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From: Message Author
Date: Sunday, 16-Apr-06 22:09:56 CDT

Business Info

Greenway Ford

Orlando Florida

Here is a copy of my complaint letter.

Thank you

To Whom It May Concern: April 11th, 2006

 

Hello,

My name is Ashley Yoell and I have a problem.

My husband and I bought a 2005 Ford Focus through Greenway Ford about eight months ago on July 31st of 2005. I was so excited since this was my first new vehicle purchase. Within two weeks of owning the vehicle I noticed the brakes were squeaking. Figuring it may be normal, since I am aware sometimes brakes do squeak. I let it go. After about two months the squeaking turned to grinding and howling, in which I know should not be normal for a brand new vehicle with only five thousand miles. I then took the Focus back to Greenway Ford on October 18th of 2005. I explained what I have been experiencing and they replaced the vehicles brake pads and rotors. The service manager (Kurtly Joseph) told me the rotors were badly worn with deep grooves. Now this is extremely rare for a new vehicle to go through rotors and pads in five years let alone two months. However there could have simply been something wrong with the pads and rotors. Not even a week goes by and the problem returns. I take the vehicle back into the service department of Greenway Ford on October 27th of 2005 and to my surprise they turned me away, stating there was nothing wrong with the brake system. Over time its gets worse. I took the car in two more times, each time explaining to the service manager of Greenway Ford (Kurtly Joseph) that there has to be something wrong. This car does not act like a new car should. Each time he would explain to me...like an idiot, how brakes will squeak. This I know! These brakes howl like a garbage truck... everyday every time you brake. You could also notice the grooves in the rotors had returned. My husband then took the car in a third time, in which they were rude to him explaining how everything we are experiencing is normal and wouldn’t even take the vehicle in to take a look at the brake system. In the seventh month of owning the car I took it back again. A forth time. I told the service manager,(Kurtly Joseph) there has to be a problem with these brakes. The rotors are already worn again. They took the car in and spent four hours looking it over and could not find a problem. Now keeping in mind each time we have had to go back to Greenway Ford we shouldn't have...We bought a new car to avoid everything we are experiencing. We shouldn't even have to deal with this continuous problem and certainly should not have to deal with the rude, inconsiderate employees of Greenway Ford. Each time meant 3-4 hours of waiting in a waiting room with a two year old. Just so they could tell me what I am experiencing is normal. Four hours later one of the service managers (Brian Zeigler) comes up to me and tells me they have to send out the information on my vehicle to an outside engineer (Chris Hansen) in hopes that he can figure out the problem. Then he tells me no later than Wednesday he would contact me with the information. Well, a few days go by and I didn’t hear back from him, fearing that once again Ford was not taking me seriously I filed for the Final Repair Attempt. In fact, I didn’t hear back from the service manager( Brian Zeigler) until I called him and left him a message informing him that we filed for the final repair attempt. Only then did the service manager finally call me back.

 

As Brian Zeigler is on the phone with me, he basically talks down to me and obviously shows how they are not taking this issue seriously. The final repair attempt was set up for a week later, on April 4th, 2006 at 8:30 am. They had a week to prepare.

 

We show up that morning on time expecting to be taken care of, (so to speak) since this was there final attempt to redeem themselves and the company in anyway. My husband, son and myself had not had breakfast so we could be on time thinking surely we would be in and out quickly. We didn’t receive our rental until three hours after the appointment time. Three hours we had to sit there with a hungry two year old because they didn't have a rental ready. There was even a higher class rental available but they wouldn't let us take it because it’s a higher class. Instead of taking the necessary measures to ensure we were well taken care of, they say if we want to pay the difference we could. When in reality it was Fords fault we were there to begin with, we shouldn't have had to pay anything! Not to mention all the lies I caught the service manager in, while denying he knew the regional managers name, (come to find out he works there) and that he was never involved, which he was. After three hours the service manager(Kurtly Joseph) told us he would call at 12 noon to give us an update on the vehicle. Well, we didn't hear back until the following evening, in which the service manager said they were not going to fix the actually problem because they could not find the cause. Therefore they are just going to put another pair of rotors and pads back on the car. Now. Tell me that is not the clear definition of a lemon. They have had a total of 5 attempts and cannot find nor fix the problem and still yet they are rude and in no way trying to compensate us. One of the main issues that make me so irate is that this is not an isolated problem. One thing I have learned is you either get a reliable Focus or one that will continue to have problems. I have so many print outs of other Focus owners with the same problem. (They all complain of howling brakes, grinding sounds, going through 3 sets of rotors in under 37,000 miles, brake fading and so forth.) I AM NOT IMAGINING THESE SYMPTOMS. I do not want this vehicle anymore. It has been more of a problem than any other older car I have owned. It has been an embarrassment. I have done everything by the book and I am still getting no where. I feel Ford should really step forward and admit the car has a problem, instead of trying to postpone the issue until we reach the 18000 miles in which voids the lemon law.

