MK5 Golf GTI
All Things Mk5 => Mk5 General Area => Topic started by: jettamike on March 17, 2016, 09:48:12 pm
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Evening all.
A little help if you don't mind? - Had the car in the dealers for a repair and noticed my wheels looked odd.
I said to the warranty administrator what has happened to my wheel caps which are all bubbled and he said he'd mention it to the service manager. Now I've got home a short while ago and my front grill (which I believe is probably fake chrome on a mk5 golf based jetta) is destroyed. It looks like someone has dripped acid all over it and whatever it's been washed with it appears the wheels have met the same fate.
The little chrome inserts in the bumper are also the same, as is the VW badge.
Any suggestions on how to proceed here, I wasn't too bothered by the wheel caps as the car is getting on, but the grill looks plain nasty now.
I've not tried cleaning it off with anything other than a mf cloth so far but it doesn't budge so I assume it's damaged.
Going back there on the way to work tomorrow to see what they have to say :(
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Iv worked in dealer for years and seen this a fair bit with contracted "valet" teams. It sounds like who ever washed your motor used neat TFR on it or a similar quick fix "cleaning" acid. At the dealers it's all about washing as quick as possible and quite strong chemicals can be used. If they are not mixed properly they can really mess up alloys and chrome bits. Is there any white residue anywhere? Don't try to clean it yourself but do call them tomorrow and say what's happened and get it down there as soon as possible. You'll have a fight on your hands getting anything out of them and they'll probably want it back to have a go at sorting out the damage. Keep at them and eventually you'll get something out of them. Don't be surprised if they say something along the lines of "it was like that when you bought it in" "it's an old car and this is normal" etc etc. Most VW garages will send you a video via email before they start work on the car so look at that for proof or ask for the health check paperwork as I would have thought corroded wheels and trim would have been noted as that would be an ideal up sell for them
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You got a build thread anywhere? That would be good proof of condition before too
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Try to record you conversation discretely as they tend to change their mind after agreeing it initially was most likely their cleaning agent.
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Sorry to hear that mate.
Bastarfs at my dealership do awful valets. one guy washes my car every two weeks and feckled the inside of the screen with some sort of white cream as I found it over the dash seat and gear sound. :mad: I'm still forever wiping the screen.
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Thanks for all the replies chaps. There's white residue on the alloy caps, one in particular looks like acid has eaten it and parts have gone black. I've got plenty of photos of the car, a few thst show the grille to be pristine and I'm sure I've got some of the wheels somewhere too.
I said to the warranty administrator about the wheel caps and he said he would mention to the service manager. However, I only noticed the grille when I got home as the car was parked with the front facing aeay from my path of entry!
A friend who's family own a garage said it's tfr damage too, the front end looks awful now though, I've always washed carefully with snow foam, two buckets and a decent mitt.... Now it appears to have been wasted effort!
This is on top of the fact that they still haven't fixed the noise I have despite replacing a very expensive part :(
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Sorry to hear that mate.
Bastarfs at my dealership do awful valets. one guy washes my car every two weeks and feckled the inside of the screen with some sort of white cream as I found it over the dash seat and gear sound. :mad: I'm still forever wiping the screen.
Gentlemen's relish?
Sounds like he knocked out a cracker in your front seats!!
:doh:
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Sorry to hear that mate.
Bastarfs at my dealership do awful valets. one guy washes my car every two weeks and feckled the inside of the screen with some sort of white cream as I found it over the dash seat and gear sound. :mad: I'm still forever wiping the screen.
Gentlemen's relish?
Sounds like he knocked out a cracker in your front seats!!
:doh:
I doubt it lol there's fives of them there 4 Nigerians and one polish guy. I think he used some kind of polish on it but it doesn't seem to clear as I'm wiping it everyday for the past 7 days and it still hazel up :confused:
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The white residue on the alloys is a good indicator that the TFR was too rich or neat. Show the garage this and then the grill. It may have been left on for a while too if it's etched into the chrome grill. By the sound of it the dealer will know what's happened, hopefully they'll play fair. Good luck mate :happy2: In the future though don't let anyone service wash your car, it's only marginally better than one if those hand car wash set ups at the super markets :signLOL:
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My last place of work valeters did a fabulous job as every car that went in like a bomb hit it came out in prestigious condition. Sirlankan and a couple of Nigerians but they were sound.
Depends from place to place and which valet company they hire.
Secure valeting is the company they were employed by.
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My Valeters have always been OK for what they do, depends how fussy you are. Personally Iv put too much effort into making my paint as good as I can to risk getting micro scratches back in it by one quick service wash. Iv used assured and secure and it really is luck who you get and their knowledge/standards.
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https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=AE58CEBCBCF18CB9!2447&authkey=!ACkzSYhcZVv7YJo&v=3&ithint=photo%2cJPG
https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=AE58CEBCBCF18CB9!2446&authkey=!ANWOwHAU9C7xqno&v=3&ithint=photo%2cJPG
https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=AE58CEBCBCF18CB9!2449&authkey=!ALmYCeMqD-Cd8L8&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpeg
https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=AE58CEBCBCF18CB9!2450&authkey=!AIa6FJ3PrLHCwEM&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpeg
Will getsome better photos tomorrow but even the VW on the grill is the same!
