My thoughts on Meguiar's

[BlackElantraGT]

Before discovering this forum, I didn't know much about all the detailing products and companies available besides the products you can find over the counter.

So far I've pretty much stuck to mostly Meguiar's products. I think they have a really strong brand that most people, even non-autopians, would recognize. I've always figured, if they've been in business for all these years and is such a large entity within car-care products and beyond, they must know what they're doing compared to some of the smaller companies whose product lines are much slimmer.

I've been happy so far because I really don't have much experience with products from other companies, but I'm starting to question whether or not I still wish to give Meguiar's my business.

I recently had a problem with one of my burgundy pads, which lost it's circular shape and became more of an oval. I emailed Meguiar's online customer service and like most online companies, I expected a response within 24-48 hours. Meguiar's acknowledge that I sent them a message and I got the usual auto-response email about them responding soon, but it took 3 days for me to get my first response.

Whatever happened to the old saying that the customer is always right? I wasn't too happy with their response because the person who responded just said how he's never heard of that happening before, asked me how I was storing it, and tried to refer me instead to the place I bought it from. If they (place where I purchased from) weren't willing to help me out, then supposedly Meguiar's would try and help.

Like many of us, I bought my Meguiar's products from autodetailingsolutions.com who I haven't had any problems with whatsoever. The pad that I was complaining about was purchased back in July or August, and so I figured if something was wrong with it, Meguiar's should be the one to contact since it's been more than 30 days.

It's not like I was complaining about my whole batch of pads. I told the guy that out of all the pads I have, I was only complaining about this one. If I felt that the defect was caused by me or it was just normal wear and tear, I would have just thrown it away and purchased a new one. But this pad was used the least out of all the pads. It was washed the same way, stored the same way... the only thing different I can say was that this pad was used to put the Meguiar's mf bonnet over it to remove wax, and I noticed that seem to "scrunch" it up a bit, but it always returned back to its shape until the problem with it losing its circular shape came about.

I replied to the guy from Meguiar's that same night I got his response which was at least 3 or 4 weeks ago, and I haven't gotten a single response since then. I could just email them again, but then I would have to explain this problem all over to someone new. IMO I shouldn't have to email them multiple times about the same subject.

To me that's just really poor customer service to take longer than average to return a response, but one that wasn't helpful to me in any way. I've dealt with other companies before and some places don't even question me as if I'm making some kind of mistake or I'm an idiot. They just automatically give you an RMA, tell you where to send it, and shortly after you receive a replacement product.

Even if I was the one at fault (which I don't feel like I am), I just think that's bad business on Meguiar's part. I'm not going to put Meguiar's out of business if I don't give them my business any more, but they're possibly losing a customer for something as small as a foam pad that probably doesn't even cost them more than $3 to manufacture. Add another $2.50 at most to ship within SoCal, and they're losing a customer over 6 lousy bucks, $13 at most if you figure MSRP? It probably costs them more than that in advertising and what not just to obtain and retain loyal customers.

In the end, I kept using the pad anyway because I had no choice unless I wanted to buy another one. Since the velcro backing also became oval like the pad, part of my Meguiar's backing plate wasn't sitting on the actual velcro part, and it began to cut into the pad. It's not even worth it to me to complain to them at this point. I might as well toss it out now.

Mike Phillips seems to pride in the fact that Meguiar's has been in business for more than 100 years, but for such an old and distinguished company, you would figure they would know how to provide world class customer service by now. I'm just going to assume mine was an isolated situation (mistakes happen right?) otherwise they wouldn't have so many loyal customers all these years.

This is just part of the problem I have so far with Meguiar's. I've signed up on their online forum, but I don't really see the point of posting there since many things seemed to be censored. It's gotta be one of the worst online forums as far as censorship goes. IMO it seems like many people are afraid to say what they really want to say and there seems to be a lot of *** kissing going on over there. Who knows, I'll probably be banned on their site just for posting this here. Or maybe he even has the power to get me banned here, but at least I spoke my mind.

Anyway, I'm done with the long rant. In the future, it looks like I'm going to have to open my mind to more companies other than just Meguiar's.

[Suprchargd]

That sucks that they weren't willing to help. I don't know what kind of warranty or guarantee they have on their pads; honestly though I would expect this kind of service from a large company.

[Scottwax]

Did you try calling their 800 number? You can probably get a quicker response that way. I've noticed that with a lot of companies lately. I think a lot of them are snowed under sorting through legitimate e-mails and spam. Give them a call, you might get a better response.

