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2Addicts | BMW 2-Series forum Technical Topics Cosmetic Maintenance (Wash/Wax/Detailing/Exterior Restoration & Repairs) Dealership scratched almost every conceivable surface of my car.

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      10-24-2014, 06:21 AM   #1
ihonzawa
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Dealership scratched almost every conceivable surface of my car.

So here's the situation I'm in... I dropped the car off for paint imperfection repair (a protruding bubble in the paint below the clearcoat) and when I picked it up today, the car was covered in swirl marks and straight line scratches in the clearcoat. To add insult to injury, the imperfection wasn't completed mended. There is still a visible dimple where the defect was and there is bubbling as well as more particles stuck in the clearcoat...

I told my service advisor about the scratches and she told me that "it's only scratched on the clearcoat" and "the detailers will claybar the car to remove the swirls"... Just some quick background here. I am a very detail-oriented person when it comes to washing and detailing my car. I have a separate wash and rinse bucket with particle grates at the bottom. My washmitts NEVER touch the ground. I rinse after every section of the car is washed or if the mitt picks up significant grime. I never let anything that has touched the ground go anywhere near the car. I use a Griot's Garage 6" dual action polisher for polishing and waxing. My car was virtually free of any swirls or scratches. Now going back to her comment... I corrected her, "Using a claybar only removes contaminates from the paint surface and not scratches...". She still maintained her statement that claybars remove swirls. Then I told her that the detailers wouldn't be able to polish a freshly clearcoated hood. Again, she begged to differ and said, "I'm pretty sure they can polish it. It has been about... 2 days since they worked on it and they use a heat bake oven to dry it..." . . .

I told them they needed to fix the hood again and their response was, "We'll send it back to the same shop since it was their mistake." Uhhh, I don't want to send it to the same shop...because they'll most likely make the same mistakes. They also said that "anything painted outside of the factory will never be as good as from the factory." As if they were telling me that this was pretty much the best that they could do. I told them that this is unacceptable to receive a car back in worse condition than when it was dropped off.

I'm going back tomorrow to speak with the service manager. I couldn't believe how they treated me like an idiot and dismissed my seriousness about the swirls. I live on Maui and this is the only dealership on the island... I just hope I don't have to call customer relations to get results...
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      10-24-2014, 06:52 AM   #2
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I wondering if the service manager is going to offer to pay for whichever shop YOU chose to do paint correction? But an offer like they can too easily release the dealership from responsibility if things don't turn out well.
There was a time when you could ask to have a BMW region rep meet with you at the dealership along with a dealer employee to rectify - I would aim for that - but it may not be possible to arrange.
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      10-24-2014, 09:12 AM   #3
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Guess you don't have too many options on such a small island. Good luck in getting the paint issues worked out.
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      10-24-2014, 09:46 AM   #4
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I feel like taking my car to Maui for a detail. You do take detailing very serious.

I hope you can get all of this resolved.
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      10-24-2014, 01:49 PM   #5
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thats horrible , I am the same way with my washing routine I hope they make everything right for you
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      10-24-2014, 02:47 PM   #6
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Spoke with the same service advisor today and she said they have to send it back to the paint shop since it was their mistake. They're going to try and schedule an appointment when they get one of their two BMW loaner vehicles back for the entire island. (I had a Mini Cooper as a loaner this past week...) She said they'll detail the car once it is safe to do so.

It looks like I have to let them try at least three times to correct the issue before I can resort to lemon law legal action.

I told her it's frankly scary how careless the body shop employees are. We shall see how they handle this...
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      10-27-2014, 11:11 AM   #7
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Assuming when you say "spoke to" you mean on the phone. I'd send her an email outlining exactly what happened and have her respond that the facts are indeed as you stated and have her reiterate her proposed resolution. It's best to have these things in writing.
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      10-27-2014, 04:49 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BEM-S4
Assuming when you say "spoke to" you mean on the phone. I'd send her an email outlining exactly what happened and have her respond that the facts are indeed as you stated and have her reiterate her proposed resolution. It's best to have these things in writing.
Thanks for the tip.

I'll be sure to ask for confirmation via email.
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      10-31-2014, 09:51 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BEM-S4 View Post
Assuming when you say "spoke to" you mean on the phone. I'd send her an email outlining exactly what happened and have her respond that the facts are indeed as you stated and have her reiterate her proposed resolution. It's best to have these things in writing.
+1
As an ex after sales manager (jag-lr) My only advise is to go as far as you can (within the dealer ), mention the lawsuit but don't Go that way (unless is the very last option) because you will have to Go back over and over again and was their foult, not BMWNA. Hope it all gets solved to you!
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      10-31-2014, 02:22 PM   #10
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One other tip. This woman that you're dealing with, none of this is her fault. Be sure to lead with "I really appreciate your help. Realize you're not to blame and I am upset but totally understand you're just trying to help me."

You'll be shocked at how far that will get you. I negotiate for a living, that shit works wonders.
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      10-31-2014, 02:31 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BEM-S4
One other tip. This woman that you're dealing with, none of this is her fault. Be sure to lead with "I really appreciate your help. Realize you're not to blame and I am upset but totally understand you're just trying to help me."