Thanks for all the help gents
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Sorry to hear that mate.
Bastarfs at my dealership do awful valets. one guy washes my car every two weeks and feckled the inside of the screen with some sort of white cream as I found it over the dash seat and gear sound. :mad: I'm still forever wiping the screen.
Try neat white vinegar on the screen. Stinks more than the white stufffff but soon goes back to normal.
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Sorry to hear that mate.
Bastarfs at my dealership do awful valets. one guy washes my car every two weeks and feckled the inside of the screen with some sort of white cream as I found it over the dash seat and gear sound. :mad: I'm still forever wiping the screen.
Try neat white vinegar on the screen. Stinks more than the white stufffff but soon goes back to normal.
Thanks for the advice 4ndy :drinking:
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Best to give a clear instruction that you don't want the car cleaned - it's just too risky! I had an M3 with diamond cut polished 19's that Sytner BMW managed to damage the rear driver's side wheel. The damage was fresh, with shards of alloy coming off. I let them have a go at a refurb - which was naff, so I insisted on a brand new wheel - £600 retail, as I recall. Car was a couple of years old at the time, and pristine. I always go a walk around the car with them before leaving it with them.
I hope that you get it sorted out - photos look pretty bad. You must be fuming!
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I've always washed my cars carefully so yep you're right I'm mad. Their reply :
Oh we don't use tfr anymore we use some autoglym stuff so it wasn't us. He wouldn't budge from that stance either despite me insisting it wasn't like that when it went in :(
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If you've got before and after pics you are in a very good position.
Do everything in writing from now on. Send all letters by signed for recorded delivery. Send dealer copies of before and after pics with a letter stating that it happened while car was in their passion for the service. Give them the opportunity to put it right.
If they deny responsibility or don't reply. Get quotes to replace damaged parts. Then send them a letter stating this cost & that they can either repair or replace. Say in second letter you will take them to small claims court if they don't fix it.
You may have to take them to court, but if you have photos and copies of the letters you sent then you will win the case. You can include the court fees in the claim against them, plus interest on money you pay out on putting it right.
It really is important to have everything in writing. Phone calls and verbal agreements are no use in court.
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My car was washed after the wings were replaced, whatever they used on the wheels dulled the calipers pink, unfortunately I had no proof of what they were like before.
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If you've got before and after pics you are in a very good position.
Do everything in writing from now on. Send all letters by signed for recorded delivery. Send dealer copies of before and after pics with a letter stating that it happened while car was in their passion for the service. Give them the opportunity to put it right.
If they deny responsibility or don't reply. Get quotes to replace damaged parts. Then send them a letter stating this cost & that they can either repair or replace. Say in second letter you will take them to small claims court if they don't fix it.
You may have to take them to court, but if you have photos and copies of the letters you sent then you will win the case. You can include the court fees in the claim against them, plus interest on money you pay out on putting it right.
It really is important to have everything in writing. Phone calls and verbal agreements are no use in court.
I agree with the above. Do not let go. Collect all of your evidence, and if necessary go to small claims court - it doesn't cost a lot. Their response is so predictable. Name and shame, I say!
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Defiantly don't let it go, chances are they use an external valet company. I work for a dealership and sadly we see this all the time because they just hire any old idiot and let them loose on your car with no training. Make them replace to damaged parts and bill it to the valet company.
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Pretty much all stealers do the same. Even at the Porsche centres, you'll find a lonely guy walking around with a bucket of dirty water and a cloth, giving the cars a wipe down with grit and muck.
If my car were to go into a dealership, I always make them write down in their brief, that I don't want my car washed.
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To be extra safe print a DO NOT WASH sign and leave it in the window. ( maybe in a few different languages as well, because they are never British)
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My car was washed after the wings were replaced, whatever they used on the wheels dulled the calipers pink, unfortunately I had no proof of what they were like before.
When I had my wings done I took photos on my iphone of the whole car when I dropped it off , they scratched both my headlights and then tried to say it was already like it, so I showed them the pics ( which also had date and time) and they had no leg to stand on
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Thanks for the help gents! It looks like the rest of the car has been washed with a broom to be honest! I'm pretty upset at the wheel cap things (can someone give me the name for these on the 17" classix alloys?) as they really look awful now. One of them was starting to get some white spots on it, but now they all look abused! :(
I'm just trying to price up replacement parts.
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Thanks for the help gents! It looks like the rest of the car has been washed with a broom to be honest! I'm pretty upset at the wheel cap things (can someone give me the name for these on the 17" classix alloys?) as they really look awful now. One of them was starting to get some white spots on it, but now they all look abused! :(
I'm just trying to price up replacement parts.
Part number for yours 1K0 601 149 J if you mean this cap style?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Genuine-Volkswagen-Golf-Jetta-Classix-Alloy-Wheel-Centre-Cap-1K0601149J-VW-/322035657477?hash=item4afad22b05:g:MYkAAOSwzgRWul17