Ford E Class Warranty Work

[reduncan]

We have a Class C RV powered by a Ford E450. 13 months into it at 5,000 miles I get a Engine Warning Light. Take the old sensor to the motor and get a P2196 and P0496 code. Translated that means I've got an O2 Sensor Stuck Rich on Bank 1, Sensor 1 and and EvaporaTive Emission System High Purge Flow. So, off to schedule the truck at Ford (we live about 33 miles north of Atlanta) for some warranty work. After numerous calls to Ford dealers and corporate headquarters we find that there is only 1 Ford Truck Center and 1 Ford dealership (with an arrangement with a Truck repair center) that will touch the truck for warranty work. Cute, but it gets better. The Ford Truck Center (an hour drive through Atlanta traffic) tells me to expect a 6-8 week wait before they can get to it and they have to have it on site for that time as they don't schedule the work on RVs and commercial trucks take priority. The second site (about 2 hour drive) says a 4 week wait and- like the first- has to have the vehicle on site until they can get to it. Great. Ever wonder why Jayco, Thor, et al don't get Ford to provide better warranty repair given the number of motorize RVs they put on Ford E class chassis? Seems Ford could make more arrangements for truck centers to do warranty work and serve the RV community better. Just a thought.

[taylorbob1]

I feel your pain
RV dealers are as bad (in my experience).

They both treat it like a computer repair shop
1) bring it in and get it in line (on the bench)
2) unit must be on premises for several weeks prior to first look vs bringing it in on appointment day & diagnosing the problem in an hour
3) even then...when they finally call you weeks later to pick it up, all of the issues may not be completely resolved

Most of us on this Forum have a good repair story

[ador]

I don't like the idea of having my RV sit in the dealership lot for weeks, waiting for them to do the diagnostic test or find out the cause of the problem,.... THEN wait few more days to get the authorization back,.... THEN wait some more for the actual repair.

When I took delivery of my brand new 2021 THOR ACE, the electronic gauge for the Propane is not working. The gauge on the tank is working. I was told by the Tech doing the walk trough they will notify THOR and request for a New Panel. This was documented. I waited 2 months and called the dealership to follow-up. Now they are telling me I need to bring the RV in so they can "check" what is wrong with the panel. They will then send a work authorization request to THOR.

Why can't we make an appointment, take it to the dealership for few hours for diagnostic test, come back when they are ready to do the fix. Why let our RV sit in their lot for weeks???

[Beau388]

Originally Posted by taylorbob1

I feel your pain
RV dealers are as bad (in my experience).

They both treat it like a computer repair shop
1) bring it in and get it in line (on the bench)
2) unit must be on premises for several weeks prior to first look vs bringing it in on appointment day & diagnosing the problem in an hour
3) even then...when they finally call you weeks later to pick it up, all of the issues may not be completely resolved

Most of us on this Forum have a good repair story

I have only left my Hurricane at any RV repair place once. That was to replace 4 basement doors and repaint the coach's left side after a side swipe accident. It took Iron Horse RV 16 days to get the parts from Thor MC and repaint the coach. Any other modifications were done by taking the coach in, have an estimate done, prepay for parts, take the coach home. When the parts come in, schedule an appointment and wait in the dealer waiting room until the coach was finished. Fortunately the coach has never needed any warranty work.

[Lt Keefer]

I had my Hurricane to the Ford dealer one time for a front end alignment. They had to replace the steering box and get Ford to assist on the alignment as they could not get it to spec. That took about a week. I can understand why commercial trucks take priority, they are most likely return customers. As to Thor forcing Ford to provide better service, that will never happen. And in my opinion, any service from Ford is likely to be 10000% better than Thor's best day of service.

[EA37TS]

Have you contacted the Ford warranty division and asked for their assistance?

Key, reasonable time and I believe 6 to 8 weeks would not be considered a reasonable time. You have a warranty which falls under the provisions of the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act.

[16ACE27]

What Dave said. If the chassis is covered by a State's lemon law they have 30 days to fix an emission related warranty failure. I'm not sure what the time requirements are under the federal Magnuson Moss Warranty Act.

