Your dealership alternative for diesel repair ...

[Alex Bruene]

...is what I've heard is the motto of one of our local "competitors".

 

Last week, we had a customer remove his 6.0 bus from said to remain unnamed independent repair facility after an ongoing recent history of issues they haven't been able to fix... An old customer that used to be a customer of ours who got suckered in to going elsewhere to save a few dollars...

 

Now, the bus lands on my doorstep. No big deal. Happens all the time, right?

 

So, the ongoing issues are with starting problems. Turns out they've replaced 3 "faulty" IPRs in the previous week, an injector, HPOP, LPOP, oil cooler and the list goes on. Now, I got it because of the ongoing IPR "failures" and a slight misfire. The first thing I notice is that there is an awful ticking noise coming from the top of the engine... I know what the noise is. Heard it more times I the past year that I care to remember, so I take a look around... I see there is also a new front cover installed... So, I still know what is going on, but just to be sure, I asked said to remain unnamed independent repair facility to bring me the old parts. Upon inspection, there is a distinct imprint of a needle bearing on the oil pump gears. Now, I stop any diagnosis, and I break the bad news to the customer... My recommendation (due to the mileage-and the fact that this has been going on for so long that there is likely no lobe left on the cam) is to install a long block... Customer come to see what is going on, and loses his mind! "I just spent $5000 at said to remain unnamed independent repair facility, and now you're telling me I need an engine? This engine is such a piece of shit! All I do is spend thousands upon thousands of dollars on this piece of shit!"... I said, "Sorry, I wish there was something I could do, but to tell you the truth, when I see something has gone through the low pressure oil pump, I don't go too much further until I can verify what it is/was... and in this case, it was very clear to me"...

 

That's just one of many stories that come out of this particular garage... We see all sorts of beauties. One poor guy spent nearly $1000 on diagnosis, then they sent him to the dealership to replace a fuel injector because they are not equipped to replace Econoline fuel injectors. Another guy came in with new headgaskets, for us to tell him he needs an EGR cooler... And so on, and so on, and so on... but what I don't understand, is that after all is said and done, THESE PEOPLE END UP GOING BACK TO THAT SAME FUCKING GARAGE! WHY?

[DwayneGorniak]

These places have done such a great job of smearing not only Ford's image in the mud but also every dealerships image through the mud. It would be nice to see the Big companies like Ford, Dodge (oh yeah.........I mean Fiatt), Chev, Toyota, Honda, etc start campaigns to get their professional images back. I mean just look at the filth and garbage that goes on on the internet with all the bashing of dealerships these days. I think it's time they let the little monkeys have a frickin beating!

[Bruce Amacker]

We've been down this road several times before, this is not a problem with indys or dealers, it's an industry problem. I know you guys don't want to hear it, but for every bad indy story there's an equally bad dealer tech story. I travel extensively and the names may be different but the stories are the same, there's lots of bad apples in both sectors. All we can do is hold our collective heads up, do the right thing, and keep the quality high on what WE do.

 

[Alex Bruene]

Yes. You're right, Bruce. When ever people start telling me that 6.0s are such shit, I always reply by saying your 6.0 is only as good as the people working on it. I can't think of too many people that service their 6.0s at my dealership that will say they are shit. It's garages like the one in my rant that makes people think 6.0s are shit.

[DieselD]

Yes. You're right, Bruce. When ever people start telling me that 6.0s are such shit, I always reply by saying your 6.0 is only as good as the people working on it. I can't think of too many people that service their 6.0s at my dealership that will say they are shit. It's garages like the one in my rant that makes people think 6.0s are shit.

Agree with everything said here and have been involved in too many discussions just like this.

 

I have some fellow employees that drive fords here and the most recent one was a 2005ish 5.4 F150. He never changed the oil and when he did it was some jiffy lube special bs. We guess what happened at 80k miles? camshafts and phasers took a shit. Of course he is blaming Ford for a shitty product and cant understand why they wont warranty it so now he wants a GM product....Well guess what that GM will do in 80k with the same maintenance schedule......

 

you cant fix stupid....

 

Bruce is on the money and all we can do is strive to service our customers to the best of our ability each and every time.

[mrbudge]

So many times, these engines do not die, they are murdered.

Originally Posted By: Alex_Bruene

Yes. You're right, Bruce. When ever people start telling me that 6.0s are such shit, I always reply by saying your 6.0 is only as good as the people working on it. I can't think of too many people that service their 6.0s at my dealership that will say they are shit. It's garages like the one in my rant that makes people think 6.0s are shit.

Agree with everything said here and have been involved in too many discussions just like this.

 

I have some fellow employees that drive fords here and the most recent one was a 2005ish 5.4 F150. He never changed the oil and when he did it was some jiffy lube special bs. We guess what happened at 80k miles? camshafts and phasers took a shit. Of course he is blaming Ford for a shitty product and cant understand why they wont warranty it so now he wants a GM product....Well guess what that GM will do in 80k with the same maintenance schedule......

 

you cant fix stupid....

 

Bruce is on the money and all we can do is strive to service our customers to the best of our ability each and every time.

[cbriggs]

Quote:

you cant fix stupid....

Well, there is one known cure, but euthenasia is illegal almost everywhere...

[cbriggs]

I always tell people, 49% of 6.0ls are used improperly, 49% are mainatained improperly, and there are a few that just break for no reason.

 

Now that these have been around so long, there are alot of very high mileage trucks running around here, that had all the common problems like stc fittings, egr oil cooler failures, and head gaskets repaired on warranty, and almost no problems since.

[mchan68]

Well, there is one known cure, but euthenasia is illegal almost everywhere...

I find it interesting that THAT term does not end with a ----cide, since it's just another form of ending one's life (ie homocide, suicide, genocide.... etc.).

[Aaron]

"Euthanasia" is derived from Greek, loosely translated to "Good Death".

 

It is typically the intentional ending of a life to relieve pain and suffering.

 

The suffix "-cide" is derived from the Latin "caedere" for "to kill".

 

 

I suspect the terminology is different because most forms of "cide" are not to relieve pain or suffering.

 

Just my opinion.

[Aaron]

I know a shit ton of useless information, I'm beginning to notice.

[Jim Warman]

I know some folks who will, occasionally, commit "herbicide" to kill pain.

 

There is a mind set that seems to scream that the dealer will cost more for any given repair. The public sees us, with our door rate at $20, $30 or even $40 per hour more than the guy down the road, as being the high priced alternative.

 

In the eye of Joe Public, all mechanics are crooks - the $80 per hour crook being less evil than the $120 per hour crook.

 

Sure, the guy down the road gives a low estimate that will, more often than not "snowball". But the times that it doesn't serve to make us look like gougers when we seek to replace something we know will fail soon after our current repair (did that sound right?).

 

Add that there are many in our midst that are clearly more interested in what the time ticket says at days end than the quality of the repair. There are those of us that believe we are yahwehs gift to wrenchdom, remaining oblivious to the trail of near destruction we leave in our wake (starting bolts and forgetting them is a big issue - even to the best trained of us. I realize this isn't limited to dealer repairs - but that extra $40 per hour we charge should make SOME sort of difference.

 

It doesn't help that it is too easy to develop that "we have them for the next three years" mentality. In some respects, we are the authors of our own problems.