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dealer car wash

1K views 25 replies 16 participants last post by  hommyd 
#1 ·
I think I have seen a similar post but couldn't find it.

I had my car in for the 1K free service 2 weeks ago and when I picked up the car they had washed it. Yesterday I noticed that there are light circular scratches all over the car! They are very light and you can only see them when the light is at an angle, but they are definitely there. WHAT THE F*K????? The only other time I have washed the car was in a brushless car wash. They did dry the car with towels after that wash, but I don't see how it could have put these scratehes on...it must have been the dealer. Has anyone had this happen? What did you do? What can I do? This is unbelievable, $30K car scratched by the dealer after 1K miles...
 
#4 ·
every dealer is different with there washes, its not standardized. some do it all by hand others are automated. mines automated with brushless "shammie style" things thast spin. that sucks what happened to you car. but it could be a total fluck. so there did as total hand wash and then then one of the mits hit the ground and picked it back up. little bit of dust one grain of sand is on it. its going to happen. i would just ask them if theres any thing they csan do for you ie buff the car. llike you said its so slight it should come out.
skot
if you dont want a car wash just ask them not to next time. they now how to wash cars. and trust me your anal about your 30k car. image how anal the LS430 70k+ people are. if they screwed up cars they would be washing car in a distructive way.
 
#5 ·
That was what I couldn't belive, if this sh*t happened to my car what about the guys who buy the LS' and LX's. It almost looks like they used one of those hose attachments that has nylon brissles and spins with the water pressure. I will absolutely tell them not to wash it again. I'm afraid to ask them to buff it out in fear that they will further screw it up.
 
#8 ·
TDaddy said:
geez, if you're gonna be like that to swirl marks, i wonder what's going to happen when you get your first rock chip :roll:


Stop being a whiney ass little bitch. You bought a dark colored car, they washed your car, you got some swirl marks! OMG its the end of the world, its not like you drive a E55 or something. GET OVER IT!
 
#9 ·
:x
You guys, thats jacked up. When you are on the street and a rock chip jackes up your nice ride, you can't do too much to help that. But dealers are supposed to be careful with your car. But now you know. It comes out easy though. You might want to tell them not to wash your car just from the simple fact that they dont dry it as careful as you do anyway. On your way home you will get the water drippin out of the mirrors and stuff. Our IS isn't on the scale as those higher end cars so the techs probably just treat it like that.
 
#10 ·
DANGo330 and TDaddy you are idiots.

But to respond to your lame question, rock chips do suck, but they are unavoidable. Swirl marks over the entire surface of the car is inexcusable and eventually will lead to the early diminshment of the cars shine, for that to be caused by the dealers underpaid inexperienced valet guys is ridiculous. Thankfully the dark/pearl paint hides them better than a flat black or other color.

Thanks for your enlightened insight.
 
#11 ·
DANGo330 said:
TDaddy said:
geez, if you're gonna be like that to swirl marks, i wonder what's going to happen when you get your first rock chip :roll:


Stop being a whiney ass little bitch. You bought a dark colored car, they washed your car, you got some swirl marks! OMG its the end of the world, its not like you drive a E55 or something. GET OVER IT!
You got two posts and this is one of them? Better go back to bed and start over again. :(
 
#12 ·
is300sam2002 said:
DANGo330 said:
TDaddy said:
geez, if you're gonna be like that to swirl marks, i wonder what's going to happen when you get your first rock chip :roll:


Stop being a whiney ass little bitch. You bought a dark colored car, they washed your car, you got some swirl marks! OMG its the end of the world, its not like you drive a E55 or something. GET OVER IT!
You got two posts and this is one of them? Better go back to bed and start over again. :(
Okay, just give it couple coats of wax and you won't even notice.
 
#14 ·
When you wash your car, use MICRO FIBER. I am a true believer in this cleaning innovation. Use them dry or damp, neither will harm. I cannot explain how amazing these towels are in words, you must just buy them and use them. Here is a picture of my car washed with a 100% genuine cotton wash mitt (i use 3 of them) 1 for the rims, 1 for the area above the door moldings, and 1 for the area lower than the door moldings. Constantly rinse, no circular movements, only lateral. In this pic, the car was washed the day before, and hasn't been waxed for 1.5 weeks. I will take pics of the car soon with the new wax on it.

 
#16 ·
Aja1 said:
I think I have seen a similar post but couldn't find it.

I had my car in for the 1K free service 2 weeks ago and when I picked up the car they had washed it. Yesterday I noticed that there are light circular scratches all over the car! They are very light and you can only see them when the light is at an angle, but they are definitely there. WHAT THE F*K????? The only other time I have washed the car was in a brushless car wash. They did dry the car with towels after that wash, but I don't see how it could have put these scratehes on...it must have been the dealer. Has anyone had this happen? What did you do? What can I do? This is unbelievable, $30K car scratched by the dealer after 1K miles...
it's probably the brushless car wash not the dealer.
 