[jabrabu]

My Chateau class C had a similar problem with the evap purge valve. It actually happened twice. I was able to get it fixed at a Ford dealer about 30 minutes away. Then I had a catalytic converter failure, and they could not fix it there because they didn't have a lift that could handle my 32 ft motorhome. I had to take it to a Ford dealership 90 minutes away to get this repair done. The repair was supposed to take a few hours, but they broke the O2 sensor and it took all day for them to get another one, so I ended up waiting there all day. At least it was near a nice town to walk around and explore for the day (Winchester, VA).


For alignment and tires I go to a commercial truck tire shop. They usually complete the work in a few hours while I walk a few miles and have breakfast.


For RV specific repairs it is harder. I do most of the repairs myself, but when I do need to have an RV repair shop do the work they can often be booked several weeks or even months in advance.

[EA37TS]

The OP's post is identical to one under a different user name on the Jayco forum. Same types of responses being generated over there. Nobody is reporting issues with having to drop off the RV at a Ford dealer and needing to wait 6 to 8 weeks for repair.

[reduncan]

Originally Posted by EA37TS

The OP's post is identical to one under a different user name on the Jayco forum. Same types of responses being generated over there. Nobody is reporting issues with having to drop off the RV at a Ford dealer and needing to wait 6 to 8 weeks for repair.

Hmm. Ford Peach State Truck in north Atlanta states 6-8 weeks. Courtesy Ford in Conyers- 4 week wait. Other dealers do not have bays to accommodate the RV. Regrets on the double post. Traded the Jayco for the Thor and didn’t reset the link. Taking the RV to Roland Tire on Tuesday for a one day repair but they do not do warranty work. Better than a month or so delay with the RV on a truck site.

[Judge]

A lot of people make the mistake of not separating the RV from the chassis when it comes to service. You never really want to take a chassis service issues to an RV dealer.

Now when it comes to motorhomes, you need to go to this site and search for a Ford Commercial Truck Service Center. You will have better luck than contacting your run of the mill Ford Dealer. They are Ford Authorized Service Centers and deisgned to handle the Super Duty Truck applications (box trucks, ambulances, motorhomes, etc.).

https://fordcommercialvehiclecenter.com/

[Pete'sMH]

While I tend to agree in principle I would also note that many RV dealers would send their chassis issues to an appropriate truck shop with warranty authorization . Being a commercial referral they might be able to get it in and out more quickly than a retail customer.

[taylorbob1]

Originally Posted by Pete'sMH

While I tend to agree in principle I would also note that many RV dealers would send their chassis issues to an appropriate truck shop with warranty authorization . Being a commercial referral they might be able to get it in and out more quickly than a retail customer.

That might work
But it’s the first I’ve heard of going that route

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Pete'sMH

While I tend to agree in principle I would also note that many RV dealers would send their chassis issues to an appropriate truck shop with warranty authorization . Being a commercial referral they might be able to get it in and out more quickly than a retail customer.

I've never had any issues getting into my local inFord Quick Lane, which is also a Ford Commerical Truck Center. My dealer is 2+ hours away but I would never let them get into the middle of me needing Ford service. If anything, I would think it would slow the process down given how over-booked RV dealers tend to be.

[EA37TS]

Originally Posted by Pete'sMH

While I tend to agree in principle I would also note that many RV dealers would send their chassis issues to an appropriate truck shop with warranty authorization . Being a commercial referral they might be able to get it in and out more quickly than a retail customer.

Most RV dealers will not do anything related to chassis warranty work to include coordinating with a Ford dealer. My RV dealer will do chassis work to include suspension and alignments but you will pay their labor rate and they will not file a warranty claim. They are not an authorized chassis service center for any manufacturer and do not want to be one.

[Pete'sMH]

Originally Posted by EA37TS

Most RV dealers will not do anything related to chassis warranty work to include coordinating with a Ford dealer. My RV dealer will do chassis work to include suspension and alignments but you will pay their labor rate and they will not file a warranty claim. They are not an authorized chassis service center for any manufacturer and do not want to be one.

My CW dealer said they take chassis problems to Ford so that is why I thought it might work. I’ve never tried it though as I’ve never needed anything done and I’d not pick CW if I did.