every problem in 15 minutes or less, you just have to show the customer you’re putting forth a legit effort.
come pick up your truck, we don’t want to spend any more time on it isn’t even trying.

But, to me, the lack of parts availability that’s been observed by users on FRF has been surprising. Major knocking on wood here, the only real problem/issue I’ve had was the broken moonroof track that my local stealership had to contract out - but same thing, I waited for parts, called to verify, dropped off and boom -no parts!

But, to be fair, same stealership did work with me on the door lock recalls - I had doors covered in dynamat that was definitely not helping things. so it can go the right way.

Building nice vehicles only gets you into the game. Once you're there, you have to play like you want to win or you will lose to a team that hustles.

that’s a good point, but who in the off road truck game is hustling more? Ford puts a lot of testing into the F series, including knucklehead proof testing. Testing like “yeah, we know it’s a half ton, but, customers don’t carry scales with them, so fill the bed with these heavy oak logs, then travel through death valley and let us know if it overheats. When you’re done successfully navigate potholes of the outskirts of Detroit. Report any suspension anomalies.”

 

[Chazzersgarage]

My questions are similar to others. Is there another Ford dealer near you? If so, why are you still dealing with the one giving you a hard time? There ae several Ford dealers here in Denver but none that I trust. I bought an extended warranty that allows me to use independent shops or I use a dealer in South Dakota. Finding good service is hard. However, if I had a dealer tell me they couldn't be bothered to do warranty work within the warranty period I'd probably meet them in court.

 

[GordoJay]

that’s a good point, but who in the off road truck game is hustling more? Ford puts a lot of testing into the F series, including knucklehead proof testing. Testing like “yeah, we know it’s a half ton, but, customers don’t carry scales with them, so fill the bed with these heavy oak logs, then travel through death valley and let us know if it overheats. When you’re done successfully navigate potholes of the outskirts of Detroit. Report any suspension anomalies.”

I know. That's what annoys me. Ford puts out a great truck, better than anything else on the market, including the TRX, and the dealership ****** all over the customer. It's insane. The bottom line is that I don't NEED a Raptor. I want one, and I love mine, but I'd be as well served by other, less capable, trucks.

 

[FordTechOne]

Disappointing, but not surprising. I took mine in for the camera recall. They said they had ordered the part. I called to confirm that they had it before I went in. When I dropped it off, I confirmed again, since I didn't want to leave it if they didn't have the part. That afternoon I get the call ... we don't have the part, it's back ordered, do you want to leave it here while we order one? F*** no and F*** you, Ford. This is my first and likely my last new Ford. It's a truly awesome truck, but the customer service is so bad it's surreal. I've gone through recalls on most of my vehicles. All were seamless. Ford service is a never-ending Charlie Foxtrot. What's funny, or not, is that I have three friends who are all serious about buying new pickups. One had the Raptor at the top of his list. After hearing about my experiences, none of them are willing to consider a Ford, and I don't blame them. I'm predicting a sweep for Toyota. Ford has a serious problem that they need to address. Building nice vehicles only gets you into the game. Once you're there, you have to play like you want to win or you will lose to a team that hustles.

All manufacturers except for Tesla have franchises dealerships; the same thing can happen with any brand. There are more good dealers out there than bad ones; you can’t draw a broad conclusion based on a few negative experiences. You can go on the Toyota forums and see the exact same complaints. Many dealer groups own multiple franchises, so the experience is going to be the same regardless. Anyone who buys Toyota’s antiquated junk based on the false pretense of a perfect dealer service experience is going to be in for a serious reality check.

 

[GordoJay]

All manufacturers except for Tesla have franchises dealerships; the same thing can happen with any brand. There are more good dealers out there than bad ones; you can’t draw a broad conclusion based on a few negative experiences. You can go on the Toyota forums and see the exact same complaints. Many dealer groups own multiple franchises, so the experience is going to be the same regardless. Anyone who buys Toyota’s antiquated junk based on the false pretense of a perfect dealer service experience is going to be in for a serious reality check.

True. But my two buddies with Tacos have a combined 400,000 miles on a 2010 and a 2012 respectively and they have been incredibly reliable. They don't ever have to go to the Toyota dealer. Independent shops can fix them without a bunch of expensive complicated equipment that they wouldn't know how to use if they had it. The same equipment that so many Ford techs don't know how to use. Sometimes antiquated is good. My friends are blown away by the Raptor and jealous of the performance but they're never going to buy a Ford after watching me get flogged. I think FMC could solve the problem if they got serious about it. Look at the stupid survey they send after you get service. It's worthless because it isn't specific enough to give them the information they need if they wanted to try. Their customer is the dealer, not the end user. I think that's short-sighted and a huge mistake. But it's their company to run, not mine. I'm going to drive mine and enjoy it as long as I can, but if it starts to give me trouble, I'm trading it in.

