Rogue6

So here is the rundown...and do I have any recourse with Ford...

2005 Mustang 4.0 Manual, and it has been in the shop a lot!

Radio replaced twice - once for jamming and once because the paint rubbed off all the buttons
Front Strut Towers - TSB performed twice!
Clutch pressure plate replaced at 32K...and I do not drive like a bat out of hades!
Lumbar support literally blew out...replaced, then had to have seat adjusted because it was put back in wrong!
Parking brake ratcheting mechanism replaced...real hard to park on an incline with NO parking brake!
Transmission leak...ended up needing new drain plug...but real disconcerting when your tech calls and says, "Hey, why don't you come and pick up a rental...we need the car for a few more days!"

My car only has 60K on it, and it has been in the shop at least 1 to 3 weeks each year since I got it, and at least once very 10K.

I called Ford Customer service, spoke to their "Regional" rep, and got nowhere. The conversation went like this...

Rep: "What are you asking for sir?"
Me: " what recourse do I have? Is Ford willing to do anything for me?"
And repeat...they were absolutely no help whatsoever....just more infuriating, as my tech said they would be.

Any suggestions?

Thanks!

the procrastinator

I kind of have the same question that the regional rep had: what do you want Ford to do? Buy back your car?

shaun_beauchamp

Sell it while it's "fixed". These cars are a love / hate relationship. You either love it for its value and accept that it is not $10K more and perfect, or you hate it because the nit pics are getting to you and you can't live with a car that costs $20K and requires minor fixes.

I see your pain as I have been through the ebrake replacement, a fuel pump, a radio, thermostatic controls, leaking brake fluid reservoir, etc.

What I see is an awesome car that cost me less than $30K and is a blast to drive. Although it has some flaws (which are fixed under warranty and never caused me to walk) I can't see myself having this much fun in another car that costs about the same money.

I think because your car has had issues, you may not be as in love with it as you were day one. You have to look at your car and the relationship. If the blind love you had for the Mustang is ever fading due to the issues you are seeing, time to move on. If mine wasn't a GT and did not have a suspension package that allows me to rip through turns, I may notice the plastic dash, poor sound deadening, poor paint quality, questionable panel welds, etc which show you that you got a great deal on a fun car.

karman

My last Toyota truck needed more repairs than that in 60K miles.
My Ranger has needed nothing but brakes, tires, and oil in 5+ years.
Your list does not qualify for a lemon law so you are on your own as to choices.

Five Oh Brian

As Karman mentioned, nothing about your case, Rogue6, would qualify for Lemon Law. So, Ford is not in a position to have to do anything for you. They've repaired the car every time you've taken it in for service, so they've honored their obligations under the new car warranty. Now, you're left with a used car that's out of warranty (unless you had the foresight to buy an Extended Service Plan). This may be the time to sell the car while the gettin' is good (assuming everything works currently).

Rogue6

Five Oh Brian: Definitely had the foresight to buy the Extended Service Plan, so it has never cost me more than my $100 deductible, and I always have a rental!

The Procrastinator: Not sure what I want. I asked for a buy back...they said no, which I expected. I asked for them to extend my warranty (from the 5/75K I have now to either 5/100K or 6/100K)...they said no again. I'm not sure if there is anything appropriate to ask for or if I am just greasing the squeaky wheel.

I love driving my car, handles beautifully, etc...and I average 22 mpg with mixed city/hwy driving to and from work (between 28 and 31 on the hwy alone!)...other than the stupid thing breaking down on me, I have NO complaints. I knew it was a 20K car when I bought it, knew it was loud, and has hard plastics. I feel like I got a great deal (Thanks Tony G at Ron Carter Ford in Alvin, TX), but I paid a lot less for both of my F-150's, and NEVER had this many problems.

Maybe I'm just venting and looking for a either a solution (other than selling) or just a little commisurating (sp?).

ford4v429

even if ALL those things needed fixed at one time, I doubt the 'labor sum' would be more than a workday...its a 05, so assume youve had it 3~4 years, and at 1~3 wks per year, that car has been in the shop between 3~12 weeks??? I think you might need a better service department- if they do a good job and you dont mind them keeping your car days or weeks to fix a couple hour problem, maybe thats OK, but aside from the clutch, nothing listed looks like more than a hour or so to get taken care of...the early radios, strut bearings were pretty well known issues, I guess almost expected with the 'first model year' blues, the three extra days to replace a drain plug sounds wrong to me unless maybe it was on a friday and they couldnt get to it till monday or something...
the things that bug me about these cars is the hard to fill gastanks(mine hasnt done it for years though) and the rear seatback levers snapping off, the doors not being closeable if iced over- these were design issues from Ford that really shoulda been non- issues...the biggie to me is the snapping off sparkplugs on the 3v 4.6- that and the blowing out issue on the 2v 5.4's are totally stupid engineering failures that probably shoulda been a class action lawsuit. all that said, I still think these cars are the most bang for the buck ever- enough that I went and picked up a twin to my 06 gt at employee pricing a couple weeks ago...much as I hate the thought of a car payment again, gotta say I never minded the 06 payment every month- the car is just such a ball to drive. after seeing what they did to the '10 rearend, figured in my eyes there will likely never be a better time than now to get another 'dont mind the payment pain' car...I think the 09 is gonna be the last of the 'classic' mustangs in 10-20 years, as its looking like 'retro'(hate that term) styling is going away again for a more modern look...the 05 is my second favorite mustang- to the 69, but its probably THE best mustang ever built...the '10 will be equivalent underneath, and the interior looks great, but theres a lot of other nice cars out there that simply dont 'call out' to me at all- the 05 is a beautiful car on the outside, a comfortable'fits like a glove' drivers car from the inside, gets great mileage and can tear up the 1/4 mile very respectably for a new stock car, and the exhaust is sheer music...even with its few quirks, I expect the 05~09 will still be my favorite car till the day I die.

shaun_beauchamp

We hear you. It's a LOVE / HATE relationship. We love them when it is nice out and they are running perfectly, and we hate them when they squeak, rattle, etc or if it isn't conducive to driving aggressively.

I'll be the first to say I almost sold mine twice in the past three years, but when you look around for an alternative, you end up just fixing the issues and enjoying some more.