11/21/2022 Build Week w/Spreadsheet

[MadMan4BamaNATL]

Ford’s customer communication department could be run better by a 15 year old. I got a “shipped” email yesterday(1/11) that said my estimated delivery was 1/9 to 1/15. I checked with CSX this morning and their update is it will arrive in Indiana(on it’s way to Minneapolis) on 1/15. I won’t see it at my dealer until at least 1/22 and it could easily be early February as my dealer informs me that the rail yard in St. Paul is backed up at least a week.

You would think after all the Bronco delays someone at Ford would just direct them to add a week or two to their estimated delivery dates. FWIW, my first estimated delivery from Ford was 12/16-12/23.

7/20/20 reservation, ordered 1/29/21

In reading all of the comments here; first, I"m in the same boat as you all. 7/22/20 res, built on 11/23/22, still no delivery.

But, seems many of us are just not being very realistic with this entire process. I see that you have a Range Rover as well; I've owned a couple over the years and a host of BMWs going back 20 years. If you are used to luxury cars and that car buying experience; well, this is not that.

I know we all wish that Ford would communicate better, but may I remind us all that Ford has NEVER communicated with customers and over 98% of Ford buyers don't order their vehicles, they get them from the lot like normal people.

Communication, responsiveness, direct customer contact, custom ordering; these are not things that Ford has experience in; that's a luxury car buying thing.

I've always ordered any new car I've purchased and sure, communication has been strong, but it had to be, otherwise, what's the point? The difference is refinement, both of the vehicle, and dealership purchase experience.

5 years ago, you mostly just bought whatever Ford was on the lot, or shopped around for a dealership who had the color and options you wanted. Very rarely would a Ford customer order a vehicle to spec. At BMW or Land Rover, the percentage of "orders" wasn't crazy high like for Porsche or Ferrari of course, but think my dealership (United BMW, Land Rover Buckhead) have shared that maybe 20% order their vehicle compared to only maybe 2-5% for Ford.

Ford is a regular Joe car and as I've said a million times here on the forum, there is nothing at all wrong with being regular or Joe.

The rich or privileged as usual, ruin things for regular people, and this Bronco purchase is no different. Rich mall crawler folks will always complain, drive up prices, and pose; these are facts, so it's fine. However, bringing our rich guy expectations to this party was always unrealistic and unfair, then there's the pandemic which made it all worse.

I always knew this experience would suck in comparison, though not this bad, but we have to be patient with a company that's basically in over it's head.

I'm tired of waiting as well, but this was no surprise to those of us who actually thought this purchase out and I've planned for it since 2019, so my wait has been even longer and there are many guys on here who've waited for 15 years when a new Bronco was first teased.

It's all a matter of perspective, so adjust it.

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[swooshdave]

Sorry, but I disagree. They DID have something to tell me. There WAS an update (even though I know it's just the system bumping me to the next week), but I had to reach out to THEM to get an answer AFTER the previous EDD they communicated passed. I am just holding them accountable to their promise of updated communications. I get that this is not a new or unique experience for any of us, lots of things Ford can't control... but it's simple customer experience management and for those of us that vent about it for the 1,000th time knowing the outcomes won't change, aren't doing so to hear a reason why Ford didn't do anything wrong. We're just doing it for group therapy with the forum. We are not expecting a "better" answer or date each time, we're just saying "Hey Ford, please stop making yourself look stupid over and over".

I think the perspective most you need to grasp is that the percentage of people obsessing over ESTIMATED delivery dates and tracing rail cars is .5% of the buyers.

The vast majority of Bronco buyers don't care or don't know how to follow the progress and only rely on the emails. Some of them don't even do that and are just waiting for the dealer to call them.

 

[casbar]

I think the perspective most you need to grasp is that the percentage of people obsessing over ESTIMATED delivery dates and tracing rail cars is .5% of the buyers.

The vast majority of Bronco buyers don't care or don't know how to follow the progress and only rely on the emails. Some of them don't even do that and are just waiting for the dealer to call them.

Completely agree with this. It's pretty easy to go a little crazy in our age of technology when you've pre-ordered a new toy and can't wait to get it. Just remember that we are the minority. A lot of people could care less about all this tracking.

By the way Swoosh I stole your sig and made it my own.

 

[swooshdave]

Interesting, I was wondering what path it was going to take. One of the updates today was Galesburg which should have indicated it was headed west.

https://www.bnsf.com/bnsf-resources...aps-and-shipping-locations/automotive-map.pdf

I didn't know if it was going through Omaha or Minneapolis. Last update was Dubuque, Iowa which seems like it's going to be Minneapolis. But honestly it seems there's no "shorter" logic when it comes to trains, it appears.

