Build Date Overdue and No Updates

[macchiaz-o]

I feel your pain. Unfortunately what you are mostly encountering is yet one more lazy dealer. My recommendation is you reach out to the owner or GM of the dealership to let them know. If that doesn’t work, email Ford customer service with cc: to the owner.

Have you looked up your VIN in the Tracker to check the status?

All of this is good advice, @Psipunk. The guy handling your Mach-E reservation sounds lazy and uninformed.

I seriously doubt he's the only one at that dealer who's been fully trained on this stuff. You deserve better. Ask the manager to move it to himself/herself or the fleet manager trained on Mach-E sales.

You can definitely do a longer test drive once they get their FCTP vehicle, too. But more than likely your own car is arriving at about the same time.

Sponsored

 

[djett]

Not to sound like a broken record but the lack of communication by Ford is inexcusable. To be fair though, a lot of your frustration is being brought about by your dealer and for the most part that is beyond Ford's control.

 

[Kamuelaflyer]

All of this is good advice, @Psipunk. The guy handling your Mach-E reservation sounds lazy and uninformed.

I seriously doubt he's the only one at that dealer who's been fully trained on this stuff. You deserve better. Ask the manager to move it to himself/herself or the fleet manager trained on Mach-E sales.

You can definitely do a longer test drive once they get their FCTP vehicle, too. But more than likely your own car is arriving at about the same time.

@Psipunk's build may beat the FCTP car to his dealer. In which case, he can pretty much do almost as long a test drive as he likes in his own car (a 5 year test drive might be a bit much though, )

I know out here, there's a single dealer with an FCTP car on their website. That car rolled out the doors on October 29, 2020. It's still in Cuautitlan. That might be part of the reason for a nonanswer, but it's not a good reason. I think your comments are right on the money and now I don't have to write them out myself.

 

[ajmartineau]

@Psipunk Who is your dealer?
Scarf, Sound, Evergreen?

I would say anyone here can argue their Ford dealer broke the deposit agreement by not delivering by 12-31. I never thought I would get my car by then, but it's a “valid” argument.

You may regret not getting the car when summer is here and you see me drive by. ?

 

[Psipunk]

@Psipunk Who is your dealer?
Scarf, Sound, Evergreen?

I would say anyone here can argue their Ford dealer broke the deposit agreement by not delivering by 12-31. I never thought I would get my car by then, but it's a “valid” argument.

You may regret not getting the car when summer is here and you see me drive by. ?

My dealer is Bowen Scarff.

The other wierd thing about this is they asked for a picture of my driver's license because they wanted to verify if I am a legitimate person who ordered the car? I don't like sending sensitive information over the internet, but I went ahead and sent it. Ummm.... Has anyone else had to give their license over to the dealer?

Maybe I am just being paranoid. Is this is a routine thing? I have a service records at the dealership going back 6 years. Yea, I have been going there that long!

Like I said, I have been pretty loyal to these guys and I havn't complained about anything, but that's probably part of the problem. I hate those types of places where you have to complain to get anything done, if even then, because most of the time it falls on deaf ears. Always get a bad taste in my mouth afterwards because then you become THAT customer. The relationship is never the same again. Rather just not deal with places like that at all.

Maybe I could transfer my reservation to a different dealer? I might call ford corporate and find out.

I don't know if I will regret buying the car or not. I could pay cash for it, but I was going to first check out Ford Options plan and perhaps go that route. Paying cash for this car seems unwise due to the abysmal residual value and it may not be worth anything in a couple years.

Sigh.... I am going to try to reach out to the dealer one more time or perhaps just go there in person. I don't have the VIN for my vehicle, so I can't track it or anything. I thought that was the point of the myford account, anyway, but it looks like the info there is useless to most people.

Thanks everyone for your responses!

 

[MailGuy]

Whenever purchasing a car in Washington, you have to provide your driver's license before the deal can be completed. It's a state requirement AFAIK to establish/confirm identity for the registration. It typically happens when you are preparing/finalizing paperwork however. My dealer reached out this week to introduce himself (personnel change). We started processing the paperwork and he asked for the same. Like you I don't like sending sensitive information in eMail. I told him I'd scan it and drop it off.

