FocusCanada Forums

Alright, here is the story:

This past week, I brought my 03 Focus ZTS in for oil change and i believe it was the 3 service package which included rotating tires, brake clean, etc. I left my car at the dealership for the day and went to pick it up at around 5:00pm. Once i got home, I noticed that one of the 'nut' cover on the alloy wheel was missing. I believed it was for cosmetics. I tried pulling on the others and 5 others were loose and could be pulled out very easily. That very same night, i brought the car back to the dealership at about 6:30pm right before everyone left. Told them about the problem, and one of the service guys came out, looked at the car, and said that he has seen nothing like that before and never heard of that nut cover coming loose. He told me to bring the car back in the next day.

So since they were closing, nothing i could do, i brought the car back in the next day and went back to the same service guy that helped me the first time. I couldn't find the guy that i saw last night. He took a look at the nut, and told me that it happens all the time, the nut is just for cosmetics and that they didn't have stock at the time. So he gave me a number and to call him the day after to see if the nut cover was in stock. Called him, talked to him for 30 seconds and put me on hold so he could check if the nut was in stock. Hold...Hold...15 minutes later, i hung up, if he did have it in stock, he wouldn't put me on hold for 15 mins listening to the same song over for 4 or 5 times.

Today (Saturday), i went to a different dealership in Toronto and asked them if they have the nut cover in stock. The service person behind the desk told me that they have 24 in stock and they were $6.80 each. I talked to him a little bit and found out that there was no such thing as a nut cover, the cover is suppose to stay on the nut and it shouldn't come off. The only way it comes off is if somebody uses a impact gun on the nut a few times. This really pissed me off, the dealership i went to kept telling me that it was for cosmetics and one said it happens all the time while the other said he never heard of it happening. $6.80 each and i needed 6...of course i didn't buy them, but now i know that they do have it in stock and they are sold as a nut set. So now i learned that these alloy wheel nuts cannot be turned with an impact gun, they must be turned by hand which i doubt any dealership would actually do this.

Anyway, i wanted to post this on FocusCanada and see what everybody thinks. Any suggestions? Because today is Saturday, i won't go back to my dealership since i'll just be iqnored. But i will go back on Monday and see what they say, i have a feeling they are just going to pull out "nut cover" from another focus on their lot and just squeeze it on mine. But this is their problem, I paid $240 for that service pack and BS like this happens?? EVEN if that nut cover is a cosmetic, it doesn't mean you don't have to fix it.

I say you have done your research and should go back and make em look like fools. Some of these service writers think they know the most about cars and/or you know nothing about cars and try to talk their way out of responsability. Of course, there are good ones but these days I only seem to come across idiots. I had one guy tell me that there were no drivability problems with SVT's. I must be crazy. I went home, checked the computer and found a TSB about it, printed it out and went back and said I had a problem. I left the TSB on the seat when I left and sure enough they found a problem and corrected it.

I had the same problem with my lugnuts, cheap crap. Almost as bad as the center caps!

But like the center caps those silver covers are just for cosmetics, its true...the nuts will do the same thing as before and keep your wheel on. Your wheels are not going to fall off because the little silver piece on the nut fell off.


Just get some from walmart, the solidones won't have that separation problem.

Happened to me. They had to order the nut and installed it the following day. Warranty.

Regardless of whether it's a cosmetic part, under warranty or not.. if they damage your car in any way during service the shop should be on the hook to repair/replace the damaged part.

They might say/think that the shiny part of a lugnut isnt important, but you didnt spend the money on a newer car to have to deal with ghetto s**t. If they broke the OEM lugs with their impact guns, they should be on the hook for replacing them.

THats extactly what i was thinking...i mean, i don't think i should have to go to wal-mart and pick up some of those pieces because the dealership broke the nut. They kept telling me they didn't have the nut cover in stock...im thinking they are waiting for another focus with some loose, take it off, and fit it on mine...

I know my wheel are not going to fall off because of that nut cover... lol if my wheel falls off after they service my car, i'd go to the papers!! im not sure if this is the same nut thats on the SE Sport model 15"...but on my ZTS, the nuts are shown clearly and isn't covered by a plastic plate.

