Ford – planned obsolescence?

I’m sitting here in my local garage awaiting the news on my front end alignment – will there be more problems?  I just purchased a new set of tires, B.F. Goodrich having decided to get the same as my original equipment.  Yes, that’s right, original equipment.  Over a 143,000 kilometres on the original set and there was still good tread left.  I only replaced them as they started to crack in too many places, but with their age (over 6 years old) who wouldn’t show age cracking.

 

Now, I find it funny how 4 pieces of rubber outlasted my front end by over 40,000 kilometres.  I had to replace my tie rods at 100K and was just recently told by the dealer, Kennedy Ford, that my ball joints needed replacement.  Another mechanic told me no, so I am waiting for the alignment and see if they suggest the ball joints get replaced.  Almost like waiting for a baby to be born.

 

I was told, after I bought the truck off lease and had the front end replaced, that Ford has a problem with premature failure of the front end.  I can’t substantiate this but, interesting how local garage mechanics seem to all be saying this.  Even my neighbour remarked on the fact I had a Ford when I saw him this morning while enroute to the garage.  Wasn’t nice what he said.  Something about “Fix or Repair Daily”.

 

This began to make me think about planned obsolescence.  My truck was built during that period of time that Ford was closing the truck plant in Oakville.  The only good news to the CAW employees was that it was being replaced by another line – therefore jobs saved.  But what about the recent closing of the GM truck line in Oshawa.  Would you buy a truck from GM now, knowing it was being built by disgruntled CAW workers, knowing their jobs were redundant soon after the truck line closes.  What kind of atmosphere is present on that assembly line?  I mean, Ford couldn’t build my truck right and the guys had future jobs.

 

Planned obsolescence.  We hear about it in other industries and wonder sometimes why things fail.  Ford knows about the window problem but, have you ever seen a recall?   Have you ever received a notice that your window should be checked?

 

Funny, but Kennedy Ford keeps sending me notices that my truck is due for regular service.  Ever since the debacle of the front end and then my electronic problems caused by the improperly installed window, I have favoured a local garage for my servicing.  Kennedy Ford could send me reminders but never sent me anything to warn me that all the electronic repairs might be caused by the leaky window.  I understand Ford sent a memo to the dealers about this (can’t confirm it as Ford won’t even send me a letter confirming my complaint) but, I as a consumer was never warned that my repair expenses were being caused by an improperly installed window.  But, I guess that would mean someone at Ford had ethics, something that seems to be missing in this case.

 

I guess the rule of thumb for buying a vehicle is to check when it was built and what kind of relationship was occurring between the manufacturer and the CAW/UAW.   Does this have some kind of bearing on how your vehicle is built?  Well, they say, don’t buy a vehicle built on a Monday (hangovers, Monday blues) and a Friday (weekend coming up).  Don’t know how true it is but, I wouldn’t be buying a GM or Ford right now due to the cutbacks and the proven lack of concern regarding built in faults.  Toyota might not be perfect but maybe they’ve got it right.  No union and support their vehicles, even after warranty.

 

By the way, just got the news that my front end is alright and my ball joints don’t need to be fixed.  Wonder why Kennedy Ford told me they had to be replaced over 10k ago?  I just found out from a local garage that they’ve noticed a decline in repair business.  With the rising cost of fuel, people are maybe putting off repairs and maintenance.  At over $90/hour for labour, I can understand why.  But, if they’re not built right – like properly installed windows, it is hard to drive when the vehicle starts the road down what some might consider planned obsolescence, especially when no one warns you of the problems.  But then, who ever warns you about planned obsolescence?