Refusal of new car on delivery?

[Londonguy]

Hey guys. A friend of mine is in a fight with his local Toyota dealer. He went to pick up his 10 Camry that was ordered and it has a stone chip on the hood. They offered to fix it, but he refused delivery of the car saying he doesn't want a factory paint job repaired. They told him if he refused delivery he would lose his $500 deposit. They wouldn't exchange the car, just offered to fix the chip. I told him he didn't have to accept a new car with damaged paint as you can't restore a factory finish, even a chip. I thought I would ask you guys to get your input. This is in Ontario. To me, if it was a swap out part like a seat cover that's perfectly restored I could see it, but a paint defect is something else. Any opinions.

[saltydog]

he should agreed to some money off for the damage

[djb383]

Geez, getting one's panties in a wad over a tiny paint chip that the dealer says they will repair????????? Better put that new car in storage and never drive it so it won't get another paint chip.

[OkSlim]

They didn't see it when it came in or they would have already fixed it and you friend would be driving his car.

He is being an idiot.

[HarleyCVO]

This is due to the dealers ineptitude. Yes it is a small issue and most "new" cars have had some sort of repair before it ends up in the customers hands.
However, where the dealer dropped the ball, they DID NOT take the time to do a proper inspection before passing it off the the customer.

Had they inspected the car and repaired it before hand the customer would not have known and all would be well, instead, they either knowingly tried to pass it off to save money OR they just couldn't be bothered to do the job of inspecting they are supposed to. Either way, incompetent.

It is minor, don't sweat it but find a different dealer to service the car as their service is clearly under par.

[joeylgarcia]

why will your friend lose the $500 deposit? he not refusing the contract as a whole. he is just refusing to bring home a unit being offered to him that is defective. the dealer is way out of line. btw, your friend should have noted the VIN of that defective car. just in case the dealer gets to repair the paint chip and gets back to him to offer the same restored unit. just in case the dealer forfeits his deposit go thru the legal process.

[TFCommanderBob]

Yeah, my car already has a pretty decent sized rock chip at the edge of the hood where it meets the front bumper. Its gonna happen, I've had mine for a month and put on 4500miles... I'd just ask for a couple hundred off and see if he can save some money on it. I wouldn't even bother with the repair tho, might cause more harm then good to the original paint.

[OkSlim]

No idea what your logic behind doing damage to the original paint.

They can fix it no one will ever know it was there.

[Xamkil83]

Your friends should just let them repair the damage. If the repair looks good then he can decide if he wants to take delivery. If it looks good I would take it, as another poster said thing happen before people take delivery all the time they are just fixed before the buyer finds out most of the time.

[eyezack87]

Nothing wrong in refusing the car. Part of the reason why I got my Blue Ribbon Metallic instead of the Spruce Mica was because the Spruce Mica had repairs done to it. I took a Paint Thickness Gauge to each car and picked a car based off that. When I buy new, I want real new. Now, as a result, Carson Toyota now knows not to put substandard work in the car because they know I'm super anal about it lol...

A car is a big investment, its only normal to make sure the investment is worth its price

[njerald]

No.

A car is a big expense, its only normal to make sure the expense is worth its price.

[CanadianXRS]

I am a salesman at a Toyota dealership, and I deal with situations like this all the time! The worst is when people get worked up about tiny scratches behind the driver door handle. ALL CARS HAVE IMPERFECTIONS!

The cars come covered in tape and plastic, this chip most likely happened when the mechanic took a 2 mile road test or when the dealership was giving your friend a full tank of gas!

I told him he didn't have to accept a new car with damaged paint as you can't restore a factory finish, even a chip.

He does not have to accept the car, just as the dealership does not have to return his deposit. Your friend will have 2 or 3 stone chips by the time he has a few 100km.

he should agreed to some money off for the damage

This is always the first reaction. I think a free paint pen ($10) would be a fair deal. He probably already got money off the car.

This is due to the dealers ineptitude. Yes it is a small issue and most "new" cars have had some sort of repair before it ends up in the customers hands.
However, where the dealer dropped the ball, they DID NOT take the time to do a proper inspection before passing it off the the customer.

Agreed, these things should be looked over more carefully. It would make delivering cars a lot easier on the sales people. I need to be careful with my next statement, because a lot of these guys work very hard. But if you got paid minimum wage to detail numerous cars a day that you will never see again, how carefully would you look the car over.

why will your friend lose the $500 deposit?

He signed a contract and put a deposit on a vehicle that the dealership held for him.

just in case the dealer forfeits his deposit go thru the legal process.

Lawyers cost about $300-$500 an hour. We are talking about a $500 deposit.




Obviously I am biased! I put up with people making huge deals about stone chips, minor scratches, etc. I have had customers try to refuse delivery because there are 12km on the odometer (they would have been more pissed off if we didnt drive 4km to get them a full tank of gas). It is human nature to complain. I have bought 3 new cars and never looked at the cars close enough to see if there are minor imperfections. He is buying a Camry, not a Ferrari Enzo.


However saying all that I have said my dealership would have given your friend back his $500 immediately. It sucks big time for the salesman who did nothing wrong, but it is not worth pissing off a customer for $500. Also in Canada right now Camry's are scarce, they will sell his car in a week if he doesn't take it!

[Redline_Me]

I would never take that car. If i'm paying for a brand new product, i don't want a single scratch on it at the time of pick up. Whatever happens after i drive off the lot is on me and i can accept it.

He shouldn't take it and if they don't want to give him another one, and especially take the deposit money. He should tell them that he will contact corporate and the Better Business Bureau. On second thought, i don't know if you guys have that option in Canada.

[sxe-10]

I think your friend is being too anal, yes I would be pissed off too if I find a stone ship upon delivery, though I wouldn't go to the extreme of requesting a new vehicle.

Complaining to corporate would only make your friend look silly, since it does not hinder vehicle safety or vehicle operation AT ALL, and they did offer to fix the problem, your friend would not have much of a case, the most they can do is repaint the hood or replace it with a brand new oem hood.

What I would do is request them to either offer me cash or repair the chip until I am satisfied with the work.

[eyezack87]

^^No, anal would be refusing the car due to swirls from the dealer prep. TBH if there was such thing as a perfect car that was never touched AKA no swirls, I would be shooting for that. Better to have a clean template to maintain than something you have to fix later on imo