being tactful ?

joe.p

joe.p

New member
Most know i finished up my winter prep on the buick..well last week i took my car in for work and theshop owner saved $300.00.. The work was sweet buy i have a secondary proplem..

while i was there i reminded the shop owner to please don't wash the car when he was done.. i told the phone girl again during another conversation..You guessed it the whole car is completely marred in some spots it looks like they scrubbed in stead of gently removing the dirt..

second of all im not sure what shampoo was used to wash my car but it looks like my LSP was srtipped completely..I did try to buff it out with Zaino ZPC and a white E2K pad to no avail..

should i suck it up or can you offer some tactfull advice so i don't seem unappreciative..

1) let it go
2) see if he can work with me so i can apply a second layer of prep before its too cold
 
They may have saved you money on the work, but they screwed up the paint because of their own neglegence. I would present the problem to them politely and ask if they can help you out in any way. Make sure you let them know that you appreciate how they helped you out in cost, but be sure to also let them know that damage to your vehicle with no compensation will not be accepted.
 
Last year I had a paint job redone on my tonneau cover. I had to take it off at the shop. then they sent it in. I waited about six weeks for it to return. this was all done on warranty.

When I arrived at the shop to take it off the owner of the shope filled out the paper work. On that paperwork it stated that the owner did not want the tonneau cover washed. Just installed.

When it arrived they called me. I informed them of my wishes to do nothing but installation of the tonneau cover. No washing. Every time it was mentioned every one was congenial and aquiesced to my wishes.

Arrived with the truck at the store and informed them again that I did not want them to wahs the tonneau cover. Waited an hour for the installation of the tonneau cover. The owner of the detailing parts shop walked out with me to show me myu newly installed tonneau cover. Guess what....they washed the tonneau cover and instilled some horrendous swirls onto the cover.

I stated to him, "I thought that I had asked to not have my tonneau cover washed." He said matter of factly, "We never let anything out of the shop dirty. There is no charge for the wash."

Since he did not have a clue as to what he had actually done I saw no purpose in getting into it with him.

Joe, the reason for the story is the long way of saying that there is not much one can say to some one that has no clue. Without creating bad feelings.
 
cwcad said:
Joe, the reason for the story is the long way of saying that there is not much one can say to some one that has no clue. Without creating bad feelings.
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Its something you bring this up because when i ask they not wash the car the owner looked confused as to why not wash the car.i didn't wanto to lay out my reasons as i know he would not of understood..

It took me tree weeks to complete due to a shoulder injury and its late in the seasnon..I remember the goods and your paint correction whis was very aspiring considering the amount of polishing involved.

audiboy said:
They may have saved you money on the work, but they screwed up the paint because of their own neglegence. I would present the problem to them politely and ask if they can help you out in any way. Make sure you let them know that you appreciate how they helped you out in cost, but be sure to also let them know that damage to your vehicle with no compensation will not be accepted.
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I feel this is an option i can't go back and restore the amount of marring induced reapply the entire process all over..I have to be carful sometimes my feelings rush up and i'll say exactly how a feel..I wanto to try to work something out with the guy..Audiboy the marring is deep its something that won't be removed with a light polish..i tried this myself to no avail..man i'm bummed out..
 
Usually a vehicle needs to be moved into a certain area to be washed. This involves getting behind the wheel of the vehicle.

One of the vendors ought to have a cotton or microfiber steering wheel cover made that has in big letters "DEAR SERVICE PERSONNEL, PLEASE DO NOT WASH THIS VEHICLE!".
 
joe.p said:
Its something you bring this up because when i ask they not wash the car the owner looked confused as to why not wash the car.i didn't wanto to lay out my reasons as i know he would not of understood..

It took me tree weeks to complete due to a shoulder injury and its late in the seasnon..I remember the goods and your paint correction whis was very aspiring considering the amount of polishing involved.

I feel this is an option i can't go back and restore the amount of marring induced reapply the entire process all over..I have to be carful sometimes my feelings rush up and i'll say exactly how a feel..I wanto to try to work something out with the guy..Audiboy the marring is deep its something that won't be removed with a light polish..i tried this myself to no avail..man i'm bummed out..
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If it's not something that you can correct, then I believe you should take it back and get it fixed to your standards. If you feel that bad, pay the $300 that he saved you. If they messed it up, it's their responsibility to fix it. Sometimes nice has to go out the window when it comes to the care of your vehicle. I would try going about it as nicely as possible at first, but if it doesn't work, I'd start being a little more assertive. I will never settle for anyone's mistakes due to negligence. You asked them not to wash the car several times and they failed to follow your directions.
 
audiboy said:
If it's not something that you can correct, then I believe you should take it back and get it fixed to your standards. If you feel that bad, pay the $300 that he saved you. .
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The shops quality of work was beautiful,,my only issue is the deep marring ..i started to polish the fender and hood and gave up..also remove the vaseline they used as dressing on my dash and interior door panels..the dash looks like a mop was use to apply the dressing..this something ican redo myself...I'lll call today and see what happens.

