# Dealer has butchered our car. Devastated, and need help, advice



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Hi,
I'm in desperate need of some help and advice from anyone that has had a similar thing happen or similar experience.

My wife got a recall letter asking her to take her car in to have something changed in the airbag.
We booked that in as requested, and took the car there today. Handed over the keys, and sat and waited.
Guy said they would take the car now, and should be about an hour.

We sat and waited. Shortly after my wife shot out of the seat, and ran over to where she saw them washing the car.
Shouted at them to stop. They looked puzzled, said they can not stop now. Anyway, finally got them to stop and rinse off the car.
They offered to shammy it dry. My jaw dropped. At this point we were really ****ed off.

Anyway, long story short. Got home, and the car was now in the sun.
My wife pretty much broke down in tears. They have completely butchered the car. All over.
She has had the car from new, 6 years now, and we have painstakingly washed the car in the correct way, spending hours each time, as we know how soft the paint is.
We both wash our cars this way, and have extreme OCD.. etc.. etc..

So, the point of this post is. From anyones experience, do we have any legs to stand on ?
I called the dealer straight away. He said the manager is back in on Monday, and will call me.

When we were there, telling them to stop, they looked at us like we were crazy.. so they of course don't get it. "Free wash, why you want us to stop!!?"

I tried to capture a few pics, and to be honest, in the right light, it almost looks like its been in a accident.
To go from almost flawless paint to this, in 5 minutes, I am just speechless, pretty much sharing some of my wife tears.

Any advice anyone can give of how I should approach this with the dealer, would be greatly appreciated,

The local detailing folks, very highly regarded on this forum, looked at it, and pretty much what I thought, its going to be the best part of £600 for a decent single stage polish.
I know the Dealer will just laugh at this however.

Anyway, I'll stop rambling now.. My wife is devastated, but we are both determined to do what it takes to sort this out.

Thanks anyone for your help and advice.

Keith.


----------



## DrEskimo (Jan 7, 2016)

Did you tell them not to wash it when you booked it in and when you brought it in?


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

DrEskimo said:


> Did you tell them not to wash it when you booked it in and when you brought it in?


Unfortunately not  which I know is a stupid mistake.

But it was there for an airbag recall, and I don't see why they would need to wash it for that.

I'm kicking myself on that though. I just thought they would do the airbag, as that's what they told us to bring in in for.


----------



## Kerr (Mar 27, 2012)

How do so many people have flawless cars going into dealers and they feel the need to wash them?

That looks an incredible amount of damage from one wash. How are the panels that weren't washed before your wife stopped them look?

Are you sure you aren't finding the damage only because you are now making an effort to find it?


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

Best bet is to always get one of the hangers that say DO NOT WASH THIS CAR, you can get them from DW, I have a i4detailing one in the glovebox.

£600 to rectify, yes you're right they will laugh in your face.

I'm afraid probably like a lot of people on here will tell you, put it down to experience.
At the end of the day if you didn't tell them NOT to wash it, then they won't see they've done anything wrong.

Just don't let them put it right themselves I'm sure you will be even more upset if they touch it again.

Sorry if this isn't what you wanted to hear

PS, £100 or beer tokens to a keen non-pro weekend warrior with a DA/rotary will get this sorted for you.


----------



## Soul boy 68 (Sep 8, 2013)

That is totally shocking, I'd lodge a complaint and see where it gets you. It's totally unexceptical.


----------



## DrEskimo (Jan 7, 2016)

keithjmason said:


> Unfortunately not  which I know is a stupid mistake.
> 
> But it was there for an airbag recall, and I don't see why they would need to wash it for that.
> 
> I'm kicking myself on that though. I just thought they would do the airbag, as that's what they told us to bring in in for.


Yea guess you're going to have to put this down to experience.

Good excuse to invest in a DA and have a go sorting it out yourself....


----------



## wish wash (Aug 25, 2011)

That's a lot better than I thought it was going to look. At least it's not battered with swirls. If you've got no time/ dated photos and specifically said do not wash it or else you pay to rectify it through a detailer, I can't see much hope tbh


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Kerr said:


> How do so many people have flawless cars going into dealers and they feel the need to wash them?
> 
> That looks an incredible amount of damage from one wash. How are the panels that weren't washed before your wife stopped them look?
> 
> Are you sure you aren't finding the damage only because you are now making an effort to find it?


