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”Pull over Safely” came up on the dash, so we pulled over to side of highway and called Ford Road Side Assitance. A tow truck was dispatched. Car was dragged on to tow bed with a winch. The first winch snapped. The Ford dealership I was towed to had never worked on an electric car. We were halfway between our home in Canada and our winter place in Florida. On the recommendation of Ford Customer Care, they arranged to have the car transported down to a dealership in Florida. The tow company hooked into the battery rail and damaged the batteries. $28,000 repair bill. Now Ford customer care tells me I have to deal with Agero- claims for Road Side Assistance, that it’s not Ford. Agero denies the claim because it can’t be proven that it was the tow company’a fault it could have happened when the car was transported to Florida. Ford says it’s not their fault. My insurance company says it’s not claimable through them. So I am left finding lawyers in both the US and Canada to deal with this. Then I am sent a survey asking if I would refer Ford to a friend!

B877162A-0DFD-4490-A6EA-110D205A7880 (1).jpg
I just saw this video on YouTube that talks about this post.

 

yngwenli

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How often have you had to use a tow truck in your life? I’m 42 and have never had a car towed before. So “preparing to be towed” is pretty far down on my list of fears.

I probably had to get a tow like 5 times so far randomly thinking back. One time, I needed to tow twice in a row (since I was limited to 100 miles member tow).

Towing is the only reason I have AAA Plus membership (for the 100 mile benefit). Lately, there hasn't been a tow, but since I posted this, I'll probably need a tow soon.

I think with WFH and simply less driving overall now in my life, there are just less tows (less driving overall).
 

RickMachE

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Well as luck would have it the same day I reposted the tow point pictures I came out to my car to a flat tire. Getting a tow in the morning.
Did FordPass not notify you of a flat? #AskingForThoseThatSayFordPassWorksSoWell

My personal choice would be to not tow my vehicle for a flat tire. I'd get out my floor jack and puck (which I have to order...), remove the tire, and take it to Discount Tire for repair or replacement. Then I'd bring it back and mount it, and then drive to DT to have them torque it to 150 pounds for me. Yes, laborious, but just the thought of them dragging the car onto the tow truck while possibly destroying the tire...

I'd be PO'd if someone made a video referencing content that I posted.
 

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Did FordPass not notify you of a flat? #AskingForThoseThatSayFordPassWorksSoWell

My personal choice would be to not tow my vehicle for a flat tire. I'd get out my floor jack and puck (which I have to order...), remove the tire, and take it to Discount Tire for repair or replacement. Then I'd bring it back and mount it, and then drive to DT to have them torque it to 150 pounds for me. Yes, laborious, but just the thought of them dragging the car onto the tow truck while possibly destroying the tire...

I'd be PO'd if someone made a video referencing content that I posted.
This^^^

Or, if it’s a slow leak, just air it up and drive it somewhere to get patched.

Unless the sidewall is gouged, you should be fine.

I can’t imagine calling for a tow for a flat. Especially considering these nightmare stories!
 

J5hort

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How often have you had to use a tow truck in your life? I’m 42 and have never had a car towed before. So “preparing to be towed” is pretty far down on my list of fears.
As owner of 6 cars, a few of them college cars, it is a big plus to have a AAA Plus membership with 100 miles of towing. Any problem with the cars the next state over, the car is towed to my house where I can work on it. May not need to worry about that with MME, although, I would probably do that if battery went dead. Saving hundreds on towing, probably 5 times used minimum in the last year. AAA membership is by the person, not by car, so son's girlfriend's car made it up to my house for some work as well. So, "very often" would be my answer. Also saving thousands by doing the work myself vs. sending to dealer or shop.
 


yngwenli

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As owner of 6 cars, a few of them college cars, it is a big plus to have a AAA Plus membership with 100 miles of towing. Any problem with the cars the next state over, the car is towed to my house where I can work on it. May not need to worry about that with MME, although, I would probably do that if battery went dead. Saving hundreds on towing, probably 5 times used minimum in the last year. AAA membership is by the person, not by car, so son's girlfriend's car made it up to my house for some work as well. So, "very often" would be my answer. Also saving thousands by doing the work myself vs. sending to dealer or shop.

Yeah, I think this towing thing is really a case of ignorance is bliss. Sorta like that Texas Polar Vortex where folks had no power for 2 weeks+ or longer. There was a mad rush to get solar/energy storage since the sun came back in a couple days, far quicker than power/gas was restored.

If you've never had to tow, it sounds like a total waste of $$, but having that benefit makes it a great piece of mind (assuming they don't damage your car like this Mach-E example). I've never had tow damage personally.

