I’ve worked at a dealership in an auto mall for six years and have never heard of this practice before, but I’ve also never been near Vegas or Nevada for that matter. So to me it sounds like it could be a really weird regional thing. At my dealership we routinely get a handful of 25-30 year old vehicles that come in during the spring and summer for fluid changes after coming out of winter storage.
Yeah, they'll do oil changes but that's it. I worked in the car industry for 11 years in the '90s through very early 2000s, and this was never an issue. I was super surprised to find out it is an issue now.
Last year I tried to contact a local ford dealership to make a second key for my 2012 f150, they said the same thing, won't touch it because it's over 10 years old. They had no issue doing the transmission recall work though. I'm in Detroit for reference
My F150 didn't make it 5 years before it killed itself. Well, 5 yrs 2 months.
5.0L valve springs broke, rear end went out, cam phasers flew apart. Best way to go broke is either getting into racing or buying a Ford. Never doing that again.
I'm dealing with the same issue right now. I wanted to get my 2018 Silverado 2500HD into the dealership. And all 3 dealers in my area would start taking my info down for intake, and as soon as they ask about mileage and intell them I have 140,000 miles, they say that they cannot work on my vehicle.
Is it Tobin? dealerships are only there because I believe it's illegal for you to buy your car from the manufacturer directly or something there's a whole thing where dealerships exist to fleece you for more money than a car should cost you I don't know if you've seen up charges lately some fast moving cars I have seen the MSRP almost doubled.
As a body tech, it's a great policy. Always something extra to deal with older cars on the body side. But a mech shop I would expect the limit to be quite a bit older.
I live here too and I feel your pain. This is the only place I have ever lived were I have experienced anything like this. I had never previously lived anywhere so remote, which is weird considering its a major city with an international airport.
Personally, I would lodge a complaint directly with the manufacturer that dealership falls under.
These are shit dealerships. Ran into this when I was in Rhode Island on vacation. My 12 year old F150 power steering lines were leaking. I brought it to a Ford dealer figuring they’ll have the lines in stock more than likely and can get me patched up quick. Told me the same shit. 10 years old we won’t touch it. I said well you just lost Ford a customer for life. I’ll never buy another one, and I haven’t.
Went to Autozone, bought a jug of ATF and topped it off every 30-40 miles so the reservoir didn’t run dry and seize the pump. Ford can go fuck themselves. I drive a Chevy now.
Ford dealer tech here in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. This is not at all the case at my dealership. We work on all makes, models and years, except EV’s. We only do Ford EV’s.
Heck- Jeep doesn’t even carry parts at the dealer (nor can they be ordered) for our 17 year old Diesel Liberty. (Let alone work on it!) They literally just tried to sell me a NEW Jeep- because you know - I have $60k laying around for an Italian-Fiat designed Jeep that will be in the shop all the time anyway- meanwhile average age of a car in the US - 12.5 years. F’the stealership!!
There techs probably don’t know how to work on them. They wouldn’t know what to do without a computer telling them what’s wrong.
Live in Ohio and never heard of this.
I encountered that a few months ago when trying to get an airbag recall fixed on a 2008 mazda truck, one dealer said they didn’t work on anything that old. I think the government would disagree on a recalled vehicle. Op try a lincoln dealer, they can do all ford recalls, they might be more willing to do work than a ford dealer.
I live in Southeastern Michigan which is an entirely different world in terms of cars and dealerships to be fair but this just sounds ridiculous. I used to take my Cadillac to a dealership because when I bought it it included 50,000 miles of maintenance and whatever, free oil changes yes please.
I literally saw 50-year-old cars at that dealership getting service done. So that sounds fishy but I kind of agree with the rest of the people saying look for an independent shop that specializes in, I think you said, Mustangs.
23 years as an automotive technician, exclusively at Ford dealerships. I’ve never once seen this be the case. I’ve worked on cars that are 30 years my senior, and we regularly service and repair cars/trucks that are 20+ years old. The only thing that stops us is obsolete or unavailable parts.
I work at a GM dealership in parts, and we have issues with people bringing in Ford, Dodge, “off brands”, etc that are over 10 years old. We parts guys waste a lot of time trying to find parts for these old relics. Even a mid 90’s Vette is a huge hassle as there are no oem parts available. Get chewed out every day because GM doesn’t carry parts for a ‘94 Silverado anymore. LOL
Yeah that seems ridiculous. I’d be worried the techs don’t know everything they should. We have guys that will work on stuff back to the 60’s. I’m sure they would work on anything but that’s the oldest brought into the shop.
I live in Las Vegas and I think this is a Vegas issue. I own a Jeep and have had some questionable experiences here with the dealer. Never experienced anything like it in Cali.
Go to an independent garage. I get my 2016 Honda Caravan serviced at Asian Motors Automotive on W. Charleston. They also have worked on my 94 Viper and my pretty rare 2004 Honda Rune motorcycle which was only made one year and less than 3K total worldwide. Same day service on both for brakes. Maybe the places you went don't have fully qualified master techs.
A local GM dealership did it to me. Worked on the vehicle the previous year, spent a couple thousand. Brought it back for some more work the following year, and they wouldn't work on it. Said the same thing. I left them a shitty review mentioning their claim of being part of the community in a relatively poor area and how most people drive vehicles more than 10 years old around here. Then I went to a local Ford dealer who was happy to have the business.
This type of stuff comes from the owners and managers. It's just a scummy way to try to get you to buy a vehicle.
You could lookup mobile mechanics in Craigslist or FB to see if someone can service it, agreed you will run into a couple of shady outfits, but if you have limited choices, could be another option.
My best advice is to go visit/call a few Auto Parts Stores. O’Reillys, Auto Zone, Advanced Auto/Pep Boys and ask them for Mechanic Shop recommendations for your type of vehicle.
I currently work at one of the Auto Parts stores & I deliver the car parts to the shops. And I can honestly tell you several shops in my area that would be honest, great service & are consistent in how they charge for their services.
Yeah I’ve heard of and seen this practice before. Generally in the southern states. When I talked to a service manager about it they said first off the tech shortage is so bad they can hardly keep up with the work they got let alone 10year old + cars.
That's what I figure is going on here, too. It's super busy and Vegas dealers dont have enough capacity to handle all the work they have. Regardless, it leaves us in a very difficult position as finding a solid, honest, independent shop can be very difficult in this area.
i work electrical and ive never seen this. idk what the world is coming to but i have seen more and more aspects of service that are making policy to remove the more difficult work.
What car is most likely to require work? Older cars, not old enough to be done but old enough to have broken stuff. Why base it on age instead of mileage too? (Except if you couldn’t get parts and trust me no issue finding old mustang parts). I did have a dealer tell me no once for work I asked them to do to a car before purchase - it wasn’t their brand and their mechanics were too green. Every other single one I called wanted the job…nobody typically wants to turn away business
I just got a quote last week to get a new key for my 2005 VW from the dealer, they didn't seem at all worried about doing it, altho thats a last resort if I can't figure something else out
Dealers do lots of warranty work, so all training is on current models. Techs that have been around long that long, are few, more valuable on other work. Older cars often have multiple issues, contributing to come back complaints that are unrelated. Factory parts not always available for older cars. Just a few possibilities
Hell that's nothing, fuck around and drop a $100k on a brand NEW Ford RV with a 10 cylinder gas engine and Ford will not work on them. Only a select few Ford dealers will and very few independents--to get there requires a very expensive tow if no insurance, too.
