Dealer delaying warranty fix (cooling fan)

boomshakalaka

Hi all,

Looking for some advice / tips on what my next steps should be.

Purchased a car from a local (not SIMI) dealer at the end of August. 3 Months warranty as part of the purchase.

3 weeks after the purchase, on a hot day, I queue up for the car wash and the car overheats massively. I ring the dealer, he gets me to bring it and identifies the radiator cooling fan as not functional, needing replacement.

He sent me on my way home, so he could order the part. Part takes 2 weeks to arrive, I bring the car back again. (We are now end of September)

Turns out the fan delivered is for a diesel, not a petrol. Fine, that happens.

Since then I have to contact the dealer constantly to get any sort of update. He told me 4 weeks ago that he's struggling to find the fan second hand and he doesn't want to purchase it from Ford as it's more than double the price. Fine also, it's warranty work, so I understand he wants to keep costs low. The issue isn't urgent in that I can still drive the car. But nothing has happened, he's obviously not able to find the part properly and it's now been almost 2 months since I reported the issue.

I'm starting to think he's trying to run out the warranty so he doesn't have to cover it (I have texts of me reporting the issue on Sep 17th, so my understanding is it should be covered no matter how long it takes).

What are my best options here to get the dealer to fix this car that I spend the goods of 10k on?

Should I get it fixed myself and send the invoice?
Should I show up every day asking when the part is due?
Small claims procedure?

Would like to put this mess behind me and have the thing fixed.

Thanks

User1998

Understandable that they want to keep costs low but that shouldn’t be your issue. Get an estimate from Ford for the work needed and claim for that amount via the small claims court. Its a really simple process. After lodging the complaint make sure to tell the dealer that you will be claiming through the SCC and they will probably get the issue sorted immediately to avoid the courts

bazz26

A dealer fitting second hand parts as warranty work stinks of cowboy practice imo. A second hand part could fail again at any time and it just sounds like they just want to patch up the problem at the lowest possible price and gamble it doesn't fail until the warranty expires and it becomes your problem. Also no way I'd be involving a third party garage in fixing this as it just takes the responsibility away from the original dealer and gives them a get out of jail card in blaming the other garage for not doing the work properly or fitting a dodgy part. Also imo if a dealer is willing to gamble on trying to save money by fitting second hand parts then there is a high probability they won't reimburse you for work you got done elsewhere.

I think you may be in for a long battle with them and the small claims court might be the only option if you get no satisfaction from them.

boomshakalaka

That's good advice, thank you.

Tbh I've been a bit soft here, dealer and his staff were great to deal with and I was giving them the benefit of the doubt but I feel like they're abusing the situation a bit now. This should help them pull their socks up.

kil

To be honest it sounds like a difficult situation. Based on your post you have made a reasonable warranty claim which isn't being dealt with in a reasonable manner. Trouble sourcing a second hand fan for a Ford sounds like a fob off, there are literally dozens of Fords in every scrap yard in the country and even online they are from €50 - €150 to buy.

I would keep note of all interactions with the dealer and keep a copy of all paperwork you have - sounds like you might need it!

bazz26

If it's one of those early 1.0 litre Ecoboost engines then I wouldn't be driving it if it's at risk of overheating. Those engines have been known to have a coolant problem resulting in overcooking.

boomshakalaka

bazz26 wrote: »

If it's one of those early 1.0 litre Ecoboost engines then I wouldn't be driving it if it's at risk of overheating. Those engines have been known to have a coolant problem resulting in overcooking.

Hey Bazz, no it's a 1.25l petrol, year 2014!

I'm well aware of the issues with the ecoboost so have been avoiding those when I was looking to purchase.

I've been keeping an eye on the coolant and drive with heating on at the moment to avoid overheating! Any other tips welcome

madmac187

boomshakalaka wrote: »

Hey Bazz, no it's a 1.25l petrol, year 2014!

I'm well aware of the issues with the ecoboost so have been avoiding those when I was looking to purchase.

I've been keeping an eye on the coolant and drive with heating on at the moment to avoid overheating! Any other tips welcome

Just buy the fan bring it to them, get them to fit it and chalk it up. Don’t buy another car there again.

boomshakalaka

Updating for anyone reading this later with similar issues.

Followed some of the advice here and ended up getting it sorted.

Got a quote for the work from Ford, as well as a timeline on fix if they were to do it (part takes 2 days to arrive, then fitting could be completed in a few hours the same week).

Went back to the dealer with that info, expressing that I can't see any other reason for a delay since he could get the part from Ford in a couple of days.

He strung me along for another week until I contacted him to let him know I was booked in with Ford and would send him the bill or go through Small claims court. He wasn't too amused with me there, talking about "being an honest business man" and I said "that's all well and good but you've given me plenty of reason to be skeptical" which he ended up agreeing with. He said he would get it done in the next week or so depending on the part and availability of his mechanic. I agreed to a last change to rectify, asking for him to be up front with updates about timelines and any delays.

In fairness, he did keep me in the loop from that point on, and last week the part was fitted, over 2 months after reporting the issue.

Annoying that you have to be constantly hassling to get stuff done, tbh, it took up way too much of everyone's energy, but done is done and I won't ever be going back there.

kil

boomshakalaka wrote: »

In fairness, he did keep me in the loop from that point on, and last week the part was fitted, over 2 months after reporting the issue.

Annoying that you have to be constantly hassling to get stuff done, tbh, it took up way too much of everyone's energy, but done is done and I won't ever be going back there.

Glad to hear you got sorted. I think a lot of dealers get away not honouring warranties as not all customers have the perseverance to keep chasing them like you did and just give up as they can do without the hassle.