There is one part of the car that it looks like they did not get, and that's still good. 
To be honest, they got most of it. 2 guys going round quick,scrubbing away, only takes a minute to do the car. 
We both have extreme OCD with our cars paintwork 
The view from the pics is what we see every time we walk out the front door. 
I've seen the car in this light and view for the past 6 years, every day. 
Also I think it shows that this is not the accumulation of 6 years of bad washing, but a single bad wash. ?


----------



## James_R (Jun 28, 2007)

If you take a car in to a main dealer, part of ANY work they do on them nowadays is to give it a free health check.

Part of the health check, and every service/visit, is a free wash'n'vac.

The health check lets the dealer identify any work which may be required in the near future, and of course increase their revenue if you decide to have the work done.


----------



## ffrs1444 (Jun 7, 2008)

This always pops up on here whenever a car is out of your hands with a garage tell them do not clean leave a nice A4 sheet of paper on the dash saying DO NOT CLEAN CAR I have a little laminated sign and sit on the speedometer so it's in there face.


----------



## Ki55 (Jul 3, 2013)

We had the same thing happen to our Golf a couple of years ago after a routine service. The dealer washed it when we told them not to and it was swirl city! Being a black car, it looked awful in the sun. Volkswagen paint is usually pretty hard but ours has very soft paint and it's pretty easy to inflict swirls if you're not careful. We weren't very happy either and complained. After a couple of months, they eventually agreed to pay the full cost of a full correction. Fortunately the service manager actually knew how well we cared for the paintwork prior to taking it in for the service and saw the swirls/marring in the full sun with us. The car was corrected by an excellent detailer well-known on here and looked better than ever.

So i'd say if you specifically requested that the car was not washed and they washed it then go ahead, complain and ask for the paint to be corrected by a detailer of your choice. 

(Having said that, if the same thing happened to me now I'd correct it myself as I've had plenty of practice with my DA!)


----------



## Devilman (Oct 9, 2016)

Gutted for you. 
Fingers crossed you get it sorted. 
Dm


----------



## Ki55 (Jul 3, 2013)

ffrs1444 said:


> This always pops up on here whenever a car is out of your hands with a garage tell them do not clean leave a nice A4 sheet of paper on the dash saying DO NOT CLEAN CAR I have a little laminated sign and sit on the speedometer so it's in there face.


Ours actually had that on the front and rear windscreen and it was still washed! :lol:


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

DrEskimo said:


> Yea guess you're going to have to put this down to experience.
> 
> Good excuse to invest in a DA and have a go sorting it out yourself....


Yeah, I really wish I had a DA and the experience to put it right, 
I just don't have the right environment to be able to get into that side of detailing at the moment, as much as i'd really love to.


----------



## bradleymarky (Nov 29, 2013)

What's your location, maybe someone local who has an idea can help you out.


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

wish wash said:


> That's a lot better than I thought it was going to look. At least it's not battered with swirls. If you've got no time/ dated photos and specifically said do not wash it or else you pay to rectify it through a detailer, I can't see much hope tbh


The original photos on my phone are date/GPS stamped I guess.

I think if it was battered with swirls, then they would have more reason to say it was always like that.
To have just this single pass kind of damage, should suggest that it was just done, and was good condition before ?

Anyway, deep down , I guess I know we are going to have to put this down to experience.


----------



## Summit Detailing (Oct 9, 2006)

Yes you'll have to put this down to experience. Unfortunately because you didn't inform them that you didn't want it washed you have nowhere to go in terms of getting them to accept liability.

Whereabouts are you located? Honda Jazz? - not sure what you've photo'd is £600 worth of rectification!?

cheers

Chris


----------



## Cookies (Dec 10, 2008)

That is truly shocking. I don't think it really matters whether you asked them to wash it or not, the least you should expect is that they don't damage your car while it's in their care. 

Keep us updated chum. I hope you get sorted. 

Cooks 

Sent from my D6603


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

James_R said:


> If you take a car in to a main dealer, part of ANY work they do on them nowadays is to give it a free health check.
> 
> Part of the health check, and every service/visit, is a free wash'n'vac.
> 
> The health check lets the dealer identify any work which may be required in the near future, and of course increase their revenue if you decide to have the work done.


No free health check 

Although after the washing incident, I guess they just thought, do the airbag now (what it actually came in for), and get the car back to us..