About their site-it is a Meguiars sponsored site so you do have to expect that any bashing, whether legitimate or not is probably going to be toned down or deleted. You won't get banned for posting this here, but I am sure Mike Phillips will see it since he does lurk here from time to time. While he may not respond directly to the thread, I am sure he will mention it to the customer service people. He really is someone who believes in Meguiars and cares about their image. I have met Mike in person, so isolated incident or not, he is the type of person to take it seriously.

[Heikes]

I agree with Scottwax, Mike is a good guy. He moderates their forum so try sending him an e-mail through there. I'm sure he'll do whatever he can to help. He seems very busy though, so try to be patient.

[BlackElantraGT]

I didn't try their #800 number. Over the years I've gotten used to having quick, online customer service where I don't have to wait and listen to hold music for a long time before getting in touch with a live person. I think that's part of the reason why many companies also added online customer service, for those customers who don't really have the time nor patience to wait on the phone. The internet has made many things convenient, one of them being customer service so this was the first, and only place I turned to when I needed to contact Meguiar's.

I wouldn't normally complain over something as small as a $10 PC pad, but the main reason why I vented was because I also recently dealt with online customer service from Belkin and TireRack and their service was extraordinary, beyond my expectations, so to receive this kind of service from Meguiar's, it was a night and day difference that made me somewhat upset.

With Belkin, I had a problem with their TuneCast II FM modulator from day one but it was something I just lived with for the past 2 years. I finally got fed up and when I found their original packaging, I found out that it had a lifetime warranty. I submitted a request for an RMA Thurs night, the next morning I had an RMA and an address to ship it to, and by Monday afternoon I already received my replacement product. I wouldn't brag about Belkin's products being great because they're not the best, but their customer service sure was excellent.

With TireRack, I placed an order for some brake pads and it turns out that my particular year had a slightly different pad. In one email to tell them about this problem, the girl contacted one of their depts to look into it and within less than 48 hrs responded and told me which pads should work correctly and offered to place the order for me and get shipping labels sent out to me. She didn't ask me any stupid questions about whether or not I installed the pads correctly because first thought would be user error if I ordered the pad# all the manufacturers recommended, but rather went straight to whoever her source and she told me which pad# to order instead to resolve the problem. At no point did she question me in a way to figure out if maybe it was user error.

I'm just beginning to doubt how Meguiar's conducts their business. I could have purchased any of the PC kits from Danase, Autogeek, etc. but the main reason why I decided to spend just a little more was for the G100's lifetime warranty, which apparently doesn't apply unless you bought it directly from Meguiar's. I'm sure Rick from ADS will honor that warranty, but what exactly happens if he one day decides to not be in this business anymore?

Is ADS not an authorized reseller for Meguiar's? He sells mainly Meg's products. Most of us who order our Meguiar's products online probably get it from him. If you bought a Sony TV from Best Buy and Best Buy flops, how would you feel if Sony said you're SOL unless you bought it from a Sony Style store or sony's online web store? What's the point of even having authorized resellers if you're not going to honor your own company's products for their customers.

[Whitethunder46]

I e-mailed them asking if they sell smaller sizes of their 1 gal. Detailer's Line Series. I got an answer within 24 hours. Since then, I've been referred to a site that does sell them in 32 oz, but not through Meguiar's

[rockz9]

I have called the 800# to complain about some defective products and had no problem getting replacements. I had a bad batch of #21 , a broken wheel brush, and a few backing plates.I sent them the defective products and had my replacements in a week.Give them a call and you will see how great their customer service really is.

[BigAl3]

call the 800 number and talk to one of the csr's. i haven't had any problems with meguiars and they have always treated me right, and not to mention mike phillips is someone who has alot of heart in what he does and is a very nice guy as well...

[Mike Phillips]

For as much business as we do, I don't see many complaints about our Customer Care Service, but it could be I just don't see or read it. As for e-mail, one thing for sure, I can't keep up with e-mail, too much all the time.

Not sure why it took so long for someone to get a hold of you, but I'll pass the link to this thread on to the head of customer service because if there's a problem, or any issues I'm positive he'll want to know about it and take care of it ASAP.

[Dent's & Details]

I used to live and detail in southern california. When people first started to use the PC I was open to trying it. I used to pick up products from a place in Costa Mesa that sold Meguiars products. After spending over $100.00 on pads that were coming apart after a couple uses I thought I would call and complain on the 800#. The guy I spoke with was telling me not to wash them with water. Let them dry and knock the product out. He stated that he had been polishing with the same pad for a year on his car and had no problems.
I detail for a living not on weekends when I'm not answering an 800#. I need things that work. The final outcome I got my money back I had to complain lots to get it. I stoped buying Meg's products after this except the 3000 grit sand paper.

