Double failure on a 2014 black Nissan Maxima... ugh

butacska

butacska

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Hello everybody!

I was wondering if you could give me some input/help regarding my "new" car. Bought a 2014 Nissan Maxima, black, used. It was a company's fleet car so you can imagine that it was probably sent thru the car-wash about one million times. When took it home, next day in full sunshine I saw the very (more than expected) sad condition of the paint, swirls along with scratches, even chips. I had a 7 day "satisfaction guarantee" so I addressed my concern to the dealer that at the price I paid it should be in excellent condition. I was actually hoping for a price reduction but instead the dealer said they would polish the paint. I accepted it, knowing I could not afford it. They took the car to a detailing company for polishing (and tinting). During the day I got a text from the dealer saying that the detailing company said the car needs a couple of more layers of buffing to get the swirls out. That just did not sound good. When I got the car back at 10 pm, with the coach light hitting the hood, I almost got a heart attack. I was not even mad that the car was full of splashes from getting the tinting done. Or that they did not even touch the wheels (I needed the paint done, not the wheels). Or that they did not even wipe the MUD off the door jambs (they did not even open the door probably). It was full of buffer marks! So of course I said right away that this is not cool, needs to be done. After some time, dealer said they would have someone else to do it. I told them I do not need a wax/detail, I need paint correction. They said yeah, okay, no problem, they get it right. Dropped the car off yesterday morning, went to pick up today, it looked almost the same. They did put some wax on it, I can tell but the holograms/marring are still there. I can see some areas on trunk, where it looks pretty good, but the rest of the car is the same. The top of the car still looks like someone cleaned it with steel wool. Literally :eek: Horrible. I showed to the manager, he said the car looks awesome, what I see it dust because the car was sitting outside in the morning, then he licks his thumb and rubs the top :bash: He did not even see what I was talking about... I told him I traded in an 18 year old black car and it looked better than this one year old. He said he spent a butt-load of money on this car and he is done, nothing more he can do. So I guess I am stuck with the damaged clear coat because I do not have the cash to pay 1-2K for that right now :(

Anyway, sorry for the much detailed story, what I am trying to ask is... Do you think I can (slowly), by myself take care of this and get some of this ugly stuff out? I have zero experience and do not expect to hear the recipe here, buy the product and do it in an afternoon. I was just wondering if there is a way to fix this by hand over time. I was thinking to get some product you guys would recommend and work tiny areas at a time, (wash, clay, compound, wax one panel, or even half a panel at a time) and see how it comes out, etc. I do not dare to go aggressive on this, as I have no idea how thin the clear coat is. I believe the car has extra soft paint, so I might be able to make a difference?
I don't even know what to think. I am probably stuck with the marring and holograms. I have been reading the forum since I bought the car and noticed the paint problem (sept 1), and I am amazed of the knowledge you have and admire your work. I do not expect to learn how to do a pro's job. Just to find out if I can make it better myself, or should I let it go and don't even try...?!
Thank you for your time reading this. Pictures attached.
Maria
 
Wow you weren't kidding! Those buffer trails and holograms are bad. Not trying to be pessimistic but I am thinking this will need some DA love and not be possible by hand.
 
Did you buy it from dealer,if so call company head quarters and complain.Bring it to a reputable detailer in your area lay out the money and have the dealer pay for it,but get that in writing.
 
Going to need to machine that stuff out I'm afraid. It will, however, come out great when done!
 
Thank you for your honesty, guys! I really appreciate it. Not sure what to do at this point.
 
To be honest, if you could correct it yourself would be the way to go. Obviously, a rotary buffer was used and that person had no experience. Taking it again to the dealership will IMO cause more problems. You have taken your ride there 2 times with little success.

The problem can be corrected with a polish with a DA done by you! What a better way to learn correction then now. At least that is what I would do.

I would be afraid they would still not fix the problem....that's why I say do it yourself. The only other way to get it corrected is by a reputable detailer in your area. AGO may have some sources for you.
 
Kamakaz1961 said:
To be honest, if you could correct it yourself would be the way to go. Obviously, a rotary buffer was used and that person had no experience. Taking it again to the dealership will IMO cause more problems. You have taken your ride there 2 times with little success.

The problem can be corrected with a polish with a DA done by you! What a better way to learn correction then now. At least that is what I would do.

I would be afraid they would still not fix the problem....that's why I say do it yourself. The only other way to get it corrected is by a reputable detailer in your area. AGO may have some sources for you.
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I think this is good advice. The main question I have is something you raised in your original post, how thin is the clear coat at the moment. If this has been under multiple rotary polishers I would want to know what is left entire diving into too much more correction. The DA's like GG6" or Flex/Rupes take off very little clear coat but still I think it would be prudent to get that assessed. A reputable detailer will have a tool for that.

Keep us updated.
 