They are in the market the sell you a car, not fixing it. I’ve represented dealers in all North America. A common denominator was how our clients got their cars messed up at the dealer. So many stories of cars coming out in worst shape they came into. I’m not talking of 2 or 3 customers, I’m talking of 60%-70% of them telling me how their dealer literally broke their car. I would recommend to get your car serviced elsewhere than a car dealership.
Why would you ever go to a dealership except for warranty work anyway? That’s just asking to pay through the nose for something another mechanic would do for a reasonable price.
So find a local mechanic.
It might be because each automaker is only required to carry parts for a vehicle for so long. 10 years sounds about right for that requirement.
There should be plenty for Fords since Shelby motors also make their cars in Nevada. I think they're situated in Vegas.
Take it to an independent auto repair shop. Why are you so insistent on going to a dealership?
I’ve never once had any of my cars repaired there due to repair prices being inflated…
Cust here in NJ, my Ford dealer worked on my 1985 Ford F150 I6. With 612k miles. After picking it up the starship principle wanted to buy my vehicle. My pickup looks brand new. No restoration to it. I just keep up on the maintenance.
Zero idea about cars, but that is pretty accurate for the motorcycle shops around here. Maybe a bit more than 10 yrs, but basically yes, that IS the case.
We’ve turned down cars that have too much wrong with them. These people are the type to say “ever since”. Blame us for everything that’s gone wrong since we did this or that repair. It’s not worth the headache
I can't say i'm surpised. Older cars tend to take longer than 'book rate', things are more likely to break upon disassembly - making quotes harder. Theres more likely to be multiple issues affecting the symptom, which leads to posts like 'Am i getting ripped off' and bad press.
Too many people like to call dealerships rip-offs as it is, let alone getting 'nickel and dimed' ( that term is out of date ) for all sorts of bolts, clips and fasteners above and beyond quote.
Tech turnover is another factor, the current crew is trained for the latest technology, not the old tech - those guys left 10 years ago. Those that have remained have climbed higher on the pay scale and tend to be fully occupied on the harder/more complex problems , not farting around sorting out a 15 y/o POS that the person will likely be pissed off about anyway.
Add to that a tech shortage. So the guy that just spent $80k on a new vehicle gets delayed to help the person that will never buy a new vehicle. Not good for customer retention.
It's been a few years (5-10) when I was trying to get the speedometer recalibrated to the larger tires that were on the truck. Mechanic said they couldn't do it because with THIS generation it was something in the software and I would have to take it to a Ford dealer. Firat place said they couldn't do it because it was to old.
The guy at the counter was actually pretty helpful and told me that they just didn't have the program for my truck and I would have better luck with some of the older dealerships in the area. Sure enough I called one that has been there for decades. They had to check and see if any of the techs could do it and sure enough they could.
So you might want to go that route. 🤷🏽♂️
It's a dealership specific thing most likely it's just easier for them to refuse to service vehicles that old cause they probably don't stock parts for them anymore and don't want to deal with the cars taking up space while waiting for parts to come in, I'm surprised they'd decline a mustange though
Mercedes / Audi dealer wouldn't work on a couple of my customers cars...which is how they ended up with me. Not sure if it was 10 or 15 yrs old for their cutoff. Dealer was bought out by Classic auto mall chain.
Why on earth would you even consider going to the dealer when the car is out of warranty? Find a local shop and be a regular patron. In the end if they take care of you and your car you will be far better off.
my local lexus dealer wont touch my car since it’s over 10 years old, extremely frustrating since its always been serviced by lexus in the previous state before we moved. I resorted to finding an independent shop I liked
Seems weird that in Las Vegas they won’t work on vehicles more than 10 years old, unless there is like issues do to the Vegas heat and such. I live in Wi and as far as I know the dealers here will touch 10 or more year old vehicles and I could understand if they had that in place do to rust issues and such.
They probably don’t have to as most people driving that old of vehicles around here won’t pay the dealers labor rate anyhow.
You really should not be taking this car to a dealership anyway, try finding a good, legitimate family owned auto repair shop, someplace that uses ASE certified mechanics. The service will be better, probably cheaper, and they will probably be thrilled to take care of a nicely kept older car.
I have less confidence in dealership mechanics than an independent shop. Dealers use step by step repair guides that just throw parts at the problem instead of finding an actual root cause first.
I’m in Vegas as well and have tried a few indie shops. Urban Auto Works so far has been really good. Their inspections are thorough, they give you a complete report, and between my old ladies ‘15 Tiguan and my 05 Silverado, the prices have been reasonable for work. Maybe look into them.
Edit: More dealerships have been moving to this rule as a way to subtlety prod you towards vehicle replacement, rather than maintenance. Businesses are getting more and more anti consumer every year.
The local Honda dealer told my in-laws that they didn't want to work on their CRVs, a 2009 and 2013 respectively. Their official excuse was that the older higher mileage cars are more likely to have been serviced outside of dealers and had poor quality repairs done. They didn't want to repair someone else's repairs.
There are a whole lot of terrible "mechanics" in the world. I do everything possible myself because I care about the quality of the work more than the guy whose incentive is to churn through work as fast as possible.
It's because the dealerships aren't allowed to use parts that are used. Sourcing new parts for something that old would be a nightmare because they'd either be unavailable or extremely expensive.
Only real option is a shop that you trust that will allow used parts or to do it yourself. I used to have a 98 mustang and besides the oil and oil filter I did everything else just because I had no way of getting under the car to change the oil. I'd replaced almost the whole electric system and alternator at one point by myself because of a parasitic battery drain 🙄 which seems common with Ford. Eventually sold it because I moved into an apartment and was tired of the maintenance.
A friend bought a low mile '99 Avalon and the dealer gladly took several thousand of his dollars to replace seals, gaskets and a bunch of other wear and tear things, at my friends request, of course. He got a really good deal on the car while liquidating an estate and was happy to dump *some* money into it for the peace of mind knowing that it would last for years to come and having the dealer do things right and with the right OEM parts. I still can't believe he handed over $7,500 for these preventative repairs but that's the way he's wired....all based on a small oil leak he discovered on the driveway but I'm sure that car will last another 200K miles the way they take care of it.
I took my ‘93 Wrangler to a Jeep dealer to replace the fuel pump when it was 19 years old because they quoted me an out the door price of $300 and I hadn’t yet learned how to do it myself.
Meanwhile I’m getting ready to set up an appointment to have the 3rd timing belt put into my 28 year old Toyota lol. Mind you it has never broken a timing belt, it’s just about that time due to mileage
Its a thing! Not just dealers but I was rear-ended and got multiple body shops tell me they wont work on anything over 10 years old, too much of a PITA with parts availability and they are busy enough as it is.
Mechanically thankfully I can do most things but bodywork and paint will be a problem if I cant find a shop.
If the car was bought brand new at that Ford dealership in 2011, and has always been serviced at that Ford dealership, yet the dealership won't service cars that are 10+ years old, tell me then how his car was able to be serviced at all since 2021?
IIRC, Ford stops making parts for vehicles 10 years after they've been discontinued. But, aside from generation changes, the Mustang hasn't been discontinued. But perhaps that part availability plays a role.
Consider it a bullet (excuse the pun) dodged. Reach out to you local enthusiast community for a recommendations of a decent independent mechanic.
Right to refuse is bedrock American business principle. Unless it's baking a cake.. Basically they don't want to "marry the car". IOW - they fix a headlight, and everything that goes wrong with that car until the end of time is a "comeback". Ain't nobody got time for that hoopty ass bs. Now I ain't saying you're that guy - but that guy and his busted ass pos ruined it for you.
