Wash guy at Irvine BMW Scratches Back Trunk with Dirty Towels

Aero · 09-15-2011, 09:31 PM

I SUGGEST YOU GO ELSEWHERE TO GET YOUR CAR WASHED!!! Even though Irvine BMW offers complimentary car washes if you bought your car from them, I highly advise against getting your car washed here.

Seeing how my car was under 20,000 miles and fairly new, as well as hand washed on a weekly basis it did not have any scuffs, scratches nor paint imperfections before i handed it over for a wash. Now, i usually hand wash the car myself but this time i decided to just take it in to Irvine BMW because i figured it would be more convenient and i thought i would give it a try... But anyway, about thirty minutes after i handed the keys in for a wash, one of the porters informed me that the car was ready to go. Before i left, i did a quick walk around and everything looked good, there was still a little bit of dirt on the wheels and a couple of water spots but i wasn't expecting a five star detail job anyway.

It wasn't until i got home and noticed that there was at least 8-9 easily noticeable hair line scratches going vertically all the way across the trunk and to the lip that were not there previously, in addition, there was a smaller, circular like scratch a few feet from the previous hairline scratches that was deeper and much more noticeable. judging by the nature of the scratches, it was clear that it happened during the washing/drying process most likely with dirty towels that must have had some sort of abrasive stuck on to them that they weren't aware of.

I called the dealership back immediately and was informed that the manager was with another client and would get back to me promptly. One hour passed and i still had not received a follow up call, i called back and was told by another receptionist that there was nothing that could be done unless i came in. Meanwhile on the drive back to the dealership i was yet to receive a call back from the service manager. When i had got back i showed the concierge the scratches and they said they would take it back to polish the trunk. While i waited in the lobby the manager confronted me and asked to see the scratches, so we went over to the washing/detailing area where i showed him the scratches and he said not to worry and that he would have the detail guys buff it out. Ok no problem then, as long as they make the car look as good as i gave it to them i would be a happy camper. So i get my car back 20 minutes later and the scratches are less noticeable this time but are still there if you look closely.

At the end of the day, i wasted 2 1/2 hours of my time making two trips to the dealership for a mediocre car wash job that ended up in scratches all over the top of the trunk, that they didn't even completely buff out, much less apologize or show any sense of concern over the matter. Way to go Irvine BMW, great to know you care about customer satisfaction. Going back on Saturday for an oil change so ill see if i can get them to buff out the scratches one more time since they haven't gone away completely. I hate be anal about it but i really sucks when you find out a car you got three weeks ago is having its otherwise immaculate paint job raped by some careless wash guy who forgot to use clean towels.

/end rant

ken1137 · 09-15-2011, 10:44 PM

Sorry to hear that...now you know don't let them touch your car. Have a detailer fix the scratches and present BMW with the bill

Aero · 09-15-2011, 11:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken1137

Sorry to hear that...now you know don't let them touch your car. Have a detailer fix the scratches and present BMW with the bill

Wish i knew that before the fact, seems like a lot of members on here are weary of having the dealership wash their cars, must be a common issue i guess. Thats a great suggestion actually, any recommendations for going about doing that (how should i let them know beforehand that is the course of action i will take) and if they refuse to cover the costs should i let BMWNA and the BBB handle it or what? I have a feeling they are just going to offer another quick polish job... Never had to deal with this kind of situation but i kind of wish i told them that today instead of settled for their "quick fix"

pinmagic · 09-16-2011, 01:58 PM

Good luck proving they did it. I'm surprised they even agreed to buff it out. BBB? Waste of time. BMWNA? Oh, good luck with that. Sorry, but I think you're on your own on this one.

ken1137 · 09-16-2011, 08:08 PM

pinmagic is right...not much you can do, but I would go back anyway and show them the bill from the Detailer. You should probably use a detailer anyway if you are not into detailing your car. I use one before Winter annually.

Aero · 09-16-2011, 08:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pinmagic

Good luck proving they did it. I'm surprised they even agreed to buff it out. BBB? Waste of time. BMWNA? Oh, good luck with that. Sorry, but I think you're on your own on this one.

