Complaint Review: Don Jenkins Ford Mercury Lincoln - Clarksville Tennessee

I wonder if this is the same Don Jenkins of Don Jenkins' Carolina Ford in Fuquay, NC. My husband is having a similar issue with his car/warranty.

February 20, 2009 RE: Terry Fillmore There are always 2 sides to every story. Terry Fillmore bought a 2000 Lincoln LS with 71,690 miles form Jenkins and Wynne as is with no warranty in May 2005, almost 4 years ago. He purchased a third party warranty from Guardian, the terms being set by the company and not Jenkins and Wynne. Mr. Fillmore bought this vehicle with a problem. Jenkins and Wynne filed the warranty claim and was informed by the company that the problem was not covered by the warranty. Even though there was no warranty, Jenkins and Wynne paid $647.30 to replace a coil pack, spark plug, and valve cover gasket to repair this vehicle. 2 months later 2 more coil packs went bad. I had never met Mr. Fillmore until this time. He was a soldier wounded in Iraq and I agreed to buy him 2 more coil packs but told him I would make no future goodwill adjustments. We spent over $1100 on good will adjustments to try to make him happy. This vehicle had been compression checked and the engine checked out with good compression in all cylinders before he bought it. We wholesale vehicles that won't pass a compression check. Compression checks cost $100 and I don't know of another dealer that spends this kind of money to try to eliminate problem vehicles. After the Lincoln LS had been out for 4 or 5 years, it became evident that coil packs were a problem. Ford no longer makes this engine and I'm sure the coil pack problems influenced their decision. Coil packs were not a covered component under the Guardian warranty. Mr. Fillmore wanted to cancel his warranty, but Guardian Warranty Co, not Jenkins and Wynne, had a no cancellation policy. This was clearly disclosed in Section 10 on the Guardian Warranty contract that he signed. We would have gladly refunded his money if Guardian would have allowed a cancellation. I know Mr. Fillmore has had an enormous amount of trouble with his Lincoln LS. Jenkins and Wynne did not manufacture this vehicle nor did we have knowledge of an engine problem with these Lincolns. The fact remains that we tried to help him. We offered to trade him into a different vehicle 2 years later, but he decided not to trade and keep his vehicle. I would strongly recommend that any consumer check out Jenkins and Wynne with the Better Business Bureau, Ft. Campbell Consumer Affairs, or the State of TN Bureau of Consumer Affairs and check out our record. We have been in business for 55 years and hang our hat on customer satisfaction. We've sold 2,900 to 3,900 vehicles retail every year for the last 15 years. See how few complaints we really have. Jenkins and Wynne has earned Ford's President's Award for Customer Satisfaction 5 times, Honda's President's Award for Customer Satisfaction 6 times, and the American Cancer Society's Best Place to Buy a Vehicle 8 times. Sincerely, Don Jenkins, Pres Jenkins and Wynne Ford Lincoln Mercury Honda

Mr. Fillmore, As an ex-employee and wife of a military man, I understand where your anger has come from. You mentioned that you purchased a warranty, depending on the year of the vehicle and condition it was traded-in at, most likely you purchased an "extended powertrain warranty." As most of the issues that happened with your vehicle are not powertrain problems, the warranty would not cover it. I deciding factor into this equation is what type of vehicle is it? I imagine, since you purchased it from Steve Stanfill, you were purchasing a pre-owned vehicle. If J&W traded for the vehicle and it was not purchased at the dealership, had multiple owners, those also create that problems that lead to the issues. Unless it had an as-is/no warranty sticker, every vehicle goes through a 100+ point check inspection for the vehicle to be put on the lot. Also, if it has more than 50K, there is a compression check done on the vehicle. Which brings up another good question, how many miles was on the vehicle. I understand how upset you are that you felt you were taken advantage of especially when "they told you they were lucky to have gotten me financed..."You mention your credit being strong. When the Business Managers send in your credit application, the first place they go through is FMCC and they pull your credit history. (A college student may have a 'strong' credit score, but since there is limited credit history as they may have only cell phone bills and student loans on the bureau, they are considered a risk.) You are then given a level, once given a level and your application is sent out to other qualifying banks, each bank reviews your application AND credit history together and THEY come back with the interest rate. Jenkins and Wynne does not pull interest rates out of nowhere. It is also an oversight of you not doing your research beforehand and knowing your credit score. You get one free credit report a year, take advantage of that! Finally, you mentioned that "they would not fix the piece of junk 24 hours after it left the lot." J&W has a 48 hour love it or leave it. You had every right to return the vehicle within the 48 hours and less 200 miles for a full refund. If you had any of the major problems within the first 24 hours, you had every right to return the vehicle. Not knowing when all of these issues came up, you were (as every car owner is) responsible for fixing your own vehicle. Reminding you that if it was a pre-owned vehicle, those are risks you run with trying to buy one. There is only so much a company can do for you to try to make everything right. Knowing your facts, doing your research helps a lot. As your case is few in 50+ years of business, it is a risk that has to be taken. I am sorry for all the problems you encountered. If there is someone that could help you and is one of the MOST HONEST people I know, Bud Stump (30+ years in sales, former military) can take care of you. Jenkins and Wynne, just like any dealership, cannot have a perfect 100% satisfied customer everytime, but they get much closer than most dealerships.

Go TO: ripoffreport.com and type in FORD and read my story about Jenkins and Wynne Ford! This small ad will cost that Dealership THOUSANDS in LOST sales!! Just do it!! Also go to the Toyota page of this site to get some good ideas!!