Let the Dealer Fix ???

Granite14

Granite14

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1 - Would appreciate any insight into whether to allow dealer to fix paint discoloration under warranty - and/or - replace the accessories on the car.

Here's the story:

I bought my Challenger in KC on an overcast day - less than a month ago. There were minor scratches the dealership fixed there in KC before shipping to TN.

After washing the car when I got it home, and putting it under more light, I noticed spots of discoloration on the hood scoop and the spoiler - part of the Mopar appearance package.

There are also some scratches from what appear to be wet-sanding...based on what others have said.

None of this appears on the body of the car or the hood - that we have found at least - ONLY the scoop and spoiler.

I called Dodge, they said it is under warranty and take it to local dealership in TN. The local dealer took pictures of the discoloration to send to Dodge.

They claim that they should be able to buff these out. AND if they do not go away, they will submit the claim to Dodge as it is still under warranty - replacing the hood scoop and the spoiler.

I understand that going to the dealer may cause more issues vs. going to a detailer or body shop. Yet, if these need replacing because it cannot be fixed...I don't want to try and fix on my own, then go to Dodge to get them replaced and Dodge says they won't because I tried myself first.

Would be interested to hear thoughts on my logic and thought process regarding the dealership fix approach and warranty replacement.
 
Let the dealership fix the issue. It's their circus and their monkey-let them be the ring master. In worst case scenario you can take it to a detailer or detail it after they complete the work.
 
Let the dealer fix it, that way they can be responsible if there is a defect in the paint. if someone else fixes it and something goes south the dealer is no longer responsible for fixing it.
 
hmmmm....

this is a touchy subject for me. i've had two cars damaged upon receipt at delivery and one that had some sort of staining on the paint (all over) that was from a system that the Toyota dealership uses with acid to decontaminated cars during their new vehicle prep.

i knew the damage with the two cars was terminal, like...not something that could be handled with anything but a repaint or worse, so i fought like a dog and ended up in a situation much better than a repaint or worse...if you know what i mean.

the truck...i didn't even bother talking to the dealer. i did a test spot....and while it didn't come out easily, it did come out, so i just embarked on it myself and removed everything. i shouldn't have had to do that, but i weighed it out.

so, it's hard to say for your case. my inkling is that you should follow the advice above and let them try but my fear is that if they take some sand paper and a wheel to the car and get it out but in the process go nuts and compromise the life of the clear lol.

it's a hard choice but at least if you use them from the start you will have a nice paper trail and hopefully some recourse if things don't go as planned.
 
Personally, I'm very leery about letting ANYONE work on my stuff. And as far as paint defects go in a new car I'd be extra leery.

New car paint is not perfect (as in show car quality). But new car paint is usually pretty good and one thing it has going for it over ANY repaint is durability. The factory baking process can't be duplicated in the aftermarket world and therefore neither can the durability.

Have you ever seen a five or six year-old car with one or more panels exhibiting clear coat failure or fading more than the rest of the car? That's simply because at some point those panels were repaired/repainted. The factory durability is not something I would want to give up and if your parts are repainted that's exactly what you'll be doing.

Also whenever something is repainted you have color and texture matching to deal with. If the color and/or finish texture don't match exactly, your repair may look worse than the original defect.

You need to consider your options. Can you live with and accept the defects as they are? Sometimes that is the right choice. If you can't live with the defects, you will sacrifice some of the factory durability regardless of the quality of the repair.

Tough call for you. Without seeing your defect first hand it's really hard to give a recommendation. Whatever you decide to do, please carefully consider the risks and compromises I've identified.
 
2black1s said:
Personally, I'm very leery about letting ANYONE work on my stuff. And as far as paint defects go in a new car I'd be extra leery.

New car paint is not perfect (as in show car quality). But new car paint is usually pretty good and one thing it has going for it over ANY repaint is durability. The factory baking process can't be duplicated in the aftermarket world and therefore neither can the durability.

Have you ever seen a five or six year-old car with one or more panels exhibiting clear coat failure or fading more than the rest of the car? That's simply because at some point those panels were repaired/repainted. The factory durability is not something I would want to give up and if your parts are repainted that's exactly what you'll be doing.

Also whenever something is repainted you have color and texture matching to deal with. If the color and/or finish texture don't match exactly, your repair may look worse than the original defect.

You need to consider your options. Can you live with and accept the defects as they are? Sometimes that is the right choice. If you can't live with the defects, you will sacrifice some of the factory durability regardless of the quality of the repair.

Tough call for you. Without seeing your defect first hand it's really hard to give a recommendation. Whatever you decide to do, please carefully consider the risks and compromises I've identified.
Click to expand...

builthatch said:
hmmmm....

this is a touchy subject for me. i've had two cars damaged upon receipt at delivery and one that had some sort of staining on the paint (all over) that was from a system that the Toyota dealership uses with acid to decontaminated cars during their new vehicle prep.

i knew the damage with the two cars was terminal, like...not something that could be handled with anything but a repaint or worse, so i fought like a dog and ended up in a situation much better than a repaint or worse...if you know what i mean.

the truck...i didn't even bother talking to the dealer. i did a test spot....and while it didn't come out easily, it did come out, so i just embarked on it myself and removed everything. i shouldn't have had to do that, but i weighed it out.

so, it's hard to say for your case. my inkling is that you should follow the advice above and let them try but my fear is that if they take some sand paper and a wheel to the car and get it out but in the process go nuts and compromise the life of the clear lol.

it's a hard choice but at least if you use them from the start you will have a nice paper trail and hopefully some recourse if things don't go as planned.
Click to expand...



