Dealer car-wash blues :(

[The Governor]

So, dropped my BE into Southampton Audi for it's first MOT, Haldex and brake fluid change. All good, quite happy (outside of being £200 lighter in the wallet region).

When I got home I realised that despite me asking them only to hoover the inside, someone had washed it, leaving lots of micro-scratches on pretty much every panel to a greater or lesser extent

Made all the worse because it's black, hence me asking them not to wash it...

To be fair, they've been good about it and have accepted that they shouldn't have washed it, and have offered to sort it, I've been offered a full body polish/mop, not entirely sure what a mop involves but I want to make sure whoever does it doesn't just cut the scratches out without a final protective layer being reapplied...

Anyone know what a mop involves, or even what the right way to remove micro-scratches is?

Why anyone would use a brush on a black car is beyond me...

 

[XFi]

Good luck with that, most body shops rush the polish stage so it just leaves a lot of holograms with plenty of dried polish residue left over. You may get lucky though and it may go to a body shop that actually takes there time with the polishing/refining stages.

 

[D3mon]

Bad times.

You can only surmise that if the car got washed so badly, then it's highly likely to get polished badly. A 'mop' in the hands of an amateur is a paint killer. Throw some sealant/glaze on top to hide the buffer marring and you walk away happy, having unknowingly traded away half your clear coat and discovering the extent of the new damage a week later.

The only way to avoid this I have found is to have a laminated A4 piece of paper sat right up on the dashboard saying, "DO NOT WASH THIS CAR" It can't easily be ignored then.

In my opinion, any car that goes into a dealership for work done, goes through a funnel process which is now so hopelessly 'automated' that people who should, rarely check the paperwork for the (admittedly rare) 'NO WASH' note as it's passed along the line from service guy to technician to wash guy.

 

[mjr901]

You'd be far better to get a few quotes from reputable businesses and offer them up to the service manager.

That way you know it's being done by the right people and not a body shop that doesn't give two hoots.

 

[enc]

i left this in my car last time it went in main dealer (and made sure is was minted so wouldnt possibly need washing )

 

[Paul-RS6]

Not much help but i don't even let them vac the car. It goes nowhere near the wash bay, so no chance of mistakes.

Hopefully they will help you out with a detail to correct marring.

 

[The Governor]

Thanks guys, any tips on someone reputable in the Southampton area that I could refer them to?

 

[A3_Rider]

I would seek out a detailer, get two quotes and make the dealer foot the bill.

A "mop" doesn't sound very convincing, my first (and last) Audi service was a nightmare!

 

[Dean_T]

You'd be far better to get a few quotes from reputable businesses and offer them up to the service manager.

That way you know it's being done by the right people and not a body shop that doesn't give two hoots.

This! ^^

 

[Dan-Jnr]

Audi cleaned my old S3 8P twice and both times scratched the paint work. I kicked off big time and all they offered was to polish it out. It still wasn't perfect but I told them I would never be using their services for any of my Audi cars ever again. They just don't give a ****.

 

[pluves1]

Don't let the dealer touch it whatever you do. They'll probably make it worse. As others have said seek out a good detailer let them sort it. Should be between £200 and £250. Not sure the dealer is going to stump up that sort of cash though.

 

[Jambo26]

i had the same on my be was told not to wash it. but they did. they offered to correct this but i refused and said i want to pick you sorts it. they agreed and a free 3 stage machine polish from a very reputable detailer all sorted.

suggest you pick the detailer, don't let them touch it they will just make it worse.

 

[tcardio]

take your car immediately to Kowalski Details!

 

[Brennan]

Kick up a fuss and let Audi pay for it

 

[The Governor]

I've had one quote back from a guy I heard about on the Detailing World website, and he's quoting £500 for a 2-3 Day paint correction, I can't see Audi covering that at the moment...

 

[Pulp84]

If it's just a paint correction and no protection put on after (which to be fair your dealer shouldn't pay for) then it should cost circa £300. That would literally be for getting the clear coat prepared (clayed, de-tar etc), inspection and then machine polished to remove defects. 1-2 days tops.

Would never trust a dealership UNLESS you know they have a really switched on body shop attached. Happened a few years ago with my A1 which the dealer added swirl to on its trip in for a service. The dealer used a third party body shop who I had experience with and they did an excellent job.

I do feel for you......I left stickers saying don't wash my A1 and got them to write it on the job card but they still did it. Need to remember that it's like a conveyor belt at dealerships so it's difficult for them to break a routine when a car comes in.....

 

[mjr901]

+ most dealerships employ foreign people to wash the cars, therefore their English and the reading of it, isn't great.

 

[Kevin A3 Quattro]

My local dealer has big tags that hang from your mirror if you don't want a wash. I am worried I will go there for something and theyll wash my now wrapped A3 which would not be good as I have noticed some products leave a lot of residue.

Tough situation if the dealer is not going to pay for a full correction done to the standards you like. Hopefully everything gets sorted out to your liking