So I collected my new car on Saturday, car was checked over but it was wet... I was surprised it was parked outside, however being a lease I assumed only BMW customers get the full collection experience....
Anyway nothing untoward was found, lease paperwork signed and went off on my merry way.
Later on in the afternoon the car was outside my friends house and had dried off when I noticed something on the front wing.... Yup a nice dent and a few marks.... Checked on the otherside and surprise surprise, exactly the same.
It's obviously where both M badges were - I specced model delete.... So spoke to supplying dealer today - they said to go to my local Dealer and see what they said (collected car 90miles away)
They won't fix it under warranty as it's obvious it was damaged before collection, their body shop guy said both front wings and both front doors will need respraying and told me to get in touch with the supplying dealer, which I did.
They have been mega helpful and are bending over backwards to fix it, I also called the lease company who were less than impressed and have also got on their case. The upside of it is, they will be collecting the car, dropping me one to use whilst it gets fixed.
I am obviously exceedingly f***ed off that my brand new car was damaged by some incompetent oaf with no brain cells and that I stand to have a car with less than 200 miles on it have both front wings and doors resprayed!!
So my question is, where do I stand? I'm tempted to say to the lease company that I want a new one and reject it.... The dealership have admitted responsibility so what do people think? I obviously don't want to be left without a car though.
Last edited by ditchvisitor; 25th March 2014 at 17:57.
I would imagine that if the dealership has taken responsibility then it should be them who pays for it. If you are going to be very inconvenienced whilst not having a car, then you could explain that to them and they may provide you with a courtesy car. Or perhaps your insurance may cover a courtesy car?
It's difficult to see clearly from your pictures, but the paint doesn't seem to have cracked or broken. In which case, I'd prefer to get a skilled dentmaster to fix it. You would not be able to tell that it had been done and a lot better than having a respray on a new car. A few years ago I had a new Cayenne that had picked up a parking dent on the door before delivery. The repair was invisible though you wouldn't want to watch it being done...
Hard to see properly but it doesn't look to have a crease to the dent and it's not so severe. My guess as previous person said is that a decent dent man will have that out in no time without paint.
+2 if the paint is not chipped or cracked, it won't need to be re-sprayed to correct it.
Am I understanding this correctly? You ordered model delete and they had one in with the model badges on and ripped them off?
That's very shabby treatment of a brand new car op, hope you get it sorted. I would also keep accurate records of exactly what repairs were done to the car, during the hand-back at end of lease.
Paintless dent removal - MAGIC!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...&v=7CgigL1610Y
Mike
Ouch....I'd be hopping mad too. Certainly puts a dampener on enjoying a new car. Hopefully, the dents will just pull out.
Agree, very shabby. But I guess it meant the OP didn't have to wait for a factory build. But I would have thought a garage with a decent body shop had the ability to de-badge it without denting the wings.Originally Posted by KurtKlaus
Not the best pic, but it doesn't look like it needs a respray. If I was the OP I'd let the garage try and rectify it, but if it's not up to par after that ask for a new car if you wish. Mistakes do happen and you should let them have the opportunity to fix it.
Not good. What did they use to remove the badges? a hammer?
Debadge with toothfloss and a hair dryer, so why the damage?
It was a factory order, I specified model deletion, it just wasn't ordered with it! They admitted as much and I have a print out from the local BMW with the exact specification, they also admitted they had been removed. It takes 5 mins to do properly according to lots of guys on the BMW forum, a low hair dryer heat and some fishing line or dental floss, apparently easy to do. Think whoever did this used a crowbar!
I just can't imagine someone doing this to a brand new BMW and then nodding with satisfaction at a job well done - did they really think it wouldn't get noticed by the purchaser?
I know it's ridiculous isn't it!! If the car hadn't been wet I would have noticed it straight away, it's bloody obvious! Would be interesting to see what the dealership do internally to find the culprit!!
They'll know the culprit, there will be a job card however one of the cleaners might have done it.
Tbh, I would play hard ball with them......they have made the mistake all the way down the line and it is completely of their doing. Request a replacement.
FFF
There are a couple of ways to progress with this IMO but he pic's aren't the best in the world so it is hard to make a judgement based on them alone.
I can completely appreciate how annoyed and utterly pee'd off you mst be but try and take a step back and consider your options.
Option 1 - Ask the local BMW dealer to recommend a dent removal company and see if they can remove them, takes about an hour tops i would imagine and minimal inconvenience for you and cost for the dealers.
Option 2 - If the dent removal doesn't work get the supplying dealer to get the repair done at an approved BMW dealership of your choice and supply a replacement car whilst the repair is being done.
