Ford Escort from Hansel Dealer Group, Santa Rosa, CA - after 40,000 miles engine caught fire while driving

Complaints.com received the following consumer message on August 28, 2002:

From:

RE: Ford Escort from Hansel Dealer Group, Santa Rosa, CA - after 40,000 miles engine caught fire while driving

1. My mother and I typed this letter together, since she can't type at all. 2. I'm the one who purchased the car for her from the dealer.

-----Original Message-----

From: Julie [mailto:Email User]

Sent: Monday, August 26, 2002 9:25 AM

To: Email User

Subject: Ford Motor Company-Warranty

Hello, three years ago, my mother bought a Ford Escort from Hansel Dealer Group in Santa Rosa California. After 40K miles the engine caught fire while she was driving it. She has purchased a Gold Level

Plan warranty from the Ford Dealership.

This warranty said it covered her for 50K miles or two years whichever was less. It had been less than two years. When she had it towed to the dealership, they charged her $150, and then told her there were items

missing out of the engine and they couldn't repair the car because the warranty would not fix the engine if parts were missing. No parts were missing, and they did not do any work on it but instead billed her for

storage.

She was frantic and called me many times to know what to do, sadly, I couldn't give good advice at the time as I had never heard of such lack of service. I tried calling the warranty company and they told me that

they only needed a fax asking for authorization to do work from the mechanic and they would approve the work and then reimburse my mother.

We towed the car to another mechanic and he tried to call for approval. He was told to send a fax. He sent a fax. He tried calling back but always was on hold for an hour to two hours so he asked me to call.

I TRIED, I repeat tried to call this company for a year (when I was not at work), and never got through again. They were so busy and had so many reps transfer me, I never go through to the approval department

again. I asked my mother about this and she said finally one day she got through. They said they never received a fax and we should send it again! By this time we had gotten rid of the car at my suggestion. What

a piece of garbage the Ford Motor Company is selling in their "warranty product", and what kind of company condones behavior like that from their dealers?

I will never buy a Ford as long as I live, and neither will anyone in my family. Three years of waiting for an answer! We are now preparing to sue the warranty company and the dealership, if anyone else is having the same problem email me. I have written a letter to Ford but it won't do any good, we need to sue. My mother ending up paying the dealership around $800 in fees and never got reimbursed one cent.

Thank you, Julie Email User