New 2024 King Ranch Issues from Granger Ford

[loganlaporte]

@BarryT82 as a person that’s been down this paint rabbit hole you are in for a doozy. My situation wasn’t nearly as bad but I’ve had to deal with corrosion from the poor paint. Your best bet is drop it off at a local dealer and have it wait for a paint slot. Pray it takes a while to get to it as to satisfy lemon law requirements for being at the shop and go for substitution of collateral. Ford and dealer won’t do anything outside the law. It’s just how it is. My dealers collision center took care of all the paint issues pretty fast and it was way better than the factory oddly enough. But your truck I would have rejected. I’ve learned to do my own pre purchase inspection now on new vehicles.

Sponsored

 

[JJSnell]

Yet you suggest that the OP make an "empty threat"?

No, you stated I made\make empty threats...
" to make demands or threats which cannot be followed through..."

Maybe that's where this ends up.

The OP has clearly been very diligent in identifying 'defects' in their vehicle.

Before counseling the lawyer call, one might wonder if they've been similarly diligent in identifying the terms and conditions relating to defects, warranties, and dispute resolution in the various agreements between themself and Ford (the vehicle warranty is an agreement between the consumer and Ford) and pursued those remedies as provided in those agreements ? Most likely that will be one of the first questions any lawyer will ask when approached with this problem.

Clearly he has to have a plan in place to backup anything he says to Granger. I personally dont have anything against Granger, I just bought my Ext Warranty from them last month. So I have a feeling they will make this right. But with the lack of QA\QI on this, (and it sounds like other trucks of the same build date), this is a factory issue that should have been red flagged and halted at the dealership before it ever went to delivery. Nobody likes using lawyers, but when you pay $80k for a truck that looks like its the result of a MAACO training class, They should have had better QA\QI\Dealer Prep.

I have been contemplating an Explorer purchase for my wife next year and having it transp'oed out here. This would be my 4th or 5th purchase 'sight unseen'. We've never had an issue, but now Im contemplating a 3rd party inspection before delivery. Not because of Granger but because of the products leaving factory today....

 

[v8440]

So I have a feeling they will make this right.

What gives you a feeling they will make this right? I don't mean this as an argument starter, I'm genuinely asking. I've seen absolutely nothing so far from Granger (or ford for that matter) that indicates they have the intention to do anything but as little as they can. Perhaps you interpreted something differently?

 

[SumGuy]

More photos

It’s a good thing the unions got a big pay raise, right?

unreal lack of quality control. If Ford cannot get their quality fixed there is zero reason to make ford my next purchase.

 

[v8440]

It isn't just ford. Hell, Honda just recalled some 1.8 million vehicles for a steering issue, tundras have no end of transmission and engine problems, ram is in the crapper, etc etc. Seriously makes me think the entire industry is in shambles, quality wise.

 

[JJSnell]

What gives you a feeling they will make this right? I don't mean this as an argument starter, I'm genuinely asking. I've seen absolutely nothing so far from Granger (or ford for that matter) that indicates they have the intention to do anything but as little as they can. Perhaps you interpreted something differently?

Well historically Granger has a good reputation the last thing they want is THIS story plastered all over these Forums... Todays world has Yelp and Google Reviews and all sorts of word of mouth referrals.
I had never heard of Granger before joining these Forums and I more than likely will buy from them in the future... I bought a Cherokee 39SR from Susquahana (spelling), RVs site unseen and had it trailered to my house in January. There was a hole in the plastic\rubber bladder thing underneath and water spashed up and inside for 2300 miles in the snow and rain transport. By the time it got to me it looked like a huge black udder hanging underneath the camper. I took pix, emailed them and said come pick this up, Im not accepting it...
They had a local rep come out and subsequntly offered to repair it, I said, nope, not accepting this, rolling water ballon. I etched hidden markings in the frame... they picked it up and hauled it away. I received a new trailer, new VIN and my hidden markings were not on this new frame. Definitely a new trailer....
What Susquehana RV did between them and Forest River\Cherokee is their business but Susq was my sales team and liaisonand made it right... all I had to do was sign new paperwork...

 

[v8440]

Well historically Granger has a good reputation the last thing they want is THIS story plastered all over these Forums... Todays world has Yelp and Google Reviews and all sorts of word of mouth referrals.

[/QUOTE]
That would seem to be true, but here we are with it plastered right here. They apparently have not done anything yet, and it's been several weeks. Wouldn't you think they would have let the owner of the truck know if they planned to make it right? They HAVE communicated with him, and what they've offered to do is far below what most of us here that have commented think would be making the customer whole. If there's a grand plan like a buyback to fix him up, it's a well kept secret so far. I still see nothing to indicate they intend to make this right. Perhaps they still will, but that would be in spite of their actions so far, and likely driven by a desire to make this publicity go away. The time for them to get credit as being good guys and stepping up has passed.

 

[JJSnell]

That would seem to be true, but here we are with it plastered right here. They apparently have not done anything yet, and it's been several weeks. Wouldn't you think they would have let the owner of the truck know if they planned to make it right? They HAVE communicated with him, and what they've offered to do is far below what most of us here that have commented think would be making the customer whole. If there's a grand plan like a buyback to fix him up, it's a well kept secret so far. I still see nothing to indicate they intend to make this right. Perhaps they still will, but that would be in spite of their actions so far, and likely driven by a desire to make this publicity go away. The time for them to get credit as being good guys and stepping up has passed.