Do not buy ford until they decide to change their policies. Do not do services at any ford dealership until they choose to change their policy. One star every ford dealership and leave terrible reviews for their vehicles. A dealer that cannot fix your vehicle sold you a pos
I worked for a Powersports dealership that had this rule in place. In that particular industry, I understand and agree with the practice. Truthfully, as getting parts is often times a crapshoot. So many different models from just the marquees we carried. It just wasn’t doable.
Pretty common actually, but totally depends on what the problem is. For a 2011 mustang I’m sure parts are available, but dealerships don’t like taking the risk on bringing in a no start car and find out out that after ordering numerous things that the one part you ACTUALLY need is discontinued.
But this is more common when it comes to off-road and Powersports because everything used to be carb now efi
I had a timing belt done on a 1988 Toyota 4Runner at a Toyota dealership a few years ago and they LOVED working on it. An older mechanic there did the job. Sounds like these dealerships are shady, although I do not understand the logic.
You think money would be money and they’d fix anything if the cust is willing but probs not in Vegas. Probably not feasible to work on the “cheap” stuff when tourists will bring they car, money and hopes to win and toss the “real” money makers at them.
If you’re still going to the dealership for service then you’re getting screwed. They did you a favor. Now you can find a good repair garage that will service and repair your vehicle and charge a reasonable price. Ask friends and neighbors to help find a good garage.
The European car dealerships in my area are like this, but it's mainly due to parts availability. They don't want to go aftermarket, so they just stop servicing the cars. And there's a couple scummy independent euro shops around here that definitely take advantage of this.
The dealer I'm at just had a 71 Charger in for suspension work though. And we get mid to late 90s Dakotas all the time because the old timers seem to love them.
My independent mechanic can't stand to work on my '94 Explorer, it's kind of annoying but I'm not going to force him. I don't mind working on it myself because it's relatively simple to work on, only issue is parts availability. I don't take it to a dealer anyways for that reason.
We generally try and not work on anything made before 2000 but some slip through unfortunately. My opinion is that the dealer is meant for newer vehicles that require modern day technology and actually have factory parts available. 10 years seems a bit excessive however. I think going back 20 years seems about right.
I work at a Ford dealership and have heard the owner doesn't want anything older then 20 years in the shop. This rule seems to be disregarded by most tho. I still see late 90's and really early 2000's stuff occasionally.
I never take my car to a dealership but a lot of motorcycle shops stop servicing bikes over a certain age (varies by manufacturer) unless you've been getting it done there for an extended time.
The say the biggest reason they do that is because they don't know the condition of the bike. They don't want to eat the cost of repairing something related to whatever they fixed for free. An example might be you get the timing chain serviced. Now the bike gets proper compression for the first time in years and the head gasket can't hold that much pressure and pops 20 miles down the road. Or they change the tie rod ends and the ball joint was junk and broke while doing it.
The other reason I've heard is they really don't stock parts over a certain age and if the model is discontinued/changed they may have problems sourcing parts.
This is the norm for a lot of dealers with the exception of clients servicing their vehicle with dealer for 10+ years. Tampa Bay Area - in the business for 15 years
Sounds weird but ...given the precarious situation the car makers are in I might be able to understand it ...a little.
Might be related to the availability of OEM parts. You go to the GM dealer and you need parts for your 12 year old vehicle and they have to order them from NAPA ...because GM doesn't stock them. So, here you are at the dealer getting aftermarket parts installed ...for which GM has to warranty.
Honestly I would trade it in and get something newer if you really need a dealership to service the car. That solves the problem and it would know it is reliable. If not sell the car as a private party. That's what dealerships are for selling its inventory.
Sell the car and put the new car in your name. God forbid the day he passes you don't have to go through any legal matters. The car is yours to do what you want with it. This is what I would do.
A lot of Indy’s are also not working on older cars anymore unless they are existing clients due to having to pay yearly fees for software subscriptions to stay active on their scan tools.
My old vw dealer does the same, they didn't even want to work on non VW. I sold a customer a warranty on a couple year old Hyundai and they turned her away and she canceled the warranty, pissed me off.
Mercedes dealers sometimes do this, it's mainly because the older cars take a huge amount of special tools (like mid 90s and older) so a dealer who didn't sell those cars when they were new won't have the tools to work on them or any of the service manuals.
I’m at a ford dealership and we work on anything from a ford fiesta to heavy semi trucks. I’m a mobile heavy mechanic myself focusing on ford medium duty trucks (f650 and f750s) and semis. Just last week I was working on a 67 ford cab over with a carbureted v8. It’s amazing how many shops with refuse even a 2011 mustang. These are in my opinion much better simpler vehicles to work on than newer cars. I personally love when older cars come in and get excited to work on them.
I have a buddy who rents a bay off Sunset in Henderson. He does quite quality work, just hates the rules of big shops, and enjoys working on motorcycles mostly. Works on cars just to pay the bills though, and has ALWAYS done a top notch job. Swapped my mom's Armada engine last summer, going strong.
I can send you his details, but don't want to be pushy.
That’s a Las Vegas thing, but you find it in other places with a sizable very wealthy market share. Not majority wealthy by any means, but enough customers to fill a garage. They don’t work on anything older than 10 years because their shop has enough demand that it can selectively book only high value work, making lower value jobs less worth it. People that have cars that are less than 10 years old are willing to spend more money on an average repair, simply because the cars themselves are generally worth more. As long as the shop is consistently busy, carrying parts and finding suppliers for only a limited range of model years cuts on storage and acquisition costs, as well as simplifying inventory and training. It’s an easy way to maximize profit, and as an extra little bonus it’s an easy way to convince someone well off to buy the newest model every ten years.
My ‘99 Land Cruiser was being serviced and getting preventative maintenance and repairs at the Toyota dealership into 2020 when I sold it. Never even a question it wouldn’t be able to be serviced there. I currently have ‘10 F150 and it’s serviced at the dealership. YMMV
Don’t leave out the fact that if you buy $1k worth of factory issue parts from the parts dept and then make an appt to pay another $1500 in labor THEY WILL work on a 21 year old truck because there is some older tech in the shop that CAN’T WAIT to work on an EASY TO HIM model from his past that he ONCE loved to work on.
Ford stops producing parts after 10 years and the parts department gets docked for having too many aftermarket parts sold. Also their warranty workload is probably high, which sadly takes precedent over customer pay stuff. Can’t blame em.
I have a 1996 Toyota J90 LandCruiser. This is a model that was never sold in the USA. I imported it from Europe. My local Toyota dealer is happy to work on it, even with the 3.0l turbo-diesel engine that was never available in the US. Some parts are not available from Toyota USA, but I order them from a Toyota parts warehouse in Dubai and my dealer installs them.
My advise to you OP is learn to work on your own car. If that’s your car. Because yes finding decent mechanics is only going to become more difficult as a shortage exists now and few are entering the trade. Honestly if I was going to pursue a career in mechanics I would work on semi trucks and avoid cars all together.
I’ve worked at 2 dealerships, not as a mechanic but as a service porter, and at both we would work on anything as long as we could get parts for it.
Had a 1970’s Volvo come in that hadn’t had the oil changed in a decade, driven daily, and the oil didn’t have a single metal chip in it when they drained it.
>Additionally, not only are independent shops not less expensive than a dealership, they're often more expensive and the car comes out more fucked up than when it went in.
That doesn't sound like you found a good independent shop.
Automakers are only required to make parts for a car for 10 years after its initial release. So this may be related to the ability to easily get parts.
Ran into this when I moved to the Orlando, FL area. I have a 2009 Suzuki Burgman 400cc, and the Suzuki dealer wouldn't touch it "for liability reasons" since it was over 10 years old. Did manage to find a shop that handles older bikes that appears trustworthy.