#19 ·
Aja1 said:
DANGo330 and TDaddy you are idiots.

But to respond to your lame question, rock chips do suck, but they are unavoidable. Swirl marks over the entire surface of the car is inexcusable and eventually will lead to the early diminshment of the cars shine, for that to be caused by the dealers underpaid inexperienced valet guys is ridiculous. Thankfully the dark/pearl paint hides them better than a flat black or other color.

Thanks for your enlightened insight.
the "underpaid inexperienced valet guys" are the reason your lexus dealer offers free vacuum and car washes which many people take advantage of. they are not responsible for damage to your car, therefore you can count any scratches or dings you get as unavoidable; so take it easy :roll: you'll have a lot more before summer.

try this stuff, zep hand cleaner with pumice. not as harsh as polishing compound, but rough enough to buff out swirl marks

 
#20 ·
Aja1 said:
I think I have seen a similar post but couldn't find it.

I had my car in for the 1K free service 2 weeks ago and when I picked up the car they had washed it. Yesterday I noticed that there are light circular scratches all over the car! They are very light and you can only see them when the light is at an angle, but they are definitely there. WHAT THE F*K????? The only other time I have washed the car was in a brushless car wash. They did dry the car with towels after that wash, but I don't see how it could have put these scratehes on...it must have been the dealer. Has anyone had this happen? What did you do? What can I do? This is unbelievable, $30K car scratched by the dealer after 1K miles...
the scratches are probably a combo of the brushless car wash & dealer. just to avoid future problems at your dealer, tell the service guy not to wash it. (I put up "DO NOT WASH" signs on my dash and rear windshield just to be sure)

oh yeah.....wash your own car.
 
#22 ·
the batmobile said:
if u guys want washing ur car easier.. make sure you get this thing called the ABSORBOR, you dont even need to use towels, you use this thing.. it soaks up all the water, and if its still not dry.. you just squeeze all the water out and wipe again
This is quite possible one of the worst things to use on your car!!
It is not plush. If ONE tiny thing gets caught in it, you just created sand paper. Do not use genuine chamois, do not use the Absorber or anything like it, do not use the california water black. Do not use anything that make a seal between the dryer and your paint. USE GENUINE 100% cotton towels, they are plush, but the best is still micro fiber. It wont scratch, if it does, i will come buff your car for you.
 
#23 ·
Malekreza11 said:
the batmobile said:
if u guys want washing ur car easier.. make sure you get this thing called the ABSORBOR, you dont even need to use towels, you use this thing.. it soaks up all the water, and if its still not dry.. you just squeeze all the water out and wipe again
This is quite possible one of the worst things to use on your car!!
It is not plush. If ONE tiny thing gets caught in it, you just created sand paper. Do not use genuine chamois, do not use the Absorber or anything like it, do not use the california water black. Do not use anything that make a seal between the dryer and your paint. USE GENUINE 100% cotton towels, they are plush, but the best is still micro fiber. It wont scratch, if it does, i will come buff your car for you.
looks like all my advice finally helped u :)
 
#24 ·
Call me a cynic, but I'm skeptical about the dealer "hand wash". Next time I visit a
dealer, I'll observe the washing to see what they mean by that term. They seem to
finish pretty quickly.

I would think that if you are picky, it's best to do it yourself, or at least let them know
that you are picky. Maybe they'll even do a more careful job. ;-)
 
#25 ·
TDaddy said:
the "underpaid inexperienced valet guys" are the reason your lexus dealer offers free vacuum and car washes which many people take advantage of. they are not responsible for damage to your car, therefore you can count any scratches or dings you get as unavoidable; so take it easy :roll: you'll have a lot more before summer.

try this stuff, zep hand cleaner with pumice. not as harsh as polishing compound, but rough enough to buff out swirl marks

Holy crap! Do not use this!!! That's like wet sanding your car!

The best way to get rid of swirls is to use a porter cable random orbit buffer and some polish with mild abrasives in it.

go to www.autopia.com and start reading.
 
#26 ·
I'm in Baton Rouge and my Lexus dealership left swirl marks that looks like they washed the car with 90 grit sandpaper.... I called the manager out on it... He sent my car to a body shop and had the car reglazed (at least that's what he called it).. They had my car for 3 days while I drove a loaner-Toyota-4-runner/18 wheeler!! But heh, all the swirls are gone... and he/the manager was very nice about it... He told me it would piss him off it were his
 
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