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Summit Detailing said:


> Yes you'll have to put this down to experience. Unfortunately because you didn't inform them that you didn't want it washed you have nowhere to go in terms of getting them to accept liability.
> 
> Whereabouts are you located? Honda Jazz? - not sure what you've photo'd is £600 worth of rectification!?
> 
> ...


Farnborough, Hampshire.. Yes, a Jazz.. not a fancy car, but is my wifes pride and joy, bought brand new. I know it's very hard for a lot of people to understand the time and effort we put into maintaining the paintwork of our cars. Certainly the folks in the Dealership thought we were mental, but my wife is still really upset.

They have pretty much buggered every panel of the car, so the estimate involved a single stage polish of the whole car.


----------



## President Swirl (Oct 23, 2011)

If that's £600 quids worth of damage, I'm definitely in the wrong job! Assuming you get no love from the dealer, get a decent polisher and sort it yourself for a third of the price.


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Cookies said:


> That is truly shocking. I don't think it really matters whether you asked them to wash it or not, the least you should expect is that they don't damage your car while it's in their care.
> 
> Keep us updated chum. I hope you get sorted.
> 
> ...


Thanks Cooks, will certainly keep the thread updated.

Yeah, my thinking was also, do I really need to tell them everything not to do. Please don't wash, vac, scratch, dent, chip the wheels, clean inside, use bonet as a clipboard rest. Etc etc. I think it would be a long and probably obvious list


----------



## JamesCotton (Feb 25, 2013)

keithjmason said:


> Thanks Cooks, will certainly keep the thread updated.
> 
> Yeah, my thinking was also, do I really need to tell them everything not to do. Please don't wash, vac, scratch, dent, chip the wheels, clean inside, use bonet as a clipboard rest. Etc etc. I think it would be a long and probably obvious list


Sorry to see this mate. If you would bring it down to me and leave it with me for a day ( Near Chichester ) I'm sure we could sort out an amount that is much easier to swallow than £600


----------



## Actrosman (Oct 23, 2013)

⬆ There's an offer not to be sniffed at....someone who talks pride in their car (or work, if a full time detailer) and knows how to handle a DAP (I'm guessing), willing to help somebody who also takes pride in there car who , like me, has no idea whatsoever on their use! Sounds like a win/win situation to me


----------



## JamesCotton (Feb 25, 2013)

Full experience with a rotary and DA 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Chris Dyson (Feb 29, 2012)

I don't agree that you have to put this down to experience. If you have not done so already I would contact the dealer, show them the damage and complain to them (both verbally and in writing). If they are a responsible dealer they will offer to put it right.

From what you say and the photos posted, they have clearly inflicted visible damage to your car and have a responsibility to put it right. That you did not explicitly tell them* not to wash* the car does not constitute an implied permission *to wash the car* unless they told you before they started the work that they would wash it. Even if they explicitly said that they would wash the car and you agreed, which clearly you did not, they have a duty of care to carry out the wash with a level of expertise that would ensure the car is not damaged during the wash.

I would suggest you get a couple of quotes from professional detailers for paint correction to the damaged areas, present them to the dealer and ask them to pay for it. It would be useful if you have photographs of the car before you took it into the dealer showing the car in undamaged condition but the fact that on seeing them start to wash the car you immediately tried to stop them should go in your favour.

If they argue, seek advise from a lawyer. You can often get free legal advice from the CAB.


----------



## dchapman88 (Mar 17, 2016)

I just had my car in the garage for some minor cosmetic alterations. 
They did not wash the car afterwards, and I would not of expected them to either, hence I didn't even put my 'do not wash' hanger up!

Very odd one this, and I would defo query it with the garage as a car wash, i thought, was only done after a service unless instructed otherwise.


----------



## DrEskimo (Jan 7, 2016)

I think you need to keep perspective here. The vast majority of owners would be over the moon at having the car washed for free....

We are the odd ones, and as such, we need to ensure we outline if we don't want it washed IMO. 

If you do and they still wash it, then you can have a moan.


----------



## Mikesphotaes (Jul 24, 2016)

The perspective is quite simple.

They damaged the car according to the OP.


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

DrEskimo said:


> I think you need to keep perspective here. The vast majority of owners would be over the moon at having the car washed for free....
> 
> We are the odd ones, and as such, we need to ensure we outline if we don't want it washed IMO.
> 
> If you do and they still wash it, then you can have a moan.


