Don't you love it when the dealer washes your car???

lordkelvin · 11-02-01, 06:16

Well...I took my car in for a fuel sensor recall last Monday...thinking it would be a fairly quick service, and that I would just wait it out and then drive the car home. Well, what was supposed to be 1.5 hour service became rather lengthy...about 5 hours, and then became extended...they had my car for two weeks!!!

Anway, I *finally* got my car back today, and my service advisor makes a point to tell me that he even got the car washed. I grimaced. "No good?" he says? He then insists that it was a hand wash and the guy did a very good job. Well, when I finally saw the car, it did look very good. Phew...perhaps my fears were unfounded.

Well, when I got home and my garage light came on...SWIRL CITY. Crap crap crap...what do you guys think I should do?

I guess there's not anything they can do about it anyway...so I'll just give Z5 a real run for its money, see how well it works, and then sell the car (not because of the swirls, I was going to sell it anyway)....a lesson learned.

Because I was thinking I would just wait the service out, I didn't think to tell them not to wash the car. Now I'm screwed...

That is all...

Gary

exodar · 11-02-01, 06:20

Since you didn't tell the dealer not to wash the car, you are probably screwed. However, if they are noticeable enough I would at least mention it to the owner of the dealership to see what they will do. They might buy you some product (because I am sure you will want to take care of it yourself to ensure it is fixed properly) and that could save you the money of buying anything addtional to fix this.

How bad are the swirls? Noticeable only under flourescent? Or are they visible in the daylight as well?

FLONI · 11-02-01, 07:57

if they were to say...hey your right....we messed up...then their answer is..let us polish it the right way for ya...either way...its Z5 time...but you know u love it. baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

lordkelvin · 11-02-01, 09:54

To be honest, my car was getting to be a little painful to look at in direct sunlight anyway...hence the Z5. But it wasn't this bad, that's for sure...

I looked at the car in broad daylight (but not intense sun), and it looked almost as good as if I would have done it myself. But when I saw it under the light...I wanted to cry.

I guess it's up to me to take care of it...but it'd be great if I could get them to foot the bill for a PC7424 so I could get rid of them, instead of just filling them in! But since I'm getting rid of the car, I'm going to try not to sweat it too much...

Gary

DETAILKING · 11-03-01, 08:28

I saw my dealership washing cars in the back with a large broom, 3 at a time.

When I took delivery of it it looke perfect till the first wash, they used some ultra thick silicone spray wax that hid all the swirls. Then after some zaino coats, I brought it in for a fan recall and SAID NO CAR WASH. Well, they did it anyway, swirled it up, and put this THICK greasy silicone crap all over the tires and trim, it took 2-3 car washes to get it all off.....grease city.

And they want an excellent rating?

Now I put signed all over the inside of the car....NO CAR WASH.

arcticwhite · 11-03-01, 09:58

on an incoming 2002 Ford Escape. After all the paperwork had been completed, I told the salesman that the only way I would accept the vehicle when it arrives from Missouri is if it does NOT receive a "detailing".

I made him write on the paperwork "NO WASH, NO POLISH, NO WAX, NO TIRE DRESSING, NO INTERIOR DRESSING, ETC." He thought it was a strange request, but I don't care. I told him that I wanted to take delivery of the vehicle with all the dirt, rail dust, contaminants, etc. all intact on the vehicle.

I hate the mess these guys make on cars; it only makes more work for me.

Ng Luder · 11-03-01, 10:16

Quote:

[i]
Now I put signed all over the inside of the car....NO CAR WASH. [/b]

thats actually a very very effective and simple idea we should all do in case the dealer accidentally washes the car even though we tell them not to.

YoSteve · 11-03-01, 10:20

Before I asked them to not wash it, the would wash it and spay some air freshener and clean my aftermarket floor matts.

I always keep my car clean and they brought it to me cleaner!

I looked in horror to see how they got this done, there was a big auto car wash system with brushes on it that look about as soft as a snow scraper brush (on the rotating ones they didn't even bend down, the stuck straight out they looked that stiff!)

But again it didn't scratch my car at all and it looked really shiny

But fearing that was just the 1 in 1 million time that would ever happen, I write no wash on the ticket and print out a sign and stick post it on my dash or center console to please not was (because I just had it freshly detailed and waxed) I always turn my car in super clean so they won't get any ideas

lordkelvin · 11-03-01, 11:00

Well, I just woke up and I feel like I have a hangover (I'm not...I just always feel this way when I get up at noon). So, the sun's out today...I haven't been outside yet...I'm scared to go.

I can see the swirls from inside (about 4 feet away, through miniblinds and glass)...my finish looks awful! I want to cry...