The Fuzz said:
One of the vendors ought to have a cotton or microfiber steering wheel cover made that has in big letters "DEAR SERVICE PERSONNEL, PLEASE DO NOT WASH THIS VEHICLE!".
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I'm sure this is an item that would sell and can be used ..look it all the stories from forum members getting there vehicles back from the dealerships and shops..I'll purchase the 1st one off the line..
 
I've learned that when people are negligent like that you're best to walk away, I figure if the person(s) don't care enough about the work or my simple request then asking them to fix the problem or mentioning it to them at the least isn't going to do much, if anything at all.
I finished up my fathers Silverado about 6 weeks ago, I spent all weekend on it trying to make it look perfect for him. Come Monday afternoon my brother decided to wash his truck right next to the Silverado. Needless to say there was water spots and dirt galore on the right side of the truck. My xxxxxing did nothing but make the situation worse, he used a dirty/oily towel from the garage to wipe it down :mad: I didn't mention the "mistake" to my brother because he wouldn't understand. I still need to get out there and re-polish the right side and half the hood

If you feel that you should bring up the marring to the owner, by all means do so. Maybe you can get him to pay you for correcting their mistakes and you can show them how to not make the same mistake in the future :)
 
The Fuzz said:
Usually a vehicle needs to be moved into a certain area to be washed. This involves getting behind the wheel of the vehicle.

One of the vendors ought to have a cotton or microfiber steering wheel cover made that has in big letters "DEAR SERVICE PERSONNEL, PLEASE DO NOT WASH THIS VEHICLE!".
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I don't have a towel, but I put a sign on my dashboard.

[URL=http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g58/GizmoGarage/Detail%20City/DoNotWash1Small.jpg][/URL]
[URL=http://i53.photobucket.com/albums/g58/GizmoGarage/Detail%20City/DoNotWash2Small.jpg][/URL]

When I take my car in for servicing, I explain to the service advisor that I do not wish to have my car washed. I go on to say that I understand most people like a free carwash, but I am very picky about the products that go on my paint. Then, I mention that I have placed a "Do Not Wash" sign on my dashboard, and that I will be a very unhappy customer if they ignore my wishes.
 
Marj I hope the guy doesn't only speak french :lol:

Joe, sorry to hear that this happened even after you repeatedly told them not to wash it. Why did'nt you say anything to the shop owner (manager) when you picked it up?
A simple " I thought I asked not to have the car washed" would have been subtle enough to let him know that you were displeased.

"J"
 
jaybs95 said:
Marj I hope the guy doesn't only speak french :lol:

Joe, sorry to hear that this happened even after you repeatedly told them not to wash it. Why did'nt you say anything to the shop owner (manager) when you picked it up?
A simple " I thought I asked not to have the car washed" would have been subtle enough to let him know that you were displeased.

"J"
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My car was parked outside behind a locked fence ..it was somewhat dirty ..it must of had dust on it then drizzled so i wasn't sure at the time..the wheels where washed but not to the caliber i would have cleaned them..

when i parked in the garage under the lights i was able see some spots that weren't to bad until i put the halogen lights on then it became obvious..

I'm thinking the car was dirty from sitting in the shop for 3 days and he sent it next door to a hand wash..i beleive he had good intentions and wanted to clean it up before he returned it..
 
This Summer I took my show car to get new window tint installed on the back hatch. This meant they would be leaning over the back fenders so I told him that I wanted him to cover the fenders with something to keep from scratching the surface. I told him again when I dropped the car off and he said yes he understood. Well when I went to pickup the car I don't know if they had used anything to cover it but it had water streaks down the side and when I was getting in to back it out he picks up a shop towel and starts trying the wipe off the dried water streaks with his dirty shop towel.
This is just something that we have to deal with. The world is full of idiots this guy did not have a clue as to what he was doing.
I brought the car home and got out my PC and Begin to polish out the swirls but I need to find a place to get the tint replaced because he did a lousy job but I"m not going back because this jackass would just do the same poor work again plus screw up my paint again.
When I took my Ranger to this place that installs accessory's to get a tonneau cover installed they dropped the framework and put a deep scratch in the rear fender. When they pulled my truck out and parked it so I would not notice it he came into the waiting room and told me I was ready to go.
Where I made my mistake was by not inspecting it before I left. When I got home I noticed the scratch but since I had left I knew that if I went back they would deny doing it so I wet sanded and polished it out. Since he was dishonest and did not tell me what he had done he will get no more of my business. I know of no place that you can get quality work done that is why I do most of my own work no one gives a dam anymore. Just a sign of the times
Joe I know how you feel but if you ask them to fix it they will just screw it up worse than it is now.
 
black bart said:
Joe I know how you feel but if you ask them to fix it they will just screw it up worse than it is now.
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I have taken this into consideration,if i find the the time i'll buff out the bonnet,trunk ,rear quarter panels maybe the 2 front fenders. the .shop owner would probably have his guy polish it out then i would have to deal with trail marks from the buffer:rolleyes: ..so i'll chalk this one up, i decided dont want to deal with the fact of going back and leaving my car..