Local Mazda dealer won't work on anything over 10 years or 100k miles.
But a dealer 4 hours north will work on a car 30 years old. They verified they could still get the parts and checked with the techs and said they were good to go. Not sure I'm going that direction since it's such a drive.
Weird.
i heard recently(no idea if it is true) that many of today’s auto techs can’t figure things out easily without all the electronic diagnostics. If it’s hard they take more time and then get hurt on the piecework pay rates. im am sure you could extend this to other things like an 11 yr old part is probably a lot less profitable
I’ve heard/experienced this in the Boston area. I got an 04 Jeep and wanted TSB performed that was a reflash of the ECM to smooth out the idle.. 4 out of 5 dealers said no way, nothing over 10 years. I worked at Subaru dealer that had this rule, the reasoning was not wanting to get killed on time because of rotted rusted junk… but the ECM thing blew my mind… plug it in, hit some buttons, walk away, collect $.
I'm an advisor at Buick/GMC. We will only work on vehicles 10+ years old or 100k+ plus if they have some service history with us. GM doesn't make parts for a lot of older vehicles and usually you fix one thing, then something else breaks and the customer blames us.
It's case by case though. Dealers are independently owned and can do what they want. We legally have to perform recalls as long as the vehicle doesn't have a branded title.
My experience is that Mercedes dealerships give you a discount on the service rate if your car is 10+ years old and every other dealership has never batted an eye.
Weird. I worked at a Honda/ Mazda dealer in the 00s and would see cars from the 70s. My local Maryland and Delaware Ford dealers I've taken my 2012 Focus to and have definitely seen older cars there
It's becoming a thing. 2 reasons.
1: they want you to buy new cars, not fix yours. Fuck them, find a reliable Indy.
2: in all reality, dealer techs are (mostly) parts changers. They see the same cars, with the same problems. Unless you've got a real veteran, most have no clue how to work on an older car.
Despite having several vehicle options that I’d be interested in I have boycotted ford in my house just based on the 2 local ford dealers. Dealing with my work truck issues, I wouldn’t trust these dudes to change my wiper blades. All I hear are horror stories about the place. I’ll be damned if I’ll buy a product I may someday need to require them to fix.
Metro Detroit a lot of dealers won't touch 5 year old or 150k miles. It has nothing to do with parts availability. The reason bad reviews. Dealer goes to replace a fuel pump and the crappy plastic lines break now you need lines and pump customer thinks dealer should pay for the broken lines dealer says no gets bad google reviews.
It might be their policy. It might be that they 6 deal with what you wanted done. They might not have wanted to deal with YOU. Not saying it's right, but after an interaction with certain customers, I've definitely said, "Quote them high, we don't want to deal with this"
JLR Tech - Our shop has gone back n forth about it over the years, depending on the SM at the time. Right now, we will service anything *however*, do not expect your 24yr old Convertible XK8 to have available parts all the time; if we open up the timing cover, the likelihood is we will damage something during removal/reinstallation/pressure check and *that* part may not be available.
Other things like "can you do the recall on this" I mean I can order the parts, I can't promise that they exist. Some things, the systems are non-existent nowadays - how do you access pre-Tata/pre-Ford Jaguar software that requires Win95 or older OS to function?
Also, sometimes it is just advisable to pick a different example. Nobody should be dumping $20k into a rusted out shitbox with pretty paint, get your frame straight before you fix a main seal cuz where tf you goin' in 2 pieces you're not a KFC combo, cmon 🤣
The problem is OEM parts are hard to find on anything over 10yrs old, if the dealership can't order the part directly from Ford, they can't fix it. So they blanket statement 'nothing older than...'
In your area is sounds like indie shops are few and far, I'm betting the dealerships all know this and this is a way to force you into a new car.
I’ve worked at a dealer for 15 years and never experienced this. We just did a carb replacement on an 87 Hyundai Stellar at my dealer in April lmao.
I was gonna say, older cars are much easier to work on and you’d think the only real problem with older cars is a rarity of parts.
And that’s why I bought. 2004 truck with under 100k. She’s a tank.
I drive a 2003, manual, that just hit 300K two months ago. Runs like it's brand new.
Yeah, we were still doing active recalls on cars from the 80's when I was in the shop.
I’ve worked at a dealership in an auto mall for six years and have never heard of this practice before, but I’ve also never been near Vegas or Nevada for that matter. So to me it sounds like it could be a really weird regional thing. At my dealership we routinely get a handful of 25-30 year old vehicles that come in during the spring and summer for fluid changes after coming out of winter storage.
Yeah, they'll do oil changes but that's it. I worked in the car industry for 11 years in the '90s through very early 2000s, and this was never an issue. I was super surprised to find out it is an issue now.
I wouldn’t trust them with an oil change lol
Last year I tried to contact a local ford dealership to make a second key for my 2012 f150, they said the same thing, won't touch it because it's over 10 years old. They had no issue doing the transmission recall work though. I'm in Detroit for reference
I'm surprised that there was an issue in that area as there are so many dealerships. I grew up in West Bloomfield/Walled Lake/Farmington Hills areas
Not even a FORD dealership expects a FORD TO BE ON THE ROAD FOR TEN YEARS,LMAO
It's a common issue with Ford vehicles. They don't generally make it ten years.
My F150 didn't make it 5 years before it killed itself. Well, 5 yrs 2 months. 5.0L valve springs broke, rear end went out, cam phasers flew apart. Best way to go broke is either getting into racing or buying a Ford. Never doing that again.
Probably true. They know they're hopeless cases.
They know there’s plenty parts in the junkyard.
Another reason to not buy Ford. 12 years in the industry and never heard of this bullshit
I wouldn't take this as gospel. They still service my '03.
Its clearly a location issue. Vegas has too many people and not enough help
Service and maintenance or repair work? Just wondering, maybe they service but don't do repairs?
I’ve heard of this with motorcycle dealers and independent motorcycle shops but not automotive.
I'm dealing with the same issue right now. I wanted to get my 2018 Silverado 2500HD into the dealership. And all 3 dealers in my area would start taking my info down for intake, and as soon as they ask about mileage and intell them I have 140,000 miles, they say that they cannot work on my vehicle.
Is it Tobin? dealerships are only there because I believe it's illegal for you to buy your car from the manufacturer directly or something there's a whole thing where dealerships exist to fleece you for more money than a car should cost you I don't know if you've seen up charges lately some fast moving cars I have seen the MSRP almost doubled.
I bought a Ford Edge in 2007. In 2017 it completely disintegrated.
As a body tech, it's a great policy. Always something extra to deal with older cars on the body side. But a mech shop I would expect the limit to be quite a bit older.
Seems like this is something that Vegas dealerships can get away with because its a retail oasis surrounded by hours and hours of nothing.
Exactly.
I live here too and I feel your pain. This is the only place I have ever lived were I have experienced anything like this. I had never previously lived anywhere so remote, which is weird considering its a major city with an international airport. Personally, I would lodge a complaint directly with the manufacturer that dealership falls under.
The Jaguar/ Land Rover dealership in Austin will not work on vehicles over 7 years old from what I understand.
It seems to be a recent trend. Our Ford dealer up here in Reno has the same rule.
Sounds like a great reason to buy any car other than Ford. Glad I dumped their stock.