Okay, so what do you guys think my course of action should be? I didn't tell them not to wash the car...that's my fault. Again, I didn't think I was leaving the car with them, so I didn't think to tell them not to wash it (that might not have mattered anyway). So, who do I call:

the dealer
volkswagen
the "wambulance"

I dunno if there's anything that can be done about it...this is beyond the scope of Z5, though...I'm pretty sure of that. I think I need the help of a PC7424...but I can't afford it. Should I try to get them to pay for it, or what? I certainly don't want them touching my car. I just want to be treated fairly...this sucks!

Gary

"I'm so...I'm so dissatisfied" Toad the Wet Sprocket

Dave N · 11-03-01, 07:52

Before I bought my truck I had a black Nissan 200SX. I wasn't "into" detailing then, so I just used Meguiars or whatever a few times a year and that was that. The car was black, didn't have a clearcoat, and I lived in Texas at the time. One day the O2 sensor went bad so I took it to the stealer to have it replaced. When I went to pick the car up, there was a delay of about 30 minutes, so the stealer gave me a coupon for a free oil change. I thought that was pretty nice of them (at the time).

Anyway, a few weeks later I decided to cash in the oil change coupon. One annoying problem the car had was that if the weather was humid the auto door lock would trip itself and lock the doors (kind of spooky at times -- it must have had a short). So, when I dropped the car off for the oil change the first thing I told the attendant was that the car spontaneously locks itself, so don't leave the keys in it! I even left both windows rolled down just to be safe. Well, when I went back later that day to pick it up, the car was sitting out in the lot with the windows rolled up, keys inside, and locked tighter than a drum. I had to go to where I work to get my spare key (which was annoying enough), and when I got back I noticed that they had given my car a complementary "wash". It was about 100 degrees outside, and it looked like they had sprayed soap on it and just let it sit. You could literally see where they had sprayed and wiped. Keep in mind that I wasn't even a detailing freak at the time, so it HAD to be bad! I went and got the service manager and showed him the damage. At that time I thought that maybe they had sprayed paint tinner on it or something. I told him that I wanted a body shop to look at it, so he gave me the name of the shop that did all of their work. I took it there and the owner said that it was just soap and would wax out. He rubbed some wax in a spot and it looked better. I took it back to the stealer and said I wanted it detailed. This is where I made my biggest mistake -- the manager said he had a crew that did detail work and I agreed to let them buff the car. I told him that I didn't want anything harsher than wax used on it, but I'm sure that didn't make any difference. When I picked my car up after the "detail" it looked better than before, but god only knows what these yahoos did to it. There were burn marks on the rubber molding from the buffer, and wax or compound splatters on many of the non-metal surfaces. They had even managed to buff some bugs into the paint on the top of the car (hey, at least they didn't lock the keys in this time!). At this point I was so pissed I wasn't going to let anyone there ever touch my car again, so I took it home and bought some of that Turtle wax 3-step cleaner/polish/wax system and went over the whole car. I guess this was my first step into the detailing world, so it's good that at least this experience got me interested in detailing. That car's paint really never was very good after that. It had oxidation that I never got out -- too bad I didn't know about this group before I sold the car, or I would have used some better detailing products on it. Well, that's my detailing horror story. I sure am glad that I wasn't a detail freak back then, because I'm sure I WOULD HAVE FREAKED!!! I hope you resolve your problem!

darbh · 11-03-01, 10:02

lordkelvin -- the fact that you did not tell them not to wash the car does not give them the right to damage the paint. I would IMMEDIATELY go back to the dealer and show the manager the paint damage. I would also take pictures and have the swirls viewed by two people, each of whom should write a short note on their observations. Ideally, these observers should have some sort of proffessional auto industry experience, or at least be credible individuals.

The dealer will probably offer to buff out the scratches. Now, there is were your dilemma starts. Do you let them do it? You would have to have evidence of their competence. See threads on this site on competent and swirl removal practices. And, do take more "before and after" documentation if you let them do it.

lordkelvin · 11-04-01, 12:20

I did a quick Z5 job on the hood...it did a lot better than I expected. After five coats or so, they may be nearly impossible to see. But still, that's a LOT of work just to get my car back to the shape it was in before I dropped it off.

I'm not touching the rest of the car until I've called the dealership back (their service dept. is closed Saturdays). Honestly, I don't expect to get anything out of it...they may offer to buff them out, but they're not touching my car again...

I do plan to call Volkswagen and let them know what happened (my service was just awful in general). VW is really working hard to improve the quality of their dealerships in the US, so just maybe they will do something about it.

The way I look at it, it's going to take somewhere between 5 and 10 hours to mask what they've done (really more if I do it right). At $20-$30 an hour (fair price for pro detailing work?), that's $100-$150. we'll see what they think about it.

Thanks guys,

Gary