He took the opportunity to inform me the car would be here the middle of February. I politely informed him that I was actively tracking the car and that was my expectation as well.

 

[Psipunk]

Whenever purchasing a car in Washington, you have to provide your driver's license before the deal can be completed. It's a state requirement AFAIK to establish/confirm identity for the registration. It typically happens when you are preparing/finalizing paperwork however. My dealer reached out this week to introduce himself (personnel change). We started processing the paperwork and he asked for the same. Like you I don't like sending sensitive information in eMail. I told him I'd scan it and drop it off.

He took the opportunity to inform me the car would be here the middle of February. I politely informed him that I was actively tracking the car and that was my expectation as well.

Wow I didn't know that! I have been living here my whole life. Lol

I guess the only time I have ever provided ID to a dealer was for financing purposes or, occasionally, test drives, but thats pretty much any time you apply for credit for anything. Cars, property, etc. For lender purposes. Learn something new everyday.

What dealer are you working with? Seems like they are keeping you informed.

 

[MailGuy]

Wow I didn't know that! I have been living here my whole life. Lol

I guess the only time I have ever provided ID to a dealer was for financing purposes or, occasionally, test drives, but thats pretty much any time you apply for credit for anything. Cars, property, etc. For lender purposes. Learn something new everyday.

What dealer are you working with? Seems like they are keeping you informed.

Evergreen. They’ve let me know what they know. I haven't pestered them much about my order.

I had to do the license thing with my wife’s Electric Mini last year as well when I paid cash. No credit pull occurred on that transaction, so not a financing requirement.

 

[Razorbak86]

I don't know if I will regret buying the car or not. I could pay cash for it, but I was going to first check out Ford Options plan and perhaps go that route. Paying cash for this car seems unwise due to the abysmal residual value and it may not be worth anything in a couple years.

If you really feel that way BEFORE the vehicle arrives, you should probably run as fast as you can to another model (and dealer).

 

[DaveRuns]

Yea, so....

I reserved my car the day of announcement back in November 2020 and went through with my order on June 30th after they opened orders. After getting the reservation money refunded back to me, the $500 went back to the dealer for the order. Turns out the dealer is keeping my deposit as non-refundable.... Very lame considering I bought my F-150 from them and I do all my servicing through the dealer. Like thousands of dollars worth of business.

Received a build "week" of December 20th. Its January 10th 2021 and I checked my status. Not built yet. No update to the build date, either. Probably due to Christmas/New Year? No word from the dealer.

Visited my dealer in early December because they had a "show" car available to look at without driving. Let them know I wanted to test drive when they get a demo car. Dealer said I would probably need to schedule a test drive and said most likely it would be 15 minutes "due to demand". I ordered a car and you can't give me more than 15 minutes?? Jeez what does $500 get you these days. A lookie-loo and smell of the new interior?

Three weeks ago I asked the same dealer if I could test drive the new Bronco Sport and make an appointment to do that cause they had one when I saw the Mach-E. Dealer says I need to work with the same guy who is handling my Mach-E reservation. I say, "Okay cool, call me back?"

Not a word from them since that time.

I think I am going to lose $500 and never go back to Ford again. Seriously bad customer service and complete lack of communication, respect of people's time, and no loyalty to your customer.

Why am I being treated like crap? I don't get it. Like I am actively trying to be nice to these people and have been patient and forget about all the things that are annoying me, but I think I need to move on.

I sure can empathize with you. I'm having some of the same experiences. In all instances, If I did not proactively reach out to my dealer, I would have NO communication with him. I don't know what the remedy is. Perhaps getting the regional manager involved? I do know this. IF I choose to go ahead with my MME delivery (I say if, because now I have real concerns over the electrical charging, handling, and infotainment lagging. I'm hoping these are pre-production challenges. I'm seriously considering a Model Y), I'll never buy another car from Ford again. The MME will be my first Ford. It just may be my last. I hear more from my Jeep Grand Cherokee dealer than I do this Ford dealer. I bought the Jeep in 2015!

 

[Psipunk]

If you really feel that way BEFORE the vehicle arrives, you should probably run as fast as you can to another model (and dealer).

