Brand new car stone chipped roof
Discussion
I bought a brand new Swift Sport in bright yellow a few weeks ago expecting to collect this weekend.
I transferred the money a few days ago only for the dealer to then email saying that the car is now in the showroom and under the lights they have found a stone chip on the roof.
The dealer is planning on a full roof respray at a cost of ~£350 - this seems low to me but maybe here in New Zealand where I live costs are lower and/or this is trade cost. Will a resprayed roof cause issues in years to come? Buying a brand new car that has been painted after leaving the factory does bother me.
So what to do?
- accept the respray and get on with life
- inspect the car on collection and walk away if respray poor
- accept the stone chip, buy some touch up paint and ask for the £350 in recompense
- take this as a bad omen (which is how I feel) and walk away likely losing my £500 deposit if not more
- try to get the dealer to supply a new car that doesn't have a stone chipped roof
- any other options?
I don't think this sort of lightweight, manual, non hybrid (as we get in NZ), non EV car, reasonably priced (~£15k in NZ) will be available for much longer, hence one of the reasons for buying it now. I was hoping to have this car for years and keep it in great condition as a weekend toy even considering PPF - bit late for that now!
I transferred the money a few days ago only for the dealer to then email saying that the car is now in the showroom and under the lights they have found a stone chip on the roof.
The dealer is planning on a full roof respray at a cost of ~£350 - this seems low to me but maybe here in New Zealand where I live costs are lower and/or this is trade cost. Will a resprayed roof cause issues in years to come? Buying a brand new car that has been painted after leaving the factory does bother me.
So what to do?
- accept the respray and get on with life
- inspect the car on collection and walk away if respray poor
- accept the stone chip, buy some touch up paint and ask for the £350 in recompense
- take this as a bad omen (which is how I feel) and walk away likely losing my £500 deposit if not more
- try to get the dealer to supply a new car that doesn't have a stone chipped roof
- any other options?
I don't think this sort of lightweight, manual, non hybrid (as we get in NZ), non EV car, reasonably priced (~£15k in NZ) will be available for much longer, hence one of the reasons for buying it now. I was hoping to have this car for years and keep it in great condition as a weekend toy even considering PPF - bit late for that now!
Edited by skedaddle on Saturday 15th April 22:04
Probably the second, although if it’s just a chip it shouldn’t be hard to get done. Just check any blending and make sure you see it under day and street lights to make sure it doesn’t stand out.
Loads of cars get bumped in transit and have panels replaced or touched up, the buyer never knows so you’re one step ahead already I’d say- an inspection which wasn’t s
t!
Loads of cars get bumped in transit and have panels replaced or touched up, the buyer never knows so you’re one step ahead already I’d say- an inspection which wasn’t s
t!skedaddle said:
I bought a brand new Swift Sport in bright yellow a few weeks ago expecting to collect this weekend.
I transferred the money a few days ago only for the dealer to then email saying that the car is now in the showroom and under the lights they have found up a stone chip on the roof.
The dealer is planning on a full roof respray at a cost of ~£350 - this seems low to me but maybe here in New Zealand where I live costs are lower and/or this is trade cost. Will a resprayed roof cause issues in years to come? Buying a brand new car that has been painted after leaving the factory does bother me.
So what to do?
- accept the respray and get on with life
- inspect the car on collection and walk away if respray poor
- accept the stone chip, buy some touch up paint and ask for the £350 in recompense
- take this as a bad omen (which is how I feel) and walk away likely losing my £500 deposit if not more
- try to get the dealer to supply a new car that doesn't have a stone chipped roof
- any other options?
I don't think this sort of lightweight, manual, non hybrid (as we get in NZ), non EV car, reasonably priced (~£15k in NZ) will be available for much longer, hence one of the reasons for buying it now. I was hoping to have this car for years and keep it in great condition as a weekend toy even considering PPF - bit late for that now!
As highlighted imhoI transferred the money a few days ago only for the dealer to then email saying that the car is now in the showroom and under the lights they have found up a stone chip on the roof.
The dealer is planning on a full roof respray at a cost of ~£350 - this seems low to me but maybe here in New Zealand where I live costs are lower and/or this is trade cost. Will a resprayed roof cause issues in years to come? Buying a brand new car that has been painted after leaving the factory does bother me.
So what to do?
