jaysonfordtech

So here we go guys. One of my techs had a 6.4 with 5000 miles come in today for an oil leak concern. The bedplate ridge is wet on both sides all the way from the ft cover to the trans. The tech added dye and is praying that it is something other than a bedplate seal or a bedplate that was final machined with a cheese grader. Anyone else seen anything?

Well that is why I started the thread. When my friend called me yesterday it really got me thinking. I think that it may have gotten him to at least take a second look at what he was getting himself into.

So I have a friend who after 8 or so years in the army jumping out of perfectly good planes decided that with his GI bill he wanted to become a tech. I told him my story and gave due warning of what he was asking for, and he still wanted to do it. He started his automotive classes at a jr college, after taking almost a year of non automotive courses to make it an associates degree. On the first day the instructor who was a Ford dealership tech for years before a major back injury led him to get reeducated made the comment to the class that you can make a good living as a tech, but they should bare in mind that in all of his years turning wrench he never saw a mechanic retire. He saw many get forced out due to injury, went to a few funerals, and saw some get out of the field into something else by choice. This got me thinking, I have not seen a tech retire in the almost 10 years I have been doing this. Have any of you seen a tech retire after a lifetime of doing this?

So I am finding that the more education I get the more afraid of the world I am, lol. I am taking a business law class as part of my BA degree. Lawyers are subject to legal malpractice, doctors to medical malpractice, and even accountants are subject to accounting malpractice. Does anyone know or have even considered the idea of our personal liability, over and above that of the dealership? If we are held personally liable for damages, it could wipe out our families savings and assets, if we are not covered by an insurance policy.

All I can say is sorry. The last dealership I worked at was like that. We overhauled or replaced the trans in a truck 6 times in the 36k it was under warranty because the guy was pumping 25 psi of boost in a 7.3 and pulling very large heavy equipment around with it. I had a blow out with the service manager about warranty there over a t-bird that had just gone through detail and now had 8 coils underwater for a week. I said you can warranty that, but not with my number on the ticket. There was some yelling and fuck you's tossed back and forth then he bullied someone else into doing it under warranty. Just to note the updated coil covers had just been installed before it was traded in.

My fix for mileage complaints on any diesel powered rig is the boost test. If it creates specified boost, and there is no other concern such as trans or brake problem then it is working as designed.

na, its made from the finest cats and dogs. LOL. It may be tanned with pcb's, lead, and other nice things however.

I don't know if it is "expected" of us, but it does warm my heart to void some of these guys warranties. I think that it is all up to your service manager.

August 17, 2007 To: Ford, Lincoln & Mercury Dealership Principals and Service Department Personnel Subject: Revised Warranty Cancellation or Reinstatement Process Effective September 1, 2007, the process for requesting warranty cancellations/reinstatements is being modified. The only recognized method for requesting warranty cancellations or reinstatements will be the new electronic Warranty Status Change Request form, which is available on FMCDealer.com / "Parts & Service" tab / Warranty Administration & Warranty Parts Returns / Warranty Cancellation Request Form. Please note that this process does not apply to branded titles. The process for handling branded titles remains unchanged. To submit a warranty cancellation or reinstatement request, simply complete each applicable section of the electronic form, add any relevant attachments such as photographs, repair orders, etc. and click on submit request. Please note that only one type of cancellation can be processed on the request form. Following are criteria for each type of cancellation request. TYPES OF WARRANTY CANCELLATIONS Engine Transmission Powertrain (includes engine, transmission and drivetrain) Rear Axle Body/Paint Entire Vehicle Coverage COMMON TYPES OF VEHICLE DAMAGE THAT REQUIRE WARRANTY CANCELLATION Infrequent or No Vehicle Maintenance Cancellation Criteria: Infrequent or no vehicle maintenance has caused engine or transmission failure. Cancellation Types: Engine, Transmission or Powertrain. Modification or Alteration Cancellation Criteria: Owner physically modifies or alters vehicle for performance enhancement (chips, etc.), resulting in damage to the engine, transmission, or other vehicle components. Cancellation Types: Engine, Transmission, Powertrain, Rear Axle, or in extreme cases, Entire Vehicle Coverage. Water Ingestion/Damage Cancellation Criteria: Water has been ingested into the vehicle's Powertrain compartment or elsewhere in the vehicle. Cancellation Types: Engine, Transmission, Powertrain or, in extreme cases, Entire Vehicle Coverage. Abuse Cancellation Criteria: Vehicle abuse, whether intentional or inadvertent, results in damage to the engine, transmission, or other vehicle components. Types of abuse may include fuel contamination, aggressive driving behavior, racing, aftermarket fluid additives, etc. Cancellation Types: Engine, Transmission, Powertrain, Rear Axle, Body/Paint or, in extreme cases, Entire Vehicle Coverage. Odometer Tampering Cancellation Criteria: The odometer is not working properly or shows signs of tampering. Cancellation Types: Entire Vehicle Coverage. Unauthorized Repair or Parts Cancellation Criteria: Vehicle repairs or service has been performed by an unqualified repair facility or a non-Ford part has been installed resulting in damage to the engine, transmission, or other vehicle components. Cancellation Types: Engine, Transmission, Powertrain, Rear Axle or in extreme cases, Entire Vehicle Coverage. This is a cut and paste from the FMC dealer message board. The topic is under the service section and is titled "They finally put it in writing!"

