New cars get polished pre-delivery?

[VZSS250]

Hi people,

I'm soon to take delivery of my new car. I told my dealer that I had a sneaking suspicion that new cars are polished pre-delivery because every time I've taken delivery of a new car, there's swirls in the paint under sunlight.

There just doesn't seem to be any other explanation for a brand new car to have swirls in it.

The dealer then surprised me by saying that every dealership applies polish to every car.

That opens up a whole new can of worms. So the paint finish on my $75k car is now dependant on the polishing technique of some 19 year-old who can't wait for his next smoko break.

The big question is, does the polish make any difference? Wouldn't the paintwork be perfect from the factory anyway?

I'm thinking of telling them to just wash the car and nothing else. Please help.

Thats what you call the $500 option "paint protection".

They normally use a spray-on wax.

[VZSS250]

Nah the polish i talk about is separate to the paint protection. I never order this anyway.

[Allen]

Originally Posted by VZSS250

Wouldn't the paintwork be perfect from the factory anyway?

There is no such thing as perfect paintwork... ive seen ripples and major orange peel in freshly painted cars...

If you dont want it polished, just say so... that way you can either do it yourself or take it to a detailer...

A mate of mine used to own a detailing buisness, and he would get brand new bmw's and mercs in to do a proper detail, as the dealers just didn't know what they were doing...

[XR8GRL]

They definatly do polish them, mine was polished, even tho i did get the paint protection.
I dont know what the paint protection is like these days, but the one i got was very good, for 4 years,never washed the car with soap, and it was very nice and shiney (black paint)

cheers, phil.

[Smoke Pursuit]

Depends, if the car comes straight off the truck and has no crap on it usually they just give it a light hand polish with some wax / cleaner.

If the car has been sitting in the dealership for a while they will usually buff the entire car with an orbital.

Personally ive never had a problem with a new car being delivered with swirls but have seen some black cars come from Ford with swirls!

[Nappa]

Originally Posted by VZSS250

Hi people,


That opens up a whole new can of worms. So the paint finish on my $75k car is now dependant on the polishing technique of some 19 year-old who can't wait for his next smoko break.

.

That’s a bit of a generalization, pre-delivery is generally staffed by experienced detailers who do a remarkable job considering all cars that factory have rough paint and a fair bit of grime from travel.

[Lukeyson]

I didnt think new paint needed polish for atleast 12 months ??
I wouldnt be happy with some dude polishing my new car either !!!!!!!

[WILDTRAKPX2]

Originally Posted by LSTerritoryGhia

Depends, if the car comes straight off the truck and has no crap on it usually they just give it a light hand polish with some wax / cleaner.

If the car has been sitting in the dealership for a while they will usually buff the entire car with an orbital.

I agree, if the car has not been sitting in the yard for extended period, everything should be OK.
I once observed a bloke at a dealership one morning going from one brand new car to the next, wiping off a cocktail of grime and dew with a filthy looking chamois or rag. I casually walked around the cars later and noticed each and every one had scratches all over them.

One thing I always do... When booking my car in for a service, I always make note: DO NOT WASH

[DOC]

Originally Posted by Shockwave XR8

One thing I always do... When booking my car in for a service, I always make note: DO NOT WASH

In 99% of cases that would be the best choice, it must be put tup that there would be some dealers doing the right thing with an experienced detailer but my guess is most are just pimply kids, i have seen what they use at one of our dealers after chatting them about the swirls on a brand new black BF GT, and its a general wash n wax type product that i wont comment on, the bigger problem rather than the wash is the method used by the people doing it.

Most cars have dust on them they probably don't wash this of properly then use old method drying that in turn causes the swirls.

if it were me i would not have it washed iether but your call, another good option is to give our forum sponser (coyotee) a line as he has some good oil that may help with a new car pruchase.

scroll down to paint protection

[Abacus]

All imports are polished by necessity. When they come off the boat they are covered in wax and crap to protect them in transit.

In addition to the imports, most new Commodores I've seen come off the truck look pretty rough and need a polish. Don't know about Falcons as I don't do any work with Ford dealerships.