Once you get past Minneapolis it should be a straight shot. There's sure not much up there. No offense.

 

[JLTNEZ]

I think the perspective most you need to grasp is that the percentage of people obsessing over ESTIMATED delivery dates and tracing rail cars is .5% of the buyers.

The vast majority of Bronco buyers don't care or don't know how to follow the progress and only rely on the emails. Some of them don't even do that and are just waiting for the dealer to call them.

I've never tracked something so much in my life! Or read up on how to do so. It's been pretty interesting to read up on everything in this forum. Also nice to know that half a percent is going through the same process as me.

 

[JLTNEZ]

Completely agree with this. It's pretty easy to go a little crazy in our age of technology when you've pre-ordered a new toy and can't wait to get it. Just remember that we are the minority. A lot of people could care less about all this tracking.

By the way Swoosh I stole your sig and made it my own.

I just did that too! haha thanks @swooshdave

 

[swooshdave]

I've never tracked something so much in my life! Or read up on how to do so. It's been pretty interesting to read up on everything in this forum. Also nice to know that half a percent is going through the same process as me.

I think the tracking is the only way to stay sane... or insane.

Speaking of which it's been 30 mins, need to call CSX again.

 

[MadMan4BamaNATL]

With some of the train delays or challenges…. Makes me wonder if railroad employees are pissed from the feds stopping their strike (I agreed with that, sorry) and are sandbagging at work these days?

Any railroad folks, please weigh in if I’m off base. Not trying to offend, but I can see how frustration may lead to protest in the best way they can and we’re just paying the price.

I know staffing has been an issue too, although from what I understand, those are great jobs with good pay.

 

[swooshdave]

With some of the train delays or challenges…. Makes me wonder if railroad employees are pissed from the feds stopping their strike (I agreed with that, sorry) and are sandbagging at work these days?

Any railroad folks, please weigh in if I’m off base. Not trying to offend, but I can see how frustration may lead to protest in the best way they can and we’re just paying the price.

I know staffing has been an issue too, although from what I understand, those are great jobs with good pay.

I think, without a doubt, that's an issue. But because of what you say because you'll get labeled a "Ford fanboy" for stating anything except that it's Ford's fault.

 

[MnLakeBum]

In reading all of the comments here; first, I"m in the same boat as you all. 7/22/20 res, built on 11/23/22, still no delivery.

But, seems many of us are just not being very realistic with this entire process. I see that you have a Range Rover as well; I've owned a couple over the years and a host of BMWs going back 20 years. If you are used to luxury cars and that car buying experience; well, this is not that.

I know we all wish that Ford would communicate better, but may I remind us all that Ford has NEVER communicated with customers and over 98% of Ford buyers don't order their vehicles, they get them from the lot like normal people.

Communication, responsiveness, direct customer contact, custom ordering; these are not things that Ford has experience in; that's a luxury car buying thing.

I've always ordered any new car I've purchased and sure, communication has been strong, but it had to be, otherwise, what's the point? The difference is refinement, both of the vehicle, and dealership purchase experience.

5 years ago, you mostly just bought whatever Ford was on the lot, or shopped around for a dealership who had the color and options you wanted. Very rarely would a Ford customer order a vehicle to spec. At BMW or Land Rover, the percentage of "orders" wasn't crazy high like for Porsche or Ferrari of course, but think my dealership (United BMW, Land Rover Buckhead) have shared that maybe 20% order their vehicle compared to only maybe 2-5% for Ford.

I always knew this experience would suck in comparison, though not this bad, but we have to be patient with a company that's basically in over it's head.

I'm tired of waiting as well, but this was no surprise to those of us who actually thought this purchase out and I've planned for it since 2019, so my wait has been even longer and there are many guys on here who've waited for 15 years when a new Bronco was first teased.

It's all a matter of perspective, so adjust it.

IMO, this more a supply chain issue than a Ford vs. Range Rover customer service problem. I have friends that have been waiting for their Rover and Porsche for over a year and they have both voiced their displeasure with the poor communication they’ve received. I have another buddy who ordered a Malibu Surf boat in April of 2021 and won’t have it until May of this year, 10 months later than initially promised. Ford has done worse than many other car companies with their supply chain(think MIC top) but I know many who’ve had great experiences buying Fords, Chevy’s, and Dodge’s since the pandemic started.

