2005 Mustang GT Stolen from Ford Dealership

Capt Dan · May 26, 2005

Rockriguez said:
Please tell me your opinions on this matter.

I call him and tell him I want and extended warranty to 5 year/60,000 and also $1000 to cover my clutch and wear and tear on my tires. The service manager loses his mind and tells me that I am taking advantage of them and that he will refer this to "their" corporate attorney for review and call me tomorrow morning.

Tell him to have HIS attorney contact YOUR attorney and you are sure they can work something out. I guarantee you will get more than a wash and a top off.

How many miles did you have on it when you brought it in?

'01SilverBullet · May 26, 2005

In talking with my dad, he said it would be very hard to win a case without being able to prove the damage, which you really can't without an expert taking the car apart.

So it's in your best interest to work something out with the dealer (and his too, because you could make a media circus of this if you wanted). His response of a free car wash and gas is an unacceptable solution to this. The extended warranty and a new clutch seems completely fair and reasonable.

cdemot02 · May 26, 2005

Still no evidence of damage. Sorry guys talk will not hold up in the courts, you need evidence. The judge is going to ask for proof of damages, and if you can't prove any you have no case. I'm not saying the dealership shouldn't compensate him, but $2k is excessive.

As far as this being my 2nd post...My former name was erased, and if you go look this name up on Brad's forums I post plenty.

bigcat · May 26, 2005

i agree that the dealer is responsible. i also think that it is a good idea to send BUBBA over to meet the employee who stole the car, after he gets out of jail of course (maybe better while he is in jail!! )

Powerforce · May 26, 2005

Rockriguez said:
Please tell me your opinions on this matter.

I took in my 2005 GT to get the strut checked out last night (Tuesday) and left it there at the dealership. Today my wife gets a call and the servie manager tells her that my car was taken by one of their employees after I dropped it off and he was caught doing 85+ by the local police at around 1 in the morning. He put over 60 miles on my car between 7pm and 1pm when he was caught. The service manager tells my wife that they will clean my car and fill it up with gas to make up for it. I call him and tell him I want and extended warranty to 5 year/60,000 and also $1000 to cover my clutch and wear and tear on my tires. The service manager loses his mind and tells me that I am taking advantage of them and that he will refer this to "their" corporate attorney for review and call me tomorrow morning.

What would one of you do in my situation? Should I asked for more? Was I wrong in asking for the warranty and $1000?

Thanks

Just a little advice. You may want to limit what you post on here until this is resolved. I have heard other people getting screwed out of reconciliation due to things that were posted on forums somewhere. Not saying you have done anything wrong by posting here just be careful of the info you give on this issue. You never know who is reading.
I would also be furios and probably be demanding alot more than you are. Good luck I hope things work.

ncaruso · May 26, 2005

05SatinSilver said:
I agree with this post, totally. If this was my car, I would most likely be in jail already, for killing the punk who took it. Then the manager, after he offered just a cleaning & a tank of gas. Plus, then he gets mad and brings up a lawyer. NO WAY would I take Any of this laying down. I would have a lawyer already! Look at the vehicles this guy has bought from the same dealer. He is a Very good customer and because of his history with this dealer, I would think they would comply with his demands quickly, no questions asked! I'm not a sue happy person by any-means, and like most, I get sick-n-tired of the crap you hear on TV, of who is sueing who & for what! Most of it is Bull $hit, but in this case, NO WAY. The dealer is 100% liable for you car. I would demand the computer get checked for rev limiter hits, while I stook right next to them when they check-it! If he even hit it ONCE, that would be the end of the discussions! Make your list right there (whatever you feel is justifiable kie new tires, new clutch, etc..) and tell them, fix-it or we'll see you in court! Sometimes, you just have to say enough-is-enough. I'm just glad you car didn't get in an accident and I'm extremely glad it wasn't my car. Sorry man, I really feel for you.

Dave...

I would go to the salesman who sold me the car and bitch to him. If you are that steady a customer the sales dept might put some pressure on the service dept. I think the service contract is a reasonable request (but I'd go for 100,000 miles) as would new tires/clutch. I don't know if I personally would ask for cash, but I can certainly understand why you would.

svtash · May 26, 2005

I would try and get t he ext. warrenty and the new tires and clutch. It will be tough to prove damages. Im sure a lot of people on this forum cruise anywhere from 75 to 80 so an xtra few mph isnt much different. Yes this sit does suck but I think it would be tough to get any cold hard cash out of it for pain and suffering.

199 · May 26, 2005

cdemot02 said:
No offense you are asking the dealer for 2grand because of one bad employee that they probably fired. That is a little outrageous.

cdemot02 said:
The dealership needs to do more than a carwash and gas, but 2grand is too much.

