Magic 36,000 miles

[Bones]

A little history:

I owned a 2002 Cadillac DTS with all the options except pull down window shades. It went to the dealer once for a warranty water pump and night vision camera replacement.

I own a 2009 Chrysler 300 C with all the options. It went to the dealer for a warranty water pump. That is the only time it has been to the dealer and now has 117,000 miles.

I own a 2018 Ford Expedition Platinum Max I purchased new. The Expy has just turned the magic 36,000 miles and here is a recap of my warranty visits to the dealer:

05/30/2018

#1. Headliner driver’s side not fitting right. FIXED

#2. Front Camera Washer not working when the windshield washer is operating. FIXED


#3. Loud humming sound that reverberates inside the passenger compartment. It is coming

From right front engine area. DEALER COULDN’T REPLICATE

#4. Massage seat last settings for the driver isn’t retained. (Not sure if it is supposed to but I would think it should). DEALER DIDN’T ADDRESS THIS CONCERN

#5. Message displayed “Drive Control Malfunction - Service required”. This displayed twice and I showed the service advisor a picture of the message DEALER SAID NO CODES FOUND

#6. When the Expy goes over bumps there is a knocking sound from the left side towards the front. Doesn’t do it all of the time.-DEALER CHECKED THE SUSPENSION AND FOUND NO PROBLEMS

(The knocking continued as I drove over the driveway curb leaving the dealer.)

03/20/19

#1. Blue Tooth connecting and disconnecting and unable to maintain a connection with SYNC. I supplied pictures of the message- DEALER FOUND NO CODES AND COULDN’T REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. DEALER PERFORMED A MASTER RESET (didn’t fix the problem)

#2. Mirrors randomly adjust full range back and forth all on their own. PROBLEM FIXED BY DEALER REPROGRAMMED DDM AND PDM PER SSM 47835

04/09/2019 Different dealer from 03/20/2019

#1. Blue Tooth connecting and disconnecting and unable to maintain a connection with SYNC. I supplied pictures of the message- DEALER FOUND NO CODES AND COULDN’T REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. DEALER PERFORMED A MASTER RESET (didn’t fix the problem. I had suggested replacing the Accessory Protocol Interface Module.)

09/06/2019 same dealer as on 04/09/2019

#1. Blue Tooth connecting and disconnecting and unable to maintain a connection with SYNC. I supplied pictures of the message- DEALER FOUND NO CODES AND COULDN’T REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. (didn’t fix the problem. I again suggested replacing the Accessory Protocol Interface Module but they didn’t)

09/24/2019

#1. Sun Roof Sunshade cover binding. DEALER DISASSEMBLED AND ADDED GREASE AND IT FIXED THE PROBLEM.

______________________________________________________________________________

Bottom line- My wife and I enjoy the Expy. We have taken 4 cross county road trips in comfort courtesy of the Expy. With that being said we are disappointed with the some of the problems we have experienced with the Expy and Ford dealership service departments. My next purchase is going to be a dually diesel pick-up to pull a fifth wheel. The F-350/450 is a contender but it worries me if I’m going to continue having Ford + service department issues. The Dodge Ram 3500 is a very strong contender especially if it follows the lack of issues my Chrysler has had. I will be joining those forums to gather additional input. Things to ponder.

P.S. I do have an extended warranty with the $100 deductible.

 

[Wayne Decker]

#4. Massage seat last settings for the driver isn’t retained. (Not sure if it is supposed to but I would think it should). .

After running the massage cycle my drivers seat returns to the saved settings. I think it even displays a message saying it is doing it.

If you adjust the seat and then do a massage, I'm not sure if it return the to saved settings or your recent adjustment. I've never done that.

Glad you had good luck with Chrysler. My 2012 Durango started having lots of woes. Several were warranteed, but I but about $6k into it over the time I had it. I loved the car, but at 120k on the odometer I worried about breaking down with it while pulling the trailer on one of our two month trips.

6k on the Expy and only a few really minor items I'll have taken care of at the first oil change.

 

[dlcorbett]

I may have to turn my expy in earlier this yr due to impending pcs overseas. I wanna get another when i come back stateside but honestly im torn. Great truck but poorly built, and the 2019s have been having the same issues, so its almost like ford isnt addressing even the common issues these vehicles are having.

 

[Fozzy]

Some of the Bluetooth problems I have had with all the Sync versions are phone related. Especially with the iPhone. IOS13 has had major connection issues. Ford does not keep up with all the phone updates. My seat will not remember the last place you set it unless you store it in the preset on the door. The problems you listed are pretty minor. I hope mine only has minor issues like yours. Not major problems. At work we have over a hundred one ton pick up trucks. GM, Ford and Dodge/Ram. We have a pretty equal split with GM and Ford right now as the Rams have been the worst truck in the fleet and being phased out. We are a utility company and they all haul heavy loads every day. The guys like the power and room of the AlumiDuty Ford and hate the ride. They love the ride of the GM’s. We get a lemon every so often from each brand. I would drive all three trucks and pick the one you like the best. They all have problems and cost a fortune these days.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Deadman]

Sounds like its time for a NEW dealer to fix your issues.

 

[edizzle]

67,000 miles on a bought new platinum 4wd w/ hd tow.

one issue, a loose ground wire at approximately 30,000 quickly addressed and fixed.

only other issue was one of the TVs broke. other than that, 0 issues. was tight, rode perfectly.

we just replaced it with an identical 2019 minus TVs. Couldnt be happier. love this truck.