I got impatient 13 months ago with the Bronco MIC top and other big constraints so I ordered a 2nd Bronco from the same dealer minus the MIC and Sasquatch(kept the LUX, 2.7L, and leather) and took delivery just 123 days later. Communication from Ford and my dealer were timely and accurate and since last April we’ve enjoyed it for 16,000 trouble free miles. It was delivered 15 days after its blend date and there wasn’t one delay. It certainly has made the wait for my correctly optioned Bronco much easier. Ford customer service visits for oil changes, etc. have been a more pleasant experience than most of my service visits the last 4.5 years on our Range Rover.

 

[MadMan4BamaNATL]

IMO, this more a supply chain issue than a Ford vs. Range Rover customer service problem. I have friends that have been waiting for their Rover and Porsche for over a year and they have both voiced their displeasure with the poor communication they’ve received. I have another buddy who ordered a Malibu Surf boat in April of 2021 and won’t have it until May of this year, 10 months later than initially promised. Ford has done worse than many other car companies with their supply chain(think MIC top) but I know many who’ve had great experiences buying Fords, Chevy’s, and Dodge’s since the pandemic started.

I got impatient 13 months ago with the Bronco MIC top and other big constraints so I ordered a 2nd Bronco from the same dealer minus the MIC and Sasquatch(kept the LUX, 2.7L, and leather) and took delivery just 123 days later. Communication from Ford and my dealer were timely and accurate and since last April we’ve enjoyed it for 16,000 trouble free miles. It was delivered 15 days after its blend date and there wasn’t one delay. It certainly has made the wait for my correctly optioned Bronco much easier. Ford customer service visits for oil changes, etc. have been a more pleasant experience than most of my service visits the last 4.5 years on our Range Rover.

Our 2021 RR Sport came is almost exactly 4 months. Now, that was the last year of the run, but outside of something is crazy high demand (like a Bronco), my ordered vehicles have arrived in around 3 months and that’s maybe a total of 7 in 20 years, 2 LR products. The customer service I’ve experienced has been great.

Now, Defender buyers are waiting a bit since it’s caught on in popularity, especially here in Atlanta Which is one of the trendiest cities in the country and that’s saying a lot.

I expect my Ford dealership experience to be decent if not good, as they’ve been good thus far (Jim Ellis Ford), but I in no way expect a luxury experience even though this Bronco is luxury car price, as are most trucks these days. Value used to be in the savings, but those days are dead now.

Glad you’ve enjoyed your experience with the Ford dealership, maybe they’re adjusting to this new world of blended reg/lux automotive landscape.

I think they don’t communicate better because they just don’t know and are flying at the seat of their pants, maybe all manufacturers are these days.

All of the above are more reasons to try to find patience, as I know they’d like to do better if they could; they’re risking future business.

 

[swooshdave]

They weren't kidding when they said the train moves pretty fast. Mine left Blue Island this morning and I expect it to hit Minneapolis tonight (PST). Roughly 400 miles in a day (I expect that to vary but still). Estimated arrival at dealer is the 19th and I actually find that plausible. Not counting on it but it actually seems within the realm of possibilities. The maximum speed for a freight train in the US is 49mph which I expect it might hit in the netherrealms of Montana.

 

[casbar]

They weren't kidding when they said the train moves pretty fast. Mine left Blue Island this morning and I expect it to hit Minneapolis tonight (PST). Roughly 400 miles in a day (I expect that to vary but still). Estimated arrival at dealer is the 19th and I actually find that plausible. Not counting on it but it actually seems within the realm of possibilities. The maximum speed for a freight train in the US is 49mph which I expect it might hit in the netherrealms of Montana.

I have to admit.. I am pretty much living through you at this point. Been following your trucks progress and I can't wait until it reaches you. Much better than my sad situation. Keep the posts coming.

 

[swooshdave]

I have to admit.. I am pretty much living through you at this point. Been following your trucks progress and I can't wait until it reaches you. Much better than my sad situation. Keep the posts coming.

I’m glad at least one person is entertained. I was actually expecting someone to tell me to knock it off.

I just want to give people a feeling for what the shipping is like. Slow at the first but then it should pick up. I never thought it would get on a train so that was the hardest part.

 

[MnLakeBum]

I’m glad at least one person is entertained. I was actually expecting someone to tell me to knock it off.

I just want to give people a feeling for what the shipping is like. Slow at the first but then it should pick up. I never thought it would get on a train so that was the hardest part.

I tracked my 2022 very closely with CSX once it was built. It was a 3/29/22 blend and had the modules pop 3/31, it took another 10 days to get loaded on a train and make it as far as Indiana. 12 hours later it showed up 450 miles north in St. Paul MN and two days later it was at my Dealer 20 miles from St. Paul.

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