When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Hey, guys - the clearcoat on my roof rails was peeling so i decided it was a good time to take care of that and a few other body issues, including a crack in the front bumper, some new window railings and a new V8 KOMPRESSOR badge to replace a poorly installed one.
I went to a neighborhood body shop that had 150-plus good reviews on Google and that has been in business in Portland for decades.
I got the car back late last week and was stunned to discover every single thing that was repaired was done poorly.
I did a quick video earlier today, detailing the issues:
The shop has promised it will take care of me but hesitated to promise to fix the paint issue under the newly installed badge.
Curious if any of you have comments or feedback. I'm really mad and disappointed.
Road tar trapped underneath new clearcoat Bottom of bumper is warped. Bottom of bumper is warped. Bottom of bumper is warped. Bottom of bumper is warped. Black rubber trim around new roof rails is bunched up, easy to lift No paint matching on new roof rails They applied the new badge over bad paint Small chip in new black window rail (apologies for the dust...car gets covered in ash from wildfires every night ) No paint matching on new roof rails, poorly installed rubber trim No paint matching on new roof rails, poorly installed rubber trim
Last edited by tettes; 09-16-2021 at 05:24 PM.
Reason: add photos and descriptions
I'm currently having some work done on mine and I made sure to choose a recommended shop with a "make it right" guarantee just for this reason; . Honestly I've found that unless you're talking a top paint shop that specializes in very high end finishing it can just be massively hit or miss. Overspray, poor fitment, and hiding mistakes are far too common because they're trying to churn out as many jobs as possible as quickly as possible and the average customer doesn't know what to look for before walking away.
Write up a detailed list of what they need to fix and make your expectations fair, firm, and clear.
I'm currently having some work done on mine and I made sure to choose a recommended shop with a "make it right" guarantee just for this reason; . Honestly I've found that unless you're talking a top paint shop that specializes in very high end finishing it can just be massively hit or miss. Overspray, poor fitment, and hiding mistakes are far too common because they're trying to churn out as many jobs as possible as quickly as possible and the average customer doesn't know what to look for before walking away.
Write up a detailed list of what they need to fix and make your expectations fair, firm, and clear.
You're right, I should have used a high-end shop. Thankfully, I have a warranty on the work but that also means the guys who screwed up the job have to figure out a way to fix it :/
I've made a list and they have agreed to fix everything. I'll keep you guys posted.
Finding the right body shop is much harder than finding the right independent for the mechanical side of things. It took me a few years but found both within 15 mins from my front doorstep.
Yeah well now they are going to lose money because they have to do the job again for free haha.
But I agree that this must be a profitable way for them to do business.
Just fix issues with the occasional angry customer and continue with high volume, low skilled work.
Yes. Unfortunately I think this is super common. Though, shame on people for not inspecting work that was done to their car. If you care about your car, there is a high chance they will do one or more things poorly and you'll have to work with the shop to remedy. The good news is, body shops always seem to make it right but it's annoying because first it has to be done poorly, then correctly. It's almost like you should tell them "I'm the kind of guy who is going to actually expect a good result so....up to you, but you may just want to see this one through properly, the first time." Not like that would result in anything good but it's tempting!
You would also expect that on a higher end car they'd be more likely to get a better result, knowing the owner may have high expectations. Apparently that is also a bad assumption.
You would also expect that on a higher end car they'd be more likely to get a better result, knowing the owner may have high expectations. Apparently that is also a bad assumption.
When I asked my service advisor how this happened, one of the explanations was they gave the job to a rookie technician because it "wasn't very complicated."
The car is back at their shop and I asked them to use their best tech and they said they would. Hoping to get the car back on Friday.