You'll be shocked at how far that will get you. I negotiate for a living, that shit works wonders.
Thanks guys. I'll definitely take that into consideration. I've always been courteous with the staff at the dealership. That said, they're pretty aggressive to play down my concerns. I just don't want to let them convince me that the scratches are "not that big of a deal".

I'm going to let them resolve this and see how it turns out. I have a feeling I'm going to be back sooner than later... (My brakes are squeaking after letting off the brakes from a stop...)
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      10-31-2014, 04:29 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ihonzawa View Post
Thanks guys. I'll definitely take that into consideration. I've always been courteous with the staff at the dealership. That said, they're pretty aggressive to play down my concerns. I just don't want to let them convince me that the scratches are "not that big of a deal".

I'm going to let them resolve this and see how it turns out. I have a feeling I'm going to be back sooner than later... (My brakes are squeaking after letting off the brakes from a stop...)
My brakes do the same thing. I've been too lazy to get it looked at, but please update if they remedy this problem. So annoying.
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      10-31-2014, 04:52 PM   #13
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There are many threads on the BimmerPost forums regarding the squeaking. From what I'm concluded, the noise is caused by the brake pads rubbing on the discs. The most reliable solution is to apply lubricant to the pads. If your car is still under warranty, I would take it in while the service is covered. Other forum members have filed down a plate behind the discs where they believe there is contact, but the most reasonable solution appears to keep the pads lubricated.
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      11-01-2014, 07:13 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ihonzawa View Post
There are many threads on the BimmerPost forums regarding the squeaking. From what I'm concluded, the noise is caused by the brake pads rubbing on the discs. The most reliable solution is to apply lubricant to the pads. If your car is still under warranty, I would take it in while the service is covered. Other forum members have filed down a plate behind the discs where they believe there is contact, but the most reasonable solution appears to keep the pads lubricated.
Lubricant for brakes? I'll pass. I like stopping.
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      11-01-2014, 09:52 AM   #15
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It's the anti- vibration paste ( lubricant ) on the back of the pads ?
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      11-05-2014, 12:56 AM   #16
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Not related to the original post - but a week after I got my M235 I needed to get it washed. I "researched" to find the best "hand washing" car wash in Atlanta because I purposefully wanted to avoid scratches and swirls.

They ruined it.

Is there anyway to get the swirls out of the clear coat?
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      11-05-2014, 01:14 AM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jwr0721
Not related to the original post - but a week after I got my M235 I needed to get it washed. I "researched" to find the best "hand washing" car wash in Atlanta because I purposefully wanted to avoid scratches and swirls.

They ruined it.

Is there anyway to get the swirls out of the clear coat?
Find a professional detailer. They'll have the proper equipment to efficiently cut down the clearcoat and blend the scratches. Unfortunately the only solution to swirls is to work down the clearcoat.
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      11-05-2014, 01:34 AM   #18
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I don't trust dealers to do anything paint related well at all. I've seen too many stories like this online and in person. That's why I picked my car up with all the wrapping still on it and had my detailer do the new car prep. Less work for him, less cost to me, and a better end result.
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      11-05-2014, 01:39 AM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrBucket
I don't trust dealers to do anything paint related well at all. I've seen too many stories like this online and in person. That's why I picked my car up with all the wrapping still on it and had my detailer do the new car prep. Less work for him, less cost to me, and a better end result.
I did the same as well. I refused to let them wash the car when it arrived from the docks. The looks that I received on the drive home with the hood, roof, and trunk wrapped in white plastic and that foam piece on the driver's side door... Haha...

This time, I didn't know they would wash the car before returning it to me. I made sure to leave a note for future services not to have the car washed. Ever.
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      11-05-2014, 01:25 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ihonzawa View Post
I did the same as well. I refused to let them wash the car when it arrived from the docks. The looks that I received on the drive home with the hood, roof, and trunk wrapped in white plastic and that foam piece on the driver's side door... Haha...

This time, I didn't know they would wash the car before returning it to me. I made sure to leave a note for future services not to have the car washed. Ever.
+1, although I took ED so there was no plastic/foam wrap. I must've called 8 times prior to re-delivery to tell them not to wash. My buddy's 128i (also ED) was full of swirls on his redelivery. He's still cheesed over it, over 3 years later. I will print a "NO WASH" sign for the dash when I bring it in for service...
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      12-02-2014, 01:05 AM   #21
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Well, my dealership sent the car back and it came back worse. This time there was a 1/2 inch long fiber along with over a dozen particles embedded in the clearcoat and bad overspray on the quarter panels, A-pillars, and headlights. My SA told me that they are going to send it back to the same shop for the third time.

I wrote a lengthy email to BMW customer support. I didn't say anything bad about the staff of the dealership. I emphasized that I was disappointed in the outcome of the repeated attempts to fix the defect.

It seems like customer service isn't a very high priority at our dealership. When I picked up my car last week, I overheard a customer ahead of me loudly complain to her SA about how rude the SA was being to her. No one came over to mend things. The dealership knows they are the only authorized dealer on the island.

Hopefully this will help the dealership in the long run... (Last month, they told my friend with a 2012 F10 5er to pour water in his radiator to make the "low coolant" warning go away)
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      12-09-2014, 11:16 AM   #22
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Terrible situation. If the dealer doesn't resolve it to your satisfaction, go over their heads to the regional corporate BMW contact.

Good luck!
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