Did the dealer pull a fast one on me??
 

Hey all,

I thought about posting this in the detailing/cosmetics forum but am hoping I get more traffic here.

I've had my Nismo for just about a month now. Bought it used with 13k miles on it. I am a pretty meticulous guy and went over it thoroughly before I signed on the line. It seemed to be in great shape and had just a few tiny cosmetic paint issues that are acceptable for a car with 13,000 miles on it.

It's not a daily driver, and I have barely driven it. It sits inside a fully finished garage that is cleaner then some peoples homes I have been in. I try and hand wash it but if I don't have time I go through a great touch-less car wash. It has been washed 4 times since I bought it.

I pull out of the wash yesterday and proceed to wipe it down with my microfiber towel. I get to the hood and it's covered in what appears to be rock chips. Not just a few a guy could touch up on his own but I've counted at least 25 and I am sure there is more. Some of them are somewhat deep as well. I should note the color is magnetic black so the chips stick out like a sore thumb. Now I know there is no way I missed these when I did the initial inspection. They weren't even there last week when I brought it in to get tinted.

My assumption at this point is that these were all there pre-purchase and the dealer did juuuussst a good enough touch-up job to slip it by me. By about the 4th wash I am thinking that the high pressure water powered off their shady touch-up job on all of the chips. Can any of you body/paint people confirm that this is a possibility?

The Nissan dealer I purchased it from has been just an absolute nightmare to deal with since the first day I expressed interest in buying a vehicle from them. I've been in sales for 18 years and honestly have never seen anything so dreadful in my life. Therefore I know they won't work with me on it, and even if they did they are 7.5 hours away. It's lose/lose either way :mad:

I guess I am wondering because I am just so frustrated. I've wanted this car ever since they came out in 09 and have gone out of my way to protect it. At this point about all I can do is pony up the money to have my hood repainted. I really feel this is the last used car I will ever purchase. Every time I do, I get burned. I was actually planning on buying a new Nismo but just couldn't warm up to the two tone scheme on the 2014's and didn't have the patience to wait for the 2015.

Thanks for letting me vent and please chime in and let me know if you think my theory is correct.

Congrats on the Nismo, but sorry to hear about the situation you're in. Unfortunately, aside from getting the hood repainted yourself, I don't think there's anything you can do at this point. You already accepted the vehicle, and the dealership, who you said provides horrible customer service, is 7.5 hours away. If I were you, I would just focus on getting the car back to pristine condition. Sure, you can certainly ask the question, maybe they'll cut you a check to cover the repairs. Either way, good luck.

Hate to say it but you probably missed them. No real way to hide rock chips and not be noticeable. Just get it fixed and move on. Black shows everything.

I like you refused to pay what they wanted at the dealer. I looked at a 2014 the week before I found my 2012 two blocks away. It has a few character scratches also.

Ugh, feel for you. I found my very first hood chip last week and was ticked, can't imagine 25+ all at once that I wasn't expecting. While you could just get your hood repainted, you could also look at this as an opportunity to consider aftermarket hoods or some type of custom paint work on your current hood...pin striping, etc. Best of luck to you!

The mistake you made was using a pressure washer. I've seen pressure washers take little chips and turn them into hood repaints.

The sad thing is that you do not seem to want to drive it. Like marrying someone very beautiful and refusing to make love. Just sit her at home and stare at her every chance you get. Eventually, she will start getting wrinkles.

DD it. Both you and the car will get older.

Probably filled with Dr. ColorChip or something, was sprayed out. Not a dealer scam. I'd get the hood and/or bumper repainted and have a clear bra put on.

touchless wash for a meticulous guy.... something dont mix right. :ugh:

anyway you looked over the car very carefully before purchase so i am assuming
you did not see the chips on the hood before purchase.

that said, touchless washes are like sand blasters depending on wat recirculated water
it's using...

i am a meticulous guy.. i dont drive my car in the rain and dont even have to wash the car.
only QD after each drive.

I am with you on avoiding any high pressure car wash systems. If you did not damage the paint finish itself you sure would send your auto wax down the drain..

I agree.........

:iagree:

Not sure what touchless wash system you guys use but the one I took mine through does jack sh** for cleaning the car. The car still comes back with a haze of filth all over the panels as well has hard water spots. So definately not like a sandblaster.

If you need your hood perfect then you should repaint the hood, put on clear bra, and enjoy the car more.

He wont need a clear bra as he does not drive it.

Sorry for OP.

you bought a sports car that is notorious for bad paint. (hell most cars in teh 30-40k range have crappy paint)

you pressure wash your car? wtf?

if you are soooo meticulous stop buying used cars...


best of luck though!

Brother.... We have the worst paint money can buy.... Your best bet is to do like I do... (Be happy if the car looks good from about 10FT away)... Sorry...

There's nothing wrong with using a pressure washer, assuming you are using it correctly. I use mine with a 40 degree nozzle but from pretty far away, I highly doubt it will do any damage to the paint.

my paint is fine.

The whole "Nissan has bad paint" mantra is mostly baloney IMHO, based on many years of owning many Nissans.

I pressure wash mine routinely without incident.

Every car I've owned has had a forum filled with 'this car has such bad paint!' posts. Audi, VW, Mazda, Nissan, etc... Maybe rocks are just getting harder and chipping cars easier? :roflpuke2:

:icon18: :tup:

I have to disagree with that statement. DODGE has the worst paint money can buy. The clear is so thin, you can't even buff it without making a future re-paint. Swirls happen on everything. If you can't polish it, that is a problem.