I wouldn't want a new car resprayed if I could help it, especially a a White car and the advice you have been given about what should and shouldn't be sprayed doesn't stack up. If they spray the wings it will need blending into the bonnet as well and possibly the front bumper.
Basically, the chances of the repairer matching the factory finish on a white car is slim on the following basis, white is one of the worst colours to match and whilst the colour will be 'blown' in to the other panels to minimise the likelihood of you noticing where the repair was made they will then apply a topcoat of lacquer to the white base-coat and unless they are shizen hot it takes a lot of skill to match the factory finish i.e. the factory finish might have a slight orange peel effect to it and the repaired area might be as smooth as glass.
I'm not trying to make matters worse, I'm simply pointing out that you need to ensure whoever attempts this repair is very good!! I'd highly recommend the dent removal route first and if that doesn't work I'd personally be tempted to reject the car if at all possible.
Paul
Paul,
Many thanks for your detailed reply, I think I will pursue the dentless option first as I REALLY don't want it to be sprayed, I am trying hard to try and find the Dealership principals details so I can make aware of my displeasure and hope that he can try and sort it ASAP.
Mike
Sorry but if the cars leased I wouldn't be spending too much time trying to deal with the dealers, I'd call the lease company and tell them to sort it.
Reject.
Should have never left the factory with the badges on it.
Rob.
Is that an M135i?
They don't have an obligation to replace the car just to fix it. Fixing is to an acceptable standard, but what that standard is a matter of opinion
Had a problem with the paint on a 911 tiny lump and marks under the paint, apparently dust on it when it was sprayed..., quality control shocking but all they would do was respray the whole car and not replace... Brand new never again, had a VW golf for two weeks as a replacement, till I kicked off in the showroom very disappointing.
I've had two cars replaced over the years. Its a pita for the dealership but their fault and problem. There's only one course of action i'd be pursuing.
I recall well some paint issues with a new car (Alfa) for my ex. The salesman, with a very serious face said, well it's not a roller after all is it. I refrained from physical violence raised my voice so other showroom visitors could hear me and demanded to speak to the dealer principal. Over coffee and fifteen or so minutes later they had ordered another car.
Its a shame you missed it when collected, otherwise rejection would have been my advice.
Your lease company are who you have a contract with. They are who you should be dealing with not the "supplying dealer"
Depends on how cross you feel - you could try to reject it, but then you'd have to start the process again to get another car.
If its fixable, without a respray, I'd go for that.
that's why they left it in the rain so you could not reject it.
now its just hassle.
BUT get a dent removal guy to fix it , no one should be able to tell, DO NOT let any one paint it !!!
After a hailstorm hit (link below) where my parents live, they had over 100 dents removed from the roof of their car and they did a great job and no re-spray required. Definitely worth going that route
http://www.theguardian.com/money/201...ilstone-damage
I'd insist on a replacement car (or have wings replaced with a new fresh pair)
It would never be a 'new' car to me knowing it it's panels beaten up ur respray. It's unacceptable if you pay that sort of money.
I just bought a 330Ci and has some bodywork issues, but it's a 10 years old car...and I haven't paid 30K+ for it..... If I pay 30K+ I want perfection
loads and loads of new cars have paint from transit issue, you would be naïve to think other wise.
this has been blown up , the car does NOT need paint or much work, £80 for a dent man and it will be like new.
having new wings etc is a joke comment.
Sorry if (bit) OT but how do dent men work. If it's dented the metal has stretched - how can it ever be put back?
I was serious...I wouldn't want wings which have been beaten up on a brand new car. The metal and paintwork will be stressed and compromised if you compare to a new one. You pay for a new faultless product....otherwise you might as well buy second-hand (couple of months old) and save yourself few grand
If you think about a hand built car, that is exactly what they do, beat metal to shape. If a dent specialist can get access and the paint has not been cracked then a perfect repair can be done, and will be 'as new'. Replacing panels or respraying will definitely not be 'as new'.
That is not the same as a repair. Hand-beating stretches and thins the metal. This can't be 'undone'.
It depends on the dent or ding in question and many other factors such as the position, depth, severity etc.
Basically they push the dent from the opposing side until it pops / or stretches out. It's really hard to tell from Mikes pictures but the dents look like they may well pop-out with a bit of heat and persuasion with the appropriate tools.
I had an Impreza STi that picked up some parking dings along the doors on both sides and within 45 minutes you wouldn't have known they were there. In fairness I am fairly sure that Subaru door panels are made of cheese so marking them in any way wasn't very difficult!