Why do u keep on saying "2grand" he clearly stated 1 grand, he typed it twice,

Rockriguez said:
$1000 to cover my clutch and wear and tear on my tires.

Was I wrong in asking for the warranty and $1000?

GT-03 · May 26, 2005

cdemot02 said:
First of all you have absolutely no proof of physical damage so that would not hold up in the courts or etc...

I don't like it when people get "sue happy" and try to make things like this the equivalent to winning the lottery either...

However, what do you think this "kid" was going with the car during those 6 hours? Just cruising around, taking it nice and easy, and being real careful with it? I am sure that this employee was beating the crap out of it!

If he wasn't, he would have taken a Focus, no?

I think, in this case, asking the dealer to responsible for their carelessness, by allowing this employee to take it in the first place, is fair. All that Rockriguez is asking, is for the dealer to cover the damage what was done, and that includes damage which might show itself for a while.

I think this dealer should be thankful that it is only going to cost them $2K. It could have easily cost them $20K+ if something even worse happened!

'01SilverBullet · May 26, 2005

cdemot02 said:
Still no evidence of damage. Sorry guys talk will not hold up in the courts, you need evidence. The judge is going to ask for proof of damages, and if you can't prove any you have no case. I'm not saying the dealership shouldn't compensate him, but $2k is excessive.

As far as this being my 2nd post...My former name was erased, and if you go look this name up on Brad's forums I post plenty.

First of all, he's not asking for $2k cash, he's asking for $1,000 and the extended warranty (yes I realize a $1k value, but it's not money out of their pocket). And he wants the $1,000 cash for a clutch. So give him a new clutch and the warranty.

That is not excessive at all, seems completely fair.

A freaking car wash and free gas certainly isn't reasonable restitution that's for sure.

The dealer is lucky he didn't crash the car, or they'd really be in trouble. They should be relieved to just get off with the warranty and clutch and move on, considering it was their negligence that caused this.

cdemot02 · May 26, 2005

2grand= 1000 + ext warranty. I am not doubting that the kid was probably driving it hard, but you have no EVIDENCE. I only brought up sue happy because he mentioned his stress. He should of just kept it to the issue with the car.

199 · May 26, 2005

martimus said:
Whats almost comical about this thread is that too many people seem to think that the dealer is liable because an employee committed a crime. Most every service department I've ever set foot in takes little or no liability for customer vehicles or property left in them. Read the signs posted in many service departments...

If you park a car at the airport and its stolen is the airport liable for the loss? No... you are! If you park your car in an apartment complex's secure gated parking lot and its stolen, is the complex liable? No again... I'm not trying to defend the dealers but trying to look at this realistically. If you want reimbursement for wear and tear and mental anguish maybe you should try suing the guy who caused the damage in the first place!

From the dealers standpoint I'm betting that they see this as a customer trying to establish a dangerous precident. Think about it... from this point on customers could walk into the service managers office and accuse service tech's of putting unnecessary wear and tear on their car during test drives AND demand freebies from the dealership.

Aynway I suspect if this ever went to court a judge would throw it out since its nearly impossible to quantify. How do you prove, in a legal sense, that the lifespan of your clutch and brakes and tires are now significantly shorter?

whats comical is your poor comparison,

"If you park a car at the airport and its stolen is the airport liable for the loss?"
NO but lets say there is a valet parking in the airport (i know there isn't just trying to help you understand using your example) and they park it and its stolen whos liable now (the airport valet parking), please try to make sense before u type, same thing with the apartment complex.

"suing the guy who caused the damage in the first place"
NO you sue the dealer, the dealer can sue the guy, because u are dealing with the dealer in the first place.

"accuse service tech's of putting unnecessary wear and tear on their car during test drives AND demand freebies from the dealership."
What Test drives are u talking about, i hope your not talking about a test drive made before u bought the car, because your not making sense. If you mean the technican driving your car to find a problem, well u can't justify demanding freebies from the dealership as u would call it, because the the drive was required to solve a problem, but in this case the car was stolen not used to test if there is any problems, again make sense before u type

"Aynway I suspect if this ever went to court a judge would throw it out since its nearly impossible to quantify."
I don't think it needs to go to court because his demands clearly make sense, so i think the dealer would probbly like to deal with the problem without going to court since he will most likely lose the case.

'01SilverBullet · May 26, 2005

You could go after the guy who took the car too if you could prove damage. In this case, probably be hard if not impossible, but he could be held liable if you could prove it.

PonyKeg · May 26, 2005

The cash demand probably set the dealer off. Ask for more in barter, if you don't want to get attorneys involved.

