Problems with dealership after buying a new Camaro

[Rhyder]

Originally Posted by Laserjen

Ok, I just picked up my car from the dealer. Here's the bad news...they did a terrible job with the touch up (I could still see the bare metal on half the scratch on the driver's door, apparently they took some of the touchup paint off when they were finishing it).

The good news is they admitted right off the bat they did a s@#t job and don't have anyone who can do it better, so they are going to get someone else who can to look at it. They will repaint it (and redo the clearcoat for the side of the car) if I want so that is still an option. I prefer to wait and see if they can do a better job with the touchup first (at this point I'm confident I could have done a better job). I know most of you think I should get the car repainted, but honestly I worry about how good of a job they will do and there's no going back to the factory paint job after that.

As long as they continue to work with me until I am happy I will be patient.

Also, they told me to pick out some GM accessories for my trouble. Any suggestions?

Maybe im misunderstanding you but you keep saying touch up...touch up is not exceptable....touch up paint is not a repair, it is a bandaid....touch up paint should not be within 15 feet of your car during any step of this process............even with the clear coat, as thin as the paint is, the touch up pieces will flake off sooner than later down the road.....the words touch up should never even come out of their mouthes.....repaint the section...repaint the section...repaint the section.....that should be coming out of your mouth....

It is not an issue that would upset the free oil changes and rotations, thats a deal made when buying the car....just keep a normal tone but be forceful that they do the right thing....them getting a third party is a good step, but make them do the whole walk......they have to satisfy you, not you them.....

[Amclymon]

I'm in the same boat. But my car was certified used 7k miles from the Chevrolet dealer.

Bought it last week Saturday. But I insisted to leave the car until fixed but was assured it would be taken care of first thing monday. Went in monday and left empty handed. My paint has been ordered supposedly but hasn't come in yet. It was ordered Monday. I've had the car for a week. The salesman has been in touch with me but I have been the one to initiate contact.

You all have me worried about the whole touch up blemishes. Because I have at least 7 good size metal Knicks plus and array of scratches on my car.

I'm not worried but I am at the same time. Ughhhhhh

[Laserjen]

Originally Posted by Rhyder

Maybe im misunderstanding you but you keep saying touch up...touch up is not exceptable....touch up paint is not a repair, it is a bandaid....touch up paint should not be within 15 feet of your car during any step of this process............

They are doing a touch up first. I'm still hesitant to do the repaint because it would be so extensive due to the location of the marks. I know that the paint on my car will not stay perfect for long even if it started out that way (I had a million rock chips that I touched up myself on my previous Camaro). This is my daily driver, will be driven in the winter, and I have no garage so it will be exposed to the elements 24/7. I guess what I'm saying is I'm not that hung up on the car being 100% perfect.

I want to see what it looks like with a decent touch up. If it still looks bad I will ask them to repaint (they already said they would if I wasn't happy with the touch up).

[lcrngrs]

Originally Posted by Laserjen

I'm not a guy, and I do mind answering! After talking to them last night, I am more confident things will work out ok. Yes, they made some mistakes this week, but the main thing is they are committed to making sure I am happy.

Emailing the salesman was not a waste of time. It was his day off and I emailed him at home. He responded within the hour and forwarded my message to his GM, which resulted in the offer for some free accessories to compensate me for my wasted time.

I have not resorted to threats (although I did casually mention that I received the survey in the mail yesterday) because they are still trying very hard to fix things right. When I wasn't happy with their touchup they offered to get an expert to fix them, and if I'm still not happy they will repaint. What else would you expect them to do?



PM sent. This dealership offers free oil changes and tire rotations for life with a new vehicle purchase, so I would like to settle things on good terms. They may have screwed up the first touchup attempt, but they washed and waxed the car last night and it looked pretty darn good.

Excuse me for asking, but why get so defensive? If you are happy with your situation than good for you. All I know is you came here and were asking for advice on what you should do. My question about age was to find out if you were being taken advantage of, but you knew what I meant. Since you already bought the car with the scratches on it, and apparently feel they wouldn't help you if you resorted to showing displeasure with them, I can see how a more relaxed, calm approach would be beneficial for you. So, I'm happy that you are happy.

[2xSSRS]

Originally Posted by Laserjen

Thanks. You're just up the road from me, so I imagine you've probably dealt with some of the same dealerships in the area I have!

You paid a New Car Price, you should have a new car look. Just that simple.

[Laserjen]

Originally Posted by lcrngrs

Excuse me for asking, but why get so defensive? If you are happy with your situation than good for you. All I know is you came here and were asking for advice on what you should do. My question about age was to find out if you were being taken advantage of, but you knew what I meant. Since you already bought the car with the scratches on it, and apparently feel they wouldn't help you if you resorted to showing displeasure with them, I can see how a more relaxed, calm approach would be beneficial for you. So, I'm happy that you are happy.

I don't mind you asking my age...I was trying to be funny (you know, never ask a woman her age).