Yes every car gets polished. To get that "wet look" we all lust after it needs a light coat of polish done by hand. Usually this is done not by a "19 year-old who can't wait for his next smoko break" lol.

This especially applies to vehicles that have sat around for a few weeks or months with dirt and or bird droppings etc.

We also only do it by hand.

[Raptor]

Originally Posted by RATT

.....
We also only do it by hand.

I think I'll drive up to see you guys next time I get a new car.

This one has a dent that looks like it came from an orbital buffer pre-delivery. Though because I didn't notice it when I first picked it up (in the rain) and didn't get back to them in the first 10 days (because I had gone on holidays) the dealer claims they are not responsible.

I had almost put that behind me, I'm annoyed again now after writing that :yeees:

[Donny]

I used to work in a new car dealership...(Hold@n Dealer) Used to do the PD's
The PD, or pre delivery checkover is a vehicle inspection, you check all fluid levels, all lights etc, all instruments, tyre pressures etc. Its a general complete car check over. The cars that come from the transporter are usually very dirty, and have tyre pressure adjusted for the trip etc.
Cars that are pre sold before PD (special orders, backorders and transfers from other dealers) will have any accessories fitted during (PD) that are part of the sale, any big item accessories like air con on smaller cars, tow packs, tinting, paint protection etc will also be done at this time.

Once the car has had it's PD done, it is available to sell, to either go on the front lot, or showroom etc. They will only get a moderate detail job if going onto the lot or showroom, and a good wash all over.
If the car is pre-sold it will go straight to the detailing bay where it will receive a full detail, wash, wax and polish (by orbital) and internal clean. This is where dealer stickers, number plates and surrounds etc are affixed.

Well this is how we used to do them here in QLD about 10 years ago.

Donny

[VZSS250]

Originally Posted by xagt_coupe

They will only get a moderate detail job if going onto the lot or showroom, and a good wash all over.

If the car is pre-sold it will receive a polish (by orbital).

See, this is what I mean. If the cars in the showroom look so great even though they have not been polished, why should I risk an inexperienced detailer polishing the car and putting swirls in the paint? It seems better to just have the car washed and nothing else.

[nb_351]

Originally Posted by xagt_coupe

I used to work in a new car dealership...(Hold@n Dealer) Used to do the PD's
The PD, or pre delivery checkover is a vehicle inspection, you check all fluid levels, all lights etc, all instruments, tyre pressures etc. Its a general complete car check over. The cars that come from the transporter are usually very dirty, and have tyre pressure adjusted for the trip etc.
Cars that are pre sold before PD (special orders, backorders and transfers from other dealers) will have any accessories fitted during (PD) that are part of the sale, any big item accessories like air con on smaller cars, tow packs, tinting, paint protection etc will also be done at this time.

Once the car has had it's PD done, it is available to sell, to either go on the front lot, or showroom etc. They will only get a moderate detail job if going onto the lot or showroom, and a good wash all over.
If the car is pre-sold it will go straight to the detailing bay where it will receive a full detail, wash, wax and polish (by orbital) and internal clean. This is where dealer stickers, number plates and surrounds etc are affixed.

Well this is how we used to do them here in QLD about 10 years ago.

Donny

thats still the way its done now...
i do a bit of pd work every now and then at work... when theres no service work in...
they do the same thing at my place...
speaking of pd, i did a 300c srt today... omfg, goes very very well... puts a smile on your face... lol
also did a r32 golf yesterday...
4wd 3.2 v6 6 speed dsg auto golf...
black with tan leather... very very nice...
then there was the jeep grand cheerokee srt... quicker than a porsche to 150... 6.1l in a 2tonne 4wd... doesnt drive like it though...
dont need any more proof, found it out myself... lol

[XR Martin]

Just before they leave the factory it gets a rub over to remove finger marks and smudges, this is probably where some of the swirls come from as the cloth they use isnt always the cleanest.

[Smoke Pursuit]

Why would they bother to give them a rub over, why not just let them go to the dealers as they get dirty on the way neways??