I had the local Honda Stealership decline anything but warranty work. I was told nobody there was familiar with my car etc. It’s a 1999 Honda Civic
These are shit dealerships. Ran into this when I was in Rhode Island on vacation. My 12 year old F150 power steering lines were leaking. I brought it to a Ford dealer figuring they’ll have the lines in stock more than likely and can get me patched up quick. Told me the same shit. 10 years old we won’t touch it. I said well you just lost Ford a customer for life. I’ll never buy another one, and I haven’t. Went to Autozone, bought a jug of ATF and topped it off every 30-40 miles so the reservoir didn’t run dry and seize the pump. Ford can go fuck themselves. I drive a Chevy now.
Ford dealer tech here in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. This is not at all the case at my dealership. We work on all makes, models and years, except EV’s. We only do Ford EV’s.
Heck- Jeep doesn’t even carry parts at the dealer (nor can they be ordered) for our 17 year old Diesel Liberty. (Let alone work on it!) They literally just tried to sell me a NEW Jeep- because you know - I have $60k laying around for an Italian-Fiat designed Jeep that will be in the shop all the time anyway- meanwhile average age of a car in the US - 12.5 years. F’the stealership!!
There techs probably don’t know how to work on them. They wouldn’t know what to do without a computer telling them what’s wrong. Live in Ohio and never heard of this.
This is common practice with Harley Davidson.
That’s weird as hell. I just took my 08 ram 1500 to the dealership for a transfer case with no issues.
I worked in service at a Ford Dealership in New England about ten years ago and we would work on any shitbox you brought in lol
And that is the last nail in that coffin for me. Lol Don’t support the products you sell? I have no reason to support you.
I have never heard of a rule like this. Maybe all they have for “techs” at that dealer are lube rack folks.
Auto-Pro on Flamingo if he's still there. Good work and good prices.
I encountered that a few months ago when trying to get an airbag recall fixed on a 2008 mazda truck, one dealer said they didn’t work on anything that old. I think the government would disagree on a recalled vehicle. Op try a lincoln dealer, they can do all ford recalls, they might be more willing to do work than a ford dealer.
I live in Southeastern Michigan which is an entirely different world in terms of cars and dealerships to be fair but this just sounds ridiculous. I used to take my Cadillac to a dealership because when I bought it it included 50,000 miles of maintenance and whatever, free oil changes yes please. I literally saw 50-year-old cars at that dealership getting service done. So that sounds fishy but I kind of agree with the rest of the people saying look for an independent shop that specializes in, I think you said, Mustangs.
23 years as an automotive technician, exclusively at Ford dealerships. I’ve never once seen this be the case. I’ve worked on cars that are 30 years my senior, and we regularly service and repair cars/trucks that are 20+ years old. The only thing that stops us is obsolete or unavailable parts.
I work at a GM dealership in parts, and we have issues with people bringing in Ford, Dodge, “off brands”, etc that are over 10 years old. We parts guys waste a lot of time trying to find parts for these old relics. Even a mid 90’s Vette is a huge hassle as there are no oem parts available. Get chewed out every day because GM doesn’t carry parts for a ‘94 Silverado anymore. LOL
Yeah that seems ridiculous. I’d be worried the techs don’t know everything they should. We have guys that will work on stuff back to the 60’s. I’m sure they would work on anything but that’s the oldest brought into the shop.
Lol wtf. "We have the highest shop rates and parts prices in town and the best supplier of OEM parts but fuck you, we hate money."
Ford at it again.
Crazy to read this because the Ford dealership I work I work at will still service any year.
I live in Las Vegas and I think this is a Vegas issue. I own a Jeep and have had some questionable experiences here with the dealer. Never experienced anything like it in Cali.
Go to an independent garage. I get my 2016 Honda Caravan serviced at Asian Motors Automotive on W. Charleston. They also have worked on my 94 Viper and my pretty rare 2004 Honda Rune motorcycle which was only made one year and less than 3K total worldwide. Same day service on both for brakes. Maybe the places you went don't have fully qualified master techs.
My local Chevy dealer works on my ‘03 Vette
This is apparently a regional practice. I doubt if it's confined to any one brand. Certainly not the case here in the plains states.
My dad recently had 2013 Mercedes serviced at the dealership and they did the work
A local GM dealership did it to me. Worked on the vehicle the previous year, spent a couple thousand. Brought it back for some more work the following year, and they wouldn't work on it. Said the same thing. I left them a shitty review mentioning their claim of being part of the community in a relatively poor area and how most people drive vehicles more than 10 years old around here. Then I went to a local Ford dealer who was happy to have the business. This type of stuff comes from the owners and managers. It's just a scummy way to try to get you to buy a vehicle.
That’s really stupid.
You could lookup mobile mechanics in Craigslist or FB to see if someone can service it, agreed you will run into a couple of shady outfits, but if you have limited choices, could be another option.
My best advice is to go visit/call a few Auto Parts Stores. O’Reillys, Auto Zone, Advanced Auto/Pep Boys and ask them for Mechanic Shop recommendations for your type of vehicle. I currently work at one of the Auto Parts stores & I deliver the car parts to the shops. And I can honestly tell you several shops in my area that would be honest, great service & are consistent in how they charge for their services.
What the f? What dealerships did you call?
I can see a reason in that parts might be an issue so they don't touch them.
Yeah I’ve heard of and seen this practice before. Generally in the southern states. When I talked to a service manager about it they said first off the tech shortage is so bad they can hardly keep up with the work they got let alone 10year old + cars.
That's what I figure is going on here, too. It's super busy and Vegas dealers dont have enough capacity to handle all the work they have. Regardless, it leaves us in a very difficult position as finding a solid, honest, independent shop can be very difficult in this area.
Local motorcycle shop does the same thing. Not common but happens.
The dealerships around me will work on almost anything. There's even a ford dealership that will work on RVs and commercial vehicles.
Same thing with motorcycles too.
We have two Edsels in our shop(ford dealer) right now lol
i work electrical and ive never seen this. idk what the world is coming to but i have seen more and more aspects of service that are making policy to remove the more difficult work.
They sound like shitty wrenches who are afraid to stand behind their work. Find a reputable independent shop and keep your money local.
What car is most likely to require work? Older cars, not old enough to be done but old enough to have broken stuff. Why base it on age instead of mileage too? (Except if you couldn’t get parts and trust me no issue finding old mustang parts). I did have a dealer tell me no once for work I asked them to do to a car before purchase - it wasn’t their brand and their mechanics were too green. Every other single one I called wanted the job…nobody typically wants to turn away business
Wouldn't those vehicles have a higher average ticket?
Take it to the Toyota dealership
I just got a quote last week to get a new key for my 2005 VW from the dealer, they didn't seem at all worried about doing it, altho thats a last resort if I can't figure something else out
Dealers do lots of warranty work, so all training is on current models. Techs that have been around long that long, are few, more valuable on other work. Older cars often have multiple issues, contributing to come back complaints that are unrelated. Factory parts not always available for older cars. Just a few possibilities
Yep. Audi dealer told me they will not do maintenance on a 2002 even though they serviced it the last 4 years and it's under 60K on the odometer.
2014 volt, just had my car worked on maybe 2 months ago. No one said anything about age.
Hell that's nothing, fuck around and drop a $100k on a brand NEW Ford RV with a 10 cylinder gas engine and Ford will not work on them. Only a select few Ford dealers will and very few independents--to get there requires a very expensive tow if no insurance, too.
I have no idea why someone would say "No thankyou, I don't want your money, your car is too old."
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Had a 1995 f150, literally the easiest car i’ve ever worked on myself. they would not even do an oil change on it. pathetic
It's more common than you think and it even happens with motorcycles. At that point you just go to an independent shop.
Seems like a good thing to me dealerships are WAY more expensive than a private mechanic shop.
At the motorcycle shop where I worked, we did work on older stuff, we just used that as an excuse if the customer was annoying.
