Dealership’s Paint Protection Without my Permission

[22MoparMuscle]

My dealership put that Protective Paint coating on my New 2022 Hellcat’s Pitch Black paint without asking me first and I didn’t order it. It’s a long story. I argued with them about giving me a refund, etc. Of course they won’t give me anything. They’re A holes.

I also have several cloudy areas and orbital burns. But the only bad area my Dealership found was on the trunk lid. And they want to send me to a body shop to get an estimate. After that, They want to send that in to Dodge. If approved, it might take 90 days.

‘Anyways, I might fix it myself (try a small area first and see if it turns out good) or take it to a professional detailer.

First off, what exactly is that Paint protection from the dealership? Is it like ceramic coating?

I need to polish off the dealerships paint protection and polish the cloudy area too, correct? Like I said , I’m gonna try a small area first. If that turns out good, should I use Meguiars or Griot’s ceramic coating? After polishing.

 

[22MoparMuscle]

Here’s that messy area on the trunk. Obviously it looks worse in direct sunlight.

 

[BULL]

This was after placing an order, signing a contract but before taking initial delivery??

 

[BULL]

As for what it is, it could be anything, or even nothing, other than the bad paint-correction that you highlighted.

 

[22MoparMuscle]

This was after placing an order, signing a contract but before taking initial delivery??

I did order this car, Yes.
And I know I shouldn’t of signed the paperwork after the lying salesman went over it with me. Too late now.
‘They rushed prepping it too.

 

[22MoparMuscle]

As for what it is, it could be anything, or even nothing, other than the bad paint-correction that you highlighted.

Highlighted? I just took a pic of it.

All I care about now is fixing it. I don’t care about the dealership. I’m sure they’ll get bad karma.

I’m asking Anyone with some experience about detailing. How to fix it.

I’ll post more pics tomorrow of those orbital burns.

 

[BULL]

Highlighted? I just took a pic of it.

All I care about now is fixing it. I don’t care about the dealership. I’m sure they’ll get bad karma.

I’m asking Anyone with some experience about detailing. How to fix it.

I’ll post more pics tomorrow of those orbital burns.

By highlighting, I was referring to the closeup picture you took of the burn.

If it is truly a clearcoat burn, my understanding is that the only correct way to deal with that is to refinish it.

(You obviously can't put the clear back on with more polishing...)

Sorry that you're having to deal with this on your new HC.

Work thru it and enjoy the car and welcome to our place BTW.

 

[Slowpoke387]

By highlighting, I was referring to the closeup picture you took of the burn.

If it is truly a clearcoat burn, my understanding is that the only correct way to deal with that is to refinish it.

(You obviously can't put the clear back on with more polishing...)

Sorry that you're having to deal with this on your new HC.

Work thru it and enjoy the car and welcome to our place BTW.

It’s from the assembly line. When they are inspecting the paint and find small imperfections such as dust or paint nibs they buff them out with a small handheld orbital buffer. Those small areas are not polished correctly after and leave cloudy areas where it was buffed. Def not burned through the clear. If you watch videos you can see workers with small handheld orbital buffer going around touching up the paint. That is what this is. For some reason it is really visible on the black paint. I had two pitch black challengers that both had this but luckily for me there was no paint protection over the clear so I was able to just hand polish the areas by hand and they came right out perfectly. Took me a long time to figure it out, dealers were no help. They actually wanted to repaint the car lol. Luckily for me a Brampton worker on the forum chimed in and posted what it was. In this case OP needs to get the paint protection off so he can polish those areas. How to remove that is the question. I would prob call the dealer and ask them what type of protection they apply and then use that information with a detailer.

 

[22MoparMuscle]

It’s from the assembly line. When they are inspecting the paint and find small imperfections such as dust or paint nibs they buff them out with a small handheld orbital buffer. Those small areas are not polished correctly after and leave cloudy areas where it was buffed. Def not burned through the clear. If you watch videos you can see workers with small handheld orbital buffer going around touching up the paint. That is what this is. For some reason it is really visible on the black paint. I had two pitch black challengers that both had this but luckily for me there was no paint protection over the clear so I was able to just hand polish the areas by hand and they came right out perfectly. Took me a long time to figure it out, dealers were no help. They actually wanted to repaint the car lol. Luckily for me a Brampton worker on the forum chimed in and posted what it was. In this case OP needs to get the paint protection off so he can polish those areas. How to remove that is the question. I would prob call the dealer and ask them what type of protection they apply and then use that information with a detailer.

Thanks again bro. I heard polish will remove that dealership paint protection.
I’ll confirm with a professional detailer.

I tried to sign up as a new member on detailing sites like autogeek forums and Meguiars forums to ask over there. And for some reason they never sent a confirmation email so I can sign up. Wtf. Lol.

 

[22MoparMuscle]

Few more pics. That area on the trunk looks a lot better obviously at a different angle and lighting. And the flash from the camera will make it look worse too.
I Added a nice pic of my new HC too. I love the car so far. It’s awesome. The paint issues are minor and because it’s black , everything is gonna show up on it.

