[ExCivilian]

I’m a dissenter here this sounds like a minor paint issue that has been resolved so likely would not wait. What is the risk in taking it? Maybe the new car will have some other problem.

The risk in taking it could be as "minor" as the clear coat delaminating in a few years or, since the dealership wasn't able to explain what the problem was in the first place or even present when the damage occurred, a more significant issue with the paint.

Another car could have some other problem but you're accepting one with a known problem. Using your logic, cars that have been in accidents and fixed should have price premiums over ones that have never been in accidents.

 

[id4ftw]

The risk in taking it could be as "minor" as the clear coat delaminating in a few years or, since the dealership wasn't able to explain what the problem was in the first place or even present when the damage occurred, a more significant issue with the paint.

Another car could have some other problem but you're accepting one with a known problem. Using your logic, cars that have been in accidents and fixed should have price premiums over ones that have never been in accidents.

err no. A paint issue is NOT structural damage and body shop hand disassembly; that is definitely not my logic!!

 

[ExCivilian]

err no. A paint issue is NOT structural damage and body shop hand disassembly; that is definitely not my logic!!

First of all, nobody here knows what damage occurred to this car--not even the dealership.

That said, it's exactly your logic: trading a known problem that has been fixed for an unknown problem that hasn't occurred yet. Use whichever example doesn't raise your hackles, since you didn't like mine, but the logic is how I described it.

EDIT: don't get hung up on that example because it doesn't even matter to the overall point.

The facts we know are that the manufacturer sent a limited run vehicle that was pre-ordered to a customer. When it landed it had so much damage that they determined it couldn't be shipped to the dealership, let alone the customer. The customer was notified that the vehicle had so much damage they were going to have to send a completely different vehicle across the ocean. Then, shortly thereafter, the dealership contacted the customer claiming, "good news, we fixed it with a bit of wet sanding."

I'm almost positive there's a meme for that! In any event, why should the customer just accept this was a minor surfacing issue to begin with and there is no chance of residual issues? In this so-called worst case scenario of the next car having issues, that one can be rejected, as well. This is not a budget purchase, it's not discounted and may even have a surcharge, so the customer should wait until one comes in that has no evidence of past or current damage.

I've seen vehicles on showroom floors that were priced twice as much as a 1st with orange peel paint and others with swirls from someone who apparently wiped it down with a dirty rag. Like now, they also claimed someone in the back could just gloss it up. I hope people understand the amount of technology that goes into modern paint. Paint is no longer something one can simply "buff out" and expect the same longevity or UV protection. I'll have to take a good long look at mine in the sun tomorrow but it's conceivable the damage won't even be visible until it's taken out into full sunlight at the right angle. Some paints can't ever be matched correctly, which was already true back on my 80's BMW.

 

[id4ftw]

First of all, nobody here knows what damage occurred to this car--not even the dealership.

That said, it's exactly your logic: trading a known problem that has been fixed for an unknown problem that hasn't occurred yet. Use whichever example doesn't raise your hackles, since you didn't like mine, but the logic is how I described it.

Your presumption of my thought processes is misguided. A key part of my assessment was that this is a paint issue in the clear coat. After a repair of the clear coat there are no serious problems that can occur. Unlike the numerous problems that could be latent after a car accident.

let’s think about a used car. Seller tells you that he had some clear coat repair, another seller tells you that the car was in an accident. The first one you likely would not assign any risk to (paint looks good, you might enquire who did the work), the latter is a big red flag that likely would stop your purchase (who knows what problems are lurking).

 

[ExCivilian]

Your presumption of my thought processes is misguided. A key part of my assessment was that this is a paint issue in the clear coat. After a repair of the clear coat there are no serious problems that can occur. Unlike the numerous problems that could be latent after a car accident.

let’s think about a used car. Seller tells you that he had some clear coat repair, another seller tells you that the car was in an accident. The first one you likely would not assign any risk to (paint looks good, you might enquire who did the work), the latter is a big red flag that likely would stop your purchase (who knows what problems are lurking).

I'm not making presumptions regarding your thought processes. But again, we don't need to get hung up on a discussion about that because it's irrelevant to the discussion regarding this vehicle.

The story that a special order vehicle was rejected at the dock for a minor clear coat issue doesn't make sense; but even if the dealership's story was truthful and accurate that still wouldn't justify accepting a vehicle that was damaged and repaired. There's even less reason to base that decision on the fear/concern that the next car could have an issue because the second car doesn't have to be accepted, either. The ultimatum could make sense if the customer was required to choose this one with repaired damage or the next one regardless of damage. At least then we would have to consider the risk that the next one might arrive with worse damage.

