Dealership tech has damaged my car!

[e30e36e46e92]

I’ll try to make a long story short: I recently took my 135 into the local dealership for an adjustment to the bootlid (water was seeping into the trunk around the lip). While they were trying to adjust it, one of the techs essentially bent the sheet metal on the corner of the decklid where it meets the rear window glass on the passenger side, leaving a crease type dent. They determined that due to the nature of the dent, they could not do any sort of paintless dent repair on it. They have offered to sand it down, use some putty and smooth out the dent, then spray and blend. My feeling is that I will not be satisfied with that solution, that this car is less than a year old with less than 10k miles and that the decklid should ultimately be replaced by the dealership, free of charge to me. They have accepted responsibility – admitting that they caused the damage. Should I hold their feet to the fire for a new decklid? The damage is minor, but must be fixed somehow. I realize that a new decklid will be a high cost item for the dealership, but I don’t feel like I should have to accept my car in worse shape than when I dropped it off. I expect better from BMW’s dealerships.

Please share your thoughts –*either way, I would really appreciate your input on my situation.

[KeithLM]

I'd push for replacement. I can't imagine it would cost them to much money. For other parts of the car the cost might not be justified and I would accept the repair plus some other compensation. Make sure if they go for this that you see your old trunk afterward. You want to be certain that they did replace it and not just fix it and claim it was replaced.

[BlackjackMulligan]

Originally Posted by KeithLM

Make sure if they go for this that you see your old trunk afterward. You want to be certain that they did replace it and not just fix it and claim it was replaced.

Keith makes a good point here.....if you need to see your old trunk lid to ensure that it wasn't repaired, then no one else will be able to tell either.

I hear you on being pissed off, I would too. But you will give yourself more angst by fighting them for a new trunk lid, just let them fix it (as good as new, obviously!)

Maybe you can get a free detail out of it, or a jacket etc.

[tjockey]

I see the character assasin twins are at it again.............Somebody needs to get a life....

[m_thompson]

Most BMW sheet metal has a VIN number sticker on it. If the VIN sticker is there then they didn't replace the trunk lid.

Replacing the trunk lid may reduce your resale value because a buyer will assume that the car was in a bad accident if the trunk lid needed to be replaced.

[BlackjackMulligan]

Originally Posted by tjockey

I see the character assasin twins are at it again.............Somebody needs to get a life....

/\ /\ LOL /\ /\

[Mark M]

Originally Posted by m_thompson

Most BMW sheet metal has a VIN number sticker on it. If the VIN sticker is there then they didn't replace the trunk lid.

Replacing the trunk lid may reduce your resale value because a buyer will assume that the car was in a bad accident if the trunk lid needed to be replaced.

I agree. If this really is a minor issue I would opt for having them repair your existing deck lid. Preference is to keep the matching VINs. Whenever I buy a used car that is the first thing I review to make sure all VINs match.

Take the dealer's offer to rework your decklid under the condition that it has to meet with your satisfaction.

[penny]

I hate reading these. Which dealership is this by the way?

[Midgad]

Let em to fix it first. You can always have them replace if ya dont like what they did.
They might cause more damage in trying to replace rather than repair.

[cpt97m3]

Originally Posted by Mark M

I agree. If this really is a minor issue I would opt for having them repair your existing deck lid. Preference is to keep the matching VINs. Whenever I buy a used car that is the first thing I review to make sure all VINs match.

Take the dealer's offer to rework your decklid under the condition that it has to meet with your satisfaction.

+1

[Add1ct]

new one because if you ever go to trade it in they're gonna go after you for whatever happened to the trunk with their lil paintometer

[e30e36e46e92]

Thanks to all for the advice and thoughts. I ended up speaking to the GM of the dealership and agreed to let them try the repair with the understanding that if I am not satisfied with it, that they will replace the lid. The damage was so minor that I couldn't help but agree that it was worth a shot trying to repair.

I have to say that, though I was frustrated about the damage, accidents are going to happen. In the end, the dealership's response was acceptable. We'll see how the repair goes.

The bottom line is that I miss my car. I've been driving the loaner 335i 4dr auto, and it feels like just another car in comparison to my 1.

[e30e36e46e92]

Just to follow up on this one – I got my car back last night. The trunk was repaired to my satisfaction, they are going to warrantee the repair, and the service rep who worked with me on it handled things well. I remain concerned that the damage happened in the first place, and that I had to push for them to guarantee my satisfaction on the repair. But accidents happen. Thanks to all for the advice. Enjoy your car – I missed mine quite a lot.

[cagekicker]

replacement!

[AchtungF80]

Originally Posted by e30e36e46e92

The bottom line is that I miss my car. I've been driving the loaner 335i 4dr auto, and it feels like just another car in comparison to my 1.

Poor you. Some people get Chevy Cobalts as loaners