
Ford has announced it will increase the length of its factory warranty from five years to seven, with no mileage limit. However it only applies to vehicles serviced within Ford’s servicing network.

Ford Australia has extended the length of its factory warranty to seven years, putting the brand on an even footing with brands like Toyota and Hyundai.
However, as is the case with those brands, Ford’s new seven-year warranty coverage is conditional on owners ensuring they don’t leave Ford’s servicing network for their scheduled maintenance.
The new seven-year Ford warranty has no kilometre limitation and applies to the brand’s full range of commercial vehicles. For vehicles serviced outside of Ford’s network, the old five-year warranty term applies.
“Our seven-year warranty is a strong commitment to our retail and commercial customers that we’ve got their backs for longer,” explained Ford’s director of customer service, Greg Davidson.

It’s not quite the equal of Kia’s unconditional seven-year warranty, though that warranty only gives unlimited-kilometre coverage to petrol and diesel vehicles bought privately.
Kia EVs, PHEVs, and vehicles bought under an ABN receive a seven-year, 150,000km term. Ford’s new warranty doesn’t split out cars based on fuel type or commercial/private use.
Ford’s biggest rival Toyota also provides up to seven years of coverage if serviced ‘in network’, though it only covers engine, electric motors and other driveline components. Toyotas purchased for commercial use, however, are only covered by Toyota for five years and 160,000km.
Even so, Ford’s new warranty can’t touch Nissan or Mitsubishi, which both extended their warranty periods to 10 years for cars serviced within their dealer and service networks, with a distance allowance of 300,000km and 200,000km respectively.
Ford has been battling a below-average reputation for reliability within its warranty periods and while the extension of its warranty terms should go some way toward improving consumer confidence, it doesn’t necessarily solve the various issues that have given the brand a less-than-stellar rep in the first place.
Time will tell whether Ford’s longer warranty makes a measurable impact on sales.
