Do not wash

A simple car wash is something that should be so easy for dealerships to get right. I was highly disappointed in my first wash, but at least it didn't leave scratches. On my most recent visit I forgot to tell them not to bother but it came out okay, so whatever.

The Mazda salesguy kept telling me how much he liked the interior and paint protection plan (he never could answer what they were gonna do to my leather), and that it came with twice-yearly "high end detailing" for the deep-discounted price of $50 each.
 
Many many years ago I had a 1974 Chevy Nova. I went to the gas station for fuel and when I turned the key off the engine continued to run, it was dieseling. I was concerned and I didn't notice that the gas attendant had walked over the the rear of my car, just as I turned the key back on. All of a sudden I hear KABOOOOM!!!! my car backfired and I saw the gas attendant jump about two feet and I thought he must have been hit with a hand grenade lol. He proceeded to fill my car with gas and said "That ******* scared the s*** out of me" lol.

I managed a Hess gas station back in the mid 70s. You would not believe the beaters we had come into that place. I've seen lots of cars that would not shut off. Turn them back on, then off again, and hope it finally shut down. It was amazing that some of them started in the first place.
 
When I bought my "CPO" 2018 CX-5 it wasn't until I got home and did a thorough inspection in my garage that I saw scratch marks all down the top of the car, from the sunroof all the way back to the plastic upper "spoiler" Then I found the tale tale piece of blue plastic sticking out of the side view mirror. The dealer had taken it to one of those plastic bristle automatic carwashes. The clear coat, as well as the paint, is very soft, and also very thin. That's the only reason I didn't buy a new Machine Grey, I was afraid of scratches and door dings. I have had similar experiences with my 2003 MX-5, it scratches way too easily. I actually asked the salesman about the clear coat being so thin it scratches way to easy. His comment was, " We solved that issue by using a new "Telfon Paint", one of the BS lies he told me while I was asking about the car, as well as the Map/GPS system automatically downloaded the upgrades OTA. My guess would be they just ran it through the automatic car wash, then "maybe" sprayed it down with quick detailer. I don't trust my dealer or service dept., as they also double charged me the $399.99 "administrative fee" which it clearly states on their web page that charge is included in the advertised price of the car. (I discovered this afterwards as well)
 
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His comment was, " We solved that issue by using a new "Telfon Paint", one of the BS lies he told me...

It amazes/infuriates me that the processes of the two outrageously expensive purchase we make in our lives (vehicles and homes) are so corrupted and dysfunctional.

What is astonishing about the quality of dealerships is that these places are each manufacturer-approved to represent their products to the market. It is a short distribution channel with no apparent ongoing oversight. One has to wonder why no manufacturer seizes the opportunity to differentiate itself by really managing this part of the process that everyone loathes so much.
 
I have my detailer apply CQuartz UK to all my cars. He*s doing my wife*s Accord today. In the care kit he gave me is a big orange plastic tag to hang from my rearview mirror that says DO NOT WASH. Impossible for the dealer to miss that.
 
When I bought my "CPO" 2018 CX-5 it wasn't until I got home and did a thorough inspection in my garage that I saw scratch marks all down the top of the car, from the sunroof all the way back to the plastic upper "spoiler" Then I found the tale tale piece of blue plastic sticking out of the side view mirror. The dealer had taken it to one of those plastic bristle automatic carwashes. The clear coat, as well as the paint, is very soft, and also very thin. That's the only reason I didn't buy a new Machine Grey, I was afraid of scratches and door dings. I have had similar experiences with my 2003 MX-5, it scratches way too easily. I actually asked the salesman about the clear coat being so thin it scratches way to easy. His comment was, " We solved that issue by using a new "Telfon Paint", one of the BS lies he told me while I was asking about the car, as well as the Map/GPS system automatically downloaded the upgrades OTA. My guess would be they just ran it through the automatic car wash, then "maybe" sprayed it down with quick detailer. I don't trust my dealer or service dept., as they also double charged me the $399.99 "administrative fee" which it clearly states on their web page that charge is included in the advertised price of the car. (I discovered this afterwards as well)

In my state there is a Documentation Fee that is a required fee and shown separate from the car. It was $399 and non negotiable. You might not have been charged twice for the admin fee if it is the same thing as my doc fee. It can't be added in and hidden in the car price. The car price of course is negotiable.
 
I understand that most people in NJ shouldn't pump gas without supervision. Makes sense to me.
 
Here's the quote right off of their current web page for a CPO vehicle 2018 CX-5 "Please note: Pricing excludes tax, tag, registration, title and includes $399.50 Administrative Fee." Then they charged me the same fee again as separate line item. I became aware of it when I saw a you tube video a guy posted about them, but it seems to have disappeared, I can't find it. Maybe I should do a video, they might have refunded him to remove the video.
 