You all bring up great points. Pros and cons on both sides. Thank you for the input. As further info, I will say:

1) the spot with the brown/red tint photo is about as big as a fist on the scoop

2) others are smaller but there are at least 8 across the scoop and at least 5 on the spoiler...

Can I live with a cheetah design on my hood scoop...? Tough question.


I agree about the dealership being a gamble. I agree about repainting - I don't want to repaint.

If these can't be fixed by buffing and not damaging the clear coat, my next step would be to order replacements. Though they may not match, at least they would be factory painted vs. repainted.
 
2black1s said:
Personally, I'm very leery about letting ANYONE work on my stuff. And as far as paint defects go in a new car I'd be extra leery.

New car paint is not perfect (as in show car quality). But new car paint is usually pretty good and one thing it has going for it over ANY repaint is durability. The factory baking process can't be duplicated in the aftermarket world and therefore neither can the durability.

Have you ever seen a five or six year-old car with one or more panels exhibiting clear coat failure or fading more than the rest of the car? That's simply because at some point those panels were repaired/repainted. The factory durability is not something I would want to give up and if your parts are repainted that's exactly what you'll be doing.

Also whenever something is repainted you have color and texture matching to deal with. If the color and/or finish texture don't match exactly, your repair may look worse than the original defect.

You need to consider your options. Can you live with and accept the defects as they are? Sometimes that is the right choice. If you can't live with the defects, you will sacrifice some of the factory durability regardless of the quality of the repair.

Tough call for you. Without seeing your defect first hand it's really hard to give a recommendation. Whatever you decide to do, please carefully consider the risks and compromises I've identified.
Click to expand...

Most clear coat failures I have seen have been on factory paint, not on aftermarket paint.
I would let the dealer handle it. Let them know when you drop it off what your expectations are. Upon return inspect it and if the repairs are not up to your standard, do not accept it. Leave it until there until your expectations are met
 
The other concern is if they do repair it how much clear did they take off?? I assume these parts are not metal so it's a fairly expensive piece of equipment to get measurements before and after. I guess they have to warranty the finish for 5 years...unless of course you put a polisher on the area down the road and go through the clear because there was very little left...
 
DaveT435 said:
The other concern is if they do repair it how much clear did they take off?? I assume these parts are not metal so it's a fairly expensive piece of equipment to get measurements before and after. I guess they have to warranty the finish for 5 years...unless of course you put a polisher on the area down the road and go through the clear because there was very little left...
Click to expand...

Even if they do take some of the clear coat off, is there any type of product that can replace it or replenish, repair the clear coat.?
 
Granite14 said:
Even if they do take some of the clear coat off, is there any type of product that can replace it or replenish, repair the clear coat.?
Click to expand...

Not without respraying it. Being a new car, if it were mine I would be a little concerned about how much they were removing.
 
that's why i was talking about them taking sand paper and a wool wheel to it because their body shop will probably handle it and i can see that happening. not like that's a terrible course of action for a body shop...but on an OE finish it can be since the clear is indeed thin.

can't hurt to ask what their course of action will be and then talk to whomever they say will be handling it, such as the body shop or their "detailer".
 
I'll suggest that:
Just like many other "OEM" body panels/parts...
These parts probably were not painted at the factory.

I'll also suggest to:
Insist that the Dealership...via:
Dodge's(Fiat's) "Goodwill Warranty"...
just go ahead and replace them...gratis.


As you well know:
You touch 'em...You'll own 'em, warts and all!!


Bob
 
Granite14 said:
You all bring up great points. Pros and cons on both sides. Thank you for the input. As further info, I will say:

1) the spot with the brown/red tint photo is about as big as a fist on the scoop

2) others are smaller but there are at least 8 across the scoop and at least 5 on the spoiler...

Can I live with a cheetah design on my hood scoop...? Tough question.


I agree about the dealership being a gamble. I agree about repainting - I don't want to repaint.

If these can't be fixed by buffing and not damaging the clear coat, my next step would be to order replacements. Though they may not match, at least they would be factory painted vs. repainted.
Click to expand...

Most replacement parts come unpainted with only the factory primer. Therefore ordering new parts will most likely do you no good.

I once bought a new black Pontiac Solstice GXP. The deck lid, which is a complex sheet metal design with two nacelles in it, had some creases in the transition from the nacelle to the surrounding area. I told them the only way I would take the car was to swap out deck lids with another new one off another car, not a replacement deck lid through the parts dept. They actually agreed and about two months later when they got another black car in they called me in and we swapped deck lids. And to boot, they let me help with the swap. The donor car got the parts dept. replacement deck and I got the factory one.

eaglefan said:
Most clear coat failures I have seen have been on factory paint, not on aftermarket paint.
I would let the dealer handle it. Let them know when you drop it off what your expectations are. Upon return inspect it and if the repairs are not up to your standard, do not accept it. Leave it until there until your expectations are met
Click to expand...

I'm not saying that factory clear coats never fail, but overall in the grand scheme of things, factory paint is typically more durable.

Granite14 said:
Even if they do take some of the clear coat off, is there any type of product that can replace it or replenish, repair the clear coat.?
Click to expand...

Nope!
 
If it was me - I'd clay it. That's a safe bet. If clay doesn't remove it (it likely won't); IME polishing won't remove it either. Polishing rarely if ever removes discoloration in paint. Therefore, IME - I don't see the best detailer as having a chance of fixing this. Wet sanding is to remove defects - I do not see how it will fix this.

Let the dealer deal with it - but likely they will end up just replacing the parts.
 
It's a tough one. I would get an estimate from a local recommended detailer and weigh the cost versus the risk of the dealer.
 
Let the dealer have a go at taking out the discoloration.

...Then go to a detailer to fix up the dealer's mess...
 
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