 

When we went to pick up the vehicle from the final repair attempt, April 7th 2006 we were accused of not even having a problem with the vehicle. Only because in the short time the service manager drove the vehicle he didn’t experience any of the noises we have been experiencing on a daily bases. My question is, “ Why should that matter, just because the service manager couldn’t hear the squeaking doesn’t mean there isn’t a problem. The fact is, squeaking or no squeaking my brand new vehicle has gone through two sets of rotors and now working on its third.

 

Why is it Greenway Ford feels it necessary to even question my motives, as if I enjoy bring my two year old into Greenway Ford every so often for two to four hours at a time, just so I can be mistreated and accused of lying. As if I have nothing better to do with my time. I have never once stated I didn’t like the car. I loved my Focus, and only bought one because others in my family own them as well, and swear by them as the greatest most reliable car. The service manager even went so far as to take a rude tone with my husband in conversation. My husband stated, “ In the four days we drove the rental we only heard it squeak once. “ The service manager follows with, “ Oh, so you can deal with the squeaky brakes on the rental but not on your Focus. “ My husband then states, “ The brakes squeaked once in four days, our Focus howls everyday continuously. There was a big difference between the rentals one time normal occurrence and the Focus’s worn rotors. For one, the service manager should in no way take that kind of accusatory tone with any customer. I feel we were profiled for being young, buying only a Focus, for thinking were are uneducated in the way a vehicle operates but in any event, we should not be spoken to in the way that all of Greenway Fords service managers have spoken to us, not to mention we also had to fill up the rental which was over 40 dollars and received our car back below empty. Granted we brought it in only a little above empty, it still shows how much they don’t care. They could have put some gas in the car. Instead they make us once again pay for Fords mistake by filling up the rental and then having to go fill up our car. Such award winning customer service!

I feel so much hatred towards Ford, toward the service managers, if I had known this would have happened, I would have gone elsewhere. Since all this has happened I have done my fair share of investigating, I would in no way refer someone else to Greenway Ford. I have had so many people, people I don’t even know come forward with similar complaints. Do Not Buy from Greenway Ford.

 

The bottom line is, if you take away everything we have complained about. Take away what we say we are experiencing with the brakes. The squeaking, fading and so forth and replace that with the visual proof that this vehicle has gone through two sets of rotors and pads. So why were we so mistreated? Why did the service manager contact an outside engineer if he felt there was no problem? Why does Ford as a company allow it’s personal to treat there customers this way? Why are they acting like they haven’t seen this problem before? Most of all just think if I had continued to drive that vehicle thinking the whole time, “Well Ford’s service managers said this is all normal” eventually the brakes would have given out. Rotors and pads CAN NOT last forever, or else there would be no need to replace them. I would have eventually been in an accident because of brake failure, and could still be and it would be Ford Liability. I should NOT have had to go threw all this trouble with a brand new vehicle. I do expect to be compensated for the time wasted, money invested and having to deal with what’s been said by your employees. I want Ford to want to help me. It is one thing to be mistreated at a McDonalds but another to make such a huge investment and not be taken care of. I do expect proof that all employees mentioned above be reprimanded as well as an apology letter for being so mistreated. I also want a personal phone call from the President of Greenway Ford so that I may better explain exactly all that we have gone through. I have forwarded this letter to everyone and anyone who will then forward to everyone they know. Further more I have sent a copy to Todd Ulrich of Channel 9 News, Greg Dawson of the Orlando Sentinel, Clark Howard from WBDO 580am, the Board of Directors including the CEO of Ford Motor Company, the President of Greenway Ford, the service Manager of Greenway Ford as well as Ford Motor Company Customer Relations Center. I have also filed a report with the Better Business Bureau. I am awaiting there response as well as a response from Ford Motor Company.

Sincerely,

Ashley Brumley

Andrew Yoell

 

 

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