Regarding the scenario below, has anything similar happened to you, perhaps regarding your from 2007 Fiesta, Focus or Mondeo where a Ford Dealer says one thing and a credible independent specialist says another?
If so, please add your experiences to this post so that it can be covered by RAC, Which, Watchdog, etc.
Your air con stops working during the warranty period so you pay a Ford Dealer say £45-£65 for a diagnosis.
He/she tells you that they will have to re-gas the air con system including a dye in order for them to detect any leaks.
After re-gassing the Ford Dealer tells you that the air con is leaking because a stone hit the air con condenser which is located in front of the radiator and this is what happens if you are not careful how you drive.
He then tells you that he believes Ford will reject a warranty claim because the problem was not caused by a manufacturing defect. However, he can offer you a repair for say £450-£500 using Ford Parts or £350-£400 using non Ford Parts.
You politely decline his offer and take your car to a credible independent air con specialist who tells you that the air con condenser leak is caused by a common problem i.e. corrosion of the rivets on the condenser (i.e. a manufacturing defect).
You then report this to the Ford Customer Relations Dept. who tell you that they will only accept diagnosis and repair information from a Ford Agent so they will not be offering you compensation.
You then wonder what benefit/value you received from paying the Ford Dealer £45-£65 for a diagnosis and re-gassing?
You also find out later that vehicles should not be re-gassed using coolant to diagnose air con leaks as this damages the environment and that Nitrogen should be used instead.
If so, please add your experiences to this post so that it can be covered by RAC, Which, Watchdog, etc.
Your air con stops working during the warranty period so you pay a Ford Dealer say £45-£65 for a diagnosis.
He/she tells you that they will have to re-gas the air con system including a dye in order for them to detect any leaks.
After re-gassing the Ford Dealer tells you that the air con is leaking because a stone hit the air con condenser which is located in front of the radiator and this is what happens if you are not careful how you drive.
He then tells you that he believes Ford will reject a warranty claim because the problem was not caused by a manufacturing defect. However, he can offer you a repair for say £450-£500 using Ford Parts or £350-£400 using non Ford Parts.
You politely decline his offer and take your car to a credible independent air con specialist who tells you that the air con condenser leak is caused by a common problem i.e. corrosion of the rivets on the condenser (i.e. a manufacturing defect).
You then report this to the Ford Customer Relations Dept. who tell you that they will only accept diagnosis and repair information from a Ford Agent so they will not be offering you compensation.
You then wonder what benefit/value you received from paying the Ford Dealer £45-£65 for a diagnosis and re-gassing?
You also find out later that vehicles should not be re-gassed using coolant to diagnose air con leaks as this damages the environment and that Nitrogen should be used instead.