TSBs after warranty?

[05PhillyStang]

I just left my local Ford Service Dept. I had the e-brake cable replaced in Feb 2006. It was sticking in the morning on cold days. It was covered under the TSB. I didn't drive the car last winter and this year, I noticed the e-brake still sticks.

The service guy told me that since I am one week out of warranty, there is nothing they can do. I explained that this was already fixed by them and the roblem resurfaced. Since the work was performed more than 12 months/12,000 miles ago, they are not liable.

As for the warranty, the start date was 2/26/06, even though I picked up the car on 3/5/06. Either way, I thought TSBs are still valid after the warranty expires.

Does anyone have any advice on how to handle these guys. Or, if I cannot do anything with Ford, any tips on a fix for this issue? Thanks.

 

[o0Dan0o]

TSB is merely an admitted problem with the car and not a recall, thus why they fix it under warranty. Or so I have been told. I'd go there and just bitch until they fixed it again for free. The 12/12,000 thing is kinda up to them (I don't know how long the law requires a shop to warranty work), and if you annoy a service manager long he'll probably fix it just to get rid of you.
Dan

 

[stanmckinney]

I would think that since they had already worked on it, they are responsible. Morally, they should fix it. They also should if they want you again as a customer. I thought Ford needed customers.

 

[stangdude2000]

Go in with proof that you took delivery of the car 3/5 - I assume this is when you signed the paperwork for title, etc and became the owner. The warranty on a brand new car starts when you own the vehicle. If you purchased and put the car in your name on the 26th though, then thats fine. If that doesn't work, just keep bitching and start contacting Ford regional if you need to.

By the way, if you got the car in Feb/Mar of 2006, shouldn't you still be under warranty?

 

[stanmckinney]

Yep. Unless you are over 36,000 miles (50,000 on the power train) you have a 36-month warranty.

 

[PoopDawg]

I had a similar problem with my mother in laws car. Her Miata had horrible clutch chatter, and it was out of warranty. She had brought it into the dealer before it was out of warranty for those parts (12/12K) and they didn't fix it. I brought it back and asked why... There is a major problem here. After some bitching and haggeling, it ended up getting replaced at like 25000 miles. This was only because the problem exsisted and the dealer knew about it while it was still in its warranty period.