I did ask for advice, and I do appreciate all the responses. I came home very angry the Wed night after expecting to pick up my car and being told it wasn't ready and that they couldn't fix it completely. I also wanted input on whether repainting and clear-coating half the car would ultimately be a bad decision for what is in reality two very small scratches.

Since then I've calmed down and expressed my displeasure to them in a rational, reasonable manner. The dealership has made it clear they want me to be happy and will do whatever I want. For now, I have decided to see what the touch up looks like when done by someone who knows what they are doing.

[Laserjen]

Originally Posted by 2xSSRS

You paid a New Car Price, you should have a new car look. Just that simple.

I agree, but to be fair I did buy the car knowing it had 2 scratches on it. And I've been given the option now, touch up by a professional or repaint by the dealer body shop. I've changed my mind several times at this point over which would ultimately be better. Although most here agree the repaint is the better option, I've spoken to people who've had bad experiences with repainted vehicles (poor quality, fading, etc).

[lcrngrs]

Originally Posted by Laserjen

I don't mind you asking my age...I was trying to be funny (you know, never ask a woman her age).

I did ask for advice, and I do appreciate all the responses. I came home very angry the Wed night after expecting to pick up my car and being told it wasn't ready and that they couldn't fix it completely. I also wanted input on whether repainting and clear-coating half the car would ultimately be a bad decision for what is in reality two very small scratches.

Since then I've calmed down and expressed my displeasure to them in a rational, reasonable manner. The dealership has made it clear they want me to be happy and will do whatever I want. For now, I have decided to see what the touch up looks like when done by someone who knows what they are doing.

Age aside, and I know you have been getting varying opinions, get the car painted properly. Touch up as I know it, looks terrible. Rock chips and scratches down the road will happen but you paid a nice price I'm sure, for a beautiful car. My advice is to not accept anything less than a factory finish. Again, that is my advice, but you may feel you can live with it. An example of how I am about my car, I scraped my front rim the other day. I just spent 75.00 getting it fixed. Rim Rash drives me nuts. Ahhhh, the life of a camaro owner.

[CamaroJim56]

One of those free accessories needs to be a Heritage Grille.....

Best of luck to you.

[Laserjen]

Originally Posted by lcrngrs

Age aside, and I know you have been getting varying opinions, get the car painted properly. Touch up as I know it, looks terrible. Rock chips and scratches down the road will happen but you paid a nice price I'm sure, for a beautiful car. My advice is to not accept anything less than a factory finish. Again, that is my advice, but you may feel you can live with it. An example of how I am about my car, I scraped my front rim the other day. I just spent 75.00 getting it fixed. Rim Rash drives me nuts. Ahhhh, the life of a camaro owner.

I hear you. I was fanatical about my 2010 Camaro when I first got it, carefully checking for signs of damage every day. Then I got a ding (I have no idea how) even though I parked at the far end of every parking lot only taking up one spot but trying to park strategically to minimize the chance of cars parking next to me. Then I started getting rock chips, sometimes several a week. I misjudged a tight turn in the pouring rain and got curb rash. Then I got rear-ended by someone talking on a cell phone. Now I have a somewhat more relaxed attitude and believe me it's less stressful!

[Cam2011]

Originally Posted by Laserjen

To be honest I was just anxious to get the keys and wasn't that worried about the scratches because I assumed a simple touchup would be all they needed. If the damage was more significant (a large dent or scrape) I wouldn't have bought the car.

I hear you, and it is totally understandable, but you have to fight that urge. Anyhow I really hope things work out to your satisfaction, and they will.

[Laserjen]

Originally Posted by Cam2011

I hear you, and it is totally understandable, but you have to fight that urge. Anyhow I really hope things work out to your satisfaction, and they will.

Thanks, lesson learned anyway!

[jesserayjames]

Originally Posted by Laserjen

With all the drama this week I almost forgot why I got this car...but driving off in it last night after just 3 days with a boring loaner and all the excitement came right back to me. Yes, I want the nicks fixed right as they should be...but we all know how these cars attract rock chips so it's not like the paint would have been perfect for long anyway! A few surface imperfections don't make it any less of a blast to drive.

You know, I have read all this thread, IMHO you are too timid to get it fixed properly, I would been all over them, and made them repair it properly even if they had to send it to a proper body shop, else they would be talking to my attorney.............. JRJ

[Laserjen]

Originally Posted by jesserayjames

You know, I have read all this thread, IMHO you are too timid to get it fixed properly, I would been all over them, and made them repair it properly even if they had to send it to a proper body shop, else they would be talking to my attorney.............. JRJ

How am I being timid? They've already said they will repaint. Lawyers are not necessary. I'm just wavering over whether repainting is the best option. If you'd accused me of being too stupid to know that repainting and clear-coating half the car is the obvious choice with no possible drawbacks now or in the future, I'd be harder pressed to argue.