Do dealers valet your car before handover?

snakehips

snakehips

Registered User
Joined
Aug 11, 2013
Messages
735
Reaction score
263
Points
63
Location
North Herts
I ask because the Shiraz S line showroom model, which actually persuaded me to go for that colour, was covered in circular micro-scratches and it wasn't even sold yet! Some clown had polished it with a brillo pad so if they intend to polish mine come pick up day I might ask them not to bother.
 
They normally just get a wash with a sponge as most people wouldn't notice them.

A friend does the incoming PDI and quite often on the sportier cars (People that care about cars normally) have a special note not to wash the car and a 'Detailer' comes in that the customer has booked so they can then wash it and do any paint correction that needs doing.
 
When I collected mine it had had a "wash" as part of the PDI. I did think about persuading them not to, but then thought why have the agro? I recently (last week) had the car gone over properly by a local detailer to remove any swirls and remanants of transport wax etc. He didn't find too many swirls, although a lovely scrape on the back bumper :sob: which he removed).. My advice - try to get them to let you use a detailer for car prep (i.e. they don't touch it) before you pick it up. If they won't allow that (mine didn't), get it done soon as you can afterward (or do it yourself if you know what your doing!):yum:

901945_536850523064509_2050163376_o.jpg
 
I was at a car dealers yesterday and a young lad came past,he had a trolley with a few buckets of water and one microfibre what was meant to be green but it was nearly black,they give this job to someone just starting out so I would ask them not to clean a new vehicle,a few detailers get paint correction jobs paid for by dealers messing paint up.
I will say that Coventry Audi cleaned my three year old car beautifully.

I personally would send recorded proof that you want it not to be cleaned by them and when its near arrival hammer it home with a phone call.
 
My dashcam recorded the painful moment when they washed my 8P after telling them not to :(
 
I feel a bit bad for some people on here as being a part-time detailer as well as working for Audi I can combine the 2 when my new A3 arrive's... :D
 
S3crystal-luke said:
I feel a bit bad for some people on here as being a part-time detailer as well as working for Audi I can combine the 2 when my new A3 arrive's... :D
Click to expand...

I take it from your comment you'd recommend not letting Audi valet the car then?

I'm thinking of sending a detailer round to do mine before I pick it up. Any recommendations for detailers around Carlisle?
 
smk82 said:
901945_536850523064509_2050163376_o.jpg
Click to expand...

This is the reason I wouldn't have lifeshine applied by a dealership. Nothing wrong with the product, but if the prep is not up to "scratch", you might as well not bother.

My dealer was fine with not washing it and letting a detailer take it away for a couple of days before collection. They definitely didn't wash it - they even left the packaging on.
 
I didn't have the lifeshine applied either. Not only was it overpriced, but the people audi employ are frequently not as skilled as a full time professional detailer, and don't have the time to do a "proper job" with so many cars being handed over. I did enquire if I could have a detailer prepare my car before picking it up, I was told that they don't allow it as they don't allow anyone not employed by audi to do work on the cars on site! Plus I didn't have the option of not washing it as it was part of the PDI..
 
keyser said:
I take it from your comment you'd recommend not letting Audi valet the car then?

I'm thinking of sending a detailer round to do mine before I pick it up. Any recommendations for detailers around Carlisle?
Click to expand...

Nope, I guess most valeters at dealerships are roughly the same but at ours they are truly shocking! I know they are under time constraints but the products they use and their techniques are shocking! With regards to local detailers to you I've seen some good work from these guys.... Cumbria Auto Detailing - specialist auto detailing, car cleaning and valeting bespoke waxing Church Street, Caldewgate, Carlisle, Cumbria CA2 5TJ Phone  -  07762 423 653
 
  • Like
Reactions: keyser
Most dealers clean cars before delivery but I wouldn't call it valetting.

When I collected mine there were a few surface scratches on the bonnet so it went back into the workshop to have them polished out before I even drove it off the forecourt.

I had told them that I hand wash, clay etc and that my previous car had no swirls after 10 years....

