HELP! Got my wing painted on my 350Z and it's terrible (Pictures)

P

PJay

New member
Oh this sux. I'm going to post pictures too, but you can't see the imperfections as well.

So I got a of quotes on my Nismo replica wing to get painted around the valley. The prices ranged from $200 to $500 installed. The place I finally decided on was a collision center known for doing quality work.

$332.00 painted and installed

Keep in mind all fiberglass has imperfections and I think that an experienced painter knows this. I've had a fiberglass hood and tail on my last car, and I know the prep process is improtant.

Also keep in mind I've had $9K worth of uninsured work done at this same collision center too when I wrecked my 98 Cobra at the Drag Race track. The work was flawless.

Well they finished yesterday and put the wing on my car. When I picked up the car they had it backed in to a parking spot and in the shade.

When I got home and took a look, I noticed that it looked like no prep work had been performed. It was definitely unsmooth, very noticeble in the day time. It looked as if Maaco or some cheap shop had painted this thing.

So this morning I go back to their shop and show them the bad work that they did. He told me that when my dad showed up with the wing, the only prep work that was offered in the $332.00 quote was to remove dirt. He said that he told my dad that there was more prep work that needed to be done on the car but my dad had said that I just want it painted and put on. I called my dad and asked him if this was true, and he said absolutely not.

So this guy tells me that he'll repaint it and put it back on for free. But he has to charge me to prep it. Guess how much. $300. I replied, so I have to pay another $300 for something you guys should have done in the first place? I then said I want the owner to take a look, and he said that the owner is on vacation and won't be back until Monday. I told him I'd be back.

Please give me some advice if I'm out of line here. I chose a quality place that I thought would do a good job. I spent $200 for a Nismo replica fiberglass wing, but as most of you know, fiberglass is not always smooth from the mold. Also, I was not an a-hole to the guy either, except for letting him know that I wasn't going to pay another $300 for something he should have done in the first place.

The pictures don't look too bad, but in person you can really see some "imperfections".
 
If' this is a quality place and they did not prep the glass then its not a quality place. The price quote should have included everything. I'd wait for the owner to return from vaction and take it up with him. Remind him that you have had quality work done at his shop before that's why you are surpised about this.

OH and nice car!
 
If you cant straighten it out with the owner, i suggest contacting BBB. They dont always get the company to change their minds but some companies hate to have bad records with them and will do whatever you want just so the case is settled.

Don't insurance companies also use BBB ratings when determining if a body shop should be "recommended" to customers that file claims? If so, I think this would make it even more important for the body shop to fix your problem. Just a thought.
 
That really sucks. I went through this exact same thing when I had my rear bumper repaired after a hit and run in the fall. I told the shop that it was an insurance thing and money was no object. If it was going to take buying a brand new bumper from Acura and having them paint it so it is perfect, then that is what I wanted them to do. I would accept nothing less than a bumper that looked as good as it did on the day I bought the car. I think it was apparant from looking at the rest of my car that I was a little anal about car care and so they said they would do it. I ended up taking it back to them to be repainted twice after I got it back the first time because it wasn't right.

I think I had an advantage in my situation. They knew that they couldn't deny that I was super anal about car car and I wouldn't accept less than a perfect job. I made that very clear to them. They told me that they could deliver a perfect job. Each time I pointed out massive orange peel and hairs under the clear coat and damage that hadn't been repaired from the accident and whatever else I found, they had no choice but to do it over again.

I think if you come at them from the same angle telling the owner to look at your car for a second and explain why you would ever want someone to put a poorly prepped fiberglass spoiler on your car. What is it about your car that says "Hey everybody! I don't care if my spoiler looks nasty!" Obviously you have an eye for detail and wouldn't have missed one like telling them to prep the spoiler first. $300 dollars is a ton of money for prep work on a spoiler too. I can't believe they would charge you that much. That is just insane. I'll bet that is more than any other body shop in the area. They are trying to recoup some of their costs for having to strip all the paint they just put on it back off again and also for the extra products they are going to have to use. This is all their fault.

Tell the owner that you want the spoiler removed, the holes plugged, and a properly prepped and painted spoiler back on the car within a reasonable amount of time. If he can't agree to that then tell him that you'll see him in court where the bad press from this issue will lose him more business than he really wants to think about. You have a case here. Based on the quotes that you got from other shops that included proper prep work it was reasonable for you to assume that the price they quoted you included the prep work as well. They really don't have much to stand on here.
 
if your not happy with someones service and you paid good money let them know your mad. Most businesses do have customer service and will be more than happy to serve you, they better when you pay good money for something
 
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