What do I ask for? Dealer prep

Hello everyone, Great site you have here! Last week I left a deposit on a black 2010 vw cc. The car is still wrapped as much as they come from the factory. The hood is covered in a cotton quilt like covering, emblems and misc stuff covered in clear plastic like you get on a new cell phone, all wheels wrapped. There is also a barcode style sticker on the rear passanger QP (goo gone I guess?). What would you guys do? Should I just drive it off the lot like that?



I`m going the Dawn, clay, Dawn, Z5 pro(Zfx) x3 route when I get it home. I`m use to using meg`s products. I have a DA and know how to use M82. I hope I wont have to tho, Whats the point to new if I have to attack it with M82 or worse M83 which is hard for me. This will be my first new car so I didn`t even think about the "prep" part until I searched this site(also on my list is no dealer stickers on my rear!). Should I just ask for no prep to the paint? I assuming they do other stuff. The day I left the deposit on the car it was raining but it looked mint... but If I don`t let them wash it I wont be able to see any damage. I feel I got a great deal and really want "this" one and don`t want them to ruin it. Searching through these forums I see people taking delivery of these cars that are more $$$ then mine with "prep" damage worse then any used car I have ever bought. I would just laugh at the dealer (but would be dieing inside that I lost the deal) .

I wouldn`t let them touch it at all. Just take it home as is and remove the plastic yourself. I don`t think you will need to polish it unless you want the over the top look.

Yes, I used to sell VW`s and Audi`s, just take off the hood bonnet and leave on the plastic wrapping, get it home and go at it yourself, don`t let them touch it!

Advice from a relative newb who uses Zaino products.



You don`t want to wash the car with dawn twice. Whether you want to wash the car after you clay depends. Some do it always. Some never. Some people don`t wash again if they are going to polish. Some wash again if they use soapy water as a clay lubricant. Some people don`t wash again if they use a QD as a clay lubricant. In any event, if you do wash it after claying, use a quality car shampoo. You should probably never use dishwashing detergent on the car ever again.



Washing the car correctly is the most important thing that you can do. Review some of the pinned threads to learn the technique. The search function is your friend. Odds are somebody has asked your question. (And many have asked your question here. The answer - don`t let the dealership touch the paint if you can help it)



I just bought a new car, which was delivered to my house all wrapped up. (There`s a story there, but...) I washed it with dawn, clayed, washed again with Z7 (probably not necessary in this case), then used a pretty standard Zaino layering: Z-AIO, Z6, Z5, Z6, Z2, Z6, Z8. You can use a variety of Zaino products in a variety of ways. (I would pick up some Z6 and Z8.)



I wouldn`t use a DA unless your paint is swirled. But if they don`t touch it, it shouldn`t be - which is the point.



Good luck.

actually.....washing the car with dawn is quite common, and is abosolutely fine to do if you are tryin to strip any wax off the car to re-do it. after a year of daily driving, if he wants to detail it fully again, theres nothing wrong with using dawn on it to remove wax.

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Originally Posted by The Enforcer

actually.....washing the car with dawn is quite common, and is abosolutely fine to do if you are tryin to strip any wax off the car to re-do it. after a year of daily driving, if he wants to detail it fully again, theres nothing wrong with using dawn on it to remove wax.

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it is common, i do it a lot to used cars that generally arent worth more than 15k used. i use other stuff for more expensive cars. dawn isnt that great for plastics and rubbers. unless you use real little, which is almost the same thing as using a good amount of regular car soap imo.



but for a brand new car that hasnt been dealer destroyed already i think a milder stripping soap followed with say some type of pre wax cleanser,bonding enhancer or aio. since you seem to like zaino go with Z-AIO before you lay down the z5. also personally id go zaio, 2 coats of z5, and 1 coat of z2 with z8 wipedowns in between :2thumbs:

stay away from the dealer prep as much as possible.

Mrcloudz- Welcome to Autopia!



Have them remove the least possible; I`d take it exactly the way it is.



Dawn will not have *any* detrimemental effect on anything on your new car, even if you use it a few times. No matter what. Period.



I`d use AutoInt/ValuGard`s New Car Prep to remove the transit wrap film, and that stuff`s a *LOT* more potent than any dish soap ;)



I`d also decontaminate it using ValuGard`s "ABC" or the FinishKare equivalent (again, much more potent stuff than Dawn). I do this to all my new cars and it works great.



But if you want to skip "involved" processes like those, then the Dawn isn`t a bad way to go. BUT...I`d do a conventional wash first because Dawn lacks lubricity. Getting the "big stuff" off with a regular wash should minimize the chances of marring.



Note that a "properly done regular wash" is harder to do than most people would ever imagine. This is something you`ll just have to get figured out if you`re gonna have a black car.



If using Zaino, I agree that you should use the ZAIO, it`s quick and easy and would be a great starting point. IF you do need to remove any marring then the Meguiar`s stuff might be the way to go, but note that their newer M105/m205 twins are a lot more user-friendly than their older stuff (at least IMO).



Welcome to Autopia, and I applaud your mindset; sounds like you`re not gonna let the dealer get away with messing up your new car. IMO the single biggest challenge you face is how to wash it without marring the paint; get a handle on that as washing is something you`ll be doing a lot of.

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Originally Posted by vtec92civic

stay away from the dealer prep as much as possible.

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LOL, So true! Dealers do one thing, sell cars.

I have a co-worker that just picked up a 2009 F150 through the cash for clunkers program. I sent him links from this site about dealer hacks however,

He insisted on a dealer prep:confused:



1st time: The dealer washed the truck and did nothing else except leave hard water spots and coated the tires with stuff that slinged all over the paint.



2nd time: The dealer said they would make it up to him by using Xzilon, however they forgot to remove ANY contaminants that this truck had plenty of since it was white.

When He washed the truck, they had apparently missed the passenger side door and fender.



3rd time: My Co-worker told them to fix the mirrors and passenger window which they scratched, looked like they used a brillo pad.



Truck is now is His possession and He`s going to learn how to claybar and I`m going to take out the remaining water spots and give it a coat of Klasse and 476s.