You would be surprised what can be achieved in not much time by somone who knows what they are doing when it comes to dent removal.
Will be good to hear how things pan out for Mike and his BMW.
Paul
Surely the debadged option is a factory one, when I bought my Mercedes E55 way back I asked for the debadging and this was done at the factory, IE badges not put onwhy have these been taken off is you spec'd the car fresh, the panels should have been different.
Lot's of new cars have to have minor paint defects put right before delivery and, if it's done properly, you'd never know. Obviously this shouldn't have happened, but it did. I'm sure they'll do a proper job for you and will bend over backwards to be helpful in the future if you are reasonable with them.
as my earlier link:-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature...CgigL1610Y#t=4
I've seen it done and the results are truly amazing so long as there is no damaged paint.
Mike
So a dent removal expert is coming on Monday to try and sort it all! Apparently they do all the work for Mercedes/BMW so fingers crossed it will be a good job. The guy I spoke to said that the dealership principal is friends with the owner of the company and has told him it needs sorting ASAP with no cost spared....
Will keep you updated!
As stated, a decent enough panel beater will be able to pull that dent back, and talk of new wings, paint jobs, etc is a bit OTT. Yes, the material will never be the same in terms of strength, but as the wing isn't load bearing, or carrying out any stressful functions, it's not really an issue, it's all about aesthetics, and the exterior will look as new if done by a decent beater.
100% agree.... new wings or paint would probably be a really OTT fix and most likely would look worse as colour matching is never as easy as it may seem. As it is a lease car, the resale is not in question either so while seriously irritating and unacceptable, it is not going to cost the OP dearly.
Had something similar about 6 years back with a 5 series - they said they scratched the roof when it was coming off the transporter (in Ipswich - it was delivered to Sheffield by the lease company). They sent me a temp car until they fixed it - however about 6 months later, the trim strips on the roof parted company with the car...the local dealer sorted all of that.
Back when T reg came out I had a golf GTI turbo mk4. After about 45k miles it was returned to the lease company after 4 stereos (volume changing with no input, up and down but not speed related) knobs dropping off stereo, cd changer given as goodwill failing, replacement clutch, then replacement flywheel and clutch as the flywheel was incorrectly machined and was destroying the clutch and a replacement turbo. This all happened in under 20k miles. Nearly forgot, day 2 rolled off down a hill with the handbrake on and then after 1 week had the front anti roll bar drop off.
The nail in the coffin was lack of braking effort when wet - the VW solution was change from alloys to steel wheels as it was the wrong type of water getting on the discs and a steel wheel is less open in design. Needless to say this was when I had enough and my company put pressure on the lease company to take it back - it is never too late!
Perhaps I should also say, I'm SO glad I wasn't a private purchaser of that car - but when it worked, it was damn quick and fun :)
A couple of years ago,my o/halfs 4 day old Mini was damaged by one of my sons mates dropping a scooter onto the rear wing,20 minutes with a dent repair guy and you would never know.
I would definitely try this route before rejection or anything like that.
Last edited by chaplad; 6th March 2014 at 16:46.
We had our C63 estate debadged by the Mercedes dealership, upon arrival the car was in the showroom looking fantastic apart from the tailgate where they'd clearly removed the badges with a screwdriver. I was slightly shocked to say the least but we were recompensed accordingly and they re-sprayed the entire tailgate and no one would notice.
So the saga continues....A dent guy came out today and due to the proximity of the dent to the door shut it won't be possible for him to spray the localised area without a noticeable difference to the paint on the door. The paint is also damaged and not just a dent hence the need to spray a bit.... Soooo back to BMW we go to see what they say. If they want to resprayed both wings/doors then I will push for a full detail upon completion by a detailer of my choice as some sort of compensation.
I'd try to reject it if it was my car, especially since the paint has been damaged as well as the dents. Incompetent muppets.
Why did you want the badges removed in the first place?
I've noticed a few cars around without badges and just assumed they'd fallen off. Didn't realise people ask for them to be taken off (or not put on)
If it is indeed an M135i then I don't believe they come with M badges on the wings.
Yes it's an M135i and yes they do come with M badges on the wings.... Hence the issue!
Ok. Well, I have one and have seen them on the road and in dealers but I never knew that. I even had a look at the pics on the owners forum and couldn't see one with badges. Perhaps they are an option? Thanks for letting me know anyway and hope you resolved the issue.
As a quick comeback I think they must be fitted to 14 plate cars. Sorry for the confusion.
Last edited by pluseditor; 13th March 2014 at 01:29. Reason: New info.
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