new - 5/26/02
Kathy, I too am a member of the V8 SHO community. It was their vigilance and concern for the welfare of our cars that helped to avoid the catastrophic cam failure in my 1997 SHO. My car had developed the tell-tale ticking noise last fall in late October. At first I tried to tell myself it was just my imagination, but the sound grew louder. The defining moment for me was downloading a clip of one of our members engine's running normally. Thanks to Troy (his clip) and the V8 SHO list members I took my car in to a respected area mechanic. I did not take it to a Ford dealership as they were oblivious to the problem and my car was out of warranty with 111,000 miles on the odometer.
Upon subsequent inspection of the cams, there were metal shavings near the cam gears... mine were so close to catastrophic failure that had I waited another day it might possibly have been the last for my SHO. Some on the list were not so fortunate as you have heard. Here is the question Ford needs to consider. Does Ford want more bad press and more disgruntled customers? Or possibly the more economically feasible question... Can Ford afford more bad press? As a major manufacturer your advertising budget is immense. Today's media loves to look for the sensational or the controversial. How much of your advertising dollar is wasted by indifference on the part of employees and executives who decide this isn't Ford's problem?
Nasser is out and Mr. Ford is in partly because of this. We may be a relatively small group, but we are Ford enthusiasts. Apostles preaching the gospel according to Ford. We buy Ford, we drive Ford, we promote Ford to others. Correct this design flaw and we remain loyal. Ignore it and most will never buy Ford again. I know its potentially only 20,000 customers or so in a market of millions. Yet an unhappy customer complains to 10 - 20 people where a happy customer might only tell a few. Do the right thing! Fix the problem... reimburse expenses incurred...make us again True Blue Ford!
Kevin Wallick
VIN# 1falp54n7va130702
1997 Taurus SHO