I know what you are saying, and agree that's how they will see it.

I do however feel that the damage done is very extreme, and I've not seen this kind of damage inflicted so quickly with a 'regular' wash, In a matter of 2 or 3 minutes, they managed to do this.


----------



## rob267 (Nov 27, 2015)

The garage is only doing what 99% of there customers would like. As said above. We are in the minority. 

I would go back to the garage and have a chat about it and tell them that they should take some responsible. 
They may understand and offer a discount of somekind or offer to fix it. 
If not then i would purchase a da and have a go yourself. 

Even if you only attempt one panal at a time.
I am sure you will get a sense of satisfaction from sorting it yourself. 

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk


----------



## Hasan1 (Jul 1, 2011)

Can I ask what products you use on the car. Maybe there filler heavy hand the truck wash has just washed out all the fillers. After 6 years of carefully washing it you would still expect to have some minor marks via wash any techniques. 
Has the car ever been machine polished


----------



## BavarianRob (Mar 28, 2010)

You can see damage like this every day at the local '£5 outside £10 inside' washes by the local supermarkets. Most people are happy with this type of wash which is evident by how busy these places are; but we expect more which is our choice. 

It's a shame you didn't have a 'do not wash' sign in the car as this would have made your argument easier, however, the fact remains that the car is now in worse condition than it was when it arrived due to the lack of care from the dealership. This would also be the argument if they scratched the paint, ripped a seat or scuffed a wheel. I doubt you'll have much luck claiming the £600 you mentioned. I think you may be able to get this sorted for around £250 as the Honda paint is soft it will be a pretty quick job to correct (but I'm sure there are pros reading this that will confirm). You should try and get something out of the dealers for the reasons mentioned above and they'll probably offer for their body shop to 'mop it' which will just make more of a mess and leave circular marks on it. But personally I'd be more optimistic about getting anything out of them if I went in with a lower figure, or doing it yourself for £150 which is much more rewarding in my opinion. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## 1mb (Feb 19, 2017)

It won't cost you anything to lodge a complaint, see what happens. Worst case they laugh and therefore they lose you as a customer. Best case they offer you a sum of £££ to get it corrected and retain your loyalty.

Sadly however the latter are only a rarity and the name 'stealers' are commonly referred to for a reason.

If the best outcome is not achieved, don't let it stress you or your partner out - I understand it's your pride n joy however put things in perspective and take it on the chin.

I too am OCD so know where your coming from and unless I do it, I have no faith 

Hope you get it sorted :buffer:


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Hasan1 said:


> Can I ask what products you use on the car. Maybe there filler heavy hand the truck wash has just washed out all the fillers. After 6 years of carefully washing it you would still expect to have some minor marks via wash any techniques.
> Has the car ever been machine polished


Recently it gets Adams H20 guard and gloss every 3 months or so. 
After a wash, recently been using AG smooth velvet diluted, as a drying aid.

We know our paintwork very well unfortunately. 
I've seen it stripped back. Yes. There are some very very fine maring marks from washing, can't avoid that. Those are there and the angle I used for the pics masks them as they are so fine, and only shows the extreme marks it's just got on top of them.

The bonnet for example is full of scratches going left to right. This is never the direction we use to wash.

None of this can be proved of course. Only we know our wash technique, so being realistic I know where I stand here.


----------



## willywonker (Oct 27, 2016)

Chris Dyson said:


> I don't agree that you have to put this down to experience. If you have not done so already I would contact the dealer, show them the damage and complain to them (both verbally and in writing). If they are a responsible dealer they will offer to put it right.
> 
> From what you say and the photos posted, they have clearly inflicted visible damage to your car and have a responsibility to put it right. That you did not explicitly tell them* not to wash* the car does not constitute an implied permission *to wash the car* unless they told you before they started the work that they would wash it. Even if they explicitly said that they would wash the car and you agreed, which clearly you did not, they have a duty of care to carry out the wash with a level of expertise that would ensure the car is not damaged during the wash.
> 
> ...


I agree with this. The fact you didn't tell them not to wash it, is irrelevant. If they crashed your car you won't expect them to turn round and say well you didn't specifically tell us not to crash it!!