BTW, if these nuts were to fall off my themselves, i don't think they are covered by warrenty...the dealership i went to today told me that i should head right back to the servicing dealership...gee, i drove around asking them if they have the nut in stock and went to other dealerships...i should send them a bill for the gas i spent too...

I am pretty sure on Monday when i go again, those guys are just going to tell me to leave the car there for the day and give me a ride home...not even a 05 for me to drive around!

BTW, this isn't just one nut on one wheel...theres 1 missing on front right, then i could also pull out 1 on each wheel...thats 5 nut that needs to be replaced...i really like to hear what the dealship has to say...actually, i just want to know where they are going to find the 5 nuts now that i know they are not planning to buy new ones since another dealership has them in stock and they tell me theres none in GTA.

I suggest you don't mention you removed the other 5 yourself... put the onis on them for having caused all the damage...

The one thing I would do is bypass the service reps and go straight to the service manager. Explain to him what you've researched, the EXTREME inconvinience of having to run around back and forth so many times, and how an issue as simple as this could reflect very poorly on their service center of Ford of Canada caught wind of it. If nothing else, even a fucktard manager would give you a free wash/vacuum to save his own ass the trouble of explaining to his superiors why there is a customer complaint over lug nut covers..

ooo free wash/vacuum...lol i never knew they actually do that!! sales person told me they would wash my car everytime i bring it in for servicing...lol never happened...asked him, he said "i didn't say such thing" lol...humm...maybe they should give me back the servicing package price of like $240 back to do basically 2 simple things...clean brake and rotate tires...or atleast some kind of coupon...

I already told them i took out the other 4 the very same day i got my car serviced...it doesn't really matter because if i didn't take them out, just by driving down the street, they would have all fallen off.

Hey, do you know where i can complain to Ford Canada about this? A e-mail? Phone number? Address??

You make everything much too complicated. Just ask them to order the nuts (parts dept. - usualy takes a day) and drive there to get them installed (10 minutes).

What's all the fuss about? Also, would help if you talk nicely to them. :-)

Ripinosu,Nov 14 2004, 05:57 PM Wrote:You make everything much too complicated. Just ask them to order the nuts (parts dept. - usualy takes a day) and drive there to get them installed (10 minutes).

What's all the fuss about? Also, would help if you talk nicely to them. :-)

Thats extactly what i want happen right now, but the dealership kept on telling me that they don't have any stock. They are trying to order it. Yesturday, i went to another dealership and found there is in fact stock available. But my dealership kept telling me they don't have any stock in the GTA and that i had to wait. Which leads me to think they are trying to make me wait so long that i would somehow forget about it.

and i have been talking nice to them, haven't swore....yet....and they also talk back very nicely with their 'experienced' talk like "Oh don't worry about it, its just for cosmetics, it happens all the time. Just bring it in tomorrow and we'll have it installed." And the next day, they don't have any stock.

keep calling them and make an appointment.

I'm curious to know the name of the dealer?

Years of complaints finally shut down Rowland Ford though most the staff from Rowland went to another dealer.

I'm not sure how true it is but complaints against a Subaru dealer (Oakville) had Subaru HQ show up in the middle of the night, change all the locks and repo the entire lot of cars with a fleet of tractor trailers! Whatever the case the business is still there but they don't sell Subarus anymore though they do offer service for.

I'll name the good ones along with the bad, it took me years before I found a good service dealer, I do like Bay Ford-Linclon in Yorkville. They are your best bet for service. For sales go to Dixie and ask what day David is in (semi retired) and then once you meet him mention you are a friend of Andrew (his son's drinking buddy!).

Oh, the dealership i went to is from Toronto...East-Court Ford Lincoln (McCowan + Sheppard). Purchased my car there, and have been servicing my car there. HOLY CRAP!! HA HA HA HA *Falls off chair! lol while i was looking up their extact address, i noticed East-Court has this "Blue Oval Certified" Logo which is suppose to mean the dealership exceeds customer satisfaction both in sales and in service!!! HA, sales...maybe, service...not IMO...the lounge is pretty nice, but then again, this dealer is pretty new. In the rear through the glass, i see half of the mechanics have a "co-op" look. And everytime i bring my car in, I watch them do this every single time. Dude with oil all over his hands gets in, steps on the gas half way, then starts the car. My car is then "flown" into the rear where it almost hits the gate thats suppose to open on its own. Stops, and when door opens, car flys into a spot almost hitting the side of the jacks. After everything is done, car flys back out, dude puts car in park before it even stops which makes that cranking sound...

