ComplaintsforLee Ford of Wilson

• Initial Complaint

  01/09/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I took my 2021 Ford Explorer to Lee ford in Wilson on 10/31/2022. The vehicle was working fine but I needed the airbag light programmed, the power steering fixed and also the check engine light was on due to the turbo. The vehicle has been running and driving just fine no issues but due to the vehicle being in an accident we needed a few minor things fixed. So when I brung the vehicle ****** ******** employee with the service department took ownership of repairing the issues. I told him in the beginning that the vehicle was in an accident previously and it was strictly body parts that needed to be repaired, nothing with the engine or motor or anything strictly body work. ****** finally “fixed” the vehicle and told me it was ready for pick up. When I went to pick up the vehicle, the vehicle would not start at all. ****** did not tell me that the vehicle was not starting. He did not mention that it would not crank because the vehicle was running and driving perfectly fine when I dropped it off on 10/31/22. I left the truck and came back the next day 12/2/2022. ****** then said oh yes the vehicle is not cranking due to the spark plugs and some plastic that got in the engine but he cleaned it out, keep in mind ****** has not once mentioned this to me during the whole time he had the vehicle so for it not to be turning on was a complete surprise. ****** said oh yea it’s not turning on, you need a new engine. My engine was working just fine. I did not send the vehicle in for a problem with the engine. Now I took my vehicle to another service department and now I have to purchase a new engine. I need to be reimbursed for having to purchase a whole new engine. I paid Lee Ford of Wilson $3050 for my vehicle to be fixed but now it is in worse condition than when I brung it in. Now the engine and muffler are not working.

  

  Business response

  01/16/2023

  The customer brought their vehicle into our repair shop after having damage from an accident. They had completed repairs from the accident themselves. They had concerns regarding an airbag light, their adaptive cruise control was inoperative, they mentioned the vehicle was hard to steer and they had a check engine light.
  We diagnosed vehicle and after having to remove the front bumper and grille, found that when repairing they had installed the incorrect wire harness and there was no sensor for adaptive cruise control. We repaired the driver’s side curtain airbag wiring harness and installed the correct cruise control module and  wiring harness and reprogramed both units.
  As far as the hard to steer issue, we put vehicle on alignment rack and noticed that the driver’s side front wheel was sitting further back than passenger side front wheel. We diagnosed the hard steering issue to a bent driver’s lower control arm that had not been replaced when other accident damage had been repaired. We replaced lower control arm.
  In regards to the check engine light, on visual inspection we found the map sensor and wiring damaged so that was replaced first than on test drive the vehicle lost power and had a misfire, so our technician pulled up (2) fault codes from vehicles computer. (1) was a PT2099 code for Turbo Under Boost and (1) for P0303 which is a cylinder 3 misfire code. Upon further inspection the technician removed the Charge Air Cooler Pipe and found pieces from the original Charge Air Cooler pipe that had been damaged in accident and had been replaced. This debris had gotten into the engine and turbo. Technician removed the broken pieces as well as a burnt spark plug in cylinder 3. This is the cylinder that was misfiring. It appears that the debris from that damaged Charge Cooler Pipe has damaged the engine and most likely the turbo. This concern does cause the misfire on cylinder 3 which will make the vehicle hard to start.
  In the customers own complaint, they stated that the engine was working just fine, yet they also stated that one of the reasons they had brought it in was concerning an engine light due to a problem with the turbo. That existed before we ever had the vehicle and was caused by the aforementioned damage to Charge Air Cooler Pipe that was damaged in the accident. Since this is due to damage from the original accident, we would think it should be addressed with the insurance company who initially paid the claim for repairing the vehicle. Regardless, this damage was done to the vehicle prior to it arriving here for repairs, and the repairs they paid us for were for repairs that they either neglected to complete, or that they had done incorrectly prior to bringing the vehicle to us. 