Well these scratches are clearly visible and should have been recorded during the walkaround. But either way I know for a fact that they weren't there before the wash, I hand wash the car on a weekly basis and the paint is practically pristine. But I can see where your going with the whole argument that I can't prove what was and wasn't there before the fact, but I except them to have some decency and own up to the mistake. But hey there's a reason they have a 1 1/2 star rating on yelp.

HondaGoneRogue · 09-16-2011, 08:55 PM

My dealer, Desert BMW (Vegas), knows not to wash my car. They are a great service department, but they can't (and shouldn't) be expected to wash my car with the same care as I would have the time and effort to give. Sorry you had to come to this lesson on your new baby.

HISI808 · 09-16-2011, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HondaGoneRogue

My dealer, Desert BMW (Vegas), knows not to wash my car. They are a great service department, but they can't (and shouldn't) be expected to wash my car with the same care as I would have the time and effort to give. Sorry you had to come to this lesson on your new baby.

+1

Nobody is allowed to wash my car except for me.

Aero · 09-17-2011, 12:51 AM

Update: After going back to the dealership with the quote from the local detailer, they refused to covering the cost of corrections at a professional detailer (Not surprised) But after some heated exchanges they did agree to re-buffing the trunk. After I questioned them about their initial polishing and explained that the scratches still remained after their initial quick "fix" the manager informed me that they would they would "professionally" remove the scratches "this time" and that it would take about an hour (mind you they spent less than 15 minutes the first time.)

Lessons Learned: Never let anybody else wash your car. Irvine BMW has terrible customer service. If you don't follow up on an issue with them don't expect any help in return.

Just on a side note: As we were walking back to the waiting lounge one of the employees thought it would be funny to open the door for my friend and I and casually say: "LADIES FIRST, JUST F**KING WITH YOU" Now i may be over analyzing this but in my opinion this was totally uncalled for and immature, and is just plain unprofessional for an employee in uniform to say something like that to client and then try to play it off as a joke. Good thing theres plenty of dealerships in my area, will be going to Crevier from now on, never had any issues with them and not to mention their customer service is great considering the dealership is one of the largest in the nation.