Honda would not let the car out of the factory like that, there's no reason a dealer should be allowed to degrade the quality of the finish. If the dealer won't sort it, complain to Honda UK.


----------



## Bluebottle (Aug 12, 2016)

*Sympathies.*

I feel your pain, I too have a black car and returned from having car MOTd to find dirty brown water marks over my previously sparkling car. Your case is far worse. I would still be raging but, it is only a car. Do both calm down, complain and complain again to the dealer and Honda UK. I fear the best outcome will be to buy a do not wash sign and find a local recommended detailer on here and let them enjoy correcting the paint for a sensible fee. I wish I was closer to you. Good luck, I'm going to buy one of those signs now.


----------



## Fidge (Jan 23, 2017)

Bluebottle said:


> I'm going to buy one of those signs now.


Where do you get them from?

Never mind, I've found it. Search is a wonderful thing. :driver:


----------



## Summit Detailing (Oct 9, 2006)

DrEskimo said:


> I think you need to keep perspective here. The vast majority of owners would be over the moon at having the car washed for free....
> 
> We are the odd ones, and as such, we need to ensure we outline if we don't want it washed IMO.
> 
> If you do and they still wash it, then you can have a moan.


And thinking about it from a slightly different perspective - 99% of cars on the road have paint defects to varying degrees - thus the defects inflicted on the OP's car by the dealer would not be 'visible' to those 99% as they are essentially adding to what's already there, not to mention the 99% not being aware of paint defects in the first place, this includes dealer staff also.

No harm in having a moan to the service manager but not sure you'll get very far - the worst scenario being they offer to have the car back and "mop" it:doublesho

Chris


----------



## Blackwatch (Jul 29, 2015)

I work at a dealership ( Selling high end enthusiast cars ) and funnily enough we were returning a customers car today. However I have made it standard practice at work now to do the full three bucket wash method wether it is a simple trade valet to get the car up for sale or to return a customers car.

I have also snapped, chopped up and binned all the Chamois leathers and drying blades and I am just ordering some new proper wash mitts


----------



## techman56 (Aug 10, 2013)

That is unacceptable. 

Despite telling the dealer not to wash my car and using the DW do not wash hanger, they still wash the car. 

I hope you get it sorted. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## spursfan (Aug 4, 2009)

Kerr said:


> How do so many people have flawless cars going into dealers and they feel the need to wash them?
> 
> That looks an incredible amount of damage from one wash. How are the panels that weren't washed before your wife stopped them look?
> 
> Are you sure you aren't finding the damage only because you are now making an effort to find it?


I reckon they would have noticed that Kerr, see that every day in the work car park, guys are so pleased they have a clean car but when you look deeper:doublesho
Did the dealer actually say they were going to wash the car?, if not then you may have grounds to pursue them


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

spursfan said:


> I reckon they would have noticed that Kerr, see that every day in the work car park, guys are so pleased they have a clean car but when you look deeper:doublesho
> Did the dealer actually say they were going to wash the car?, if not then you may have grounds to pursue them


They didn't say they would wash it. 
We bought it in, by instruction from Honda, for the airbag recall. 
It had never occurred to me that they had to wash the car so that they can replace an air bag thingy'm'bob.

Although. As always they gave me a piece of paper to sign. I've never read through that bit of green paper, but I'm sure I've signed over the right for them to do what ever they want to the car!. Next time I'll read that paper, just for my interest.


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Lowiepete said:


> I know nothing of the legalities here, but a few questions come to mind. If the
> OP and his missus are OCD over their paint, then presumably the car was very
> clean when signed-in? That being assumed, then quite what provoked the need
> to wash it? The pictures seem to show traces of what looks like salt shadow.
> ...


The car was not perfectly clean. In fact we were due to wash the cars this weekend. 
It had a weeks worth of road film, and the day before it rained which left a layer of sandy deposit on the car. I think it's the 'sand' that they have rubbed into the car without any kind of pre-wash. 
Although it needed a wash, we will only wash the car when we have time to do it properly. We would rather it be a bit dirty, than rush a wash, and create damage.

It seems that this is a result of a lot of bad luck.