  Customer response

  01/18/2023

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because: 

  The vehicle was running and working just fine when it was brought to the repair shop. I had asked ****** when I spoke to him about the check engine light why is it saying the turbo. ****** clearly told me we do not see any check engine light code for Turbo when I came in the shop to see why the vehicle was not ready yet. The vehicle has been running fine since the purchase of the vehicle. I brung the truck there and it was starting up and driving with no issues at all. When the vehicle was in their possession for weeks they never once told me that the vehicle was having an issue with starting. I still did not know that the vehicle was not starting until after I had paid my money and went there to pick up the truck and it would not start. ****** said he drove the vehicle and it had a skip but that was due to the spark plug but other than that the vehicle was driving and I also was not made aware of the spark plug issue until I started pressing to have the vehicle completed as the vehicle had been in the repair shop for longer than planned. This is leading me to believe that I was deceived because I was never once informed that vehicle was not starting because when I dropped it off in their shop it was working just fine. The day I bring the vehicle home it did not even make it out of the parking lot. I had to have the vehicle towed from their establishment. The vehicle was in worse condition when I brung it to them and I feel as though they are trying to place the problems that took place in their care on the fact that the vehicle was in an accident prior, they are using that as an excuse. The tire is still not fixed. Now the muffler is broke as well and ****** said he will fix that because he know it’s broke. I can not reach out to an insurance company because these repairs have all came out of my pocket not an insurance company. I have paid over $3000 out of my hard earned money to Ford and the vehicle is in worse condition. I do not feel as though they were honest with me and when I asked ****** why it is worse condition he basically said oh because it was in an accident prior not really owning anything. The vehicle literally did not make it out of their parking lot which is so unfortunate. I have now had to purchase a new engine and have to pay to have that fixed all out of my hard earned money. There has to be something that can be done! If not I will have to get my lawyer involved. 

  
  Sincerely,
  
  ****** *******

  

  Business response

  01/24/2023

  This vehicle only had 172 miles on it when dropped off after them having it for almost a year. The accident is listed on the ****** as happening on 11/19/2021 and the vehicle is listed as being purchased on 11/5/2021, so I would guess that most of that mileage had been put on prior to the accident and it has been in process of them repairing damage since then. So I wonder how much driving time they’ve had since they completed their repairs and prior to dropping off with us to know how well it was running. I do know that the drop off envelope ( it was dropped off after hours) states that an engine light is on and Mrs. ******* states she spoke to ****** about a check engine light and why it was saying the turbo.
  This was the plastic shards in turbo that was causing that light. Mrs. ******* was sent photos of these plastic pieces by ******. He also sent a photo of the burned-out broken spark plug that we suspect some of this plastic had damaged.
  I’ve listened to multiple phone conversations between Mrs. ******* and ****** where he explains in detail what they were finding with the engine and the plastic debris and pieces they had discovered from the aforementioned broken pipe. He also states the further they look the more they’re finding and that the dealership if they were going to attempt to repair would be recommending a new engine. Mrs. ******* replied that she would let her relative see what he could do with engine before deciding to replace it because of expense. These conversations all took place the two days prior to her picking up vehicle.
  This vehicle has been in a major accident, so bad that the insurance company elected to declare it a total loss. For them to make this decision on a brand new two-week-old vehicle with less than 200 miles on it as opposed to repairing it shows the severity of the damage. It had multiple airbags deployed and being a front-end collision, damaged among other things the air intake pipe that deposited those plastic pieces throughout the air intake system, into the turbo and eventually worked their way further into engine. As time goes on the problem is getting worse, that’s why there are now issues starting the car.
  Regarding the tire not being fixed or the muffler being broken, we’re not aware of working on the muffler or any issue with a tire. Please contact ****** to discuss what those issues are.

• Initial Complaint

  12/15/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I bought a brand new 2020 ford escape in the year 2020 from Lee Ford Of Wilson NC , lee that 6 months after buying it the gps & radio went out, they fixed it a few months later,. In July of 2021 the gps & radio went out again well we"ve called and called and they refuse to fix it ( there is a warranty still on the vehicle ) they now say there is nothing they can do, they will not trade or fix the car.

  

  Business response

  01/20/2023

  We actually never refused to fix vehicle, we just needed to get vehicle into dealership to diagnose what the problem was before we could do anything. We picked vehicle up from customers house to bring back to dealership and diagnose the problem, than completed repair and returned vehicle to the customer on 1/4/2023.

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