Honolulu Ford — Attraction in Honolulu

Here are the facts:

Truck was serviced regularly by Honolulu Ford including full 150,000 mile service Truck began to misfire and was taken to Honolulu Ford Diagnostic was blown engine My son and I changed 5 spark plugs all except #5 cylinder because broke the #5 spark plug off below the hex nut, so invasive extraction would be required We took truck to ford to have spark plug #5 extracted and replaced Truck only had slight misfire at this time Truck was returned with same diagnosis blown engine and tech did not replace broken spark plug Donna White then insisted to Faye that #5 spark plug was broken and that it needed replaced Service tech quickly brought truck back in and said oops Donna White was correct and Faye claimed that the tech had replaced the broken spark plug and said truck was ready to pick up and work was performed under warranty? Donna White immediately recognized a massive loud popping sound much more concerning than the misfire that the truck was brought in for

However, with the utmost respect for Ford service we thought we had a blown engine as that was the diagnosis on 2 consecutive visits We then sent the truck to the mainland Caruso Ford the closest Ford dealership to the Long Beach port

Caruso Ford has never been told that a spark plug was broken off then extracted by Honolulu Ford and here is the diagnosis from Caruso Ford: Caruso Ford identified the problem as an improperly installed spark plug in the #5 cylinder (driver side middle cylinder) and they further scoped the engine to determine viability of repair and determined that the engine was in good condition and that only the cylinder head for the #5 (driver side) cylinder would need to be replaced

I immediately contacted Honolulu Ford last week and here is what happened next:

The Honolulu Ford Invoice 171697 shows my truck mileage at 235,050 and that is an error My truck had approximately 150,000 miles on it at that time and has only been driven less than 20 miles since it left your shop that fateful day.

Also, your service department misidentified the cylinder that was actually worked on and called it the #2 cylinder which is the middle cylinder on the passenger side. This is an error because my son and I broke the spark plug in the middle on the driver side.

Also, engine blown misdiagnosis is again repeated and an error

Also, gave truck back with broken spark plug after it was brought in for that very repair and had to return it to the bay and mysteriously it was done a few minutes later with an alarming popping explosion sound not present before and incredibly obvious to the tech HE HAD TO HEAR THE DIFFERENCE@!!!

Please correct the errors on invoice 171697 Please refund all monies paid to Honolulu Ford in connection with the misdiagnosis and damage to my engine Please pay the towing and shipping fees to get my truck to a reputable and qualified Ford dealership to get a PROPER and ACCURATE diagnosis.

The assistant service director last Thursday 9-8-2022 called me basically and said the paperwork says we worked on the #2 cylinder therefore sorry for your luck. I explained to the asst service director that it was error and in fact the tech pulled the broken spark plug from the #5 cylinder as I and my son broke it during removal and the apparent devastation to the engine was immediately noticed by Donna White when she picked up the truck.

The assistant service director said there was nothing he could do. I said sure there is - you could investigate the multitude of errors on my invoices and go speak to the tech and ask him if he remembers which side of the engine he worked on in extracting a very difficult broken off spark plug.

The asst service director reluctantly agreed to go speak to the tech and refused to even tell me my techs name. After holding for 10 minutes he returned to the phone and said the tech remembers working on the passenger side – which is again another error or just an outright Lie!

I have still not received any communication from the Service Manager John Le nor General Manager...

Unfortunately, my most unpleasant dealership experience.

I ordered a Mach-E online through Ford's website. Based on communications with the three Ford dealerships on-island and some other local opinion, I chose Honolulu Ford for my dealership. They mentioned there was no markup on online orders and recommended ordering over buying off the lot. The initial part went smoothly enough.

Two months in, I noticed that my Mach-E order page on Ford's website showed markup. I emailed my representative, Thomas K., to ask why there was markup when I had been told there would not be any. His reply was that if I had been promised pricing before then they would honor it. I asked if my prior email communication with the dealership counted, and received the same wishy-washy response. I went in person to get an answer. Thomas was fine, but a sales manager came out who was rather confrontational. I was told that the person who I had originally corresponded with no longer worked at the dealership, but they would honor the email and sell to me at MSRP. They said that they lost money on every Mach-E sold, and that I would likely be the last person they sold at MSRP to. Concerned about this mention of dealership turnover, I asked if we could sign a pricing agreement - which plenty of other dealerships do at the time of order - noting that I worried that I'd have to have this conversation again when the car actually arrived. I was told that they could not until the VIN was assigned, because what if Ford sent us the wrong car? And I was also given a sarcastic comment of thanks, as if I had implied that the sales manager wouldn't be working there in a few months.

