Question for anyone who has worked at a body shop or car dealer

[Dorian]

Hi All,

Sorry this question isn't necessarily directly related to detailing but I thought that there would be a lot of people here who would have experience with this question. So I am looking at purchasing this WRX from a dealer. It is 100% stock 1 owner and a clean carfax. Well - I am still skeptical of it since it is through a dealer. the car looks really nice and isn't trashed by any means. I did notice a couple of odd things and maybe someone can tell me what people do this for. I found little sports of paint of the windshield and the headlight. Do you guys think this is a sign that these parts came from a junkyard or something (I have seen similar marking at places like that). Let me know.

[WAXOFF]

There's nothing wrong. I work at a dealer. The guys that go around to dealers and ck for door dings or paint chips, glass chips etc. put paint dots on the car in different spots to show they already checked that car. If it looks good and you want it buy it.

[SYMAWD]

It depends how honest your dealer is I guess. Where I work a damaged car usually just goes straight to an auction or wholesaler. There's probably a 99.9% chance you're good though.

[Vegas Transplant]

There's nothing wrong. I work at a dealer. The guys that go around to dealers and ck for door dings or paint chips, glass chips etc. put paint dots on the car in different spots to show they already checked that car. If it looks good and you want it buy it.

+1.

[Dorian]

Thanks guys! That was the exact kind of info I was looking for.

The car did go through auction. I took a look at the front bumper and it has definitely come off (or been replaced before) because the screws holding it on are mismatched. might be best to stay away from this one.

[greatwhitenorth]

There's nothing wrong. I work at a dealer. The guys that go around to dealers and ck for door dings or paint chips, glass chips etc. put paint dots on the car in different spots to show they already checked that car. If it looks good and you want it buy it.

+1 Its just so they don't waste their time checking the same vehicle every week

[top banana]

Hi All,

Sorry this question isn't necessarily directly related to detailing but I thought that there would be a lot of people here who would have experience with this question. So I am looking at purchasing this WRX from a dealer. It is 100% stock 1 owner and a clean carfax. Well - I am still skeptical of it since it is through a dealer. the car looks really nice and isn't trashed by any means. I did notice a couple of odd things and maybe someone can tell me what people do this for. I found little sports of paint of the windshield and the headlight. Do you guys think this is a sign that these parts came from a junkyard or something (I have seen similar marking at places like that). Let me know.
Just an FYI, DO NOT and I repeat, DO NOT put any trust into what Carfax tells you. Let's just say I have experience working at dealerships and we get autos all the time that have clean Carfax that we KNOW were damaged. A lot of dealers and repair shops don't report to Carfax.Carfax would only work if it were a law that all damage and ownership had to be reported.This is not the case. Carfax is not worth a penny. Trust me.

[WAXOFF]

+1 on the Carfax. I deal with the same thing everyday. Don't trust what a Carfax says. It's like the internet. Not everthing you read is true.

[SYMAWD]

Yes, a better way to tell is to use a paint thickness gauge to see if any panels are inconsistent. Most likely the used car manager at the dealer has one. See if they do and see if they'll let you go around the vehicle with it.

[Reveddie25]

My uncle does auto body repair and when necessary buys most of his parts from different auto junk yards. I asked him about this in the past and he told me that all the used parts get marked when purchased in case you want to return or exchange the part, they wont take it back if the mark is not there.

[Andr3wilson]

Well to be honest, the best way to check the cars condition is to do it yourself.

Check all the body panels for mismatched or irregular orange peal. Even if you don't have a PTG, just a visual check can denote the quality of any respray and body work. Any good body shop will be able to mix the clear to match the factory orange peel and properly sand any body filler. Hack body shop work, you won't even see a reflection.

Next is to check the frame. Many dealerships will let you put it up on a lift and check it out. If there are bends or irregular shapes, new parts/screws. It has had some history. (New parts is not always the best for showing damage)

Best of luck!

[MattPersman]

If it's just the fascia no big deal, if it was parking lot painted it will look good for 1-2 years tops then start to chip, peel etc. you can get it redone at a real shop for a few hundred bucks. Subaru paint is pretty soft they may have repainted the front fascia due to rock chips to get premium money for the car. I work at a dealer and they are out parking lot painting and repairing fascias all the time. The dots just mean like someone else said the car had been checked by someone and knows not too look it over again and waste time.

Take the car to your shop and pay them to give it a good once over. If you are not going to modify it and the mileage is low enough you can probably get the Subaru extended warranty for it for piece of mind. Most aftermarket warranties are crappy and won't cover lots of things.

[MPBGT]

Just an FYI, DO NOT and I repeat, DO NOT put any trust into what Carfax tells you. Let's just say I have experience working at dealerships and we get autos all the time that have clean Carfax that we KNOW were damaged. A lot of dealers and repair shops don't report to Carfax.Carfax would only work if it were a law that all damage and ownership had to be reported.This is not the case. Carfax is not worth a penny. Trust me.

Agree- another note I buy many test parts from the local pick and pull. They do mark them, but on the back where it would not be easily visible. I'm sure all yards are not that careful, but I bet it's common practice.