Double Bawa...................

:bowrofl::roflpuke2::bowrofl:

Clearly you have never owned a Ford product. Paint by Sunkist:shakes head:

every car owner cries about paint, i use to be on the evo x forums and they cry about it, so do the s2k,brz/frs/,subaru guys. Even my moms new 3 series has crappy paint. But back to the OP, check on yelp and see if people complained about that dealer. Really isn't anything you can do at this point but get it repainted. Any pics of the damage?

Thanks for all the replies everyone.

I'd like to address a few of the replies that I found a bit disconcerting.

To those giving be a bad time about not driving it:

I live in the oilfields of western North Dakota, or the Bakken if you will. It's literally the wild west, more rocks are flung on these roads then you could ever imagine. My work truck has 20k miles on it and I have had the windshield replaced 3 times already, usually waiting to replace it until I have a tough time seeing out of it each time. If you park somewhere in town such as a restaurant there is about a 90% chance a redneck with a jacked up truck with monster truck tires will park within about 4 inches between you and his monstrosity of a vehicle. I haven't submitted anything to the "official crappy parkers" thread yet but pretty sure I would win the best ones hands down.

Why did I buy it if I live out here you ask? I am from the eastern side of the state, very calm and tame compared to this side. I use my Z to commute back and forth to my hometown. As soon as I get just east of town there is zero oilfield traffic all the way home. Until I took this job, never in a million years could I have afforded a 370 and the mods that I intend to do. I view it as some people view their motorcycles, I take it out for a cruise on the interstate or areas where the oil traffic is minimal, staying far away from areas where rock chips are prominent. It's my stress relief from my demanding job. It just blows my mind how many haters are on these forums about people that don't drive the car as a DD. Everyone has their reasons. I'm not about to ruin the car I worked so hard for in this environment, especially when I drive a brand new truck for free and don't pay for a drop of fuel in it whether it's business or personal use.

The touch-less wash:

I think a few of you perhaps misinterpreted what I meant to get across. I use it as a last resort. I know it's not ideal for the vehicle, but it's better than the outdated regular washes out here with awful brushes that leave swirl marks. I normally run it through if I get home late at night and have a layer of bugs on my vehicle so thick that you truly couldn't believe unless you saw a picture. I figure it's either leave the bugs on and let the acid rot my paint until I can wash it maybe a day or two later when I am not working, or take a chance at the dreadful touch-less car wash.

To the person that said "Don't by a used car"

I explained in the original post I am not a fan of the two-tone 14' Nismo's and really just didn't want to wait for the 15'.

To the rest of you: Thank you for the great advice as usual. I really do enjoy these forums immensely.

I'm having the hood repainted. It's not the end of the world like I perhaps originally made it sound. Was mainly just wondering if my hypothesis on the chips being covered up pre-purchase was feasible as I know I haven't driven it enough to warrant that much damage. I'm also having a 3M clear bra put on by a good friend who owns a performance shop. 3M flew him to their training facility and trained him for 3 weeks straight on it. He tinted my car and is one of the few people I trust to work on it.

Thanks again

Clear bra is a good idea. Wish I had one on my car but I also have some chips. Not bad enough to repaint so I will just live with it. Most folks don't even see the chips.

And you wonder why there are so much rock chips on your hood.
The dealer didn't pull a fast one on you....

Please, please please read the entire post!!!!!!! :shakes head:

"I take it out for a cruise on the interstate or areas where the oil traffic is minimal, staying far away from areas where rock chips are prominent"

"I use my Z to commute back and forth to my hometown. As soon as I get just east of town there is zero oilfield traffic all the way home"

It doesn't go anywhere near oilfield traffic

You don't have to live at area with oil traffic to get rock chips on the hood. I bought my 370 new and it looks like its sand blasted after driving 10k miles city driving. Just get clear bra next time

Buy new if you care that much about the chips, not sure what you want?

Hey my '09 car has pits all over the front, and I live is FL, where sand and salt are everywhere, the place is a giant sandbox. Twice a month I have to take the leaf blower under my hood and blow the sand out/off the engine. It's crazy sandy here. Fortunately I live in Orlando far from the beach salt.
If the pits are driving you crazy I understand. I too would get it repainted and put a clear bra on it if it bugged me. My Z is platinum I think so the scratches don't show up too much. I'm not too concerned with rock pits but in a perfect world it wouldn't happen.

I have a MB NISMO too. It has about 1700 miles on it, two dings in the roof (hail) and a chip on the hood (rock) plus some etching from some bird ****. I have not washed the car yet, I drive it to work every day, in the rain, through puddles, under trees, over dog poop, et cetera.

Do you need me to drive your car for you? :driving:

Really if it bugs you that much, find a good body shop. You're either going to need it, or you're going to realize that having something you don't use is no fun.

even though my paint doesnt match at least it isnt chipping too bad up front.

This. The damn sand man! :icon14:

Whats more important to me is making sure none of my wash items like microfiber or wash mints have sand in them. It is not easy! Fortunatly no salt here though.

No Car Washes
 

I have never sent my Z through a touch less car wash. The spray yourself are pretty strong but you can control the angles and distance. I’m surprise being as anal as you seem that you don’t use a water based finish enhancer. For just wiping a car down that is dusty or lightly soiled they work great, save time and look better than a full wash.

Dude, if it bothers u that much just get the hood and front bumper repainted. Then 3M clear bra it. U bought a USED Z! I really don't put the blame on the stealership...