Right to Repair - Ford’s Jim Farley

[MrkofXcellence]

I find it rich that Jim Farley, the very man who said they can’t get enough technicians in their dealerships, is a no-go on right to repair. The excuse for a reason (instead of $$) is equally insulting:

“He can fix a 1973 Ford Bronco, but if someone wants to fix a new Bronco at home, it ‘would put people's lives at risk’.”

Near as I can tell from Ford’s recall record these days, putting people’s lives at risk is a factory/engineering issue, not an aftermarket service problem.

Full article in C/D is here:
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a71562651/trump-ford-gm-right-to-repair-battle/

 

[SC Maintenance]

I am surprised that this issue isn't more prevalent amongst auto enthusiasts.

The OEM's arguments are gaslighting. They claim "intellectual property" - but no one is asking for uncompiled code, just the ability to load compiled code into new parts. Basically like installing a driver on a PC.

They fearmonger by saying its dangerous, but no more so than the dealer. The dealer takes one part off, programs it, and puts another one back on. Same as me.

Easy fix - just don't buy there trash.

 

[demarpaint]

Another reason on my growing list of why I won't buy another Ford.

 

[jeepman3071]

For most of the vehicle I don't see it as being dangerous, but for calibrating the blind spot monitoring and radar cruise systems I can see how that would seem like a liability.

 

[SC Maintenance]

For most of the vehicle I don't see it as being dangerous, but for calibrating the blind spot monitoring and radar cruise systems I can see how that would seem like a liability.

Glass repair companies do this all the time. Right to repair applies to everyone outside the dealer, not just DIY.

 

[spasm3]

For most of the vehicle I don't see it as being dangerous, but for calibrating the blind spot monitoring and radar cruise systems I can see how that would seem like a liability.

They see it as dangerous to their bottom line , if you, or someone else does work on your car. I.E. income not going to them.

 

[jeepman3071]

They see it as dangerous to their bottom line , if you, or someone else does work on your car. I.E. income not going to them.

Oh 100% agree, but if they were making the claim it was because they didn't want people repairing the safety systems that's one thing, but not repairing the vehicle as a whole is ridiculous.

 

[clinebarger]

Read an article about it earlier, Dealer service departments couldn't handle the volume if they restricted module programming, Not that they really want to work on 10-15 year old vehicles anyway......Service departments want that gravy brakes & suspension.

I pay Ford & GM thousands a year in licensing fees for programming.

 

[SC Maintenance]

Read an article about it earlier, Dealer service departments couldn't handle the volume if they restricted module programming, Not that they really want to work on 10-15 year old vehicles anyway......Service departments want that gravy brakes & suspension.

I pay Ford & GM thousands a year in licensing fees for programming.

Ford would like you to scrap your 10 year old vehicle and buy a new one.

 

[shortyb]

Ford would like you to scrap your 10 year old vehicle and buy a new one.

They keep acting like this, and it won't be one of theirs.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Glass repair companies do this all the time. Right to repair applies to everyone outside the dealer, not just DIY.

This!

The best part is that dealers don't even do their own glass jobs. They supply the glass itself, but the installation is done by a local glass shop

 

[Trav]

There is a special place for these auto company CEO's when they die and there is no A/C.

 

[ka9mnx]

Another reason on my growing list of why I won't buy another Ford.

It's not just Ford.

Remember, it's the service department that keeps the lights on at dealerships.

 

[Rmay635703]

Ford would like you to scrap your 10 year old vehicle and buy a new one.

Except that they refuse to produce the number and type of vehicles that would require and very likely aren’t capable of doing so anyway.

Per capita new car production peaked decades ago in the us.
(The other graph is just for fun)

 

[JeffKeryk]

Far be it from me to protect the likes of CEOs Farley and Barra, with their double talk, but there is more reporting available to the right-to-repair stuff.

Ford CEO Jim Farley clarified the company's stance on Right to Repair after "somebody" publicly claimed automakers wanted legislation restricting consumer self-repairs. Farley stated that Ford supports repair rights at reasonable costs, but opposes non-professionals handling warranty repairs due to safety and technical complexity.

Backpedaling? Believable? Ya got me.

 

[tiger862]

Very simple solution. All vehicles should have a 10 year or 100 thousand mile warranty for anything on the vehicle. Since fluids are lifetime now, all that needs to be done is oil changes, tires and brakes.

 

[Rmay635703]

Very simple solution. All vehicles should have a 10 year or 100 thousand mile warranty for anything on the vehicle. Since fluids are lifetime now, all that needs to be done is oil changes, tires and brakes.

If they want to push you cant repair it would need to be a 10/150, especially on motor/transmission/suspension/pollution controls .

Sadly they probably would still go for it and the car wouldn’t be a non-repairable turd after the warranty, sort of like 70’s/80’s

 

[demarpaint]

It's not just Ford.

Remember, it's the service department that keeps the lights on at dealerships.

This is true, I simply added it to my list of reasons not to buy a Ford. It's right up their with their lousy quality. No thanks!

 

[rstsco]

Royalty Auto's Sherwood went on a bit of a rant yesterday on this subject. Also saw a clip yesterday where the President mentioned several auto manufacturers' CEOs, including Farley, paying him a visit due to this subject. He then started telling stories of people he grew up working on their own cars and becoming skilled mechanics. Didn't sound like he was too keen on the CEOs' position on this subject.

John Deere recently settled a lawsuit due to making their software inaccessible to farmers and independent shops. Deere paid $99 million and agreed to make their software available for ten years. That's just breaking in a good tractor.

Going to be interesting how all this turns out. Kinda' wishing I could go back to one of my earlier vehicles without all the bells and whistles.

 

[SC Maintenance]

Far be it from me to protect the likes of CEOs Farley and Barra, with their double talk, but there is more reporting available to the right-to-repair stuff.

Ford CEO Jim Farley clarified the company's stance on Right to Repair after "somebody" publicly claimed automakers wanted legislation restricting consumer self-repairs. Farley stated that Ford supports repair rights at reasonable costs, but opposes non-professionals handling warranty repairs due to safety and technical complexity.

Backpedaling? Believable? Ya got me.

This is not a new thing. They push back on RTR constantly. They pay lobbyists at state levels and contribute to state campaigns for this very reason. They all do it but Ford is one of the worst.