SAN ANTONIO — Jose Botello bought a used 2021 Ford Bronco Sport from Driveway, an online company, in July of 2023.
The vehicle cost around $28,000, plus financing, and was delivered in August.
Botello was excited about the vehicle, but that excitement was cut short when the vehicle started to break down on a trip to Houston and wouldn’t go faster than 20 miles an hour.
The vehicle started performing correctly again after it was towed to a Ford dealership and a sensor error was cleared. It broke down again near Kerrville and stayed that way.
“It did the same thing. It just went only 20 miles an hour after a while,” Botello said. “Later we tried to start it and it wouldn’t start.”
Botello made a claim with Lithia Motors, which owns Driveway. Still, the claim made no progress over the next five months.
The Ford dealership didn’t know how to fix the car, so they couldn’t give Lithia a cost estimate to make a guaranteed repair. At the same time, Lithia didn't want to pay until they knew how much the fix was going to cost.
Botello said Lithia was still asking him to make the monthly payments regardless.
Then, as the claim lingered on, Botello said Lithia claim representatives started to tell him the repair didn’t follow under his 60-day warranty, despite the fact that the car had broken down on him twice in less than 30 days after receiving the vehicle.
“Every time I call them, I have to talk to somebody (different)… I heard multiple times, ‘Oh, on the notes it shows the car is not covered because it is over 60 days.’ They then try to direct me to a manager and always tell me they need 24 hours to contact me.”
Finally, after the situation continued for five months, Botello called KENS 5.
KENS 5 spent the next four weeks reaching out to the Ford dealership where the car is located, the Lithia Motors Corporate Office, and the Lithia-owned dealership which previously held the Ford Bronco, Kia of Frisco.
KENS 5 eventually spoke to Kia of Frisco Assistant General Manager Daniel Stimpson.
Stimpson believed the Ford dealership should be able to fix the vehicle and provide a cost for doing so. When it became clear the Kerrville dealership was not able to do so, Stimpson started looking at the possibility of moving the vehicle to another dealership.
Eventually, Stimpson decided Lithia should pay to move the vehicle all the way to the Dallas area where he believed the technicians he knew could fix it.
Two weeks after KENS 5 started making calls, Lithia Motors approved towing the vehicle all the way from Kerrville to Dallas.
Additionally, a Lithia spokesperson told KENS 5 they would still consider this part of Botello’s original claim, which was covered.
Botello also said, once KENS 5 got involved, the customer service improved significantly.
"After you guys started reaching out it was a totally different ball game," Botello said. "They said, 'hey we will get this taken care of for you...situations like this don't happen often.' I get a call every day or every week about the progress on the car."
After the vehicle was towed to the Dallas area, Lithia Senior Manager Michelle Watson-Schwartz told KENS 5 via email, "We have retrieved the bronco, and it is currently under the care of a Ford Factory field technician."
Botello said the technician fixed the vehicle in just a few days and the company delivered it back to him, in San Antonio, within just two weeks.
Botello said he's thankful Lithia stepped up to get the vehicle fixed, and he's also glad he called KENS 5.
"After you guys called, they wanted to make sure everything was done correctly and as fast and efficiently as possible. You guys helped tremendously," Botello said.
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