Alright, i might be over exaggerating there about this happening everytime, but you know what im trying to say. Also, everytime i get the car back, i could 'feel' the grease or oil on the steering wheel, shift knob, and key...The very first time i went in for oil change, i complained to them about it, guy behind desk walks out, feels the wheel and says the leather is "suppose to be like that"...wanted to kick his ass but im not going to argue with a service guy on the first oil change.

BTW, anybody noticed how at Ford, they don't put plastic wrapping around your seat before they sit in? And they ALWAYS adjust your seat?? When i had my oldsmobile Achieva and serviced it at GM, always seat wrap...they might move the seat a bit, but they try their best to bring it back to the way it was. This goes for Mazda too, i bring my protege in, they would have seat wraps so oil/grease don't get on seats.

I mean, if some of the members of Focus Canada brought in their nice rides to my dealership, i bet those co-op lookalikes are going to burn rubber.



Here is a link to the Blue Oval website: http://www.ford.ca/english/learnabout/BlueOval/

Actually, come to think of it, i think East-Court is pretty good compared to the others around the GTA...Maybe they are treating me bad because I have a Focus and not a Lincoln? Its just 5 new nuts...gee, you broke it, you fix it...I'll properly bring it in again tomorrow, i'll post what happens. They should get it fixed tomorrow, if not, im really going to consider sending in a complaint to Ford. BTW, how do you send in a complaint??

Spyder01,Nov 14 2004, 02:15 AM Wrote:Hey, do you know where i can complain to Ford Canada about this?  A e-mail? Phone number?  Address??

You can try and complain all you want to Ford Canada but they won`t do s**t about the dealer. I know from experience I tried complaining about Donway Ford and in a very polite way Ford told me "Ford Canada is not responsible for the way that dealers do business". My best friend was told basically the same thing when he tried to complain about Rolland Ford.

By the way has anybody driven by where Rolland Ford used to be? it`s a Chevy dealership now :lol:

Well I'll add to the servicing complaints / complements

Worst exp.

Concept Ford / Lincoln - Georgetown ON - when changing the senser again they forgot to tighen it correctly........ had to take it back. not to mention how they over charge things, really dose it need to be $ 45 - 60 for a simple oil change on a Focus ?

Bramview Ford - Brampton ON - Before they moved I got into several fights with the service manager over how my car is modfied and how Ford wouldn't sell a used car like that. And then the long delays waiting for appointment made servicing. Waiting 4 hours for one oil change ? really it only take a max of 30 minutes. I should know since my dad showed me how to change a cars oil since I was 5.

Universal Ford Lincoln Sales - Calgary AB - Took my car there in 2001 while I was on vacation, it took them 20 minutes to do all the servicing but they never changed the oil. :angry: I drove close to 15,000 kms on the same oil that I started my trip with. When I took it to another Ford location near my home for servicing they told me they were suprised the engine never had problems because it was black sludge they removed from the car. :angry:

Best.

Colony Ford Lincoln - Brampton ON - best service I've ever had from a dealership, for anything related to my car. Make sure either you talk to Wendy or Michelle or they are there because they really bend over backwords to help.

as for the seat covers / and wraping up things I've seen it done at both Colony and Concept Ford, They really take the time to make sure the car has no stains, or an oily feeling afterwords. If you see any the give a free wash to the interor, Concept from my exp, did that treatment to every car that came in with an appointment.

hmmm...

Bad: Donway ford - bought SVT from them, took it back the next day. headlight housing was leaking. Threw out aftermarket bulbs. When I called the shuttle to pick me up from work, they proceeded to tell me that they don't usually do pickups anymore . after 20 minutes of arguing they said they'd make an exception. Terrible cleanup department.

