My job here is done

[Thunderchief]

I think my time with Ford trucks, which began about a year ago, has ended. My wife and I went to the Ford Dealer to buy her a Ford Edge. While there, the Sales Lady mentioned that I should look at a F-150 since she noticed I was driving a GMC Sierra. I told her that the Ford always cost much more than the GMC and I could not afford the difference. She offered to price things out and I ended up buying a 2022 Ford F-150 Lariat Powerboost and trading in the GMC.

I received the Lariat in February 2022 and loved it. But, six weeks later I experienced the Exhaust Heat Exchanger Leak and the truck was in the shop the next 30-days. I get the truck back and started experiencing a transmission stuck in 8th gear at a light, air conditioner freezing up once or twice an hour, collision warning when nothing is around me, a SYNC screen that periodically goes blank and then reboots, plus other smaller problems. I take it to the shop for another 10-days and, when I get it back, the air conditioner freezes up within the hour and I get a transmission shudder going uphill.

I schedule another shop visit and it is five weeks in the future. I post my truck woes on this web site and FMC asks for my VIN and phone number. After a number of conversations with four or five very nice ladies from FMC, it was suggested I request a “Repurchase” which I did. A month or so later, FMC repurchases my truck and it went well. I returned the truck to the Dealer, received a check, and went to my Sales Lady to order another truck – just like the one I had. She said she could not get another 2022 and I would have to order a 2023.

She started the order and pointed out that the base price of my 2022 Lariat was $51,545 but the base price of the 2023 Lariat was $60,270 – an increase of $8,735! I went to the GMC Dealer and found that I can get a 2023 GMC Sierra loaded with everything but the heavy duty trailer option for the price FMC paid me for the 2022 Lariat. I am back to being a GMC man.

After my eight month ordeal with the Ford truck, I have nothing but compliments and praise for the people at my Ford Dealer. They were always nice to me and were helping me through out this process. My Ford Lariat was a wonderful truck but FMC just does NOT have a logistic support system for this vehicle. Looking at all of my problems, and all of the strange problems I read about on this site, the truck must be suffering from some strange environmental issue.

You don't know the out-the-door price of a vehicle until you walk out the door but it looked like it would be at least $6,000 difference between my 2022 Lariat and my 2023 Lariat. I would have been happy with a straight trade of my problem-Lariat for another Lariat just like the one I had. But, paying a $6,000 premium just to replace the bad truck was more than I could stand. I am back to being a GMC man.

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[Jglew82]

Can't say I blame you with all you've been through. Ain't gonna lie, those new GMC interiors are fantastic.

Edit: i kant spel

 

[Porpoise Hork]

Can't say I blame you with all you've been through. Ain't gonna like, those new GMC interiors are fantastic.

Too bad GM's quality control department is manned by semi-evolved simians.

 

[Jglew82]

Too bad GM's quality control department is manned by semi-evolved simians.

I ain't letting any mfr off the hook here, it's all a poopshow across the board. Just saying I like the new interior.

 

[FrankThompson]

I considered GM when checking for alternatives. The simple fact was that 1 Ford local dealer was under MSRP. The other "dealer network" in my area was at least $3500 over MSRP on Ford, GM, anything.

Since my normal Ford dealer was so easy to work with, I didn't even try and find any GM Stock anywhere close to me. Plus they had what I wanted on the lot (made it easy).

OP, I'm sorry about your experience and I completely agree with your decision based on the information and availability of what inventory was around you.

 

[pavementends]

I've only ever owned three F-150s but after that ordeal I would have done the exact same thing. If FoMoCo was serious about retaining you as a customer, they would have covered the price delta.

 

[JRonchetto]

While reading these posts, another thought occured to me. I feel sorry for the unwitting purchaser of the one that they bought back from you. You know it's going to end up on a used car lot somewhere.

 

[pavementends]

While reading these posts, another thought occured to me. I feel sorry for the unwitting purchaser of the one that they bought back from you. You know it's going to end up on a used car lot somewhere.

Exactly, I've always wondered if a "repurchased"/lemon VIN gets flagged and would show up on CarFax or something? I would hope there's a way that we could tell, especially if it was returned to a dealer or the actual manufacturer...

 

[Porpoise Hork]

While reading these posts, another thought occured to me. I feel sorry for the unwitting purchaser of the one that they bought back from you. You know it's going to end up on a used car lot somewhere.

From my understanding buybacks are sent back so the engineers can tear into them and find out what the issues are that could not be fixed at the dealer level. After that the vehicles are destroyed.

 

[zimmer0]

GM finally is up to par with their exterior and interior aesthetics for me to consider one when it comes time to purchase. The new 3.0L Duramax has caught my attention.

 

[crazywayne311]

I considered GM when checking for alternatives.

Not gonna lie. My company has dealer discounts with GM, FORD and FCA. My family has always been Ford people. I had a 2017 and 2020 F150 (traded them for other stuff) and i wanted a truck again. I am NOT a GM fan but those Denali trims are pretty damn nice! Obviously i went with Ford.

From my understanding buybacks are sent back so the engineers can tear into them and find out what the issues are that could not be fixed at the dealer level. After that the vehicles are destroyed.

I'm not 100% sure but i remember watching a Youtube video where the guy got a Lincoln CUV/SUV for a decent discount because it was a buyback. Apparently the dealer couldnt fix the issue so the customer wanted out. The dealer ended up fixing it and they resold it on their lot. I also believe it was in the carfax.