Well, unfortunately, the residual value has already been revealed in other threads with financing terms released for the lease option. Ford itself is only going to give this vehicle like a 32% residual value after 2 or 3 years, I believe. Don't quote me on that, but its somewhere in that ballpark. Essentially, its very, very low, which hurts resale value. Lower than most vehicles out on the road except for like, say, a $150,000 sports car or something where values drop off a cliff after the first couple years. Similar type of deal here. Battery technology is to blame, I would imagine, and the ever improving nature of technology.

I like to be informed on not just the awesome features of the vehicle, but also the downsides. I feel that a balanced, unbiased approach is always the best way to look at everything.

That being said, I think Ford is doing some really good things with the Mach-E and Bronco lines. Really impressive and I would actually love owning both of them.

However, I just wish Ford was more invested in its customer experience so I could feel more confident in buying into this brand.

My Ford F-150 is a good truck, but it has left me dead on the road 3 times after going into "limp mode". Twice I had my toddlers with me, which was a pain. Fortunately, I was still under warranty when those incidents happened. Unfortunately, my vehicle was out of commission and I was never able to get a loaner because the dealer never had one available for me. Very lame.

Every other dealer has treated my family very well. My dad owns Toyotas and has had warranty problems, but they always gave him a car to borrow in the meantime. Same with my wife's GMC. It has rarely ever had any problem what so ever, but the one time it did the dealer offered a loaner right away. My sister bought a Volkswagon Atlas (too many warranty issues!! Don't buy!!) and was given a car like 6 times she has taken it in for warranty problems.

Its not just one thing that is bugging me about them. I think with the level of patience I have had probably goes beyond what most people would deal with in their circumstances.

 

[DaveRuns]

My dealer is Bowen Scarff.

The other wierd thing about this is they asked for a picture of my driver's license because they wanted to verify if I am a legitimate person who ordered the car? I don't like sending sensitive information over the internet, but I went ahead and sent it. Ummm.... Has anyone else had to give their license over to the dealer?

Maybe I am just being paranoid. Is this is a routine thing? I have a service records at the dealership going back 6 years. Yea, I have been going there that long!

Like I said, I have been pretty loyal to these guys and I havn't complained about anything, but that's probably part of the problem. I hate those types of places where you have to complain to get anything done, if even then, because most of the time it falls on deaf ears. Always get a bad taste in my mouth afterwards because then you become THAT customer. The relationship is never the same again. Rather just not deal with places like that at all.

Maybe I could transfer my reservation to a different dealer? I might call ford corporate and find out.

I don't know if I will regret buying the car or not. I could pay cash for it, but I was going to first check out Ford Options plan and perhaps go that route. Paying cash for this car seems unwise due to the abysmal residual value and it may not be worth anything in a couple years.

Sigh.... I am going to try to reach out to the dealer one more time or perhaps just go there in person. I don't have the VIN for my vehicle, so I can't track it or anything. I thought that was the point of the myford account, anyway, but it looks like the info there is useless to most people.

Thanks everyone for your responses!

I haven't heard of any requirement to scan in a driver's license.

 

[MailGuy]

I haven't heard of any requirement to scan in a driver's license.

Maybe because they did it with your test drive? Buying a car during COVID-19 is a different experience.

 

[hybrid2bev]

I haven't heard of any requirement to scan in a driver's license.

Normally when buying a car identification validation is done, but usually it’s just before delivery, not this early. I agree it’s weird to me.

Dealers and lenders are required to validate that you are not on the OFAC list (government naughty list). Lenders will often require that dealers go through the red flags process to confirm that you are who you say you are. Dealers make assertions to lenders that they have confirmed you are not a identity fraudster before asking them to lending money.

 

[timbop]

Ford itself is only going to give this vehicle like a 32% residual value after 2 or 3 years

Nope. On the 3 year options it is in the 40's, and for the 4 year it is in the 30's - depending upon the mileage chosen. For the red carpet lease it is in the 50's for 3 years. The reason for the much lower residual is the $7500 that secondhand buyers know the initial buyer received on options that they don't get on the regular lease. Whether that makes sense or not I do not know, but that is the logic.

Sponsored