Thanks to all ..
 
I have never and I doubt I will ever pay someone for work on my vehicle that I'm not completely satisfied with. That includes any damage done elsewhere on the vehicle.

When I took my Audi in for the first scheduled maintenance, I told them that I would be doing all of the oil changes and tire rotations. Well, they did the tire rotation anyways and put a few small scratches in my stock painted wheels with the impact gun. After they were done, I inspected the vehicle and found the scratches. I brought it to the attention of the service manager and the first response I got was "It will happen.". I told him that it might happen, but I'm not going to accept that it happened because someone else was careless on my 3 month old vehicle. He continued to argue and I listened. After he was done, I told him that I'm not faulting him, but I'm faulting one of his workers. I told him that I did nothing to bring on this damage and that it was due to carelessness. I told him that he could either paint the wheels to make them look new or just replace the wheels. He said that he wasn't going to replace the wheels and I told him that was fine and he could just paint them. When he said that he shouldn't have to paint them, I told him that I was going to call Audi of America to get the situation straightened out. He promptly told me that the wheels would be painted and I would need to drop the vehicle off in a few days to get it done.

Was the damage minor? Yes, it was pretty minimal but I'll never be satisfied with anyone doing damage to my vehicle.
 
Joe, I feel your pain. Every time our black Tahoe is in service, it's returned with heavy marring in spots. I always ask the service writer to chalk my window with "Please don't wash, or wipe the paint -at the owners request". This has prevented dealership washes, but you still have mechanics rubbing up against the paint.

You might want to consider polishing out the car (1 step), as prep, and re-applying your LSP for winter protection, and deal with the marring, etc.. in the spring when the weather is better.

I would not let this person help polish out your car, given the fact the he doesn't have a clue how to wash/dry.
 
mgm2003 said:
I would not let this person help polish out your car, given the fact the he doesn't have a clue how to wash/dry.
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This is my exact point i also noticed a few spots where they placed a few things on the hood..The weather is warm enough to do a spot buffing its my shoulder which i have an impingent of the nerve thats keeping me from doing a light polish..

Audiboy i know exactly what your saying i went thru this when i had to take my car in for a wheel alignment and it was done incorrect ..once pepboys was paid for the work all they couldn't find the time to reschedule me ..one call to there #800 solved the problem and my money was returned..

what i have come to realize is only members who frequent detailing forums understand the proper way to wash and prep a car..and those who don't think your crazy..
 
I agree if it is a dealership then they have some kids working in the cleanup and they don't know how to properly detail it and what it worse is they don't even care to learn only their for the pay check nothing else matters.
If you look at the average car on the road you can see why they don't understand why you are upset. Most people don't take care of their car.
I saw a women get out of her car last week at the Wal-Mart and the door did not close tight so she took her foot and pushed it shut. I'll bet the door has scratches from the dirt on the bottom of her shoe.
This sort of thing is what I think they mean when they talk about the dumbing down of America.
 
I must be lucky, the dealership that my father bought his truck from has so far been very good about not washing the truck, a simple request to the service manager seems to work great. The first time they even vacuumed it and shampooed the drivers side carpet because one of the service guys stepped in it with muddy feet. The service manager mentioned it as soon as I walked in to pick up the truck, talk about a suprise! It's only been in there twice so far but I've got good faith in these folks now.. Luckily my Jeep is easy enough to work on to where I can do most repairs myself, but if I had to have something major done I wouldn't be too concerned about them screwing up the paint, only because it's a Jeep and it's white. then again, after I get the exterior up to my standards, I'll probably be picky as hell :smile

Hey Audiboy, one question: How hard is it to change the oil on your car? I have an A4 and an A6 I maintain and when I look at the undercarraige of those cars it looks like it'd be a %&%# to find/remove the filter!
 
LikeaRock said:
Hey Audiboy, one question: How hard is it to change the oil on your car? I have an A4 and an A6 I maintain and when I look at the undercarraige of those cars it looks like it'd be a %&%# to find/remove the filter!
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Contact me through pm so we don't clutter up the thread.
 
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