----------



## ffrs1444 (Jun 7, 2008)

Ki55 said:


> Ours actually had that on the front and rear windscreen and it was still washed! :lol:


If that's the case then you could more then likely make them pay for a pro detailed to sort and correct it I've never had a issue when leaving on the dash and telling them


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Thank you to everyone for your responses, and in some cases, offers to put this right, it's very much appreciated

The manager should be calling me tomorrow so I'll see how that goes, and then take it from there I guess. My expectations on the call are low, so I expect the worse at this point. 
So, let's see


----------



## Danjc (Dec 1, 2013)

Unfortunate what's happened mate. 
My car is in for its first service on Saturday and wanting to avoid a dealer wash I have gone as far as taking Friday off work to make sure it's gleaming for Saturday, 2 do not wash hangers and I will make sure that do not wash this vehicle is written on the top of the job sheet before I leave it with them. 
It may seem excessive but I know I have done all I can then. I will also look over the car on pickup before leaving.


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Thanks for all the advice. 
I now have a do not wash hanger on the way
Printed 2 signs
I have made a simple keyring to include with my keys that says do not was this car
And I will of course check they write the same on the job card in the future
I'm hoping this will work in the future. And really wish I had done it this time. :/


----------



## Danjc (Dec 1, 2013)

keithjmason said:


> Thanks for all the advice.
> I now have a do not wash hanger on the way
> Printed 2 signs
> I have made a simple keyring to include with my keys that says do not was this car
> ...


I do like the key ring thing I may have to steal that.
Good luck for tomorrow mate I hope the dealer is fair.


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

No Call from the Manger yet. I hope that does not indicate how seriously they are taking it, or the priority they have put on resolving it.


----------



## steelghost (Aug 20, 2015)

Danjc said:


> Unfortunate what's happened mate.
> My car is in for its first service on Saturday and wanting to avoid a dealer wash I have gone as far as taking Friday off work to make sure it's gleaming for Saturday, 2 do not wash hangers and I will make sure that do not wash this vehicle is written on the top of the job sheet before I leave it with them.
> It may seem excessive but I know I have done all I can then. I will also look over the car on pickup before leaving.


It's not excessive - first time our car went to the (otherwise generally good) dealer for servicing, my wife (on my instructions) told them not to wash it. I put a DW "do not wash" hanger on the rear view mirror. They still put the  thing through the onsite car wash (spinning brushes and all).

Second service, I made the guy write it on the job sheet in red marker and told him I would holding the dealership responsible for any further paint damage. They got the point


----------



## daydotz (May 15, 2011)

Hope you sort it my car is In the garage at the moment with strict instructions not to clean it (they partially washed it last time to my horror)


----------



## sgllan89 (Apr 7, 2014)

cleaning the car is a service that just comes with having your car in at the dealers, even if you state that you don't want them to clean it it can still happen.

what you need to understand too is a majority of people don't really care about how the car is cleaned as long as it is cleaned. maybe why they looked at you like you were crazy. 

might be worth just attempting to do it yourself.


----------



## shane_ctr (Dec 17, 2006)

Sorry to see this but i do not think you have a leg to stand on, The car went in dirty so the dealer thought as you have had a recall and been inconvienced by having to return your car to carry out the job that your car will be washed and hoovered as most say 99% of customers would be very pleased.

For me i always book any work on a Monday the reason behind this is i can clean the car on the Sunday and it goes in spotless on the Monday with a sign saying please do not wash. I also mention it to the service desk who make a note on the service sheet. If the dealer ignored all of the above then i have a case.


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Yeah, I think all I can rely on is any goodwill gesture at this point.

I just got a call from the Manager. Explained everything. Also had to explain a lot about how to take care of the paintwork, wash technique, etc.
Unfortunately, with his 30 years in the business, he has never heard anything about a correct wash method, and how washing can inflict swirls to the paint, etc.

So its not looking that hopeful at this point.

Anyway, I just have to see his response at this point.


----------



## bidderman1969 (Oct 20, 2006)

Maybe calmly tell him about this forum, or drop him a link to it in an email, nothing wrong with him learning and understanding how some people really do care about their paintwork and how damage can, and has in this instance, be sone


----------



## Actrosman (Oct 23, 2013)

Ain't it funny how nearly every one at a dealers has 30 years in the business, even those that have clearly not reached the age of 30...must all read the same script! As for the Do Not Wash keyring, that's a fab idea. I spent best part of 3 days doing the wife's ZetecS, cleansed the paint, glazed, sealed and everything else in between prior to it going in for service....it looked better than brand new. Had the 'while u wait' service (Ford main dealer), 2hrs later they were just starting to pressure wash it down but fortunately hadn't put any of their rags near it, just wetted it....I didn't have the time to spout off, she beat me to it and politely asked the guy if he could see the big, dangling double sided DW Do Not Wash hanger (I cut the hook of 1 and stuck the 'instruction' bitto the back of the other, that way you can read it from inside & outside of the car)....he replied 'it's all part of the service'. She then asked him if he could make it any cleaner than it was and he obviously said 'no, but I'm just here to clean 'em when they bring 'em out'.