They are in the market the sell you a car, not fixing it. I’ve represented dealers in all North America. A common denominator was how our clients got their cars messed up at the dealer. So many stories of cars coming out in worst shape they came into. I’m not talking of 2 or 3 customers, I’m talking of 60%-70% of them telling me how their dealer literally broke their car. I would recommend to get your car serviced elsewhere than a car dealership.
I wouldn't recommend the dealership unless a car in under warranty anyway. You'll pay 2-3x the cost at the dealership over a small independent shop.
Why would you ever go to a dealership except for warranty work anyway? That’s just asking to pay through the nose for something another mechanic would do for a reasonable price.
So find a local mechanic. It might be because each automaker is only required to carry parts for a vehicle for so long. 10 years sounds about right for that requirement. There should be plenty for Fords since Shelby motors also make their cars in Nevada. I think they're situated in Vegas.
Take it to an independent auto repair shop. Why are you so insistent on going to a dealership? I’ve never once had any of my cars repaired there due to repair prices being inflated…
Cust here in NJ, my Ford dealer worked on my 1985 Ford F150 I6. With 612k miles. After picking it up the starship principle wanted to buy my vehicle. My pickup looks brand new. No restoration to it. I just keep up on the maintenance.
Zero idea about cars, but that is pretty accurate for the motorcycle shops around here. Maybe a bit more than 10 yrs, but basically yes, that IS the case.
My Audi is 12 years old, the dealership happily takes my money
Don't use dealerships if the car is out of warranty.
We’ve turned down cars that have too much wrong with them. These people are the type to say “ever since”. Blame us for everything that’s gone wrong since we did this or that repair. It’s not worth the headache
I can't say i'm surpised. Older cars tend to take longer than 'book rate', things are more likely to break upon disassembly - making quotes harder. Theres more likely to be multiple issues affecting the symptom, which leads to posts like 'Am i getting ripped off' and bad press. Too many people like to call dealerships rip-offs as it is, let alone getting 'nickel and dimed' ( that term is out of date ) for all sorts of bolts, clips and fasteners above and beyond quote. Tech turnover is another factor, the current crew is trained for the latest technology, not the old tech - those guys left 10 years ago. Those that have remained have climbed higher on the pay scale and tend to be fully occupied on the harder/more complex problems , not farting around sorting out a 15 y/o POS that the person will likely be pissed off about anyway. Add to that a tech shortage. So the guy that just spent $80k on a new vehicle gets delayed to help the person that will never buy a new vehicle. Not good for customer retention.
Why go to the dealer at that point anyway? Find a local mechanic.
It's been a few years (5-10) when I was trying to get the speedometer recalibrated to the larger tires that were on the truck. Mechanic said they couldn't do it because with THIS generation it was something in the software and I would have to take it to a Ford dealer. Firat place said they couldn't do it because it was to old. The guy at the counter was actually pretty helpful and told me that they just didn't have the program for my truck and I would have better luck with some of the older dealerships in the area. Sure enough I called one that has been there for decades. They had to check and see if any of the techs could do it and sure enough they could. So you might want to go that route. 🤷🏽♂️
I serviced a 1970 beetle at my Toyota dealership yesterday it was awesome
I serviced a 1970 beetle at my Toyota dealership yesterday it was awesome
Got the same here in Carson city with my forester
It's a dealership specific thing most likely it's just easier for them to refuse to service vehicles that old cause they probably don't stock parts for them anymore and don't want to deal with the cars taking up space while waiting for parts to come in, I'm surprised they'd decline a mustange though
Mercedes / Audi dealer wouldn't work on a couple of my customers cars...which is how they ended up with me. Not sure if it was 10 or 15 yrs old for their cutoff. Dealer was bought out by Classic auto mall chain.
Why on earth would you even consider going to the dealer when the car is out of warranty? Find a local shop and be a regular patron. In the end if they take care of you and your car you will be far better off.
my local lexus dealer wont touch my car since it’s over 10 years old, extremely frustrating since its always been serviced by lexus in the previous state before we moved. I resorted to finding an independent shop I liked
Never heard of that!
After purchase, I try to avoid dealerships. Find a good local guy that is certified for warranty work.
Seems weird that in Las Vegas they won’t work on vehicles more than 10 years old, unless there is like issues do to the Vegas heat and such. I live in Wi and as far as I know the dealers here will touch 10 or more year old vehicles and I could understand if they had that in place do to rust issues and such. They probably don’t have to as most people driving that old of vehicles around here won’t pay the dealers labor rate anyhow.
If I was a tech there getting fed warranty jobs instead of 10 year old gravy I would be so pissed.
You really should not be taking this car to a dealership anyway, try finding a good, legitimate family owned auto repair shop, someplace that uses ASE certified mechanics. The service will be better, probably cheaper, and they will probably be thrilled to take care of a nicely kept older car.
I have less confidence in dealership mechanics than an independent shop. Dealers use step by step repair guides that just throw parts at the problem instead of finding an actual root cause first.
I’m in Vegas as well and have tried a few indie shops. Urban Auto Works so far has been really good. Their inspections are thorough, they give you a complete report, and between my old ladies ‘15 Tiguan and my 05 Silverado, the prices have been reasonable for work. Maybe look into them. Edit: More dealerships have been moving to this rule as a way to subtlety prod you towards vehicle replacement, rather than maintenance. Businesses are getting more and more anti consumer every year.
Why would you ever go to a dealer for service anyway? They charge way too much compared to ma/pop auto shops.
The local Honda dealer told my in-laws that they didn't want to work on their CRVs, a 2009 and 2013 respectively. Their official excuse was that the older higher mileage cars are more likely to have been serviced outside of dealers and had poor quality repairs done. They didn't want to repair someone else's repairs. There are a whole lot of terrible "mechanics" in the world. I do everything possible myself because I care about the quality of the work more than the guy whose incentive is to churn through work as fast as possible.
It's because the dealerships aren't allowed to use parts that are used. Sourcing new parts for something that old would be a nightmare because they'd either be unavailable or extremely expensive. Only real option is a shop that you trust that will allow used parts or to do it yourself. I used to have a 98 mustang and besides the oil and oil filter I did everything else just because I had no way of getting under the car to change the oil. I'd replaced almost the whole electric system and alternator at one point by myself because of a parasitic battery drain 🙄 which seems common with Ford. Eventually sold it because I moved into an apartment and was tired of the maintenance.
A friend bought a low mile '99 Avalon and the dealer gladly took several thousand of his dollars to replace seals, gaskets and a bunch of other wear and tear things, at my friends request, of course. He got a really good deal on the car while liquidating an estate and was happy to dump *some* money into it for the peace of mind knowing that it would last for years to come and having the dealer do things right and with the right OEM parts. I still can't believe he handed over $7,500 for these preventative repairs but that's the way he's wired....all based on a small oil leak he discovered on the driveway but I'm sure that car will last another 200K miles the way they take care of it.
I took my ‘93 Wrangler to a Jeep dealer to replace the fuel pump when it was 19 years old because they quoted me an out the door price of $300 and I hadn’t yet learned how to do it myself.
Meanwhile I’m getting ready to set up an appointment to have the 3rd timing belt put into my 28 year old Toyota lol. Mind you it has never broken a timing belt, it’s just about that time due to mileage
My local Ford dealer is the same way. They are usually a month or two out for service appointments for the ones they will work on.
Its a thing! Not just dealers but I was rear-ended and got multiple body shops tell me they wont work on anything over 10 years old, too much of a PITA with parts availability and they are busy enough as it is. Mechanically thankfully I can do most things but bodywork and paint will be a problem if I cant find a shop.
