chemoman

I should have snapped a pic, but didn't.
I have an 07 V6 with 20K miles and this morning I noticed that the battery cable was extremely corroded. I've been out of town and my wife had commented a couple of times over the past few weeks about the car acting "funny."
I've had many cars in my life and put many miles on them replacing many batteries. I've seen corrosion, but never this bad this early.
The dealer is agreeing with me to some degree and replacing the battery and cable, but charging me $30 bucks for battery maintinence. He said that anyone else would charge me for the cable calling it a maintinece issue. They change my oil every 5K and whatever other issues I have. Shouldn't they have cought this themselves? It sounds like he's saying that it's my fault.
Does this sound like a full waranty issue?
It ain't about the money. It's the matter.

Stepman

Get some of those $2 felt washers and put them under the cables. They do a good job at stopping that.

chemoman

I had the miles wrong in the original entry. It has 20K not 36.
Sometimes I wander how I find my way home.

chemoman

Ya, those are ok, but my point is that I shouldn't have any problems this early.

unlisted

There can be so many viariables with corrosion.

One, where abouts do you reside?
Does your vehicle sit in a damp/wet location often? Is it a paved/gravel/dirt driveway?
Was the cables connectors "seated" all the way down on the battery properly?
Were they tightened snugly?
Was it the + or the - or both corroded?
And yes, you are right, NORMALLY, when a vehicle is in for an oil change, they should be checking/spraying the connectors down.. At least they do over here, hence the name lube/oil/filter.

Notwithstanding all that, if you never want this issue again, I highly recommend the following product. Its a tad pricy (more than WD40) but it does the job very well. Just coat both connectors and you should be good for a while. I use it all the time and we get crazy weather up here, with heavy salt/slush/snow/rain. I apply it every third to fourth month normally.

http://www.eurekafluidfilm.com/appli...utomotive.html

I am not affiliated with that company in any way shape or form. I just recommend what I personally use. WD40 will work also, but get ready for regular sprayings.. as it dries off rather quickly.

chemoman

Thanks for the heads up on the fluid film. I'll look into it.
I live in Arlington TX and the car is garaged kept with 0 gravel or salt driving. My guess is that when we had it in a few months back with radio issues that they didn't tighten the terminal properly. I guess mistakes happen. I just hate when they happen to my stuff. As long as they fix it and they'll probably spray something on it too I'm not out too much.

maxshuty

First off they should be checking that sort of stuff. Since they are not I would not use them anymore, go to a different dealer if possible, or do stuff yourself-its all very easy.

Secondly I would think the dealership should cover this at no costs, its just not right for a battery to do that so soon, even if you drive it on gravel etc.. Since you keep it in the garage it definitely should not have happened. Tell the dealer this stuff.

And also I would read up on what the dealership says about there oil changes. If they specify that they check other things (which they should be doing no matter what) then you DEFINITELY should not pay anything. Dont let your money slip away so easily. Tell the guy this stuff and if he is giving you a hard time take it elsewhere.

chemoman

I just picked it up. $31.45. I agree that I should not have to pay anything. The service guy said that even if they had caught the corrosion earlier,and he agreed that they should have, that they would still have to charge me for battery maintenance because it's a normal wear and tear item. Like brake pads he said.
I paid it, but I will be looking around for another dealer. This will not go over well with my wife. She loves this guy and we've never had a problem before.
It's not the money, it's the fact that they should have caught it earlier. I work out of town and can't always be there to help her and that concerns me.
I think I'll call the regional manager and get his take on it.

unlisted

I'd call Ford customer care directly and explain everything that has happened...

maxshuty

I agree. I would do that too.

And as for the normal wear on it...what happened in your situation is very abnormal. I had something wrong with my brakes and I took it in and they through new calipers+brake pads in for me, free of charge...