I think a single long range tow is like ~$500 or even more so I switched to Plus purely for that. It's great if you're on a long trip. Like you said, it works for you in any car so you can help folks if you're not the driver. I also have towed to my house, deal with the problem later bit since you didn't want to be taken advantage of from a far off dealer/shop and it's just a hassle to have your car worked on far away. Regular AAA is 10 miles I believe.
 

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Yeah, I think this towing thing is really a case of ignorance is bliss. Sorta like that Texas Polar Vortex where folks had no power for 2 weeks+ or longer. There was a mad rush to get solar/energy storage since the sun came back in a couple days, far quicker than power/gas was restored.

If you've never had to tow, it sounds like a total waste of $$, but having that benefit makes it a great piece of mind (assuming they don't damage your car like this Mach-E example). I've never had tow damage personally.

I think a single long range tow is like ~$500 or even more so I switched to Plus purely for that. It's great if you're on a long trip. Like you said, it works for you in any car so you can help folks if you're not the driver. I also have towed to my house, deal with the problem later bit since you didn't want to be taken advantage of from a far off dealer/shop and it's just a hassle to have your car worked on far away. Regular AAA is 10 miles I believe.
Was 3 miles, may have changed since I last had regular AAA. Learned the hard way, but still saved lots of $ on the repair. Little secret is that I have some project cars stored in another location. I routinely have them towed between the other address and my home garage. Never ran into any problem with AAA towing. I'd want to be sure they are up on the hook points for the MME however. The AAA mobile charging trucks look promising.
 

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Given that Ford will tow my vehicle for free for 5 years, I don't get the paying for AAA, much less the extended service, but whatever floats your boat.
 

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How often have you had to use a tow truck in your life? I’m 42 and have never had a car towed before. So “preparing to be towed” is pretty far down on my list of fears.
Same here. Until I read this thread, I never worried about it. Now I have 28,000 reasons to worry about it.
 

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Did FordPass not notify you of a flat? #AskingForThoseThatSayFordPassWorksSoWell

My personal choice would be to not tow my vehicle for a flat tire. I'd get out my floor jack and puck (which I have to order...), remove the tire, and take it to Discount Tire for repair or replacement. Then I'd bring it back and mount it, and then drive to DT to have them torque it to 150 pounds for me. Yes, laborious, but just the thought of them dragging the car onto the tow truck while possibly destroying the tire...

I'd be PO'd if someone made a video referencing content that I posted.
No FordPass did not tell me. At least not until the tire was pulled off at the dealer (at least 12 hours after it was flat) and then it complained with a notification and a big warning on the front page. The odd thing is, last night FordPass did show the 2 PSI of pressure in the tire, but only when I went to look at it. There was no notification or message on the home screen.

It was in too tough of a spot to jack, right next to a curb. The tow truck driver (who I believe was insane, but that's another story) ended up just driving the car onto the truck slowly. Didn't winch it and didn't damage anything.

This^^^

Or, if it’s a slow leak, just air it up and drive it somewhere to get patched.

Unless the sidewall is gouged, you should be fine.

I can’t imagine calling for a tow for a flat. Especially considering these nightmare stories!
It was right next to a curb with a bush on it, would have been real tough to get in there. They pulled this out of it:
Ford Mustang Mach-E RESOLUTION!  $28,000 damage to Mach-E from tow truck hooking into battery rail PXL_20220126_225200171
 
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ValentinoRossi

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You guys are seriously overthinking it. When the tow guy shows up just say “hey dude, couldn’t get it in tow mode so just use wheel Dollies and hook up in front of the front wheels”. It’s not a massive problem.
if you insist on finding a solution then by all means tape it, spray paint it, glue some thumb tacks on it, or whatever else you think might work. It’s just a metal rail, there’s no fancy hidden purpose for it except being a rail. ?
I thought the Ford guide specifically says NOT to use wheel dollies? Am I missing something?
 

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I thought the Ford guide specifically says NOT to use wheel dollies? Am I missing something?
We’re talking about for winching onto a flat bed. But yes, per the manual, you can use a tow dolly in the rear wheels as well for towing on a non flatbed.
 

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This^^^

Or, if it’s a slow leak, just air it up and drive it somewhere to get patched.

Unless the sidewall is gouged, you should be fine.

I can’t imagine calling for a tow for a flat. Especially considering these nightmare stories!
You got that flat kit!!
 

J5hort

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You got that flat kit!!
Town Fair Tire will patch tread punctures for free. Quality inside patch. You do not even need to be a previous customer. I'll also add that they are probably one of the best tire retailers around. I often bring rims and tires these and they mount and balance for me. I also buy tires from them for some of my vehicles.
Sponsored

 
 




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