GSKR said:
Did you buy it from dealer,if so call company head quarters and complain.Bring it to a reputable detailer in your area lay out the money and have the dealer pay for it,but get that in writing.
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I probably will contact head quarters, but I am going to have to put the story in writing, send it in certified mail and wait for respond.
I feel bad for them also because they did probably spent a lot of money to have it polished twice (!) but I don't think I should be accepting this situation just because they can not find a person who knows what they are doing. :confused::cry:
 
butacska said:
I probably will contact head quarters, but I am going to have to put the story in writing, send it in certified mail and wait for respond.

I feel bad for them also because they did probably spent a lot of money to have it polished twice (!) but I don't think I should be accepting this situation just because they can not find a person who knows what they are doing. :confused::cry:
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Agreed - they made the choice to use the specific detailer and now you are simply asking to have a different detailer (with multiple bids maybe) to remedy the situation.
 
butacska said:
I probably will contact head quarters, but I am going to have to put the story in writing, send it in certified mail and wait for respond.
I feel bad for them also because they did probably spent a lot of money to have it polished twice (!) but I don't think I should be accepting this situation just because they can not find a person who knows what they are doing. :confused::cry:
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I wouldn't feel bad for them, I seriously doubt they paid much for that work. They may have never even taken it off of their lot.

I'm just curious why you didn't inspect the vehicle more thoroughly in the daylight prior to purchasing it? That's going to be an issue, you took delivery of the vehicle and signed the paper work.

As above posters mentioned, your best bet will probably be to find a forum member to do the work for you. Hope it all works out for you.
 
Kamakaz1961 said:
To be honest, if you could correct it yourself would be the way to go. Obviously, a rotary buffer was used and that person had no experience. Taking it again to the dealership will IMO cause more problems. You have taken your ride there 2 times with little success.

The problem can be corrected with a polish with a DA done by you! What a better way to learn correction then now. At least that is what I would do.

I would be afraid they would still not fix the problem....that's why I say do it yourself. The only other way to get it corrected is by a reputable detailer in your area. AGO may have some sources for you.
Click to expand...

Thank you for your encouraging words! As I said, I would not mind taking baby steps and learn along the way. I consider myself pretty handy and I learn quick. I definitely will think about it. I have to look into prices of tools and products and see. I don't mind spending a little bit of money but definitely don't have thousands of $ for the job to be done by a pro at this moment. I wish I did! I know there are great, knowledgeable ppl out there!
 
Additionally you mention something about a 7 day satisfaction guarantee. If you have that in writing, I would explain to the 'headquarters' that this time was used waiting for this horrible detailing work to be completed and so you would them to 'make it right.'
 
custmsprty said:
I wouldn't feel bad for them, I seriously doubt they paid much for that work. They may have never even taken of their lot.

I'm just curious why you didn't inspect the vehicle more thoroughly in the daylight prior to purchasing it? That's going to be an issue, you took delivery of the vehicle and signed the paper work.

As above posters mentioned, your best bet will probably be to find a forum member to do the work for you. Hope it all works out for you.
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I took the car with the peace of mind that if I have any issue, I have a week to return the car. The moment I noticed the paint I contacted them (next morning - all in e-mail, no phone calls) that the car paint is in bad condition. Their response - in email - "we will take care of it for you and buff the swirls out"... I thought that was it, they would take care of it... They didn't. Silly me.
 
butacska said:
I took the car with the peace of mind that if I have any issue, I have a week to return the car. The moment I noticed the paint I contacted them (next morning - all in e-mail, no phone calls) that the car paint is in bad condition. Their response - in email - "we will take care of it for you and buff the swirls out"... I thought that was it, they would take care of it... They didn't. Silly me.
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Where do you live?
 
irvsmith said:
Additionally you mention something about a 7 day satisfaction guarantee. If you have that in writing, I would explain to the 'headquarters' that this time was used waiting for this horrible detailing work to be completed and so you would them to 'make it right.'
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Definitely! As I said, I have all the e-mails about the whole issue.
 
Their are a number of highly skilled forum members in the Vegas area. Start a thread calling on Vegas Members. I doubt it would cost you thousands of dollars, this is a great community.
 
custmsprty said:
Their are a number of highly skilled forum members in the Vegas area. Start a thread calling on Vegas Members. I doubt it would cost you thousands of dollars, this is a great community.
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Could you please direct me to the correct section of the forum?
 
I will go ahead and say you need to buy a Harbor Freight DA and M105 and M205. Buy the appropriate backing plates and (plenty) pads. Honestly if you search hard enough you should be able to get everything you need for under $300. You could even PM me and I'd help in trying to find them for you.

If you want to do it by hand, then you could spend the time, but it will take like 3 weeks (thats the total work summed up).

I can do a door measured in minutes by DA or I can do half a door in maybe 3 hours to the same level of work.
 
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