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2021 Big Bend 2.3 Auto, October '21 build date, almost 50k on the odo as of right now.
A few weeks ago, I started to notice that when i got into the truck to start it after it had been sitting, the brake pedal was rock hard, and didn't start to act like a real pedal until the engine started and the vacuum pump was clearly running to help things along.
After googling and hunting around here, seems it's an issue with the vacuum line attached to the booster, and/or the booster being contaminated from the factory. This is all well and good and the truck's covered for everything to 100k anyways.
Here's the rub:
As time has gone on, the pedal feel is getting worse and worse. What used to take 15-20 minutes to firm up is now happening almost immediately when the truck is shut off. So it's definitely dumping vacuum wayyyy too fast. For comparison, my 15 year old VW that has the same style vacuum-assisted braking, will still have residual vacuum in the line weeks after the car has been shut off.
I have found the various TSB/SSB's that relate to this, and presented them to my local dealership where the vehicle was purchased, to have them shrug it off and happily schedule an appointment for THE END OF MARCH. The claim is that they are literally this busy, AND that once they have the vehicle, it will take upwards of 3-5 days 'to diagnose', and an unspecified amount of time for repairs after that. I get a similar level of horseshit story from every dealership service dept within 30 miles.
"We need 3-5 days to diagnose"
"Oh, so it takes you 4 days to plug in a computer and get the codes from the vehicle?"
"well, it's a lot more than that sir"
"ok, let's assume it is, so your tech is driving my car for 3-5 days?"
"well, no. They use the diagnostic tools we have here for that."
"and that takes 4 days?"
"Uhm, yes."
I am truly glad that @Ford Motor Company has made a reliable vehicle (it really has been, I've done little beyond changing the oil in 48,500 miles), because the dealership support network that keeps our trucks running is bad. How bad? It's apple maps bad:
Meanwhile, I still have to get this addressed, as I know that eventually this will lead to a very exciting few seconds where I come off a freeway and watch my brake pedal get acquainted with my floorboard while nothing slows down. Will likely end up just buying the damn vacuum line and doing it myself because even a couple hundred bucks is worth less of my time than waiting months for the dealership molasses to drip. Same reason I replaced my window switches myself vs waiting 3-5 days (was really quoted this time frame) for this
A safety issue shouldn't be prevented from being repaired because of the forced market mechanism of 'dealerships', and the ineptitude that they foster.
A few weeks ago, I started to notice that when i got into the truck to start it after it had been sitting, the brake pedal was rock hard, and didn't start to act like a real pedal until the engine started and the vacuum pump was clearly running to help things along.
After googling and hunting around here, seems it's an issue with the vacuum line attached to the booster, and/or the booster being contaminated from the factory. This is all well and good and the truck's covered for everything to 100k anyways.
Here's the rub:
As time has gone on, the pedal feel is getting worse and worse. What used to take 15-20 minutes to firm up is now happening almost immediately when the truck is shut off. So it's definitely dumping vacuum wayyyy too fast. For comparison, my 15 year old VW that has the same style vacuum-assisted braking, will still have residual vacuum in the line weeks after the car has been shut off.
I have found the various TSB/SSB's that relate to this, and presented them to my local dealership where the vehicle was purchased, to have them shrug it off and happily schedule an appointment for THE END OF MARCH. The claim is that they are literally this busy, AND that once they have the vehicle, it will take upwards of 3-5 days 'to diagnose', and an unspecified amount of time for repairs after that. I get a similar level of horseshit story from every dealership service dept within 30 miles.
"We need 3-5 days to diagnose"
"Oh, so it takes you 4 days to plug in a computer and get the codes from the vehicle?"
"well, it's a lot more than that sir"
"ok, let's assume it is, so your tech is driving my car for 3-5 days?"
"well, no. They use the diagnostic tools we have here for that."
"and that takes 4 days?"
"Uhm, yes."
I am truly glad that @Ford Motor Company has made a reliable vehicle (it really has been, I've done little beyond changing the oil in 48,500 miles), because the dealership support network that keeps our trucks running is bad. How bad? It's apple maps bad:
Meanwhile, I still have to get this addressed, as I know that eventually this will lead to a very exciting few seconds where I come off a freeway and watch my brake pedal get acquainted with my floorboard while nothing slows down. Will likely end up just buying the damn vacuum line and doing it myself because even a couple hundred bucks is worth less of my time than waiting months for the dealership molasses to drip. Same reason I replaced my window switches myself vs waiting 3-5 days (was really quoted this time frame) for this
A safety issue shouldn't be prevented from being repaired because of the forced market mechanism of 'dealerships', and the ineptitude that they foster.
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