In my state there is a Documentation Fee that is a required fee and shown separate from the car. It was $399 and non negotiable. You might not have been charged twice for the admin fee if it is the same thing as my doc fee. It can't be added in and hidden in the car price. The car price of course is negotiable.
Just for the record, $399 is likely the state maximum that a dealership can charge you for "doc fee". It is negotiable, but the dealer holds firm on this amount for the sake of making additional profit. They don't let it be negotiable since most NEW vehicle sales today are sold at cost to the dealer and they make up the profit on bogus fees and financing. Does it really cost $400 to print paper and file it? No, since in Ohio the max doc fee is $250 by state law. It's just a seemingly arbitrary fee that dealerships charge for paper since you pay even more for registration and temp plates. I may be wrong if they are rolled into one payment but I'd venture to say this is 100% more than what you would pay if purchasing a vehicle from a private seller.

Source: sold cars and did financing for 7 years
 
I wash my 2004 Acura TSX and my other vehicles generally weekly and take it two or three times to a local carwash in the colder months. I wax cars twice yearly, which tends to protect the paint. I would never consider paint protection, clear bras etc. The Acura still looks good and a 2005 Nissan XTrail that was given to my son (perhaps to make room for a CX5 shortly) looked good as well . No parking lot dings although my wife and I tend to park at the end of rows a bit further than where most people would park, only some small chips on the front of the hood which I touch up if necessary every few months. I do wonder if paint on most modern vehicles is not as resilient from what is said in the forums, but who know... My vehicles do not see dealers often except for the rapid lube at Honda but I always ask that they not be washed there..yes even for a 16 year old vehicle! As for fuelling my vehicles, my motorcycle has never been fuelled by an attendant even when travelling through the states. Attendants are happy to let me do this myself and in the odd state or town (also common in Northern Ontario and smaller Canadian towns) where there are no self service fuel stations I just let them do it.
 
I wash my 2004 Acura TSX and my other vehicles generally weekly and take it two or three times to a local carwash in the colder months. I wax cars twice yearly, which tends to protect the paint. I would never consider paint protection, clear bras etc. The Acura still looks good and a 2005 Nissan XTrail that was given to my son (perhaps to make room for a CX5 shortly) looked good as well . No parking lot dings although my wife and I tend to park at the end of rows a bit further than where most people would park, only some small chips on the front of the hood which I touch up if necessary every few months. I do wonder if paint on most modern vehicles is not as resilient from what is said in the forums, but who know... My vehicles do not see dealers often except for the rapid lube at Honda but I always ask that they not be washed there..yes even for a 16 year old vehicle! As for fuelling my vehicles, my motorcycle has never been fuelled by an attendant even when travelling through the states. Attendants are happy to let me do this myself and in the odd state or town (also common in Northern Ontario and smaller Canadian towns) where there are no self service fuel stations I just let them do it.

If you did this with a Gen1 CX5 (till 16) guaranteed small scratches. You will need paint correction.
I have given up keeping a perfect paint - I wash once every 3-5 months but keep a protectant on the car with view that I will be doing minor paint correction. I am tempted to get HD Speed this time to shorten the time to cure and protect
 
Some issues may be with the colours chosen. I have gone with silver with most of my cars. Definitely not as exciting as some of the colours on offer. Years back I had a dark blue car that did show everything, wax made things even worse due to white residue in paint chips etc. Silver does not show the dirt like the darker colours, is easy to touch up and salt and fine scratches also don't show. I also always go with black leather interiors as for me these are the easiest to keep clean. Any salt on the carpets that sneaks past the floor mats can be removed with a rag, hot water, some vinegar and if done a few times during the winter things don*t become nasty over the years.
 
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I wash my 2004 Acura TSX and my other vehicles generally weekly and take it two or three times to a local carwash in the colder months. I wax cars twice yearly, which tends to protect the paint. I would never consider paint protection, clear bras etc. The Acura still looks good and a 2005 Nissan XTrail that was given to my son (perhaps to make room for a CX5 shortly) looked good as well . No parking lot dings although my wife and I tend to park at the end of rows a bit further than where most people would park, only some small chips on the front of the hood which I touch up if necessary every few months. I do wonder if paint on most modern vehicles is not as resilient from what is said in the forums, but who know... My vehicles do not see dealers often except for the rapid lube at Honda but I always ask that they not be washed there..yes even for a 16 year old vehicle! As for fuelling my vehicles, my motorcycle has never been fuelled by an attendant even when travelling through the states. Attendants are happy to let me do this myself and in the odd state or town (also common in Northern Ontario and smaller Canadian towns) where there are no self service fuel stations I just let them do it.

