Is SHE GONNA BLOW!

[mtshowdown]

Need your help. I have been a Ford owner for several years (have not considered other brands); due to recent issues with Ford warranty repairs I am looking at changing brands.

My current vehicle is 2016 Ford F350 Platinum, DRW Diesel.

I will be replacing it with another DRW Diesel (2020 model). I tow a 40’ 5th wheel camper that’s around 17,000 lbs.

GM and Dodge owners how are your vehicles treating you, reliability, warranty issues, comfort, ride, fuel economy, etc.?

As you can see from below, I have had far more problems than normal. So a manufacture that stands behind their customers (without a knife) is of great importance.

I believe the most recent repair has made the vehicle unsafe. The engine ingested app. 2 gallons of engine coolant. Ford authorized replacement of both heads and turbo, but they did not allow dealership to inspect block, pistons, rings, rods, mains, etc. for distortion or cracks.

I will be towing through the mountains. I’m not going to risk my family’s lives. If this engine BLOWS you could have a run-away vehicle.



I purchased my 2016 in Sep. 2016, since then it has been in for repairs approximately 196 days.

-Engine times 2. (1st time they replaced short block and 1 head, 2nd time both heads and turbo).

-Navigation screen lockup

-seat belt warning system (was working before engine replacement 1st time) dealership said this vehicle did not come with the warning system (the red light and chime when you forget to buckle your seatbelt).

-fan blower noisy.

-Sunroof sticking.

-front driveshaft vibration.

-4 wheel drive not engaging.

-Lacks power (this is a 2016 with 3.73 gears) the 2012 I traded with 3.55 gears far outperformed this vehicle.

-Platinum emblem that came loose & turn signal bulb was repaired with only one trip to the dealer.

 

[OCBray]

Same thread posted in the Cummins form. Not getting the answers you were looking for over ther?

 

[mtshowdown]

Getting answers, due to limited amount of time I have to make the purchase, I am posting on several sites to try and get as much data as possible before purchasing a new pickup.

 

[bm02tj]

If you get a good dealer that will go the extra mile for you but FCA is like the others

 

[Elkman]

Lots of online sources like carcomplaint.com for more information as to the types of problems owners have encountered with their vehicles. Consumer Reports provides excellent information as they do an annual survey of their subscribers who detail the repairs and miles driven on the cars and trucks that they own.

When I was looking in 2011 for a diesel truck I used the available sources to quickly scratch Ford off my list. Ram was not a lot better and the 3500 did not get the stronger frame until 2013 and on the 2500 trucks until 2014 (Ford beefed up its F-350 frames starting in 2016.

The 2010 Ram 2500 diesel trucks had improved a great deal but still had well below average reliability and durability with their drive system and fuel system. Actually the drive system has been a problem with the Ram for the the prior 10 years.

If I was going to buy a new diesel pickup today it would be a Chevy Silverado Duramax with the well proven diesel engine that goes back to 2011. The Ram has a diesel engine produced by Cummins but this is not the same engine as one finds in big rigs.

For towing the GM/Chevy trucks have had the best integration of the exhaust brake with the hill descent control and grade control of the big three. There are yearly tests done as with the 2018 testing by the people at pickuptrucks.com that provide information on towing performance with real world testing with heavy trailer loads:

https://news.pickuptrucks.com/2018/07/whats-the-best-one-ton-heavy-duty-truck-for-2018.html

 

[Z mann R2]

I would go Ram simply for one reason, the Cummins straight 6 motor. Them things are just simply bullet proof. Less moving parts and larger moving parts than these 8 cylinder Diesels. I’ve seen them in so many of my companies vehicles for decades including a personal one of mine and they’re simply amazing.

dealer wise, I love my Ram dealer, but I haven’t had a lotta issues like yours so I can’t say without a doubt how much better/worse they are.

good luck!

 

[tidefan1967]

Need your help. I have been a Ford owner for several years (have not considered other brands); due to recent issues with Ford warranty repairs I am looking at changing brands.

My current vehicle is 2016 Ford F350 Platinum, DRW Diesel.

I will be replacing it with another DRW Diesel (2020 model). I tow a 40’ 5th wheel camper that’s around 17,000 lbs.

GM and Dodge owners how are your vehicles treating you, reliability, warranty issues, comfort, ride, fuel economy, etc.?

As you can see from below, I have had far more problems than normal. So a manufacture that stands behind their customers (without a knife) is of great importance.

I believe the most recent repair has made the vehicle unsafe. The engine ingested app. 2 gallons of engine coolant. Ford authorized replacement of both heads and turbo, but they did not allow dealership to inspect block, pistons, rings, rods, mains, etc. for distortion or cracks.

I will be towing through the mountains. I’m not going to risk my family’s lives. If this engine BLOWS you could have a run-away vehicle.



I purchased my 2016 in Sep. 2016, since then it has been in for repairs approximately 196 days.

-Engine times 2. (1st time they replaced short block and 1 head, 2nd time both heads and turbo).

-Navigation screen lockup

-seat belt warning system (was working before engine replacement 1st time) dealership said this vehicle did not come with the warning system (the red light and chime when you forget to buckle your seatbelt).

-fan blower noisy.

-Sunroof sticking.

-front driveshaft vibration.

-4 wheel drive not engaging.

