[quote=Allan from Fallbrook][quote=paramount]Anyone interested in a 5,000lb American made paperweight in my driveway that goes by the name of Ford Expedition?
Oh yah, in the interest of full disclosure I should mention the electrical system is fried due to a manufacturer’s defect.
I have decided to get smart in car buying buying – in the future I’m sticking to Toyota, Nissan or Honda or even one of the K cars.
I’m tired of handing my hard earned money over to the Ford dealer for constant service.[/quote]
Paramount: Just out of curiosity, what is the nature of your electrical problem? I ask because I have a Ford 500 that has been experiencing a “gremlin” in my dash panel and console electrical systems and Ford has no idea what the hell is going on. It manifests itself by knocking the gauge panel out (which is nice when you’re doing 70 on the 15) and then vanishes.
What’s the nature of your ailment, and does it sound in any way similar?[/quote]
Ask them if they checked this TSB that is out there….
TSB
06-6-2 INTERMITTENT INSTRUMENT CLUSTER GAUGE SWEEP/RESET – MULTIPLE WARNING LIGHTS ON – REVERSE LIGHTS ON – VEHICLES BUILT BEFORE 2/17/2006
Publication Date: March 9, 2006
FORD: 2005-2006 Five Hundred, Freestyle
MERCURY: 2005-2006 Montego
Also, if it’s still under warranty, force them to pull out your ECM/ECU and swap it with another one IF the grelim is beyond just keeping your cluster lit. if your car is actually cutting out, there’s no excuse for not replacing the ECM/ECU even if they can’t find the root cause because it is a major safety issue. If it’s just a cluster defect, then well it’s not an immediate safety issue, ask them to just swap clusters to try it out (if they haven’t already).
I’d vote on thermal fatigue on some eletronic component’s solder joint as a problem…Good luck finding that one… Seriously, it will be like finding a needle in a haystack.
BTW: i found the most effective way to judge a car’s reliability is NOT buy the initial quality survey conducted by JD Powers….but instead by the total number of outstanding Technical Service Bulletins and/or recalls for a particular make/model/production run of vehicle. JD Powers only evaluates the quality within the first year or two of vehicle ownership.
500 has some TSB outstanding, but not any less or more than some the other cars (far fewer than I’ve seen for some of the german brands).