Well keith there is a process for flagging the vehicle for warranty denial due to different situations including abuse and damage caused by aftermarket modifications. In fact Ford just made the form electronic instead of paper. I called hotline with one recently, it was a 05 e series with an edge chip on position 4 when I got in it. There was a mil on and multiple dtc's mostly related to boost, backpressure, and EGR. I looked under the rig and found nothing but straight pipes. I called hotline and asked what they advised I do. The engineer told me that he was flagging the vin on the hotline system so if any other tech called on it they could inform him of the modifications, and that I should ask the customer to return the vehicle to stock before I continued diag. Needless to say the van went away. I'm not too worried as it was at 65k, the guy lived within a 15 mile area of the dealer and had not been in but once, and it was for a 3/36 warranty concern.

That is the case here also, the vast majority of them have rust rather than carbon issues. Even so, there are some that are marginal and could be cleaned. I wonder if everyone else sees more rust problems in the turbos?

Right there with you. Cut my time by three hours and then think I am going to take the time and risk to clean the turbo to save them money, I don't think so. RR it is.

Well keith I found that at about 25 I realized that I had topped out in wages and had gotten my senior master in both gas and diesel so it was time for a new challenge. I knew my body could not handle another 20 years of this, so off to college I went. These were the two main factors that influenced me. There is very limited upward mobility. Add to that the meager benefits that most dealers give and the decision was clear. I have about a year left of working full time and going to college 3/4 time, then I start university full time and will most likely work part time at the dealer. They have expressed interest in retaining me even if it is only part time. I have 2 young techs in my shop both are about a year out of school. I think that this is the only way to keep your shop staffed to the level you want. There is indeed a shortage of good experienced techs, and it costs a fortune to steal them away. I agree with most of the comments that gary made. There is a limited niche left for technicians. The industry is changing in a big way and I'm not sure that our position will be the one to benefit from that change. Oh and for the record I don't think that it is that difficult to make decent money in this field, but you have to work awful damn hard for it.

So just speaking for myself I can say that I do everything in my power express the severity of the concern to my advisor. From that point on I have no control. In the dealerships that I have worked at, this is where the true overselling is done. I have had tickets that I made a 3 page list of things including the marginal stuff like seeps and 4.0mm brake pads, and had the writer return saying “do it all.” I have to believe that he did not truly explain the situation to the customer. This is not to say that I haven’t seen greedy techs who rape customers, or service advisors that are more than willing to overcharge. In fact we just had a blow up over an advisor who tried to and almost got away with charging 22 hours for a 12 hour job. The tech was more than willing to take the extra 10 hours and not say a word. In my opinion if a tech is willing to put up with a dishonest advisor, he is just as guilty. I see this whole selling off recall thing like this, we are just reporters. We are supposed to tell the news like it is. If I get a heap in my stall for a recall, I tell my advisor everything I see. I feel it is my duty to inspect the car and report to my advisor what I find. From there I think it is his job to accurately inform the customer of the concerns found during the inspection, not to gloss it over to make sure the customer returns. I think if I inspect the car correctly and the advisor is honest in his report to the customer we will get the work that the customer wants to do, or we will have at least given the customer a true indication for the condition of the car, so they can decide what to do.

