Dealers misinformation

[imported_turbomangt]

Lately I have had a few customers tell me the dealer is giving them a 5 year warrenty on their paint sealant. also saying they don`t have to do anything to the finish for that amount of time. Either their is some super product out there I don`t know about, or they are spreading false info. I tell people my sealant will last 6 months, and should be reapplied that often. How can these guys get away with that? gary

[BobD]

Well, really they don`t HAVE to do anything. :lol: People buy into that stuff thinking it keeps rust off of their ride. Subaru gives a 5 year warranty on paint without a special sealant. LOL

[BradUF]

lol Toyata does it for free. I just found some Toyata Sealent cleaner that was for my moms car.

[imported_turbomangt]

The toyota dealer here charges $900 for one application. I charge $175 at my shop.

[mav63]

My Nissan Xterra came with the "Perma Plate" paint protection package and they gave me a car care kit. I never used any of it. Notice where it says I never have to wax (http://www.permaplate.com/FAQ.asp) :lol

[jimmybuffit]

I looked yesterday at a 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser. Just started shipping this model, and it is in high demand. The only one at the Dealer was in the Cleanup Shop. Two hispanic gentlemen were applying a Simonize labeled product with a 10" orbital.



In addition to the MSRP, the Dealer was charging $1500 for the Simonize application.



And they`ll get it.



Jim

[Scottwax]

Jim-at least they weren`t applying it with a rotary and a wool pad like the dealers do here. :eek:

[DrivewayDetail]

I looked yesterday at a 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser. Just started shipping this model, and it is in high demand. The only one at the Dealer was in the Cleanup Shop. Two hispanic gentlemen were applying a Simonize labeled product with a 10" orbital.



In addition to the MSRP, the Dealer was charging $1500 for the Simonize application.



And they`ll get it.



Jim



hell yes they will get the 1500, at the autogroup that i work for the toyota dealership has a 5k markup on top of msrp as a "market adjustment" and someone came in a paid for it. it ended up being like a 8k gross deal ridiculous

[doged]

I looked yesterday at a 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser. Just started shipping this model, and it is in high demand. The only one at the Dealer was in the Cleanup Shop. Two hispanic gentlemen were applying a Simonize labeled product with a 10" orbital.



In addition to the MSRP, the Dealer was charging $1500 for the Simonize application.



And they`ll get it.



Jim



If dealerships are receiving $1,500 to Simonize / seal a auto, why can’t we make ½ to 1/3 of that.? What price do you believe consumers would spend on a Simonize if they couldn’t amortize the payments for the next 60 months?

[BradUF]

I guess you could do it by lying and saying it would last for 5 years.

[Scottwax]

If dealerships are receiving $1,500 to Simonize / seal a auto, why can’t we make ½ to 1/3 of that.? What price do you believe consumers would spend on a Simonize if they couldn’t amortize the payments for the next 60 months?



Only problem with that (although the money would be nice ;) ) is we`d have to be liars and cheats like the dealers.

[doged]

I would be inclined to tell the truth. Since the price is set at $1,500, do we believe the only way to charge $700 would be to lie? Is it maybe because we don`t believe the service justifies a $700 sell price? I don’t know!!!

[Scottwax]

I would be inclined to tell the truth. Since the price is set at $1,500, do we believe the only way to charge $700 would be to lie? Is it maybe because we don`t believe the service justifies a $700 sell price? I don’t know!!!



What I am saying is we`d have to lie about it lasting for 5 years without having to do anything other than wash the car. What the huge markup really is all about is a uneeded warranty on paint protection. Let`s be honest, the average person who wastes their money on a $1500 Simonize job is going to run their car through the local tunnel wash and isn`t going to notice that over 5 years, his finish slowly degrades. Modern clearcoats will remain intact and have some gloss during that timeframe regardless of waxing habits provided you wash it regularly.



The service is a complete rip-off. Instead, what we can do is educate our customers about the importance of proper and regular polishing and waxing 4 times a year. For argument`s sake, let`s put the cost of a straight wax job at $65 for the average sized car and polish/wax at $100. We`d wax a customer`s car in the winter and summer and do the polish/wax in the spring and fall. Total cost per year? $330. Over 5 years? $1650. For the extra $150 spread out over 5 years (actually since it isn`t rolled into financing it`d probably end up costing less!) the customer has their car properly waxed and polished during that time and their car will still look at least as good as it did when they bought it. They would be able to park it next to the exact same car (color included) that had the dealer Simonize treatment and easily see a huge difference in appearance.

[doged]

What I am saying is we`d have to lie about it lasting for 5 years without having to do anything other than wash the car. What the huge markup really is all about is a uneeded warranty on paint protection. Let`s be honest, the average person who wastes their money on a $1500 Simonize job is going to run their car through the local tunnel wash and isn`t going to notice that over 5 years, his finish slowly degrades. Modern clearcoats will remain intact and have some gloss during that timeframe regardless of waxing habits provided you wash it regularly.



The service is a complete rip-off. Instead, what we can do is educate our customers about the importance of proper and regular polishing and waxing 4 times a year. For argument`s sake, let`s put the cost of a straight wax job at $65 for the average sized car and polish/wax at $100. We`d wax a customer`s car in the winter and summer and do the polish/wax in the spring and fall. Total cost per year? $330. Over 5 years? $1650. For the extra $150 spread out over 5 years (actually since it isn`t rolled into financing it`d probably end up costing less!) the customer has their car properly waxed and polished during that time and their car will still look at least as good as it did when they bought it. They would be able to park it next to the exact same car (color included) that had the dealer Simonize treatment and easily see a huge difference in appearance.



I’m all for educating the customer and I think that’s the only way to do business. Yes, this Simonize service is what it is. What concerns me the most is we have to live with the stigma of yet another marketing spin or maybe the same one again. I really would like to charge $700 for a sealant. :D

[imported_Bence]

Show before/after or half done/half not-s of different 5 year old cars to your customers. Tell them that if your work shows no improvement in the condition of the finish, the dealer was right and the sealant was worth it.