09-15-2011, 09:31 PM	#1
Aero New Member 1 Rep 13 Posts Drives: BMW 135i M Sport Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Socal iTrader: (0)	Wash guy at Irvine BMW Scratches Back Trunk with Dirty Towels I SUGGEST YOU GO ELSEWHERE TO GET YOUR CAR WASHED!!! Even though Irvine BMW offers complimentary car washes if you bought your car from them, I highly advise against getting your car washed here. Seeing how my car was under 20,000 miles and fairly new, as well as hand washed on a weekly basis it did not have any scuffs, scratches nor paint imperfections before i handed it over for a wash. Now, i usually hand wash the car myself but this time i decided to just take it in to Irvine BMW because i figured it would be more convenient and i thought i would give it a try... But anyway, about thirty minutes after i handed the keys in for a wash, one of the porters informed me that the car was ready to go. Before i left, i did a quick walk around and everything looked good, there was still a little bit of dirt on the wheels and a couple of water spots but i wasn't expecting a five star detail job anyway. It wasn't until i got home and noticed that there was at least 8-9 easily noticeable hair line scratches going vertically all the way across the trunk and to the lip that were not there previously, in addition, there was a smaller, circular like scratch a few feet from the previous hairline scratches that was deeper and much more noticeable. judging by the nature of the scratches, it was clear that it happened during the washing/drying process most likely with dirty towels that must have had some sort of abrasive stuck on to them that they weren't aware of. I called the dealership back immediately and was informed that the manager was with another client and would get back to me promptly. One hour passed and i still had not received a follow up call, i called back and was told by another receptionist that there was nothing that could be done unless i came in. Meanwhile on the drive back to the dealership i was yet to receive a call back from the service manager. When i had got back i showed the concierge the scratches and they said they would take it back to polish the trunk. While i waited in the lobby the manager confronted me and asked to see the scratches, so we went over to the washing/detailing area where i showed him the scratches and he said not to worry and that he would have the detail guys buff it out. Ok no problem then, as long as they make the car look as good as i gave it to them i would be a happy camper. So i get my car back 20 minutes later and the scratches are less noticeable this time but are still there if you look closely. At the end of the day, i wasted 2 1/2 hours of my time making two trips to the dealership for a mediocre car wash job that ended up in scratches all over the top of the trunk, that they didn't even completely buff out, much less apologize or show any sense of concern over the matter. Way to go Irvine BMW, great to know you care about customer satisfaction. Going back on Saturday for an oil change so ill see if i can get them to buff out the scratches one more time since they haven't gone away completely. I hate be anal about it but i really sucks when you find out a car you got three weeks ago is having its otherwise immaculate paint job raped by some careless wash guy who forgot to use clean towels. /end rant
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09-15-2011, 10:44 PM	#2
ken1137 Brigadier General 89 Rep 3,732 Posts Drives: BMW S1000XR Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Gilbert, AZ iTrader: (7) Garage List 2009 e90 335i [6.40]	Sorry to hear that...now you know don't let them touch your car. Have a detailer fix the scratches and present BMW with the bill __________________ BMWCCA member
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09-16-2011, 01:58 PM	#4
pinmagic The Only Sane One Here 61 Rep 1,135 Posts Drives: 135i Convertible Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Arlington, VA iTrader: (1)	Good luck proving they did it. I'm surprised they even agreed to buff it out. BBB? Waste of time. BMWNA? Oh, good luck with that. Sorry, but I think you're on your own on this one. __________________ 2011 135i VERT SGM/SB/MOONLIGHT - ED - with every single friggin' option they offered.
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09-16-2011, 08:08 PM	#5
ken1137 Brigadier General 89 Rep 3,732 Posts Drives: BMW S1000XR Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Gilbert, AZ iTrader: (7) Garage List 2009 e90 335i [6.40]	pinmagic is right...not much you can do, but I would go back anyway and show them the bill from the Detailer. You should probably use a detailer anyway if you are not into detailing your car. I use one before Winter annually. __________________ BMWCCA member
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09-16-2011, 08:55 PM	#7
HondaGoneRogue They like my Swag... 433 Rep 3,762 Posts Drives: 15 GSM 435i GC Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: South Dakota iTrader: (4) Garage List 2015 435i Gran Coupe [0.00]	My dealer, Desert BMW (Vegas), knows not to wash my car. They are a great service department, but they can't (and shouldn't) be expected to wash my car with the same care as I would have the time and effort to give. Sorry you had to come to this lesson on your new baby. __________________ 2015 435i Gran Coupe - Current 2008 AW 135i - Sold
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09-17-2011, 12:51 AM	#9
Aero New Member 1 Rep 13 Posts Drives: BMW 135i M Sport Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Socal iTrader: (0)	Update: After going back to the dealership with the quote from the local detailer, they refused to covering the cost of corrections at a professional detailer (Not surprised) But after some heated exchanges they did agree to re-buffing the trunk. After I questioned them about their initial polishing and explained that the scratches still remained after their initial quick "fix" the manager informed me that they would they would "professionally" remove the scratches "this time" and that it would take about an hour (mind you they spent less than 15 minutes the first time.) Lessons Learned: Never let anybody else wash your car. Irvine BMW has terrible customer service. If you don't follow up on an issue with them don't expect any help in return. Just on a side note: As we were walking back to the waiting lounge one of the employees thought it would be funny to open the door for my friend and I and casually say: "LADIES FIRST, JUST F**KING WITH YOU" Now i may be over analyzing this but in my opinion this was totally uncalled for and immature, and is just plain unprofessional for an employee in uniform to say something like that to client and then try to play it off as a joke. Good thing theres plenty of dealerships in my area, will be going to Crevier from now on, never had any issues with them and not to mention their customer service is great considering the dealership is one of the largest in the nation.
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