 

[dlcorbett]

Why did you replace it?

 

[edizzle]

too many miles!!!!! we put 67,000 miles in 19 months! the biggest killer was my daughters schooling last year. we decided to enroll her into a great boarding school as a day student. it is 54 minutes/30 miles each way. they have a bus that comes to Highlands, but because she was a middle schooler playing for Varsity and because the academics were so much tougher, we decided to drive her for the first year during the transition. that was 120 miles a day. we also do fall and summer AAU travel ball. and it just killed the mileage. we went in for service and our sales guy sweet talked us into seeing what kind of deal he could get us. they had some pretty decent incentives and were very fair on the trade.

moving forward we are about to get my daughter a 2020 explorer. she just turned 15. we will probably buy in the next 6 months. we will all drive it for the next year or so depending on who's doing what etc. that will help a lot. i will be buying a used 2018 next year for myself which will help a bunch as well. i drive a 2006 4runner and we very rarely do family things in it, it normally is used by whichever spouse is NOT doing something family related.

so moral of the story, we felt we have a plan in place that will prevent such a massive acquisition of miles and felt it was a good move. Of course my wife was down for it!!! LOL

 

[flying68]

A little history:

#4. Massage seat last settings for the driver isn’t retained. (Not sure if it is supposed to but I would think it should). DEALER DIDN’T ADDRESS THIS CONCERN
03/20/19

#1. Blue Tooth connecting and disconnecting and unable to maintain a connection with SYNC. I supplied pictures of the message- DEALER FOUND NO CODES AND COULDN’T REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. DEALER PERFORMED A MASTER RESET (didn’t fix the problem)

04/09/2019 Different dealer from 03/20/2019

#1. Blue Tooth connecting and disconnecting and unable to maintain a connection with SYNC. I supplied pictures of the message- DEALER FOUND NO CODES AND COULDN’T REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. DEALER PERFORMED A MASTER RESET (didn’t fix the problem. I had suggested replacing the Accessory Protocol Interface Module.)

09/06/2019 same dealer as on 04/09/2019

#1. Blue Tooth connecting and disconnecting and unable to maintain a connection with SYNC. I supplied pictures of the message- DEALER FOUND NO CODES AND COULDN’T REPLICATE THE PROBLEM. (didn’t fix the problem. I again suggested replacing the Accessory Protocol Interface Module but they didn’t)

Easiest one to address is the Blue Tooth issue. This popped up on our MkC and sometimes happens after your phone has a software update, it almost always is a phone issue and not a Sync issue. To fix it you need to disconnect the phone and repair it with Sync. Shut off blue tooth on your phone, turn it back on, (you may have to remove sync from the list but not always) then go through the pairing process. Phone should now stay connected.

The seat settings are maintained through the presets (1, 2, and 3) and which can be linked to the key fob. It will maintain the last position if you do not pair the memory setting with the preset, however if you unlock a door with with a fob that is paired with any of the settings, the driver seat will reposition to that setting. The owners manual explains how to set a fob to a memory position (and how to set it to a securikey code). If you are referring to the actual massage settings, those are not retained and must be activated every time you wish to use the massage function.

 

[NyackRob79]

Our 2018 Expu is at 24,000 miles. So far:

- Metallic Grinding Noise coming from wheel hubs after making a turn: Dealer couldn't replicate. I had to do some digging online and determine it was a faulty vacuum line. Ordered the part and had dealer repair it under a service bulletin.

- Panoramic Sunroof rattle: Dealer couldn't replicate. Drove me crazy for months until I finally figured out it was the small metal hex bolts that hold the glass pane to the moving mechanism. Tightened them and the problem has since not returned. The bad part is that I tore out the wind deflector completely, as I was previously convinced that's what caused it.

- Massage Seats: Half the time, the massage just doesn't work - period. When I go to "Multicontour Seats" on Sync 3, nothing comes up. Not an issue for me since I find the massage distracting while driving, but it's certainly not working very well.

- A/C stopped working. Covered under warranty ($3k+), rear radiator was replaced.

That's about it.

Dealers are generally hesitant to troubleshoot rattles because they're hard to replicate, can be caused by a wide variety of issues - most commonly driver cause (i.e. your kid dropped a plastic spoon between seats, etc.). The dealer also doesn't get compensated by the factory for diagnostic issues, only warranty-covered repairs.

Overall, comparing the Ford to our Acura MDX which we leased for 3 years, I wouldn't say the number of repairs was out of line. A/C and faulty vacuum lines were both repaired. The rattles, those come with every car. The massage seats, eh. You pick your battles.

 

[2018ExpyPlatinum]

I'll say it again....guess I got a good one. Only 13K (and almost a year) on it, but nothing. Nothing! Guess it's like my father use to say, "doesn't' matter if you buy a Yugo or a Rolls Royce. They's always a lemon". Love the big girl and have no plans to trade her in. I do agree, the dealer plays a huge part...as does the manufacturer.

 

[aggiegrad05]

I'll say it again....guess I got a good one. Only 13K (and almost a year) on it, but nothing. Nothing! Guess it's like my father use to say, "doesn't' matter if you buy a Yugo or a Rolls Royce. They's always a lemon". Love the big girl and have no plans to trade her in. I do agree, the dealer plays a huge part...as does the manufacturer.

Agree completely. I have had a few issues, but nothing that bothers me. And having a good dealer is a huge part of that. ProTip: go see a Ford/Lincoln dealership, not just a Ford dealership; they share a service department and the staff tends to be much better because they have to deal with Lincoln customers.