 

[Severdog]

I think all manufacturers are going through a similar ordeal. The technology has leapt far beyond the ability for the average tech to repair beyond plugs, tires, and oil. I've got a similar issue with a 2021 Kia where they know of the issue, but have been waiting for months for SoKorea to engineer a fix to a minor problem.

 

[Chili]

Exactly, I've always wondered if a "repurchased"/lemon VIN gets flagged and would show up on CarFax or something? I would hope there's a way that we could tell, especially if it was returned to a dealer or the actual manufacturer...

On my buyback I was told if I do the "cash and keep" option, which was a sum of money to make me happy (in addition to fixing it of course) it would not show up on any vin report, car fax or otherwise. For my particular vehicle it wasn't a big issue because my repurchase was due to taking forever to get a part, not an actual lemon.

I ended up trading it in and they upgraded my original msrp value. To the OP, if you do want another Ford and I understand you don't, there is some negotiation potential there. I went from a 2020 to a late 2022 for basically nothing. My original truck had about 2k of options I didn't want and were worthless, but still, my MSRP was upgraded as well.

Upon trading it in for a repurchase it does show up I believe. My dealer told me they are a authorized repair center for buybacks but they don't sell them, Ford ships them to dealerships that specifically sell buybacks.

 

[Snakebitten]

Is some portion of the increase in "Base price" of the 2023 F150 a reflection of the "base" being a higher starting point in equipment and options?
I'm certain that I have read something regarding that being the non-inflation portion of the increase. And if not mistaken, the lions share of the price increase.

Still, I fault no one for buying whatever brand of truck that makes them happy.

 

[F-150 Prius]

I think my time with Ford trucks, which began about a year ago, has ended. My wife and I went to the Ford Dealer to buy her a Ford Edge. While there, the Sales Lady mentioned that I should look at a F-150 since she noticed I was driving a GMC Sierra. I told her that the Ford always cost much more than the GMC and I could not afford the difference. She offered to price things out and I ended up buying a 2022 Ford F-150 Lariat Powerboost and trading in the GMC.

I received the Lariat in February 2022 and loved it. But, six weeks later I experienced the Exhaust Heat Exchanger Leak and the truck was in the shop the next 30-days. I get the truck back and started experiencing a transmission stuck in 8th gear at a light, air conditioner freezing up once or twice an hour, collision warning when nothing is around me, a SYNC screen that periodically goes blank and then reboots, plus other smaller problems. I take it to the shop for another 10-days and, when I get it back, the air conditioner freezes up within the hour and I get a transmission shudder going uphill.

I schedule another shop visit and it is five weeks in the future. I post my truck woes on this web site and FMC asks for my VIN and phone number. After a number of conversations with four or five very nice ladies from FMC, it was suggested I request a “Repurchase” which I did. A month or so later, FMC repurchases my truck and it went well. I returned the truck to the Dealer, received a check, and went to my Sales Lady to order another truck – just like the one I had. She said she could not get another 2022 and I would have to order a 2023.

She started the order and pointed out that the base price of my 2022 Lariat was $51,545 but the base price of the 2023 Lariat was $60,270 – an increase of $8,735! I went to the GMC Dealer and found that I can get a 2023 GMC Sierra loaded with everything but the heavy duty trailer option for the price FMC paid me for the 2022 Lariat. I am back to being a GMC man.

After my eight month ordeal with the Ford truck, I have nothing but compliments and praise for the people at my Ford Dealer. They were always nice to me and were helping me through out this process. My Ford Lariat was a wonderful truck but FMC just does NOT have a logistic support system for this vehicle. Looking at all of my problems, and all of the strange problems I read about on this site, the truck must be suffering from some strange environmental issue.

You don't know the out-the-door price of a vehicle until you walk out the door but it looked like it would be at least $6,000 difference between my 2022 Lariat and my 2023 Lariat. I would have been happy with a straight trade of my problem-Lariat for another Lariat just like the one I had. But, paying a $6,000 premium just to replace the bad truck was more than I could stand. I am back to being a GMC man.

You sound levelheaded and reasonable. You must be new to Internet forum sites. : )

What you've experienced is typical of the "outlier" lemon – the fabled "Friday afternoon" assembled vehicle. I've experienced the same (through customers at my old independent shop) with different manufacturers and in my personal experience with a GM 3500 that seemed to be cursed with every thing that could go wrong. I still have a GM, I'm 90% satisfied with my F-150 Prius (except the transmission shifts and mpg while towing) and I've ordered a Mercedes EQB arriving next month for my daughter instead of a Tesla despite having 3 Teslas with no problems.

If my next Ford/Mercedes/GM/Tesla is a steaming pile of sour lemons, I can only hope to get out as luckily as you've done. I was shopping for a used GLE 350e (plug-in hybrid) and found several "manufacturer buyback" examples which for the tiny number they've ever sold, and the consistent "so many problems" posts to forums, make it an easy decision to choose something else off the menu. Tesla quality, reliability and service has been bad to worse and their rush to build more units made me decide to forego my order and get the Benz. If only Ford offered the Maverick SUV (called Everest in Australia) I probably would have gone that way.

The challenge for Ford and GM is to earn the confidence of customers as the whole auto industry dies (as it is dying right now in 2022) and is reborn as an EV industry.

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