I would sugest trying the Lake Country pads. I had never had any issues with them.
You can even use them with your Meguiars Products. Dust Mask not provided

[BlackElantraGT]

Maybe we wouldn't even be having this conversation if I had just called. But if Meguiar's is going to offer online customer service through their website (I'm not talking about the company's forum), I would expect my CS experience to be similar, whether I call and speak with a live person or correspond through email. My preference for doing business is over the internet or in person.

I've been on the internet long enough to realize that online customer service might not be the fastest way to get a problem resolved, but based on my experience with most companies it seems like the industry standard from a customer asking a question to a CS rep responding is usually between 24-48 hrs, and more likely than not, your questions are usually answered way before their estimated time.

Maybe I'm just expecting a bit too much because for some reason, when I think of Meguiar's I think of a large company. Maybe I'm imagining you have a large call center of people when the CS dept. might only consist of a dozen or so people who only work Mon-Fri 8-5. With the internet being available 24/7, I sometimes forget that some businesses don't provide customer service on weekends. As I'm looking at the time stamp, I'm starting to think that's probably the explanation since my question was asked Friday evening, and I didn't get a response until Mon afternoon. This was back on 11/3, I got a response on 11/6 which I replied to, but I never got a response after that.

The person who responded (it wasn't Mike Phillips) wasn't rude and probably just following company policies by trying to troubleshoot the problem, but if I mentioned in my initial email that I washed and dried each one the same way and none of my other pads were like this, why is he still asking me how I store the pad? I'm not going to store it any different than the rest of the pads I have, just like how I didn't wash it any differently. To me it was a silly question to ask when he should have asked if there was anything I did differently with this pad compared to the rest. Sometimes you just have to get to the point.

Instead, he asks me how long ago it was purchased and from where, because I can possibly go through them to look into it. If they weren't willing to help out, then Meg's was willing to stand by their product 100%. Personally, I just find that answer to be disturbing that you're expecting your authorized retailers/resellers to resolve a manufacturer's problem and in the case that they don't help, Meguiar's is there as a last resort. How reassuring is that?

I bought my products from ADS, but to make it simple lets just say I bought it from the Super AutoBacs store in Stanton, CA. I have a defective product from Meguiar's. Meguiar's tells me to go back to the store, they should resolve the issue. I drive down to the store and the clerks who work there knows nothing about foam pads, all they see is a used, torn and warped pad, and they refer me to Meguiar's instead. Don't you find that to be a lot of hassle for the customer when you could easily have resolved it and made your customer happy in the first place? Even if the authorized retailer could resolve the problem, you still would have a happier customer by saving them the time and money of having to go back to the store. This is the kind of thing that seperates average customer service from excellent customer service. No customers wants to hear how a manufacturer will only stand behind their product if the authorized retailer doesn't come through. It doesn't give me any faith in that company.

For example, the G100. What makes the G100 Meguiar's sells directly any different than the ones Rick sells through ADS, other than the price? I'm assuming he's an authorized web retailer since he specializes in Meguiar's. If by chance he isn't, why is no one stopping him? If I purchased a legitimate Meguiar's product from a legitimate retailer, why is the answer about the lifetime warranty so unclear? If there was something different about the Meg's direct version, I could understand, but to not offer the same warranty just because I didn't buy it directly, something doesn't sound right. IMO there's a difference between a return policy and a warranty. Return policies vary from retailer to retailer, but warranties are usually the same wherever you purchased it, as long as the retailer was an authorized dealer/retailer/reseller/etc.

My guess about all this is that maybe the company's mail servers didn't deliver the email to him, maybe he forgot to respond, or maybe he accidentally deleted it. If it was a technical issue, it wasn't on my end since I received his email perfectly fine. I'm sure this is a rare circumstance. But sometimes once you get a bad taste in your mouth, it's hard to make yourself want to eat the same thing again.

[Setec Astronomy]

Originally Posted by Dent's & Details

After spending over $100.00 on pads that were coming apart after a couple uses I thought I would call and complain on the 800#. The guy I spoke with was telling me not to wash them with water. Let them dry and knock the product out. He stated that he had been polishing with the same pad for a year on his car and had no problems.

I have to say that I took this advice (and the rest of the Meg's advice about this) and dedicated a Meg's pad to each Meg's product, and never wash them. I wipe them down with a terry towel after use, and brush the residue out when they are dry. I haven't had any pad problems (the backing plate was another story--that's long gone )Because of this, I don't use my Meg's pads with any other products, and usually don't use Meg's products with any other pads.

I think the moral of the story is do what the mfr. recommends, and you do it at your own risk if you don't. Of course, as was mentioned, plenty of people use other pads/backing plates, and wash the pads and run over 5 on their PC.