John.
 
Last edited:
Picked up my A3 8V SB last week from Parklands Audi with no scratch-marks / cleaning issues - other than a smear on the outside of the windscreen which was quickly rectified.
 
I worried about our 63 plate and was going to ask them not to clean it. I didn't bother in the end and I was very pleased with ours on collection day. I couldn't spot any scratches or swirls. When I get time I'm going to give it a full clean and seal it with some gtechniq c2v3
 
chippy1970 said:
I worried about our 63 plate and was going to ask them not to clean it. I didn't bother in the end and I was very pleased with ours on collection day. I couldn't spot any scratches or swirls. When I get time I'm going to give it a full clean and seal it with some gtechniq c2v3
Click to expand...

Me too, which is why it often isn't a good idea to read forums, my car was perfect when I picked it up...
 
My dealer has always cleaned my A3 inside and out before collection and whenever it goes in for a service. They have two dedicated wash bays with pressure washers etc and it's been the same guys doing it for some years. I have never had any complaints. It's a car after all. It will get all sorts thrown at it as soon as you take it out on the road unless of course you are just going take it home, put it in the garage and just take it out at weekends to admire how nice looking it is.
 
  • Like
Reactions: TJM22 and the_lecht_rocks
Couple of scratches/swirls is nothing - my 8P delivered with cracked windscreen AND chipped sunroof!!!!
 
Scott said:
Perfect to you, may not be perfect to someone else ;)
Click to expand...

How would you know, I might be better at spotting imperfections than the next man. Could be seen as a kinda provocative thing to say, even in jest...:banghead:
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Redgrouse and h5djr
h5djr said:
My dealer has always cleaned my A3 inside and out before collection and whenever it goes in for a service. They have two dedicated wash bays with pressure washers etc and it's been the same guys doing it for some years. I have never had any complaints. It's a car after all. It will get all sorts thrown at it as soon as you take it out on the road unless of course you are just going take it home, put it in the garage and just take it out at weekends to admire how nice looking it is.
Click to expand...

Well we do pay a premium for buying a brand new car - and that's the condition in which I want to receive it - not with swirls and damaged paintwork. If you don't mind scratches, swirls ... and your car is going to be driven and used as well, so why not get an used one in the first place ?
 
smk82 said:
Plus I didn't have the option of not washing it as it was part of the PDI..
Click to expand...

That's really bad - to not let a detailer do it is bad enough, but to not even follow your request not to wash the car is mad!
 
Anarch said:
Well we do pay a premium for buying a brand new car - and that's the condition in which I want to receive it - not with swirls and damaged paintwork. If you don't mind scratches, swirls ... and your car is going to be driven and used as well, so why not get an used one in the first place ?
Click to expand...

Simply answer to that one. Because by buying a new car I car have exactly what I want and not what some original owner wanted. I have never had any swirls or damaged paint work on any of my new A3s when I've taken delivery.

Remember the outside of your new car has already been subject to some exposure to the elements before you get it. In a parking area at the factory before being loaded onto to an open train wagon, whilst being stored at the docks in Germany and then again at the docks in the UK port and then on the transporter being delivered to the dealer and then almost certainly in an open storage area before it gets it's PDI. Cars are designed to cope with this and years of exposure to whatever the weather decides to throw at it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: the_lecht_rocks
I had been planning on writing a long winded post about my experience regarding this exact topic but hadn't got round to it.

To cut a long story short, the div at the dealership I ordered my S3 through f***ed up the paintwork on my car so badly when "valeting" it that I've had to have the bonnet totally resprayed and blown into the P/S fender and a-pillar. Also had to have the rear bumper resprayed as it was extremely flat.

I didn't look very hard for imperfections when signing for it as it rolled off the delivery vehicle (BIG MISTAKE!) as I had to immediately go off on a 100 mile round trip through crappy weather, turning it into a matte black car.

It wasn't until I came to have the car fully new car prepped and protected a few weeks later that my detailed highlighted the full extent of the damage. I have some pictures which I'll upload tomorrow if anyone's interested.