Does Ford repair damage to cars at the factory or do they tell the dealer to repair em when they arrive.

[Donny]

Dont know about cars damaged at the manufacturers holding facilities, but a car that gets damaged in transit to the dealership, or at the dealership is fixed by the dealership either in house (if available) or at their preferred repairer.
As to who pays, well I saw the first year apprentice damage one car horsing around, and one by goin too fast up a ramp and clipping the side of the shed right along the side of the car too, he was told if he damaged another, his job was over. Never found out if they made him pay, or let the insurance cover it.

[Falcon Coupe]

Originally Posted by nb_351

speaking of pd, i did a 300c srt today... omfg, goes very very well... puts a smile on your face... lol
also did a r32 golf yesterday...
4wd 3.2 v6 6 speed dsg auto golf...
black with tan leather... very very nice...
then there was the jeep grand cheerokee srt... quicker than a porsche to 150... 6.1l in a 2tonne 4wd... doesnt drive like it though...
dont need any more proof, found it out myself... lol

This bothers me, what right does someone working on a car have to see how well it goes ?
Long term engine damage can be done to a new engine if driven hard, at least swirl marks can be removed.

[16wantsI6]

my dad got our ford dealer to clean his BF xr8 and i must say they did a excellent job, it used to be covered in grime, tar and bugs and needed a polish, it came back looking brand new i think they were awesome.

[MO]

Given the quality and durability of the current paints....it does'nt matter....so you don't leave marks when you polish????????

[v8falconsrule]

ok i am a detailer at our local ford and fpv dealer and i can 100% garantee you that new cars do come in with paint imperfections. i've seen grit in paint, rippled panels, even whole panels with sub standard paint finishes. we hand polish every vehicle that comes in as it could be sitting in our holding facility or on the yard for anything up to a year. trust me if you buy a car which has been sitting out for 6 or more months, you'd be glad that it had a layer of polish to protect it. yes ford do some repairs before dispatching a car to the dealers, also ford applies polish to the cars at the factory. also it is very, very rare for a car to come off a truck and be clean enough for the showroom, they have stickers on the windscreens and bugs, dirt, hydraulic fluid and crap all over them, seriosly if you saw them before a clean you'd probably freak!

[ondori]

Did pre-delivery for a city dealer over summer 02', all cars had the full treatment in and out, Sometimes more then once, the buyer changers the pickup time, car goes back to the holding lot (yes its outside) when it comes back someone else might do the job..a dark Blue Lancer was done 4 times still there when I when back to uni.
I use the paint protection crap on all the cars I did the bottle they gave us was just too big, it smelt good too.

[Tony xa]

My daily car is a brand new ford (black)and I washed it once and have never washed it again and its been about 8mths .This is not because its great the way it is its because the **** that is on the paint is a pain in the butt.I won't be washing it again until I have a whole weekend free to strip the car down to cut and polish the whole car .It took me about 2 hours just to get the milkly crap of my bonnet after washing (only use muiguries soft wash) and it was still sticky afterwards .

[Pedro]

Originally Posted by Shockwave XR8

When booking my car in for a service, I always make note: DO NOT WASH

Yours must be the only Ford Dealership in Australia that washes cars when they are serviced.

I've owned new Fords since XE's ( current drive is F6 ) and no Dealer has ever washed one!

By contrast, my wifes SP23 is washed and vacuumed at each service by her Mazda Dealer.

[WILDTRAKPX2]

Originally Posted by Pedro

Yours must be the only Ford Dealership in Australia that washes cars when they are serviced.

I've owned new Fords since XE's ( current drive is F6 ) and no Dealer has ever washed one!

By contrast, my wifes SP23 is washed and vacuumed at each service by her Mazda Dealer.

They have even offered lifetime weekly washes as part of the deal. Something I didn't take up either obviously.

[Smoke Pursuit]

Yeh Q FORD wash our cars every service, i ask them not to tho for a few reasons!

[Nappa]

we wash our cars at service. people are happy for us to, but if they specify that they want in unwashed then we leave it alone. Sometimes when the service department is really busy not everycar will get a wash.