Ford Service - Whoa Whoa Whoa, what is it good for?

[Bonn]

G'day All,

A few of us are slightly mechanically minded (just changed out self levelling suspension unit on 530i Wagon, and saved $1 -1.5k on dealer quote).
The question is; can we service our late model Falcons?
Are Workshop manuals readily available?
Are many special tools required?

[mik]

you can do anything if you have enough money and determination .

[Franco Cozzo]

Servicing and replacing parts is the easy part, diagnosing electrical problems will be the big issue here unless you have access to a good scan tool.

Do Ford still do workshop manuals? AFAIK its all on computer now right?

[Bonn]

Originally Posted by mik

you can do anything if you have enough money and determination .

Bugger! i knew there was a catch

Originally Posted by Big Damo

Servicing and replacing parts is the easy part, diagnosing electrical problems will be the big issue here unless you have access to a good scan tool.

Do Ford still do workshop manuals? AFAIK its all on computer now right?

Good point - i shoulda been specific; FG W/Shop manuals anyone?

[Elks]

I dropped my car in for service yesterday. And a few hundred bucks is a little pricey for the oil change and check. But then they picked up a couple of "service campaign items which they are fixing at no cost as a prevent active measure. Items I wouldn't have even known to check.

My car has only a year to go on its warranty so I don't want to be a stranger to the local dealer just in case.

I've had the TS serviced by by dealers most of its 13 years, and its never broken down. So that's worth something too.

My 2c.

[Nikked]

Originally Posted by Elks

But then they picked up a couple of "service campaign items which they are fixing at no cost as a prevent active measure. Items I wouldn't have even known to check.

And this is why its best to use Ford Service, rather then do it your self.

[aussie muscle]

Originally Posted by mik

you can do anything if you have enough money and determination .

and Time. what's your time worth?

[mik]

your time becomes more precious as you near the end :(.

[GCRXR6]

Originally Posted by Elks

I dropped my car in for service yesterday. And a few hundred bucks is a little pricey for the oil change and check. But then they picked up a couple of "service campaign items which they are fixing at no cost as a prevent active measure. Items I wouldn't have even known to check.

My car has only a year to go on its warranty so I don't want to be a stranger to the local dealer just in case.

I've had the TS serviced by by dealers most of its 13 years, and its never broken down. So that's worth something too.

My 2c.

Good point. By the way .. any body on here know what those "campaign items" might be?

[elmont]

i have a 96 el fairmont which i bought in august 2006 with 230,000 k's on the clock, always changed the oil and filter myself and me and a mechanic mate did most of the other stuff and now it has 445,000 on the clock and still runs fine!

I bought an 08 G6E in april this year and took it for a service at Blacklocks ford wodonga. though it was a bit pricey $400 from memory it was a "b" service which costs more, im not sure if i want to service this one myself as it is out of warranty, and im worried i might break it lol

[Smoke Pursuit]

Basic servicing is easy. If i had the space and the tools I would do it myself and I would do it more often, but not having a big garage / workshop turns me off doing it, plus a way of getting rid of the old oil, its always messy stuff.

When I was a kid I always did the mid services at home myself, just oil & filter, always used genuine Ford parts so no one ever picked up on it. Now I just get my mechanic to do it, hes cheap!

[elmont]

Originally Posted by DASH GT

Basic servicing is easy. If i had the space and the tools I would do it myself and I would do it more often, but not having a big garage / workshop turns me off doing it, plus a way of getting rid of the old oil, its always messy stuff.

a bloke at my work put the old oil into old oil bottles and puts them in the normal rubbish! tut tut tut

[Smoke Pursuit]

Originally Posted by GCRXR6

Good point. By the way .. any body on here know what those "campaign items" might be?

Depends on the car.... Theres lots of them, not all of them automatically get done either, alot of them are carried out on complaint basis only.

[Smoke Pursuit]

Originally Posted by elmont

a bloke at my work put the old oil into old oil bottles and puts them in the normal rubbish! tut tut tut

He obviously isn't a member of the Greens Party or a personal friend of Bob Browns.

[elmont]

No, i think not

[Neale]

I had a good experience with the local ford dealers in Bathurst, Clancy Ford.

I do the basic service myself like oil & filters. when I went to top up the power steering fluid I found that the euro spec stuff for the Focus was something like $70 a bottle.

I didnt want to fork out $70 for a little bit to top it up. So I asked them how much to just top it up thinking it may be cheaper to get them to do it than buy the bottle. They said that they could do it straight away & not worry about paying for it as it didnt need much.

So for the pink slip I gave them the business & they found that there was a couple of recalls that the previous owner did nothing about (like rubbing brake lines that had nearly worn through by this stage). All of this was found & fixed up at the same price as alot of other mechanics charge just for the pink slip.

So from now on I do the basic stuff to save some cash, but take it to the dealer when its rego time so they can make sure its all still ok.

[Bonn]

There's pros and cons alright - especially the recall/service campaign stuff.
Mine's leased, but has just had it's last (105,000) fixed pricer. They found diff bushes, which got done fairly cheaply, but installed 'XR' mats over a dirty carpet, so probably just a Friday afternoon thing.....
Probably helps the resale to say "Full Ford Service History", too.

[ivorya]

Originally Posted by elmont

a bloke at my work put the old oil into old oil bottles and puts them in the normal rubbish! tut tut tut

Here in Newcastle, we have oil drop off points designated by council.

Makes it heaps easier and environmentally friendly, for me, just to drop it off at this servo.

[DanielXR8]

Originally Posted by Nikked

And this is why its best to use Ford Service, rather then do it your self.

Or Ford could publish the details about any service campaign on their publicy facing web site so all owners knew as a customer service. Then customers could make informed decisions about when or if they wish to use a Ford service agent.

In the age of the internet it is hardly difficult for Ford to keep its customers directly informed, if it wanted to.