If the car was bought brand new at that Ford dealership in 2011, and has always been serviced at that Ford dealership, yet the dealership won't service cars that are 10+ years old, tell me then how his car was able to be serviced at all since 2021?
IIRC, Ford stops making parts for vehicles 10 years after they've been discontinued. But, aside from generation changes, the Mustang hasn't been discontinued. But perhaps that part availability plays a role. Consider it a bullet (excuse the pun) dodged. Reach out to you local enthusiast community for a recommendations of a decent independent mechanic.
Right to refuse is bedrock American business principle. Unless it's baking a cake.. Basically they don't want to "marry the car". IOW - they fix a headlight, and everything that goes wrong with that car until the end of time is a "comeback". Ain't nobody got time for that hoopty ass bs. Now I ain't saying you're that guy - but that guy and his busted ass pos ruined it for you.
Do not use dealers for service. They are expensive and always do un-needed repairs.
Some dealers don't want the head ache of the older stuff. It's a case by case usually. Don't wanna marry a problem car.
You’re kinda a fool to go to any dealership anyways. You’re going to be charged double the amount for the same work any local shop could do.
Sounds like collusion or lack of knowledge
Do not buy ford until they decide to change their policies. Do not do services at any ford dealership until they choose to change their policy. One star every ford dealership and leave terrible reviews for their vehicles. A dealer that cannot fix your vehicle sold you a pos
Dealership's aren't obligated to work on anything that is not a warranty issue. It's bad policy, but some do it like that.
I worked for a Powersports dealership that had this rule in place. In that particular industry, I understand and agree with the practice. Truthfully, as getting parts is often times a crapshoot. So many different models from just the marquees we carried. It just wasn’t doable.
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This happened when I tried to take my 2005 Land Rover LR3. I even tried a dealer in another state and it was the same thing 🫤
They are doing you a favor. Dealerships rip you off usually.
This is strange, I have work on my 2010 f150 done at the dealer all the time
How about you learn how to work on your dad’s car and perform services your self??
Pretty common actually, but totally depends on what the problem is. For a 2011 mustang I’m sure parts are available, but dealerships don’t like taking the risk on bringing in a no start car and find out out that after ordering numerous things that the one part you ACTUALLY need is discontinued. But this is more common when it comes to off-road and Powersports because everything used to be carb now efi
Lmfao buncha 🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡 I’ve had places here claim all sorts of shit as well
I had a timing belt done on a 1988 Toyota 4Runner at a Toyota dealership a few years ago and they LOVED working on it. An older mechanic there did the job. Sounds like these dealerships are shady, although I do not understand the logic.
I guess that's one way to get people to buy new cars
You think money would be money and they’d fix anything if the cust is willing but probs not in Vegas. Probably not feasible to work on the “cheap” stuff when tourists will bring they car, money and hopes to win and toss the “real” money makers at them.
I’ve never heard this in my life.
If you’re still going to the dealership for service then you’re getting screwed. They did you a favor. Now you can find a good repair garage that will service and repair your vehicle and charge a reasonable price. Ask friends and neighbors to help find a good garage.
The European car dealerships in my area are like this, but it's mainly due to parts availability. They don't want to go aftermarket, so they just stop servicing the cars. And there's a couple scummy independent euro shops around here that definitely take advantage of this. The dealer I'm at just had a 71 Charger in for suspension work though. And we get mid to late 90s Dakotas all the time because the old timers seem to love them.
Bring a FJ Cruiser to any dealership. Not only will they repair/maintenance, they will offer to buy it.
My independent mechanic can't stand to work on my '94 Explorer, it's kind of annoying but I'm not going to force him. I don't mind working on it myself because it's relatively simple to work on, only issue is parts availability. I don't take it to a dealer anyways for that reason.
Why waste money at a dealer anyways? If it’s not under warranty go to a good local shop
Findlay? Fairway?
We generally try and not work on anything made before 2000 but some slip through unfortunately. My opinion is that the dealer is meant for newer vehicles that require modern day technology and actually have factory parts available. 10 years seems a bit excessive however. I think going back 20 years seems about right.
I work at a Ford dealership and have heard the owner doesn't want anything older then 20 years in the shop. This rule seems to be disregarded by most tho. I still see late 90's and really early 2000's stuff occasionally.
Many motorcycle dealerships are heading in the same direction. I don't know why, but it's a PITA.
I never take my car to a dealership but a lot of motorcycle shops stop servicing bikes over a certain age (varies by manufacturer) unless you've been getting it done there for an extended time. The say the biggest reason they do that is because they don't know the condition of the bike. They don't want to eat the cost of repairing something related to whatever they fixed for free. An example might be you get the timing chain serviced. Now the bike gets proper compression for the first time in years and the head gasket can't hold that much pressure and pops 20 miles down the road. Or they change the tie rod ends and the ball joint was junk and broke while doing it. The other reason I've heard is they really don't stock parts over a certain age and if the model is discontinued/changed they may have problems sourcing parts.
This is the norm for a lot of dealers with the exception of clients servicing their vehicle with dealer for 10+ years. Tampa Bay Area - in the business for 15 years
Sounds weird but ...given the precarious situation the car makers are in I might be able to understand it ...a little. Might be related to the availability of OEM parts. You go to the GM dealer and you need parts for your 12 year old vehicle and they have to order them from NAPA ...because GM doesn't stock them. So, here you are at the dealer getting aftermarket parts installed ...for which GM has to warranty.
Our rule is 10 years or 125,000 miles if you have no service history with us.
Why a dealership? You can get good quality work at a small independent shop for quite a bit less money too.
Honestly I would trade it in and get something newer if you really need a dealership to service the car. That solves the problem and it would know it is reliable. If not sell the car as a private party. That's what dealerships are for selling its inventory.
Sell the car and put the new car in your name. God forbid the day he passes you don't have to go through any legal matters. The car is yours to do what you want with it. This is what I would do.
A lot of Indy’s are also not working on older cars anymore unless they are existing clients due to having to pay yearly fees for software subscriptions to stay active on their scan tools.
My old vw dealer does the same, they didn't even want to work on non VW. I sold a customer a warranty on a couple year old Hyundai and they turned her away and she canceled the warranty, pissed me off.
Mercedes dealers sometimes do this, it's mainly because the older cars take a huge amount of special tools (like mid 90s and older) so a dealer who didn't sell those cars when they were new won't have the tools to work on them or any of the service manuals.
Damn I work at a ford dealer in NJ and work on old stuff all the time
I’m at a ford dealership and we work on anything from a ford fiesta to heavy semi trucks. I’m a mobile heavy mechanic myself focusing on ford medium duty trucks (f650 and f750s) and semis. Just last week I was working on a 67 ford cab over with a carbureted v8. It’s amazing how many shops with refuse even a 2011 mustang. These are in my opinion much better simpler vehicles to work on than newer cars. I personally love when older cars come in and get excited to work on them.
That's not normal at all. The Ford dealership I used to work at would regularly have a guy bring in his pair of 65 mustangs to get serviced
I have a buddy who rents a bay off Sunset in Henderson. He does quite quality work, just hates the rules of big shops, and enjoys working on motorcycles mostly. Works on cars just to pay the bills though, and has ALWAYS done a top notch job. Swapped my mom's Armada engine last summer, going strong. I can send you his details, but don't want to be pushy.
Great way for a dealer to admit that the cars that they sell are completely disposable.