-Lacks power (this is a 2016 with 3.73 gears) the 2012 I traded with 3.55 gears far outperformed this vehicle.

-Platinum emblem that came loose & turn signal bulb was repaired with only one trip to the dealer.

How many miles on your Ford? From what I've seen the Cummins seem to be relatively trouble free up to 100K miles or so and the emissions garbage will start acting up. Ford hasn't had a good diesel engine since the 7.3L in my opinion.

 

[CVX20]

After ingesting a bunch of anti-freeze I'd be concerned about the crank bearings.A/f destroys these brgs.Might not show up right away but it will quick enough.

 

[mikeru]

After ingesting a bunch of anti-freeze I'd be concerned about the crank bearings.A/f destroys these brgs.Might not show up right away but it will quick enough.

This would be my concern as well. Antifreeze doesn't play nice with bearings.

All manufacturers have problems. You're having problems with the Ford engine. I had problems with a 2003 Chevy Duramax, and I have a friend who had problems with his 2006 Cummins. The question I would ask is who can recommend a dealer they've worked with, who have gone the extra mile when it comes to taking care of customers. I had that with the local Chevy dealership until 2016, when the dealership changed ownership. They went downhill after that and I switched to Ram. My local CDJR dealership has been great to me since switching.

Though I have no personal experience with it, I've read good things about the inline 6 CTD engines, and if I needed a HD I'd certainly go with Ram for that. But I've also read good things about the newer Duramax engines. Because of my local dealership I'd never buy one. The next closest Chevy dealer is over an hour further away. I have zero interest in ever buying a Ford product, but that for reasons I'm not going to get into here.

 

[Graygoose]

we have always used Ram 3500's to tow show car trailers, and I have a racing buddy, he runs a Ford dealership....tows with a Ram 3500....

 

[ronheater70]

You've had trouble with your ford, Lots of people have great luck with them. I have had trouble with my first Ram, On my second Now. Lots of people have great luck with them. What it boils down to is any mechanical thing can fail at any given time, and its usually the technician and service department that makes or breaks the situation. I have had Absolutely horrible experience with Ram service departments in the past and absolutely stellar above and beyond service with the Ford dealership for the F-150 I had prior.
I will say that performance wise the 2020 3500 HO with the Aisin isnt really in the same league as the Ford 6.7. Looking at the FLT shootouts, the Ford pulls heavy loads with less effort while getting 1.9 MPG better fuel and using less DEF. Never thought I would look at a Cummins with 1000 FT Lbs and see it playing second fiddle. My Son drives a 2017 powerstroke 6.7 Dually. he is a pipeline welder and the truck spends lots of time on long idles, muddy and dusty conditions etc and he hasnt had a single issue with it since new, other than those dang factory wheels leaking around the valve stems.

 

[mikeru]

I have only watched a handful of the FLT shootouts, but it seems like they are slightly biased towards Ford. Maybe I'm biased myself (okay, I definitely am), but that's the feeling I get when I watch those. I will say that my problem with Ford has never been their engines.

 

[mtshowdown]

Appreciate your advice. I liked my Fords until this one failed. 1st sale is made by the salesman, if no problem next sale is easy, once a problem arises service makes future sales, in this Fords case service has failed. Thank you.

 

[RedneckHippy]

Get a cummins used with low miles and no mods and delete it. If I could start all over again that is what I would do.

 

[mtshowdown]

You've had trouble with your ford, Lots of people have great luck with them. I have had trouble with my first Ram, On my second Now. Lots of people have great luck with them. What it boils down to is any mechanical thing can fail at any given time, and its usually the technician and service department that makes or breaks the situation. I have had Absolutely horrible experience with Ram service departments in the past and absolutely stellar above and beyond service with the Ford dealership for the F-150 I had prior.
I will say that performance wise the 2020 3500 HO with the Aisin isnt really in the same league as the Ford 6.7. Looking at the FLT shootouts, the Ford pulls heavy loads with less effort while getting 1.9 MPG better fuel and using less DEF. Never thought I would look at a Cummins with 1000 FT Lbs and see it playing second fiddle. My Son drives a 2017 powerstroke 6.7 Dually. he is a pipeline welder and the truck spends lots of time on long idles, muddy and dusty conditions etc and he hasnt had a single issue with it since new, other than those dang factory wheels leaking around the valve stems.

Dealership can make the difference. In this case I also contacted Ford directly, they were of no help. One sales manager said they were going through a bad time, Manufactures don't get to have a bad time when working a warranty issue with a customer. If I have taken the time to call them there is a problem that they need to resolve, Ford did not. As the ex customer I will do my part to help Ford have as many bad days as possible.
As for the towing and mileage, many factors can affect that.
In my limited experience (several Fords with 6.7L, 1 Ram with 6.7L). Both tow well, Dually to Dually 3.73 gears Ram definitely provides a better towing experience, mileage on Ram has also been better in my case.
Many things I liked about Ford, warranty repair was not one of them, I keep tow vehicles under warranty, when I have a problem I expect the manufacture to ensure the vehicle is FULLY REPAIRED TO A SAFE LEVEL in a reasonable amount of time. I do not believe Ford did this in my case nor do I believe Ford was concerned about the repair itself, got the impression their only concern was to get the vehicle out of the shop so I could return the rental car.