dascoyne
Enormous Member
Recently I took my blown 2010 Mustang GT to my local Ford dealership for my 90K service (*first mistake I know ... when I bought the car I got the prepaid service plan since I wasn't planning to have any mods). I informed them in advance that I had mods (see sig) and the service manager said he’d arrange to have someone who understands enough not to muck up my car.
To make a long story short I got it done and, as I was driving home, the check engine light came on.
I called the assigned service agent we’ll call R. R said that, as long as the car was driving well it shouldn’t be a problem. I will add here that I was planning to schedule a follow up to get something else done and he said he’d take a look at the the issue then.
The next day I drove to work and back (160 miles total) with the warning light on. But when I got home the engine “leaned out” (off the scale of the A/F gauge) in my driveway. I popped the hood and noticed that the driver’s side JLT oil separator was completely out of the PCV hose circuit and the hose was open to air. I couldn’t reconnect it because the hose was just sheared off. (see pics)
I missed the next day of work and had my bro, Nick (s197 GT on the forums), take a look. We called and spoke to R, the service agent, who immediately denied any knowledge of this. R then let us speak to the mechanic who worked on my car.
Interestingly the mechanic said that, when he serviced my car, he noticed an oil leak around the oil separator. The hose tore off the separator when he tugged on it for a closer inspection. He also stated that he told the service agent all about what happened.
This time R got back on the phone but changed his story. He now claimed he told me all about it. I honestly don't recall him mentioning it at all.
Now that I look at the work order it does mention the JLT fittings leaking, but I'm certain I would have remembered if he actually brought it to my attention. It doesn't mention that the hose was completely sheared.
I don’t blame the mechanic for pulling the separator off because I can imagine how the hose might have been weak. If they told me about it up front I would have been a lot more understanding. I’m just guessing R thought he was covering their assess so I wouldn’t hold them liable for a $120 part. So maybe he chose to reattach the part with hose clamps and I was sent home driving my supercharged car with a separator that would inevitably fall off.
I’m really pissed when I imagine the service agent thinking that protecting their liability for a small part was more important than the integrity of my engine or my personal safety. Am I making a bigger deal out of this than I should? Was their obligation to just document the leak? Then again maybe the mechanic was lying and never told him about it?
I already wrote to the service manager and sent my complaint up the chain.
Generally I’m not a complainer and I let most things slide. But I get more and more pissed every time I think about this. And I really don’t know how they’re supposed to make things good. I’m thinking I was just lucky the oil separator flopped completely off in my driveway and not at 120mph. Am I wrong to imagine that something catastrophic could have occurred? I do hop on it a few times during my 160 mile commute to work and back.
Could there already be some consequential damage because of this?
What would you hold them liable for? Had I been told up front I could have rented a car to get to work instead of losing a day of pay (I’m a contract physician who gets paid by the hour) trying to figure it out. It's scary imagining the oil separator falling off on the freeway during boost and it knocking the fan or getting caught up in the belt and pulleys. Am I being realistic about that scenario?
No harm done, right? But I'm not comfortable letting this slide. It looks like a representative from the parent company that owns this Ford Dealership is trying to reach me. I'm not sure what to tell him.
What would you do?
To make a long story short I got it done and, as I was driving home, the check engine light came on.
I called the assigned service agent we’ll call R. R said that, as long as the car was driving well it shouldn’t be a problem. I will add here that I was planning to schedule a follow up to get something else done and he said he’d take a look at the the issue then.
The next day I drove to work and back (160 miles total) with the warning light on. But when I got home the engine “leaned out” (off the scale of the A/F gauge) in my driveway. I popped the hood and noticed that the driver’s side JLT oil separator was completely out of the PCV hose circuit and the hose was open to air. I couldn’t reconnect it because the hose was just sheared off. (see pics)
I missed the next day of work and had my bro, Nick (s197 GT on the forums), take a look. We called and spoke to R, the service agent, who immediately denied any knowledge of this. R then let us speak to the mechanic who worked on my car.
Interestingly the mechanic said that, when he serviced my car, he noticed an oil leak around the oil separator. The hose tore off the separator when he tugged on it for a closer inspection. He also stated that he told the service agent all about what happened.
This time R got back on the phone but changed his story. He now claimed he told me all about it. I honestly don't recall him mentioning it at all.
Now that I look at the work order it does mention the JLT fittings leaking, but I'm certain I would have remembered if he actually brought it to my attention. It doesn't mention that the hose was completely sheared.
I don’t blame the mechanic for pulling the separator off because I can imagine how the hose might have been weak. If they told me about it up front I would have been a lot more understanding. I’m just guessing R thought he was covering their assess so I wouldn’t hold them liable for a $120 part. So maybe he chose to reattach the part with hose clamps and I was sent home driving my supercharged car with a separator that would inevitably fall off.
I’m really pissed when I imagine the service agent thinking that protecting their liability for a small part was more important than the integrity of my engine or my personal safety. Am I making a bigger deal out of this than I should? Was their obligation to just document the leak? Then again maybe the mechanic was lying and never told him about it?
I already wrote to the service manager and sent my complaint up the chain.
Generally I’m not a complainer and I let most things slide. But I get more and more pissed every time I think about this. And I really don’t know how they’re supposed to make things good. I’m thinking I was just lucky the oil separator flopped completely off in my driveway and not at 120mph. Am I wrong to imagine that something catastrophic could have occurred? I do hop on it a few times during my 160 mile commute to work and back.
Could there already be some consequential damage because of this?
What would you hold them liable for? Had I been told up front I could have rented a car to get to work instead of losing a day of pay (I’m a contract physician who gets paid by the hour) trying to figure it out. It's scary imagining the oil separator falling off on the freeway during boost and it knocking the fan or getting caught up in the belt and pulleys. Am I being realistic about that scenario?
No harm done, right? But I'm not comfortable letting this slide. It looks like a representative from the parent company that owns this Ford Dealership is trying to reach me. I'm not sure what to tell him.
What would you do?
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