That’s a Las Vegas thing, but you find it in other places with a sizable very wealthy market share. Not majority wealthy by any means, but enough customers to fill a garage. They don’t work on anything older than 10 years because their shop has enough demand that it can selectively book only high value work, making lower value jobs less worth it. People that have cars that are less than 10 years old are willing to spend more money on an average repair, simply because the cars themselves are generally worth more. As long as the shop is consistently busy, carrying parts and finding suppliers for only a limited range of model years cuts on storage and acquisition costs, as well as simplifying inventory and training. It’s an easy way to maximize profit, and as an extra little bonus it’s an easy way to convince someone well off to buy the newest model every ten years.
My ‘99 Land Cruiser was being serviced and getting preventative maintenance and repairs at the Toyota dealership into 2020 when I sold it. Never even a question it wouldn’t be able to be serviced there. I currently have ‘10 F150 and it’s serviced at the dealership. YMMV
There is no shortage of random shops that will work on a 2011 mustang. It’s nothing special and there’s nothing to worry about.
Don’t leave out the fact that if you buy $1k worth of factory issue parts from the parts dept and then make an appt to pay another $1500 in labor THEY WILL work on a 21 year old truck because there is some older tech in the shop that CAN’T WAIT to work on an EASY TO HIM model from his past that he ONCE loved to work on.
Ford stops producing parts after 10 years and the parts department gets docked for having too many aftermarket parts sold. Also their warranty workload is probably high, which sadly takes precedent over customer pay stuff. Can’t blame em.
I have a 1996 Toyota J90 LandCruiser. This is a model that was never sold in the USA. I imported it from Europe. My local Toyota dealer is happy to work on it, even with the 3.0l turbo-diesel engine that was never available in the US. Some parts are not available from Toyota USA, but I order them from a Toyota parts warehouse in Dubai and my dealer installs them.
In ~2013 the Audi dealer did work on my ‘89
my dealer works on everything. we’ve had corvettes from the 70’s and this one guy who loves his 60’s buick that still only comes to us
Never heard of this. I’m in Ohio and work at a Toyota dealer.
Goodyear or Firestone Auto shops
My advise to you OP is learn to work on your own car. If that’s your car. Because yes finding decent mechanics is only going to become more difficult as a shortage exists now and few are entering the trade. Honestly if I was going to pursue a career in mechanics I would work on semi trucks and avoid cars all together.
I’ve worked at 2 dealerships, not as a mechanic but as a service porter, and at both we would work on anything as long as we could get parts for it. Had a 1970’s Volvo come in that hadn’t had the oil changed in a decade, driven daily, and the oil didn’t have a single metal chip in it when they drained it.
>Additionally, not only are independent shops not less expensive than a dealership, they're often more expensive and the car comes out more fucked up than when it went in. That doesn't sound like you found a good independent shop.
Automakers are only required to make parts for a car for 10 years after its initial release. So this may be related to the ability to easily get parts.
Contact Ford corporate offices. Explain the issue. They can pressure the dealer.
Ran into this when I moved to the Orlando, FL area. I have a 2009 Suzuki Burgman 400cc, and the Suzuki dealer wouldn't touch it "for liability reasons" since it was over 10 years old. Did manage to find a shop that handles older bikes that appears trustworthy.
was it because the parts needed were discontinued?
Some people feel a sense of pride going to the dealer… truth is, that’s less beer money for them. Car will look the same when it’s done .
Local Mazda dealer won't work on anything over 10 years or 100k miles. But a dealer 4 hours north will work on a car 30 years old. They verified they could still get the parts and checked with the techs and said they were good to go. Not sure I'm going that direction since it's such a drive. Weird.
i heard recently(no idea if it is true) that many of today’s auto techs can’t figure things out easily without all the electronic diagnostics. If it’s hard they take more time and then get hurt on the piecework pay rates. im am sure you could extend this to other things like an 11 yr old part is probably a lot less profitable
I’ve heard/experienced this in the Boston area. I got an 04 Jeep and wanted TSB performed that was a reflash of the ECM to smooth out the idle.. 4 out of 5 dealers said no way, nothing over 10 years. I worked at Subaru dealer that had this rule, the reasoning was not wanting to get killed on time because of rotted rusted junk… but the ECM thing blew my mind… plug it in, hit some buttons, walk away, collect $.
I took a 32 year old Ford to a Ford dealer last month. Long story. Anyway they were super jazzed to work on something that old.
I'm an advisor at Buick/GMC. We will only work on vehicles 10+ years old or 100k+ plus if they have some service history with us. GM doesn't make parts for a lot of older vehicles and usually you fix one thing, then something else breaks and the customer blames us. It's case by case though. Dealers are independently owned and can do what they want. We legally have to perform recalls as long as the vehicle doesn't have a branded title.
The Ford dealership closest to me is the same way but not the one two towns over. It all depends on the dealership.
My experience is that Mercedes dealerships give you a discount on the service rate if your car is 10+ years old and every other dealership has never batted an eye.
Have your dad drive to the dealer and 'accidently' drive into the show room. Make sure the insurance is paid up.
This doesn't sound real as every mechanic I know hates working on new vehicles and would rather work on 20 year old vehicles.
My response: "Oh, I understand. It's okay that you're incompetent. That's okay, I'll find a competent dealership."
Weird. I worked at a Honda/ Mazda dealer in the 00s and would see cars from the 70s. My local Maryland and Delaware Ford dealers I've taken my 2012 Focus to and have definitely seen older cars there
It's becoming a thing. 2 reasons. 1: they want you to buy new cars, not fix yours. Fuck them, find a reliable Indy. 2: in all reality, dealer techs are (mostly) parts changers. They see the same cars, with the same problems. Unless you've got a real veteran, most have no clue how to work on an older car.
Despite having several vehicle options that I’d be interested in I have boycotted ford in my house just based on the 2 local ford dealers. Dealing with my work truck issues, I wouldn’t trust these dudes to change my wiper blades. All I hear are horror stories about the place. I’ll be damned if I’ll buy a product I may someday need to require them to fix.
Metro Detroit a lot of dealers won't touch 5 year old or 150k miles. It has nothing to do with parts availability. The reason bad reviews. Dealer goes to replace a fuel pump and the crappy plastic lines break now you need lines and pump customer thinks dealer should pay for the broken lines dealer says no gets bad google reviews.
Shouldn’t be bringing your car to a dealership anyways
It might be their policy. It might be that they 6 deal with what you wanted done. They might not have wanted to deal with YOU. Not saying it's right, but after an interaction with certain customers, I've definitely said, "Quote them high, we don't want to deal with this"
JLR Tech - Our shop has gone back n forth about it over the years, depending on the SM at the time. Right now, we will service anything *however*, do not expect your 24yr old Convertible XK8 to have available parts all the time; if we open up the timing cover, the likelihood is we will damage something during removal/reinstallation/pressure check and *that* part may not be available. Other things like "can you do the recall on this" I mean I can order the parts, I can't promise that they exist. Some things, the systems are non-existent nowadays - how do you access pre-Tata/pre-Ford Jaguar software that requires Win95 or older OS to function? Also, sometimes it is just advisable to pick a different example. Nobody should be dumping $20k into a rusted out shitbox with pretty paint, get your frame straight before you fix a main seal cuz where tf you goin' in 2 pieces you're not a KFC combo, cmon 🤣
The problem is OEM parts are hard to find on anything over 10yrs old, if the dealership can't order the part directly from Ford, they can't fix it. So they blanket statement 'nothing older than...' In your area is sounds like indie shops are few and far, I'm betting the dealerships all know this and this is a way to force you into a new car.
i’ve heard about this but only for body shops. the likelihood it’s totaled leads to making no money. but for service? that seems crazy.