Bad: Thorncrest Ford. Bought my Zx3 from them. car came in for service the day after i bought it. for shift linkage work. (car wouldnt go into second gear) Car was parked around the side of the dealership for 3 hours (same spot) they handed me the keys, and said that their printer was broken and they could not print me a work order.
the next time i went to a dealership (erinwood) they told me that none of the recalls were done on the car. Terrible Customer Service.

Bad: Whiteoak ford. Told me they couldn't adress my service issues because the ZX3 was almost out of warranty - 56,300km and I hadn't brought it to them previously

Neutral: Sheridan Ford. NON SVT. took car into dealership inspected power steering leak, told me that the car should be fine untill the part came in. Hose blew 2 days later. Dropped the car at erinwood. closest dealership. Sheridan refused to release the part to erinwood.

Neutral: Dixie ford. 56 days to order a part. they ended up ordering the wrong one. car still is not fixed. Adressed other issues in a timley fashion. Good service Manager. Overlooked Modifications. Shuttle Service = Poor.... Closes prior to 5pm
Decent Clean up dept.

Good : Erinwood ford. Sometimes reluctant to fix the car. possibly deaf technicians. Fixed all major problems. Usually Repaired within 1-2 days. when my MAFS went on the Zx3. they reinstalled the factory airbox and replaced the part under warranty instead of blaming the intake. Customer Service = excellent. friendly staff. etc
Car completley Detailed with most recent service

Same thing happened to me, a tire shop used an air gun to install my rims and next day i noticed one of those covers was missing. Went to the dealership and they replaced it without a question...free ofcourse. This should be covered under warranty. Then again, it depends on your relationship with the dealer...but as someone mentioned, if you're having trouble...go to the service manager.

Brought the car in today again to fix the fricken lug nuts...

Brought car in, waited a few min for service guy to come...and he dares to ask me why i hung up on him on friday...WTF! Who wouldn't hang up after 15 minutes of holding?? So anyway, waited about 10 mins until they actually took my car. I couldn't see it through the window, so walked over to fast lane which usually does oil changes...no car there...you know what, at that time i didn't really care where you brought my car, just fcking fix it. 30mins later, walked outside to see if the idiot took my car for a joyride, then i see my car parked by fast lane. Went over, everything looks good, im kind of happy, since i won't have to come to this dealership until the next oil change...So went back inside, waited about 10 mins so the clock hits 5:00pm so that they can charge Ford Canada for another $90...(Did you know they charge $90/hour? Thats more than lawyers and doctors!)

Anyway, waiting...waiting...waiting...finally, they told me my car was ready. I really wanted to give him a piece of my mind at the point...but i didn't. Just before i left, i asked him to print me a copy of the work order..I'll post it below..HA! It said that they replaced ALL lugs on the car and checked torque, and they charged Ford Canada for 20 Lugs!! each wheel only has 4 lugs, 4x4=16! idiot!

Went outside to the car, first thing i do, pull on every single lug.. guess what? 1 was loose, and 2 were pulled out!!! excuse my language, but what the dam! Goes back inside, this time without giving him a smile, toss the lug on the table...By this time, this service guy i believe is also getting annoyed and i can tell he didn't want to do anything, properly thinking that my car is just a focus, forget about the covers. He goes into the back, 5mins, 10mins, comes back out and tells me the mech had left (approx 5:25pm)...so i gave him a 'so?' look...I asked if i should come back tomorrow and he just mummbled a bunch of words i couldn't even understand like he didn't want to see me tomorrow...

So tomorrow, again, i have to go back to the dealership and look at that service guy's face. Now im asking the members of Focus Canada, what should i do now!?!?! Forget about the service guy, im going right to the service manager tomorrow. Also, im offically putting in a complain against this dealership to ford. I don't care if i have to call long distance to let them know. East-Court Ford Lincoln does not deserve to have that Blue Oval sticker. I have attached a photo of the work order below, sry, its a bit blurry, cause its on photo bucket...You can clearly see they charged Ford Canada for 20 Lugs when only 16 fits on the car.

<a href='http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v197/oldfishheads/Bill.jpg'></a>

talk to the service manager and make a complant to ford canada......and then tell them you want them fix...no more s**t and tell him how you feel....that gets them every time

ZX5