Crater Lake Ford — Local services in Medford

I want to start by stating, I only ever resort to publicizing situations when I genuinely do not feel I have been treated well. I don’t like to bad mouth or ruin reputations. I’m generally the type to leave a great review, tip my waitresses well, and treat every person in sales/customer service with respect. This is in no way me feeling entitled.

I bought my used ford explorer in 2023. I paid $24k out right cash. I had taken my BIL with me to inspect it. Found a transmission leak. The salesman promised me that the leak would be fixed by the time I picked my car. Fast forward: I’m picking my vehicle up, and they told me the leak was fixed. That was my bad for not asking for proof. however, I was trusting the company and their integrity. It seems a bit redundant to use the word integrity in the field of sales.

The salesman ended up leaving the company by the time I had come back in for a routine oil change 3 months later. At that time I was notified that the leak had not been fixed but that they’d go through my warranty and take care of it. Mind you - that means I am now paying for a problem they guaranteed was taken care of. So at this point I’m still cool, I just want it fixed. They tell me that they don’t have a transmission tech currently, and it’ll be 3 or so months. They told me they’d outsource my car to a partnered shop, but they never did. They said it was fine to drive on. I believe that is what made it worse. I talked with a salesman about this situation and a manager, and together they offered me a whomping total of 6k trade in value. 6k just a little over a year after they sold me a fault vehicle for 24k. Make that make sense. I obviously declined that because that is absolutely absurd and offensive.

I was fortunate to have gotten a small inheritance and buy this car out right. I have worked hard for everything I have ever had, and paid of 6 cars total in my lifetime. I have never been able to just buy outright like this.

24k might not seem like a lot to some people. But for my family being able to buy this vehicle was life-changing. The vehicle we were in was breaking down, and I have a medically complex child who we have to travel to Portland with every few months for medical care.

A reliable vehicle is very crucial for us. Now I am stuck with a car that is probably going to break down on me here soon, and will take a huge loss I cannot afford. I did contact their HR, and they believed I should be put into a different vehicle. I never asked for anything brand new. I just wanted something equal value that is actually reliable, and these people couldn’t do that for me. I understand that this is a business, and their main objective is to profit, but when you’re compromising other people’s well-beings - resolution should be considered. In my opinion. I hope that nobody at this dealership ever finds themselves in a position where their child is in need of life-saving treatment and can’t make it to the hospital 4.5 hours away, because their car is unreliable.

I had a lot of people try to tell me not to shop here, and I was stubborn and did anyways because in the past I had great experiences with their service team. It seems there has been some turnover, and the people currently working that department lack humanity and integrity in their work. Very disappointed and very much taking a big toll on my life. I wish this...

Today, I had an experience that wasn't particularly pleasant. I own a 2022 Ford F-250 with 27,000 miles on it. On August 3rd, I scheduled a service appointment online for the morning of August 12th, addressing two issues: the battery and TPMS failure. However, starting two days ago, the passenger door stopped opening. My Ford vehicle is equipped with a system that automatically unlocks the door when I place my hand inside the handle while carrying the key. The mechanism sounds like it’s working, but the door won't open.

When I arrived at the dealership at the scheduled time, I immediately encountered some disappointing news. I was told that online appointments only accommodate simple oil changes. However, the online scheduling system clearly offered a variety of service options, including battery and tire services, which I selected and provided detailed notes on the issues. They began to warn me that since my appointment was booked as a simple oil change, the allotted time might not be sufficient to address my concerns. I also mentioned the door issue that started two days ago, and the response was that it could take an additional 3-4 days to fix.

Having worked on vehicles myself and knowing that a simple internal panel removal or reconnecting a dislodged rod could potentially resolve the issue, I found the approach taken by the service representative frustrating. They seemed focused on presenting the worst-case scenario and making me feel uncomfortable about the booking process, instead of trying to understand my concerns.

When discussing the battery issue, I ultimately decided not to leave my vehicle with them. The representative informed me that the battery warranty covers three years, but corrosion is not included. They offered a $69 cleaning service, explaining that if the corrosion had appeared within the first year, the battery would have been replaced under warranty. Since my truck is 2 years and 10 months old with 27,000 miles, the free service was not an option. I declined the paid service, as I can clean the corrosion myself.

I raised a concern about the possibility of a problem with the charging controller or charging system, given that there was corrosion on the positive terminal. The representative seemed unsure of what I was referring to and kept insisting on the need for terminal cleaning. Later, I realized that the correct term was "voltage regulator," not "charging controller." That was my mistake for not using the correct terminology. However, if the representative had been more focused on understanding the customer's perspective, the conversation might have taken a different direction.

Overall, I was displeased with how the Crater Lake Ford website's scheduling system was blamed on the customer, how the time needed for every issue was explained with the worst-case scenario, and how the response to my concerns primarily revolved around paid services. I understand that every vehicle has its strengths and potential flaws, and warranty services exist to address these issues. However, when seeking warranty service, being told that I made the wrong appointment, that the process will take a long time, and that I should opt for paid services instead does little to inspire confidence in the vehicle, the manufacturer, or...

0 stars STAY AWAY FROM THIS DEALERSHIP! The service department is completely unreliable and untrustworthy. They lie and are totally not honest when it comes to their work when they make a mistake. They will not do the right thing and will lie about their service. After having my vehicle for over a month with 2 wrong diagnosis that did not fix the problem and after over $3,000.00 spent, I still have a broken vehicle and am out the money they stole. I took my truck in for one very specific issue, paid $500 for the fix they promise would solve it, and it did not and took my truck back in the very same day I picked it up because the problem was very clearly still there. I even requested to to take a drive with the tech to pinpoint the issue. A very specific engine pinging noise. Tech confirmed with me in the truck he heard the exact noise. So I left it with them again and they gave another diagnosis that I asked many times if it would fix that noise that we both confirmed. I was promised it would, only this fix was over $3,000.00. I picked my truck up and less than 24hrs returned because the noise was very clearly still there and not corrected. Again I requested to take the same tech on another drive to confirm the noise was still there. Again he agreed it was with me in the truck the same noise as before. They then told me to bring the truck back a week later when they had more time. I did, though very reluctant to do so after I explicitly expressed that I would be taken care of since I've already paid so much money for no correction. I was promised I would have nothing to worry about and would be taken care of. After more diagnostics they said they think they've figured it out but I would need to pay almost another $1000.00 to fix it. I was floored and requested a refund from what I already paid when my truck was not fixed 2 times before. Then ensues the lying, and now they are saying there were two noises and they already fixed the first one so I would not be getting a refund, even though there were never two noises to begin with, even on every service write up it was always the same noise, one noise, I have never expressed 2 different noises, (as there never was) and when I said talk to your tech who I drove with not once but twice. He then changed his story completely and said that was all untrue! And now they tried saying because I brought it back after almost 1,000 miles it was two separate issues. After they told me to bring it back later, after I did bring it back less than 24 hrs after picking it up before but they wanted to wait! This dealership would not rectify their mistakes, and I am left with a broken truck and out $3,000+ with no resolution. Honesty is clearly not a concern here. oh but they did offer to sell me a new truck instead from my 2018 with 40,000 miles it. oh and don't try to get a hold of any of the higher ups, they avoid you like the plague. My family has been in this valley over 30 years, integrity holds no...