 

[ChargerChallenger]

Beautiful car and bummer but I would take it to a reputable detail shop and let them give their two cents. I mean a professional detailer does this stuff all day long and would know better than most. Call around to different shops and feel out the one you think understands. And damn if it’s me I’d just do it and fight with the dealer later and ask for like a nice car cover Mopar brand in exchange for the aggrevations. No way am I trusting them to send it somewhere and let some one do it for cheap. Also do it sooner than later being paint is porous as it cures over time which it may be easier to fix now than later as the sealant absorbs into the paint. And that comment is debatable but I would not let time waste imo. Welcome to the Community.

 

[Jack_Toepfer]

@DodgeCares - any insight into how Dodge can help this guy if the dealer is a dead end?

 

[TraxMoe]

Any good detail shop can take the ceramic coating off, buff out the area and reapply the coating after they fixed the areas. You submit the bill to your Dodge dealer and you should get reimbursed

 

[22MoparMuscle]

@DodgeCares - any insight into how Dodge can help this guy if the dealer is a dead end?

I really appreciate you mentioning that. Like I said the dealership only found the one spot on the trunk and the service writer didn’t care or want to see the pics I took. I did originally send a couple pics to my salesman and he forwarded them to the sales manager. A couple weeks after I bought the car.
‘I mean come on!!
Do they think we’re that stupid , that the dealership wants to only have that section on the trunk looked at and get an estimate at a local body shop lol
And it could take 90 days if approved. If Dodge finds out the dealership put the protective paint coating on, they’re gonna say it’s On the dealership now.

 

[22MoparMuscle]

One more thing , the dealership is gonna argue I never took it into the body shop they recommended. For an estimate.
I was feeling heat exhaustion that day they looked at it, The salesman and a service writer. I told them I’d come back. I mean if they only noticed the spot on my trunk, it’s just a waste of time at this point.
90 days? What a joke. If approved. Even a bigger joke.

The salesman acted weird when I mentioned the email I sent him the day I brought it in.

 

[Paladin06]

Man I hate this happened to you but, better you then me because some child would be without a father and mother without a son. That's just BS.

 

[22MoparMuscle]

Man I hate this happened to you but, better you then me because some child would be without a father and mother without a son. That's just BS.

I was really pissed at first. But I calmed down.

When I run my hand across those areas. After a car wash. It’s smooth. So hopefully a detailer can just fix it. And it won’t need a body shop.

I was planning to take to a detailer and get one of the best ceramic coatings available. And maybe PPF on some parts.
‘Not sure now, I can even email pics to a detailer and see what they say. They also probably know what exactly that stuff is the dealership put on my paint. The protective paint protection. Which the dealership also said there’s a warranty on it.

 

[22MoparMuscle]

Any good detail shop can take the ceramic coating off, buff out the area and reapply the coating after they fixed the areas. You submit the bill to your Dodge dealer and you should get reimbursed

I’ll try that too. Thanks again guys!

 

[why2kmax]

I was really pissed at first. But I calmed down.

When I run my hand across those areas. After a car wash. It’s smooth. So hopefully a detailer can just fix it. And it won’t need a body shop.

I was planning to take to a detailer and get one of the best ceramic coatings available. And maybe PPF on some parts.
‘Not sure now, I can even email pics to a detailer and see what they say. They also probably know what exactly that stuff is the dealership put on my paint. The protective paint protection. Which the dealership also said there’s a warranty on it.

Find out from the dealer what they put on the paint. Brand, name etc. was it ceramic, was it graphine was it something else? There are hundreds of paint sealants, coatings etc out there. Which one sometimes makes a difference in how to get it off. Give that info to the detailer so he is better informed in how to deal with the situation.

 

[GdBye]

What did they charge you for the so called "paint protection" package? That might give you a better idea if it was ceramic or just some b.s. wax they throw on and call paint protection. Total B.S. move by the dealer and salesperson though to grab some more profit in an unethical way. They just don't realize the overall damage they do to their reputation and future business when they do this stuff. Because of a relative shortage of vehicles on their lots, they also feel compelled to take advantage of their customers rather than building a long term relationship. One finance manager that I know personally told me that even though there is a shortage of vehicles, they are making more money than ever now because they don't have to offer any discounts, i.e., full price+. I would have an expert verify whether they used ceramic or not and especially whether they burned through the clear coat. If they didn't, great. If they did, no amount of buffing is going to fix it. Assuming that they did not burn through the clear coat, it's probably a relatively easy fix using compounds. I've detailed many vehicles (including black) with an orbital buffer and compounds and you can get amazing outcomes with the right process. It's a lot more difficult to burn through clearcoat with an orbital (but not impossible) but a non-orbital (much faster) in the wrong hands can easily cause damage. It's all about the technique, experience and thoughtfulness by the individual doing the work. Technique trumps product every time. Most dealers don't hire or train individuals with that type of experience in my opinion. I wish you luck and that's a great looking car.