Unkless there is another post I missed this is only 10 days old?
Once resolved I would think the post would be updated and then deleted.... ?

 

[v8440]

I misspoke; what I meant was that this saga has been going on for some time, not that it's been public as long as it has been going on. In any case, I stand by my point-so far they're clearly working hard to not fix this. Saying "get a local dealer to fix it under warranty", which they did at first say, is not making it right.

 

[jamo13]

Was just in my local dealer today to witness a guy dropping off his new 24 due to excessive orange peel all over his vehicle demanding it all to be remedied. Ford needs to get their paint issues sorted out already!

Yeah, and you would think with all the technology and robots used in today’s manufacturing that this paint or fitment stuff would be dialed in and almost non-existent unless the process drifted out of spec or from the parameters that were preset.

Also, w.r.t. the PDI that Granger does and their response here, I wonder with all of these defects the OP found and highlighted, what are the”actual” things that their vehicle PDIs actually caught (supposedly this one was passed by more than one person)? It would be interesting (and prudent on Granger’s part) if they kept records on these findings and in these times, as the buyer/owner I would like to see the report. I don’t know how (more than one person) would miss some of these more obvious defects.

Granger should do like other businesses do nowadays when they make a mistake they are responsible for; acknowledge directly to the customer or publicly (ex,. responding to a negative post on forum or product/service review site) and or reassure their customers that they take these things seriously and are taking direct action (e.x., speaking directly to the responsible individuals/team and or re-examining their inspection procedures for improvements) to hopefully make sure that this unfortunate (and preventable) thing doesn’t happen again.

In an “ideal” world where “Quality is Job #1), with the amount of factory defects this vehicle has and the cost and time it would take to fix them, upon a “proper” inspection of the vehicle, Granger would have rejected this vehicle from Ford upon delivery on behalf of their customer. You can only wish/hope that anyone the dealership has hired or makes responsible for the PDI process, would have the same critical eye and the perspective view of the “paying” customer— “would I want or accept this if this was mine?”

 

[Natetroknot]

You can only wish/hope that anyone the dealership has hired or makes responsible for the PDI process, would have the same critical eye and the perspective view of the “paying” customer— “would I want or accept this if this was mine?”

The Golden Rule! by God, it lives!

I agree with you 300%. Which is why I find it pretty daft that there are people defending Granger in this particular instance. "You were dumb enough to have the truck shipped to you and rely on our expertise, goodwill, and professionalism" plus "we sold the truck to you cheap" is not a defense if you ask me.

Nobody would appreciate being treated that way.

And Ford? UAW employees? Yeah I'm gonna let my comments drift on their culpability.

 

[KTM753]

We can agree to disagree...

But you can count on Grainger not replying here to the torches and pitchforks. No upside.

 

[nomarhits400]

Just FYI / FWIW here's some not-so-fine print that's typical of all vehicle purchase agreements:

The above happens to be excerpted from my Purchase Agreement with Granger Ford, an easy to read and understand 2-page document. IMO there's no 'gotchya' aspect to that clause, it's explicit and clear.

BTW, this document was signed by myself and the dealer after I inspected the truck on the day of in-person delivery. It is indeed a pity that the OP, who doubtless signed a similar document remotely, elected to forego their opportunity to inspect and accepted delivery sight unseen. Heed that lesson, folks, or be prepared to accept the risks attendant.

Everyone who orders a Big Mac wants the one on the right. Get the one on the left often enough, and you will either stop going to McDonalds- or stop buying Big Macs. Additionally, NOBODY will argue that the Big Mac on the left is acceptable. You might be able to get Manager Margaret to give you another Big Mac if you complain- but McDonalds isn't obligated to replace your gimped Big Mac. EVERYONE knows, however, that that is the only acceptable outcome for McDonalds if they wish to retain a customer for very long.

Margaret probably doesn't care about any of that- she's off at 4. Granger on the other hand, has been making the Big Mac on the right for years- and the contrast is eye opening. There's a whole world of customers who didn't even know a Big Mac could look like the gimped version- but might be nervous enough to head to 5 Guys just to avoid the horror of gazing at one.

...So, how many gimped Big Macs can Granger serve before that happens? There's quite a bit at stake when it comes to something as fragile as your reputation. I'm just flabbergasted that they clearly disagree.

 

[Natetroknot]

We can agree to disagree...

But you can count on Grainger not replying here to the torches and pitchforks. No upside.

Yes sir, not here to change anybody's mind. And I respect your take.

Granger did reply here, once. To say that even the best dealers with good intentions sometimes make a mistake. As though it's a coincidence that mistake was made to a customer having their truck shipped sight unseen. And then basically lied about the circumstances that mistake was made under. And then basically lied about standing behind that mistake and doing right by the customer, the OP.

Now I think they realized pissing down someone's back and saying it's rainfall is a bad idea and it has been crickets ever since. Eff that s. Shady. May as well be a used car lot with an ex con at the helm.

 

[KTM753]

Just proved my no upside comment...

Forums rarely prove a worthwhile venue for someone to defend their actions or turn the tide of opinion.

You guys can bash Grainger all you want. They will survive. They will even thrive. I drive by the dealership regularly as I live close. It's chocked full of new vehicles. They offer the same deal on Broncos, Ram Trucks, others. One bad F-150 forum post isn't going to change much.

Sponsored