Ford Pro Telematics Live GPS Data Helps Dealership Protect Fleet

Some stories are truly stranger than fiction. Colin Ailes, sales manager of the fleet and commercial division of Ohio-based dealership Ricart Ford, certainly wasn’t expecting to be thrust into the middle of a criminal investigation. But it seems fate had other plans. 

Ailes’ phone buzzed with an urgent text message from the dealership’s rental manager: One of their loaner vehicles, a Ford Bronco Sport^® SUV, had been connected to a crime in Columbus. The suspect, having dropped off their own vehicle for service earlier that day, had used the dealership’s loaner vehicle to flee a crime. Now, the police needed Ailes’ help to track down the missing Bronco as they pursued the suspect. 

The suspect didn’t realize that the Bronco was trackable via Ford Pro^™ Telematics,¹ which collects key data, such as location, using the vehicle’s built-in modem or plug-in device.

As a Ford Pro Elite Commercial Service Center, Ricart Ford is dedicated to delivering high-quality, convenient, and efficient commercial service. Ford Pro Elite Commercial Service Centers are an extension of over 700 Commercial Vehicle Centers, with dedicated large service-bay hubs, offering extended hours and rapid turnaround.

This tracking capability is just one of the benefits of Ford Pro Telematics software, which Ricart Ford relies on to manage the dealership’s fleet of service and customer loaner vehicles, and to help improve productivity, lower costs, and increase vehicle uptime. Ford Pro Telematics is also helping maintain and support Ricart Ford’s fleet of Ford Mobile Service² vans.

The Ford Pro Intelligence¹ platform brings connected-vehicle data into Ford Pro Telematics, where it’s monitored, analyzed, and delivered to a software dashboard. By logging in to Ford Pro Telematics, fleet managers like Ailes can access comprehensive data, enabling heightened fleet monitoring.   

Typically, Ailes accesses Ford Pro Telematics through his desktop computer at the office, but since he was away from his desk at the time of the investigation, he used his mobile phone.

“This was the first time I’d tried to log in to our Ford Pro account from my phone, and I was super impressed,” he said. “All I had to do was plug in the VIN, and within minutes, I was able to see where the vehicle was located.”

Read how information from Telematics software helped another customer recover their stolen vehicle.

The suspect took quite the tour of Columbus, making three stops at a fast-food chain, all of which Ailes could track on the dashboard. Using live GPS data from Ford Pro Telematics, Ailes coordinated with the police to help apprehend the suspect. “We got our vehicle back, though it wasn’t in the best shape,” Ailes said.

This incident presented a compelling argument for investing in Telematics for all loaner vehicles. But this isn’t Ricart’s first experience with the software.

“We have a huge parts division with 34 delivery vans hooked up to Telematics with Dashcam,”³ Ailes said. The Ford Mobile Service fleet at Ricart is also connected to Ford Pro Telematics, as are the parts-runner vehicles. Ailes says they mainly use Telematics software to keep up with scheduled vehicle maintenance.  

“I meter all of my demos once a week,” Ailes said, referring to the dealership’s demonstration vehicles. “Tomorrow morning, as soon as I come in, I’ll open Telematics, meter everything, and go into my service reminders for things like oil changes, fuel filters, and tire rotations. Since the vehicles are out in the field Monday through Friday, they’re usually serviced on Saturdays. Then, I update all the services that are complete.”  

It’s a process that’s critical to optimizing the uptime of the Ford Mobile Service fleet at Ricart and increasing the volume of service calls they can complete, which have proved popular among Ricart’s service customers.

“Every single customer we have on Mobile Service is head over heels,” Ailes said. “They don’t have to bring their trucks in for vehicle maintenance. Everything is completed on-site.”   

The more Ailes and Ricart Ford utilize Ford Pro technology, the more apparent its versatility becomes—whether it’s keeping a customer’s vehicle maintenance on schedule or providing crucial assistance in a police investigation. It’s a nice reminder that the right technology can make our lives and jobs easier. 

Learn More About Ford Pro Telematics