This debate we seem to be having stems from a fundamental disagreement that clear coat issues are minor. I don't see the evidence of that in this scenario nor in a general sense. At best, the clear coat has been compromised. At worst, the dealership repaired the issues with an aftermarket system that can't possibly come close to a factory paint job. There is no reason to believe the dealership incurred the cost of an expensive paint repair of a vehicle that was already deemed undeliverable and requiring of replacement by the manufacturer. There is every reason to question the level of expertise this dealership had and expense it was willing to incur to repair damage on a vehicle they had no part in damaging or financial benefit to repair.

You asked what the possible downside of accepting this vehicle is. I mentioned earlier that the most obvious one is the clear coat is now compromised. Whatever happened during the repair the paint is now more compromised than if it was new, unblemished, and un-repaired and that would be reason enough, for me, not to accept it...at least at full price.

 

[id4ftw]

Those are all good inputs to possible paint issues. Also yes in the unlikely event of an issue with the 2nd car you could ask for a 3rd. Waiting a week for another car is not that long.

Everyone has a different risk appetite. I’ve never had a clear coat problem with any car, oem or otherwise.

If you are leasing and likely to give the car up after three years then the end of your concern coincides with the end of the VW warranty.

 

[JastorVW]

You don't mess with foggy clearcoat and quick bodyshop repairs/resprays to deal with it. Wait for the new one.

 

[Huey52]

To further muddy the waters of this discussion ... at the factory paint is often corrected in the inspection phase; see any such video.
It many times is also corrected in port given shipping handling quirks. And it may also be corrected in dealer prep after their over the road transport.
So if it's in the clear coat and very localized and acceptably corrected I wouldn't have any subsequent concerns.
Heck, I fully detailed my vehicle a couple days after taking delivery to include a full paint polish and sealant.

 

[JastorVW]

To further muddy the waters of this discussion ... at the factory paint is often corrected in the inspection phase; see any such video.
It many times is also corrected in port given shipping handling quirks. And it may also be corrected in dealer prep after their over the road transport.
So if it's in the clear coat and very localized and acceptably corrected I wouldn't have any subsequent concerns.
Heck, I fully detailed my vehicle a couple days after taking delivery to include a full paint polish and sealant.

I just reread and if the issue was truly just an area of flatter finish that was corrected out, then that's different. When I read "foggy" I read that as failure of the clear.

 

[NBCGLX]

It sounds like the repair was relatively minor all things considered, no? Is the dealer willing to move on purchase price at all, given the vehicle has essentially had repaired damage of some sort? That would be a big factor for me. I wouldn't be so much concerned about paint problems down the line from the repair, but it sure would feel good knowing that I got something in return for this point of trepidation. VW's aren't like Tesla's, they generally don't come with body/paint/interior defects, so I do think it would be highly unlikely that a replacement vehicle would have issues. Could it have other issues? Sure, but so could the original vehicle and you just don't know yet. To me, that isn't a factor because it's unknown for both vehicles.

 

[NorCar]

Thanks everyone for the feedback! At least I know I'm not crazy for having mixed feelings. While I'm sure this car is fine, these three factors are weighing the heaviest for me:

1) I never saw the original issue, so I can't be 100% certain if it was something like compromised clear coat or just some minor surface issue.

2) I was offered no concessions. Not even floor mats. In fact, I've accumulated hundreds of dollars of extra expense from this since I sold my old car once I got to "buy time" and have had to arrange transportation for a disabled family member. Additionally, the interest rate went up in the meantime.

3) I think the risk of the new one having issues is low and since it's coming so soon, I'm still leaning towards just waiting.

I'm still thankful that the dealer caught the issue. I think if the car was white, it probably would have gone unnoticed. Given the car is black, everything will show.

Thanks again for everyone's comments!

 

[ExCivilian]

I just reread and if the issue was truly just an area of flatter finish that was corrected out, then that's different. When I read "foggy" I read that as failure of the clear.

That's the issue I'm grappling with--we don't know what the original issue is other than what the dealer claimed and even accepting their explanation at face value didn't sound encouraging to me.

Agreeing with Huey52's point regarding minor paint correction being a normal step in QC begs the question why everyone deemed this irreparable except the dealership, which makes me think this:

but it does seem to come down to how much one trusts the dealership. Admittedly, I've not had good experiences with many dealerships so I'm skeptical.