To add insult to injury, neither the dealership nor Audi UK where in the slightest bit interested in sorting these problems which left me to sort it myself. I could probably have pressed harder and started writing letters but frankly I haven't got the time or patience to **** about arguing with people that aren't really interested because their counter argument is "well you did sign do it".

Advice to all - request that your car has the protective plastic left on and that you'll refuse to sign for the car if it's been touched by a sponge-monkey. A harsh lesson that I've learned is also that signing for the car is signing to say you are totally 100% happy with every single aspect of it so take an hour to look over the car if you have to - f*** the bloke who's stood around waiting for you to make your mark on his piece of paper...

Rant over...
 
  • Like
Reactions: the_lecht_rocks
Image

This picture is of an S5 coupe rear end in Estoril blue when it was collected from a dealer on the M4 corridor after they washed and polished it. The guy who owns the car (Shrek on A5OC) ended up paying £750 for a correction detail to remedy the issue. I've seen the car in the flesh and the job the detailer did was astonishing. The dealer ended up paying a good % of the cost as the guy was going to have a new car detail anyway.

I think there are two breeds of folk when it comes to car cleaning. Those who see a clean car and because it's got no dirt on it it's clean. Then there are those who obsess about the purity of the finish on the painted surface (swirls / depth of shine / beading etc.). Those in the latter have a far more stressful and expensive car ownership experience. Owning black cars unfortunately I'm in the latter group :-(
 
  • Like
Reactions: JohnM100
Quite a few horror stories!

Ok so say on collection day I find the paint work is not satisfactory, what should the plan of action be? It would be so tempting to just sign off the car in eagerness to drive off in the new toy? Maybe sign it but ask dealer to put in writing that they should correct the paint work and book it in for an appointment? Risk is that they will get a monkey to 'fix' the paint work.

Or refuse the car altogether and demand a new car, but that could mean another 4 month wait!
 
If the paint finish isn't up to your expectations I would lodge a verbal complaint with your salesperson, take photos for evidence, but don't let them offer to put it right or they may make it worse. Hard part will be getting them to accept cost of a detailing fix, you may have to contribute as they may only be obliged to offer so much contribution, either that or reject the car.
 
My dealership is automatically adding a Supaguard for over £200. Are you saying this is likely to be a bad idea?
 
My dealership added autoglym lifeshine for free :unsure: I'll have to wait and see how the car is on the day
 
warren_S3 said:
View attachment 27051

This picture is of an S5 coupe rear end in Estoril blue when it was collected from a dealer on the M4 corridor after they washed and polished it. The guy who owns the car (Shrek on A5OC) ended up paying £750 for a correction detail to remedy the issue. I've seen the car in the flesh and the job the detailer did was astonishing. The dealer ended up paying a good % of the cost as the guy was going to have a new car detail anyway.

I think there are two breeds of folk when it comes to car cleaning. Those who see a clean car and because it's got no dirt on it it's clean. Then there are those who obsess about the purity of the finish on the painted surface (swirls / depth of shine / beading etc.). Those in the latter have a far more stressful and expensive car ownership experience. Owning black cars unfortunately I'm in the latter group :-(
Click to expand...

That example is totally unacceptable, but you're right in that some would not be able to see it at all..
 
From a legal point of view and as an x employee at audi ... If an inspection form was not filled in when the car was dropped off ... The garage is fully liable for all of the cost regardless of any variable. I've seen it for my self !
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Joetidman
Clean or don't clean your part exchange car on handover...?
Replies
19
Views
12K
Oyster
Oyster
S32B
Before you insure your car...
Replies
22
Views
3K
JudderMan
JudderMan
wab172uk
Buy your new car before 2022
Replies
56
Views
4K
Jassyo06
Jassyo06
Forbzeeee
What car did you have before your A3/S3 8V?
Replies
175
Views
19K
COL3011
COL3011
MikeParkin
Why do you modify your car ?
Replies
30
Views
3K
Jassyo06
Jassyo06
Top
Back