 

[S1ackin]

All manufacturers except for Tesla have franchises dealerships; the same thing can happen with any brand. There are more good dealers out there than bad ones; you can’t draw a broad conclusion based on a few negative experiences. You can go on the Toyota forums and see the exact same complaints. Many dealer groups own multiple franchises, so the experience is going to be the same regardless. Anyone who buys Toyota’s antiquated junk based on the false pretense of a perfect dealer service experience is going to be in for a serious reality check.

Is there anything I can suggest they check first to expedite the process? They still haven't even had time to look at my truck after 3 days. Is it not possible to take my vehicle after I've checked in with the SA while I wait for my turn in line to have a tech look at it?

My SA advisor told me that he went out to diagnose one issue ahead of the tech but wasn't able to do much because he didn't have another unit on the lot to compare it to? I take it that it's not customary to have a SA do the work of a tech?

 

[FordTechOne]

True. But my two buddies with Tacos have a combined 400,000 miles on a 2010 and a 2012 respectively and they have been incredibly reliable. They don't ever have to go to the Toyota dealer. Independent shops can fix them without a bunch of expensive complicated equipment that they wouldn't know how to use if they had it. The same equipment that so many Ford techs don't know how to use. Sometimes antiquated is good. My friends are blown away by the Raptor and jealous of the performance but they're never going to buy a Ford after watching me get flogged. I think FMC could solve the problem if they got serious about it. Look at the stupid survey they send after you get service. It's worthless because it isn't specific enough to give them the information they need if they wanted to try. Their customer is the dealer, not the end user. I think that's short-sighted and a huge mistake. But it's their company to run, not mine. I'm going to drive mine and enjoy it as long as I can, but if it starts to give me trouble, I'm trading it in.

I just recently serviced a 2010 F-150 with over 200,000 miles, it’s a work truck that the guy beats the hell out of. No history of a single warranty repair, and it only came to me because he had a 4x4 error message that was easily resolved. That’s one of many, but still anecdotal evidence, just like the Tacos you mentioned.

I don’t blame you for being sore about your T-case issue. It certainly wasn’t handled well, and back ordered parts can contribute to significant downtime. However, that is the exception, not the norm. Interestingly enough, the Borg Warner plant in Seneca, SC that makes F-150 transfer cases also makes Toyota pickup transfer cases. A tornado destroyed the plant earlier this year, which may have been a significant factor in the backorder situation.

As far as not having to go to the dealer, spend some time surfing a Taco forum. There are no shortage of quality and warranty issues. I can assure you their service departments stay very busy from first hand experience.

 

[FordTechOne]

Is there anything I can suggest they check first to expedite the process? They still haven't even had time to look at my truck after 3 days. Is it not possible to take my vehicle after I've checked in with the SA while I wait for my turn in line to have a tech look at it?

My SA advisor told me that he went out to diagnose one issue ahead of the tech but wasn't able to do much because he didn't have another unit on the lot to compare it to? I take it that it's not customary to have a SA do the work of a tech?

Why are they trying to compare with a like unit? A “terrain management not available” message is not a normal characteristic. If they can’t get to it for 3 days, they should be offering you a rental/loaner or rescheduling your appointment so you can drive the truck in the meantime.

You lights and compressor are only wired into the upfitter switches correct? Nothing is tapped into any factory circuits or plugged into the ODB2 connector?

If the dealer confirms that they don’t find any DTCs either, my guess would be the gateway module is at fault.

 

[S1ackin]

Why are they trying to compare with a like unit? A “terrain management not available” message is not a normal characteristic. If they can’t get to it for 3 days, they should be offering you a rental/loaner or rescheduling your appointment so you can drive the truck in the meantime.

You lights and compressor are only wired into the upfitter switches correct? Nothing is tapped into any factory circuits or plugged into the ODB2 connector?

If the dealer confirms that they don’t find any DTCs either, my guess would be the gateway module is at fault.

I could not tell you why they're trying to compare it to a like unit to diagnose a possible mechanical/electrical issue. I asked if it's customary to try and diagnose a mechanical/electrical issue by comparing it to another like unit, and was told "sometimes". Talk about cutting edge diagnostic techniques!

I was supposed to get a call back about a rental this morning, no call. Called the tech back, he laughed about the fact that he forgot to call me back. At that point I broke and told him I was going to get the vehicle today and take it to another dealer. He simply replied with "ok, sounds good" and ended the phone call.

Hopefully the other dealer is better.

 

[mikehawncho]

Was there ever a resolution to this? I just got the same notification on my 2019 today.