At the very least, request the 100K warranty. And the extended service plan, to 50K. That's worth a couple of grand right there. It's only fair they take care of the maintenance going forward -- there's no way to know how much internal damage this guy did to your car.

Myself, I might ask the dealer to swap me for another brand-new Mustang.

If they don't cooperate, take your story to the news media. This would be disasterous to the dealer's reputation.

DukeOfValencia · May 26, 2005

look for additional damage around the car. I had a car stolen, and when I got it back I found that they beat the hell out of it. I jacked the car up and everything on the bottom was scratched...
Look under the car for damage, including under the front bumper for scratches from taking a driveway too fast. Look carefully for any new dings or scratches. Look carefully around the interior as there is a lot of plastic that could have been scratched or broken by the punk.

You are not being unreasonable, but it's still in your best interest to try to work it out before it gets to the lawyer stage...

hauoli63 · May 26, 2005

PolkThug said:
First, I would call the police and get this additional information on record ASAP (yeah, I know he got a speeding ticket, but your car wasn't reported stolen at the time). The dealership was negligent, period.

The dealership will probably try to drag this out as long as they can. Don't let them. Demand the extended warranty, nothing less.

If their lawyer actually does call you the next day (which I doubt) and tries to say that they can't help you, tell them "Well, looks like I'll have to get my lawyer involved now, I know for a fact that the dealership was negligent with my property."

I agree 100% with all of the above ... get it on the record with the police department.

Mickey21 · May 26, 2005

That sucks that happened...

File the criminal charges and make sure the individual is brought to justice. Work with the dealership to an arrangement (I find your arrangement reasonable considering) and if no arrangement could be made, I would see them in court.

The dealership is to be held responsible for any negligence they may have commited. Simple as that. If they were negligent, the court proceedings will show that... If you dont feel you can prove that... Unfortunately you will have to take a dive on this one... Plain and simple...

Just to show though, I am rooting for you on this one...

OBleedingMe · May 26, 2005

cdemot02 said:
The still unanswered question...What damages? Your tires I'm sure are not worn enough to tell, and one night of hard driving on the clutch isn't going to ruin it either. Plus they can rip it apart, and replace it under warranty if there is any. So until you have damages you have no case to sue. If you are worried about the clutch have them replace it under warranty, but they have been backordered. He didn't threaten with a lawyer. In this type of situation they must check with the lawyer to figure out what they are liable for, and that is perfectly understood. You came at him with large demands ($2k), and they must look at all options which includes talking to their lawyer.

I just reread your post. 60miles of driving...that's it. Have fun prooving damages.

Really? Can't damage a car within 60 miles? I think you may have a lack of knowledge when it comes performance trannys. I can guarantee I could blow a brand new 2005 Mustang GT's tranny in 5 miles, let alone 60. All I have to do is rev the sucker up to around 5k - 6k, drop the clutch, slip it for some extra traction (and burning it to hell in the process) and powershift without the clutch. Repeat six or seven times. Maybe throw a few reverse shifts in while moving forward around 10 -20 MPH to get that cool "locked up" feeling. I can guarantee you that by the end of those five miles I will have thoroughly thrashed the entire drive train. Hell, I may even blow the drive shaft in end!

OBleedingMe · May 26, 2005

cdemot02 said:
2grand= 1000 + ext warranty. I am not doubting that the kid was probably driving it hard, but you have no EVIDENCE. I only brought up sue happy because he mentioned his stress. He should of just kept it to the issue with the car.

He is perfectly justified in suing for punitive damages if the dealership will not cooperate. What happened to him was a VERY stressful event. Every time he looks at that car, he'll be wondering waht that guy did to it. Every time he drives it, he'll be listening to every noise the tranny/engine makes and wondering if it's a normal sound. If the dealership does not properly compensate him, he will never be able to fully enjoy driving his car. That incident will always be in the back of his mind.

Let's not forget the fact that his car was stolen. Anyone here who had their car stolen will tell you that it affects them mentally. You become paranoid about the car. You don't feel safe leaving it anywhere. It's sort of like when someone breaks into your house - you don't feel safe in the house anymore, you don't feel safe in your own bed, because its been violated. The feeling when you car is stolen is not to the same extent, but it is quite similar.

cdemot02 · May 26, 2005

Like I said you can say a lot of things, but you need hard evidence. Which no one here has given. There is no EVIDENCE of damage. Until there is what are you suing for.

2005 Mustang GT Stolen from Ford Dealership

Capt Dan

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'01SilverBullet

cdemot02

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bigcat

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Powerforce

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199

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