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Next Friday, the stars have aligned and the dealer will have the paint specialist and the Valeter available, so we will take the car in them for them to assess.

Keep seeing the car in the sun from time to time, and its horrendous.
I just hope they can see what we can see, and don't consider it as 'normal'


----------



## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

The garage has a duty to keep you car from harm whilst in their care. If the car was not scratched before hand and they have inflicted the damage, then they are required to put it right or pay for it to be put right.

The only difficulty you may have is proving that the scratches were not present before hand and that the scratches were inflicted by the garage. The paint specialist may be able to confirm this though.

Not asking them not to clean the car is irrelevant. The garage should be able to wash a car without inflicting damage. The fact that you take pride in your car and care of your paint does not mean that they can get away with inflicting damage.


----------



## keithjmason (Oct 22, 2012)

Took the car there today. Unfortunately the lighting was not good enough to really show up what we captured in the picture.
This just left everyone scratching their heads saying the could not see anything.
While we can still see it, its a tough sell for these guys to see anything.

If there is a sunny day, I could take it there again, but I don't think we'll get very far at this point.


----------



## graham1970 (Oct 7, 2012)

And no tech guys had an inspection light??

Sent from my D5803 using Tapatalk


----------



## graham1970 (Oct 7, 2012)

Dropped my jag off at dealership yesterday. Caught sight of a guy out back washing 3 cars, one bucket...one sponge one leather between the lot!
Hung my DW Don't wash sign from my rear view mirror and politely asked service desk to emphasise don't not wash on the job sheet....she wrote it out in large capitals and ran a pink highlighter over it lol

Sent from my D5803 using Tapatalk


----------



## petemattw (Nov 3, 2008)

Taking a different view. Did the dealer tell you they were going to wash it? Surely you sing off the job permission sheet before work commences? If you did and it did not specifically state they were going to wash it, I would say it's reasonable to expect they wouldn't wash it. Therefore they've done this without permission and are liable for it being rectified. 
I took my car to BMW for an MOT, told them not to wash it several times, made sure it was on the job sheet etc not to do it, they did wash it. They are now doing my next service (£400) for free


----------



## bidderman1969 (Oct 20, 2006)

graham1970 said:


> Dropped my jag off at dealership yesterday. Caught sight of a guy out back washing 3 cars, one bucket...one sponge one leather between the lot!
> Hung my DW Don't wash sign from my rear view mirror and politely asked service desk to emphasise don't not wash on the job sheet....she wrote it out in large capitals and ran a pink highlighter over it lol
> 
> Sent from my D5803 using Tapatalk


Did they or didn't they?


----------



## graham1970 (Oct 7, 2012)

No,they didn't.
Respect to Bill for sending me a do not wash hanger out so quick👍

Sent from my D5803 using Tapatalk


----------



## c87reed (Dec 9, 2015)

I try and take a couple of photos before mine goes in, mainly from a dents/dings point of view. Years ago, my old Fiesta ZS had a chunk taken out of the front splitter whilst in for a warranty repair. I had known it wasn't like that before as I'd just cleaned it - they did repair it in the end.


----------



## ilovepooma (Nov 3, 2009)

Interesting thread.

My wife took her to Jaguar XE to Jaguar York, being a company car it's doing a lot of miles but the paint is in good condition. It's been washed by the garage several times with no real cause for concern afterwards. 

The last time however it came back looking horrendous, as bad as I've seen a 9 month old car looking, I'm really not sure what they used to clean it. 

I was all set to complain but I'm guessing I would get nowhere and after all it's not even my company car, I'll just have to get the DA out and hope I can do a good job on it.


----------



## Richf (Apr 26, 2008)

My Octy VRS is in today , I have the DW sheet in the car and made them write "DO NOT WASH" on the paperwork and both sides of the key tag but i'm still worried !


----------