Have a co-worker with a mid-2000's TSX and she has a monthly subscription to a local car wash (unlimited usage). Paint looks good and shiny from a distance. Not so much the feel. I may go down this route way into the future when I can no longer detail my own car anymore.
 
Some issues may be with the colours chosen. I have gone with silver with most of my cars. Definitely not as exciting as some of the colours on offer. Years back I had a dark blue car that did show everything, wax made things even worse due to white residue in paint chips etc. Silver does not show the dirt like the darker colours, is easy to touch up and salt and fine scratches also don't show. I also always go with black leather interiors as for me these are the easiest to keep clean. Any salt on the carpets that sneaks past the floor mats can be removed with a rag, hot water, some vinegar and if done a few times during the winter things don*t become nasty over the years.

I've found that white is the best color for "hiding" clearcoat scratches. Generally speaking, the lighter the color, the more easily scratches are hard to see. The exception many be a graphite-type color. My MX5 is "Galaxy Grey" and it hides scratches, well.
 
I had my Mazda dealer do a full detail inside and out yesterday. This is the first time that I have used them for this in 5 years. They offered me a good deal since my car was already reasonably clean. Boy what a big mistake that was. They didn't get all the bug crap off the front, they only gave a surficial wipe to all the black plastic surfaces outside the car, there were smear/wipe marks on all the hard plastic surfaces on the inside, the door frames and rocker panels were not completely cleaned, the inside edges of the tail gate were not cleaned in places, etc, etc.

I called the service department to complain and brought my vehicle in this morning to show them. One of the service department reps said he would reclean it himself. I had to point out all the missed and poorly cleaned areas as he couldn't find them easily himself. WTF!!! After he finished I left in disgust, went home and recleaned most everything myself. What an almost total waste of money. I have used 2 other private detailers over the years with great success. It's back to them from now on!! Never again will I use my dealer to detail my vehicle!!
 
I had my Mazda dealer do a full detail inside and out yesterday. This is the first time that I have used them for this in 5 years. They offered me a good deal since my car was already reasonably clean. Boy what a big mistake that was. They didn't get all the bug crap off the front, they only gave a surficial wipe to all the black plastic surfaces outside the car, there were smear/wipe marks on all the hard plastic surfaces on the inside, the door frames and rocker panels were not completely cleaned, the inside edges of the tail gate were not cleaned in places, etc, etc.

I called the service department to complain and brought my vehicle in this morning to show them. One of the service department reps said he would reclean it himself. I had to point out all the missed and poorly cleaned areas as he couldn't find them easily himself. WTF!!! After he finished I left in disgust, went home and recleaned most everything myself. What an almost total waste of money. I have used 2 other private detailers over the years with great success. It's back to them from now on!! Never again will I use my dealer to detail my vehicle!!

When I bought my car, one of the sales guys picked me up in a CX-9 and drove me to the dealership. The entire drive there he chatted-up the Paint/Interior Protection Package that came with a "discounted" $50 detailing I could get twice a year, telling me how much better having that service made his life. It was like a kid trying to sell his parents on the benefits of having a puppy.

I mainly declined because he could not tell me exactly what "protection" they were going to apply to the leather seats. And as you point out, I'm not paying to have the low-wage guy put down his broom and push a rag over my car. Heck, I don't even want that to happen for free.
 
I had my Mazda dealer do a full detail inside and out yesterday. This is the first time that I have used them for this in 5 years. They offered me a good deal since my car was already reasonably clean. Boy what a big mistake that was. They didn't get all the bug crap off the front, they only gave a surficial wipe to all the black plastic surfaces outside the car, there were smear/wipe marks on all the hard plastic surfaces on the inside, the door frames and rocker panels were not completely cleaned, the inside edges of the tail gate were not cleaned in places, etc, etc.

I called the service department to complain and brought my vehicle in this morning to show them. One of the service department reps said he would reclean it himself. I had to point out all the missed and poorly cleaned areas as he couldn't find them easily himself. WTF!!! After he finished I left in disgust, went home and recleaned most everything myself. What an almost total waste of money. I have used 2 other private detailers over the years with great success. It's back to them from now on!! Never again will I use my dealer to detail my vehicle!!

If you got no scratches consider yourself good.
 
If you got no scratches consider yourself good.

Thank god they didn't scratch my vehicle!! I'm in for my first service next week and I plan to remind them what a crappy detailing job they did on my vehicle. If they offered to redo it I'd decline and instead ask for my money back or a free service!!
 
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