Is GM ripping people off??

[06Accordx2]

A lady at work today told me that she paid an extra $900 for that "special stuff" on her new Gran Prix so that it will never need waxing. I said "what?" "oh yeah" she replied, "the dealer said that I`ll never have to worry about waxing my car if I got this stuff on it".



Sounds like a rip off to me, but I`m no expert. What`s up with this???

[imported_truzoom]

Same story since the beginning of stealerships, really.



It`s a paint sealant. They will usually claim that as long as you get "suggested touch ups", it`ll last forever.



As sneaky as it is, $900 for a guy to go over the car with sealant is a heck of a profit.

[Bigpoppa3346]

I wouldn`t think it`s just GM(why do people always think domestic automakers rip people off?). Many automakers do this, and it can vary from dealer to dealer. Most dealerships "detail" the new cars anyways, putting some sort of sealant on it, and I can`t imagine the "special" one would be much different. They are somewhat true, however, in that as long as the sealant is on the car it wouldn`t need additional waxing until it wears off.

[dbiegel]

GM and the dealership are two completely different businesses.



The dealer is ripping people off. Wow, I`ve never seen that before.

[TigerMike]

Most all dealerships suffer from that disease....it`s not specific to GM.



Hey, I`ll gladly wax your car for $900 with my uber-special paint sealant too!

[matt colvin]

Exactly. It needs to be pointed out that the dealership charged the $900 for this "sealant", not GM.





Here`s a thread on MOL that addresses this topic. http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=10939

[imported_steveo3002]

i worked at a GM dealer here in the UK , they pushed a sealant that was near $600 , its a rip off beacuse if you read all the get out clauses in the paperwork its worth less

[s2skimon]

could be something like 3M or starshield.. regardless, its a money making deceitful gesture

[osc4m]

Toyota offers xylion (paint sealer) for about $900. They don`t claim it will last forever like GM, they say it will only last 5 years. They`ll probably change the name of their product in a few years and say it`s a new type of paint sealer.

[MrSelfDestruct]

I don`t know how much the paint sealant costs at our dealership.. but it seems to be decent stuff. I think we used Pro-tech in the past, but it`s some other company now.

[RJJ]

The simoniz product I saw had a very strong, and very clear warranty. They would pay to repair damage caused by acid rain, and other environmental things.

I myself would not pay for it, but for someone who does not take care of the car, it seems to be a no-brainer.

[velobard]

Imagine if they get hold of DavidB`s Red Dot #49 stuff (presuming it would eventually pan out to have as much promise as he thinks it might have). I hate to think how much they`d charge if they had something that DID work for years. And yes, I`m j/k`ing

[jmsc]

1. How many years is the guarantee on this no-wax needed? (not joking)



2. If by a stroke of chance it needs waxing, what will the dealership do? (not joking)



3. Are you sure this isn`t 3 coats of Zaino costing $900? (not joking)

[accordmaniac]

Not just GM does it. Honda does it. Toyota does it. Been ripped off twice. Once by Toyota. Once by Honda. Didn`t know better then.

[GrayHawk]

Acura dealers, too. When my customer bought an `06 MDX last year, the Acura dealer offered her a "paint protection package" for a mere $1,000. :nono