Look, I work in a high-pressure field where one of the more dreaded comments someone can make is, "I read something online." I get it. But if this were one of my people, I would tell them that such behavior was unprofessional and really poor customer service. Speak nicely, find out where the misunderstanding is, and let us all leave feeling good about it. I had approached this dealership hoping to start a longer-term relationship, but that experience left me dreading the time when I would need to go back in person.

Months passed, and finally the car was getting close to arriving. We discussed a trade-in; Honolulu Ford's offer was about $9K below Kelly Blue Book's suggested price and, more importantly, $4-5K below Servco Toyota's trade-in offer. I didn't trade to them.

Ford had a pricing adjustment that was not handled well on Ford corporate's end, and the dealership understandably could not resolve it, so I had to eat the cost. I am not criticizing the dealership for that. However, about one week prior to pickup I mentioned it one more time to the dealership just to see if there had been any headway with Ford on the issue, and was told that if that was going to be an issue - being something out of their hands - then they didn't want to sell the car to me. It was incredibly alarming, to wait close to one year and then be told that the dealership might call off the sale just for an inquiry. The dealership came very close to inviting legal action on that one.

They get two stars instead of one because I did ultimately get the vehicle; they kept to their word about no markup or add-ons; the dealership space is nice, clean, and appears to be well-maintained; and the sales process was hands-down the fastest I have ever been in and out of a dealership. In that regard I really wish I could tell you that it's a great dealership, and that I look forward to buying more Ford vehicles in the future from this location. The reality is that it was a relief to get the car and not have to worry about going back to work with them any further. I think they're probably fine if you don't question their prices or actions, but if you do, based on my experiences I would say that their conflict resolution needs some...

Important: Ensure Your Vehicle’s Condition Is Documented and Inventoried Before Any Service at This Location

DO NOT take your vehicle in for service at this dealership unless you have a detailed inventory of every factory-direct part your car came with. And be prepared to verify the inventory immediately after pickup. Otherwise, small but essential parts may go missing, and you may receive little support in resolving the issue.

I brought my car in for a TPMS replacement and SYNC diagnostic. After retrieving the vehicle, I later discovered that the OEM driver-side floormat had been replaced with a used passenger-side floormat. This car is garage-kept, detailed monthly, and has not been serviced anywhere else since I visited Honolulu Ford. My spouse and I are the sole users of the vehicle, so the possibility that we made the switch ourselves is nonexistent. We contacted Honolulu Ford immediately upon discovery.

The first employee I spoke with responded by bluntly asking: "Are you sure you picked up the right car?"

Given that our vehicle is visually distinct in both model and color, and that three weeks had passed, this question came across as not only dismissive but also insulting.

Eventually, I was referred to Jameson Delanoza, the Fixed Operations Director at Honolulu Ford. In our conversation, he suggested that I may have never had a driver-side floormat at all, even though my original floormat includes safety grommets (anchor points), which are a standard factory feature.

He also remarked that "lightning would have to strike three times" for the mat to have been swapped at their facility, implying that such a mistake was, in his view, virtually impossible. After an extended back-and-forth, Mr. Delanoza told me: “We are at an impasse.” He maintained that I had no way to prove the floormat was there to begin with and emphasized that they were not responsible for personal items left in the vehicle. However, the flaw in that logic is significant: this wasn’t a personal item, it was a factory-installed, safety-related component of the car.

He further stated that it was my responsibility as the customer to inspect the vehicle thoroughly before leaving the lot. While that might apply to valuables or loose items, it is unreasonable to expect customers to confirm that factory-assembled parts, especially those unrelated to the area of service, are still intact. By that standard, if you go in for an oil change, you’re expected to verify that your taillights are still in place before driving away.

We followed up with Mr. Delanoza in person (8/12) after a phone conversation the previous day. He stated that he would speak with General Manager Justen Chilcoat to explore a solution. He promised a response by 8/13, but as of 8/14, we have heard nothing back.

We’re still hopeful for a fair resolution, but not optimistic. So far, we’ve experienced delays, dismissiveness, and, at times, accusations that suggest we’re being dishonest for simply wanting back what was originally part of our vehicle.

To some, this may seem like a small issue … “just a floormat”…but to us, it’s about principle, accountability, and respect for our property. We take pride in maintaining a safe, clean, and well-cared-for vehicle, and it's disheartening to have that undermined by a Ford service provider we trusted.

Let this serve as a warning: document everything, take photos of your vehicle beforehand and during pick up, and don’t assume that everything will be returned as it was at...