Paint/Body work prior to taking delivery on a new BRZ

[crash.1340]

I work at an auction house and we get in all sorts of basically brand new cars that have had repairs completed, necessitated by Port damage. Just the other day, I inspected a 2014 Odyssey that was completely loaded with all the bells and whistles and has 13 miles on the clock. Standing outside the car and driving it, you'd never know it had been damaged. But alas, the entire right rear quarter had once been pushed in about 3 inches, which required replacement of the quarter, roof skin and structure, a LOT of floorpan panels, rockers, doors, and the decklid. Unless you took a reaaaaallllly good look at it inside and out you would never know.

These vehicles arrive at the auction house because in the state of Ohio they legally can't be sold as new, no matter the damage threshold. When they are auctioned off, it is not disclosed to customers whether vehicles have frame damage or not, they are simply sold as-is without possibility of Arbitration. That's the only clue.

Thank God I live in Ohio. I would take it to a professional body shop and have them look over it. A body shop is much more likely to know what to look for than a "used car guy" at a dealership.

[N1rve]

Check the body panels to see if the VIN is the same/available on the panels as well.

[PollosHermanos]

Originally Posted by N1rve

Check the body panels to see if the VIN is the same/available on the panels as well.

I checked the fender that was definitely replaced and they stuck the original/matching vin sticker back on. Very shady.

Other less visible areas will have to be verified by a 3rd party body shop.

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[PollosHermanos]

Originally Posted by crash.1340

Thank God I live in Ohio. I would take it to a professional body shop and have them look over it. A body shop is much more likely to know what to look for than a "used car guy" at a dealership.

I will be. I plan to show it to them tomorrow and then another shop I've used in the past to get an impartial take as well.

EDIT: Never mind, my state has no protection for this type of pre-delivery repair.

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[Turbowned]

We as dealers do not need to disclose damage to you if it's under a certain dollar amount. I forget how much it is in Mass. Cars come in all the time damaged from the carrier and have to get fixed prior to being sold. If the damage happens while in transit then Subaru pays to have them repaired. It sucks but it's just part of life.

[PollosHermanos]

Originally Posted by Turbowned

We as dealers do not need to disclose damage to you if it's under a certain dollar amount. I forget how much it is in Mass. Cars come in all the time damaged from the carrier and have to get fixed prior to being sold. If the damage happens while in transit then Subaru pays to have them repaired. It sucks but it's just part of life.

So it would seem. When I looked it up I couldn't the dollar amount for MA.

Curious, when those repairs are made are the original vin stickers put on the new panels?

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[Turbowned]

Originally Posted by PollosHermanos

So it would seem. When I looked it up I couldn't the dollar amount for MA.

Curious, when those repairs are made are the original vin stickers put on the new panels?

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If the panel has to be replaced, if I'm not mistaken it is replaced with a panel that says "DOT R" on it, denoting that it is a DOT-approved replacement panel. Assuming the body shop does it right they replace the decal with the VIN tag on it.

[Turbowned]

Originally Posted by Turbowned

If the panel has to be replaced, if I'm not mistaken it is replaced with a panel that says "DOT R" on it, denoting that it is a DOT-approved replacement panel. Assuming the body shop does it right they replace the decal with the VIN tag on it.

That's just bloody awful work, I'm sorry. At least try to scratch off the excess paint on the plastic with your fingernail; it should come off. You could remove the plastic portion and try cleaning it separately.

[crash.1340]

Originally Posted by Turbowned

If the panel has to be replaced, if I'm not mistaken it is replaced with a panel that says "DOT R" on it, denoting that it is a DOT-approved replacement panel. Assuming the body shop does it right they replace the decal with the VIN tag on it.

Body shops are not legally allowed to remove and replace VIN tags on panels, as that would be considered "theft by deception" and therefore can't do it. Otherwise there would be a LOT of cars sold as new with prior work (usually substandard) that would otherwise be considered untouched because of that panel having a VIN sticker.

[PollosHermanos]

Update: local body shop gave me really good news. Although the panel was taped real shitty (as seen above) he didn't see any evidence that the fender panel was otherwise replaced. Same with the bumper. No evidence of paint work or replaced body panels.

Going to have the dealer replace or otherwise fix the bad paint on the panel as soon as I can but the good news is that I feel comfortable that the panels are all original.

Glad I didn't take things too far before having a 3rd party I trust take a look.

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[charged86]

that looks like poop. sometime they repair cars at port. happens to every manufacturer. besides super high line vehicles.

[PollosHermanos]

UPDATE: Heard from my dealer this morning. They have "learned" that the port replaced the fender after it was creased by a plastic pylon used in the shipping of the car from Japan.

They have offered to have it taken to a body shop of my choice to get it to a place where I am 100% happy.

My body shop/paint guy says that's its damn near perfect in terms of a color match, so much so that he couldn't even tell it had been done.

So here is what I'm thinking:

The panel I am satisfied with since I can't tell and neither could a professional but the grey and white accent panel I am going to ask that they replace along with the missing fasteners.

I'm also going to ask for a service credit of $1000 to make up for the loss in value.

Does this sound reasonable?


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[fradet]

sounds reasonable to me, they should have informed you before you buy the car.

[dpesce]

Bought a Challenger in 2010 and They nearly sold me the car with a big gash in the front bumper. It was put there between when I test drove it and when I got it. Looks like it hit the Lift Rack on the way into the dealership stall. They sent it away to an Independent shop and gave it a very nice repaint on the bumper. The naked eye would never know. If you look closely, you can see a slight lack of metal flake in the paint.

Demand they fix it right, get a rebate and make yourself happy!! That simple!