Scratches from new car dealership 'detailer'

**Garry Dean** · 03-20-2010, 08:32 AM

I agree with Mike. Those defects do not look "that bad." Do an inspection of the entire car before you bring it to the dealerships attention as it may need more correction than you can see on just the top sections of the car. Good luck on getting this resolved by the dealership, but if that does no good we are always here to help!

**louie** · 03-22-2010, 11:58 AM

I took my 2-week old black Cadillac CTS to have the balance and alignment checked and they did the courtesy wash for me without asking. I picked the car up in the late afternoon and as they brought my car around from the back my heart sank. Every square inch of the car was trashed. I immediately got the service advisor who claimed it couldn't have been them as they only use soft bristle brushes. He stopped talking as soon as he saw the car. We went over to the "detail" area - the soft bristle brush was close to push broom in bristle stiffness. The pictures don't show the individual scratches in the direction of motion of the washing action. I was able to clean it up using Meg's #83 / #80 - no way would I let them touch it. They also scratched a wheel doing the alignment and the next day I noticed one of the lug nuts missing. Obviously I have not gone back to the dealer.

Mike Phillips · 03-22-2010, 12:51 PM

And again... another Horror Story...

Originally Posted by louie

I took my 2-week old black Cadillac CTS to have the balance and alignment checked and they did the courtesy wash for me without asking. I picked the car up in the late afternoon and as they brought my car around from the back my heart sank. Every square inch of the car was trashed.

Sorry to hear of your bad luck but I'm not surprised by your story...

The pictures you attached hurt my eyes...

How-to work with pictures on discussion forums

**Shane731** · 03-22-2010, 01:47 PM

Sounds all too familiar. Working in a "detail department" at a dealership, I know all about this. What's even more sad is when you have somebody like me who actually knows what he's doing and cares as a result of forums like MOL and AGO, but to put it into practice at a dealership is discouraged. With dealerships, time is money, so the emphasis is not on quality, but on how fast you can get that car done and off to the customer. Since most people don't know anything about proper products or procedures anyway, including the dealership, they figure it doesn't matter. Which sucks to me, because I feel like I'm doing a double standard. My co-workers don't really care about doing a good job either. On the other hand, you're going to have people who want that free wash when buying a car or having it serviced, and somebody's gotta give it to them. If it wasn't me, it'd be somebody else, somebody who's less concerned about end results than I am. Also take into consideration that most dealers are generally cheap when it comes to buying products (I have more money in products and tools at home than we have at the dealership, and I'm just doing personal cars, not production work), and most of their detail guys are getting paid diddly, then all that just adds up to disaster. No way around it.

**SATMAN40** · 03-22-2010, 07:34 PM

Our local MB dealer charge $250 to detail a car, our first detail was free, after that $89.00 to clean the interior, and $250 for the whole vehicle.

They also loan you a new one,

**proudpoppa** · 03-22-2010, 08:10 PM

Its amazing the quality of work some places let out the door. I run the detail shop for a Chevy dealer in a little ho-dunk town in michigan, we have good products, not great, and dont make very much money doing it. BUT, we take pride in our work which i think is what is missing in a lot of places. it doesnt matter if its a $250 complete package or a $20 wash, we are gonna do it right, or be out of a job because upper management and the owner are extremely picky. our bosses want us to do it as fast as possible, but still done right. I guess i am one of the lucky ones who have management that can make that distinction.

Anyhow, find out who is in charge of the detail shop and go to them, if that doesnt get the answers you want go right to the owner. You said you've taken stuff to them before so you should know if they are up to the task of fixing it. if they aren't then request to have them pay someone else. 99.9% of dealership owners aren't going to let you walk out the door unhappy.

**Gadgetech** · 03-22-2010, 08:21 PM

Well this is going to sound geeky (good thing I'm in the right place) but I am excited to wash/detail the new car myself. Even if they got a 'professional' to do it, I've seen too many cars with swirls on them whether it be Lotus, BMW, MB or KIA from dealerships. It was said best when the comment that people don't care/take pride in their work. I will take pride in my work and I will fix it, even if it takes me a little longer, I will know my car better and improve my skill. Slow and steady wins the race.

I like using pinnacle products (haven't ever tried XMT) but it doesn't seem like their top end stuff would be up to the task of removing some of those areas. Can you recommend a complete process using Pinnacle or should I look at some of the other stuff mentioned? The most aggressive pad I have is orange, but with the right combo, I'm guessing I could start with a white pad.

**Gadgetech** · 03-23-2010, 09:46 PM

Bump to see if there are any other recommendations on process to rid my car of the horrible scratches that are present. I like megs products, but I'm curious about Menzerna as well as Pinnacle. Why are there so many stinking products???

I definitely plan to purchase a surbuf pad. I'm guessing the 6.5" for my PC since I purchase the 6.5" LC pads??

BTW, I mentioned the issue to my sales rep which went without response. Figures.

**2010V8Colorado** · 03-24-2010, 05:38 AM

I've had my Black truck 2 months now and it being Black is what lead me to this site and detailing. About 3 days after I had picked up my new pride and joy, the sun finally came out, the garage door was open, and as I was going back inside, the sun hit the drivers side and I almost fell out. I got closer and walked hunkered down keeping the sun reflection on the side and it got worse. I backed out of the garage and into full sunlight. The swirls were everywhere. Obviously from washing/drying at the dealership. I have spent waaaaaay too much $$$ on stuff to keep it looking right, but I am anal about scratches, etc. On the upside, I now have several friends that want me to detail their cars. As it has been said, 99% of dealers don't even know what they are doing to the paint when they do their new car clean up!!!

**rdhamill** · 07-23-2011, 06:34 AM

I'm of the option that most dealerships don't know the difference between the "clean up guy" and a detailer. They consider the "clean up" a nessesary evil and expense needed to deliver new cars. They don't think of the "detailer" as a revenue generator, like they do an alignment machine or nitrogen gas machine.
At the dealership where my wife works, they install swirls on new vehicles right off the truck. I've seen new cars simply rinsed with water and then dried with a chamois, no washing.
it's a shame!