It all boils down to greed. I see it in my shop, and all the shops I have worked in just as you are seeing it in yours. Guys it bad enough when we make a mistake, or work is dispatched to the guy who does not have the skill for the job and botches it. I can't stand the guys who do it for greed or laziness. I am in a flat rate shop. I have found that although it lowers the laziness factor somewhat it increases the greed in some people by a factor of 10. I wish I had an answer for this but I don't. In my career I have actually found that the greedy ones who cut the nasty corners like chopping out a connector and charging full bore, who get away with it are rewarded by the management due to their increased productivity numbers. Throughout my career I have found that management has the see no evil, speak no evil, and hear no evil point of view so long as it doesn’t come back. I have resigned myself to attempting to train the young ones as best I can and just hazing the greedy ones unmercifully who sell the brakes at 5 millimeters and flush, flush, flush.

check out this cool new engine for the CTS in europe http://www.greencarcongress.com/2007/07/gm-to-buy-50-eq.html#more pressure sensors in glow plugs....cool stuff

Same happens here, you get a serving of gravy after you eat your bowl of sh**. I think he was upsidedown by about 8 or so hours, that is why I suggested asking. Being on straight flat rate it is nice to have a boss that understands that there can be a learning curve.

I have seen oasis flags for voided warranty for salvage title and flags for being from the great white north. We also have been getting emails from regional reps saying look out for so and so vin and customer because he/she is shopping for warranty and there has been proven tuner damage. I have done this myself. I had a blown headgasket and the guy left the programmer he took off in the backseat. I had the service manager take the pictures and ship them off to the rep and denied the warranty for that service. Must be Republican reps out here. LOL. If they are they are Republicans they are one of the few here in the People Repubic of Washington.

it's like watching a retard with a razor blade, you just know what is going to happen. I could not stop reading the posts. You know it was dealing with the owners of these truck that was one of the things that made me decide to go back to college.

Head gasket and/or cracked cyl. head. Also look out for the valve seat dropping out of the head, it was a problem with some of the 1.9's. I've not seen much in the way of block problems, but you are adding a bunch of coolant so nothing is out of the question here.

Not much, but this is a fleet rig that has had this problem for 8 or 10k miles so it had been changed a few times. My tech mentioned that he though now that he had sold his soul to the diesel devil by getting certified, lol. Poor kid lost his AS* on that job. I told him to go to our service manager who is a good guy and ask if he would split the difference seeing as it was his first big diesel job, but he was too prideful to ask for help.

Well, he retested oil flow cold and found about 18 seconds to fill the filter housing. Something passed through the low pressure pump. The front cover had a massive gouge in it, and the pump was also damaged. It sill does not explain why he found the oil level changed, but it is fixed.

don't worry guys got it figured out. Thanks

Hey guys I have one that I think may be a casting flaw in the block, but I wanted to run it past you guys. 06 f550 air check ok, irp changes tone. 16 seconds of crank time in the morning to build low pressure oil and about 18 to start. We get about 75 psi of pressure at idle cold. Checked the oil level before attempt to start this morning, it was at the top of the marks. After it started we checked again and it was about 1.5qt.s down. Checked flow at the filter housing about 8 to 10 seconds to fill with the drain depressed. Prior history is pump and ipr for same concern about 1k ago. This one is one of my newly minted diesel techs jobs. I told him that he will have a great understanding of high pressure oil systems by the time he is done with this job.

It's got to be the septic tank and portable potty truck account we have. It smells like blue water and is caked with "mud". We just have to keep telling ourselves, "it's mud not septic tank overflow and grass."