- accept the respray and get on with life
- inspect the car on collection and walk away if respray poor
- accept the stone chip, buy some touch up paint and ask for the £350 in recompense
- take this as a bad omen (which is how I feel) and walk away likely losing my £500 deposit if not more
- try to get the dealer to supply a new car that doesn't have a stone chipped roof
- any other options?
I don't think this sort of lightweight, manual, non hybrid (as we get in NZ), non EV car, reasonably priced (~£15k in NZ) will be available for much longer, hence one of the reasons for buying it now. I was hoping to have this car for years and keep it in great condition as a weekend toy even considering PPF - bit late for that now!
Do you know the VIN?
If you don’t then you’ll reject it, the dealer will get it painted, and your “replacement” will turn up a couple of days later.
They should repair it to factory specs - remove any trim, paint it properly (whole roof) and then most likely fit new trim. It should still have full warranty on the repairs.
Don’t worry about it. As per the post above it is a minor issue - most transit damage gets repaired without customers knowing.
If you don’t then you’ll reject it, the dealer will get it painted, and your “replacement” will turn up a couple of days later.
They should repair it to factory specs - remove any trim, paint it properly (whole roof) and then most likely fit new trim. It should still have full warranty on the repairs.
Don’t worry about it. As per the post above it is a minor issue - most transit damage gets repaired without customers knowing.
I would say - please hold off until I've seen the car.
I say this because playing devil's advocate for a minute, the car might have sustained more serious damage on delivery, and the "stone chip" story could be a cover for the dealer needing more time to sort some more serious repairs out. It depends on how much you trust the dealer.
I got bitten by this once. Went to a used car place, test drove and inspected a car, all OK, paid deposit and arranged collection in a week. A few days later I got a call from the dealer "we found a small blemish on the tailgate, we want you to be super happy so we are going to do a full rectification, we need another week, aren't we lovely?" Initially I was happy but then I happened to be passing and saw the rear of the car in bits. The mechanic said that they had rear ended it and were now trying to repair it.
Not at all saying this is what has happened here, but I would be popping down to look at the car now, and if it really is just a stone chip, then I would have no problem with a good rectification. I would not be asking for a new car, and I doubt the dealer would do that unless they were either very generous or they knew that they could sell this one very quickly.
I say this because playing devil's advocate for a minute, the car might have sustained more serious damage on delivery, and the "stone chip" story could be a cover for the dealer needing more time to sort some more serious repairs out. It depends on how much you trust the dealer.
I got bitten by this once. Went to a used car place, test drove and inspected a car, all OK, paid deposit and arranged collection in a week. A few days later I got a call from the dealer "we found a small blemish on the tailgate, we want you to be super happy so we are going to do a full rectification, we need another week, aren't we lovely?" Initially I was happy but then I happened to be passing and saw the rear of the car in bits. The mechanic said that they had rear ended it and were now trying to repair it.
Not at all saying this is what has happened here, but I would be popping down to look at the car now, and if it really is just a stone chip, then I would have no problem with a good rectification. I would not be asking for a new car, and I doubt the dealer would do that unless they were either very generous or they knew that they could sell this one very quickly.
I do have a picture of a stone chip on the roof that the dealer sent across so I doubt there's more to this and to be fair, I do have respect for the dealer, a family run business who have been good so far. Unfortunately just popping down to see the car is not so easy given they are over 1 hour away.
skedaddle said:
The dealer is planning on a full roof respray at a cost of ~£350 - this seems low to me but maybe here in New Zealand where I live costs are lower and/or this is trade cost. Will a resprayed roof cause issues in years to come? Buying a brand new car that has been painted after leaving the factory does bother me.
It's common for cars to be damaged all along the distribution chain - or even repaired at the factory itself - without the customer ever being told.Your right to have concerns, but it very easily could've happened without you ever knowing.
It is extremely common for brand new cars to have had paintwork repairs between leaving the factory and the first owner picking it up. The vast majority of people won’t have a clue.
I’d take it as a positive that the dealer has told you, but you could also just ‘drop in to see it’ if you are worried they are hiding something more serious.
I’d take it as a positive that the dealer has told you, but you could also just ‘drop in to see it’ if you are worried they are hiding something more serious.
Jakg said:
It's common for cars to be damaged all along the distribution chain - or even repaired at the factory itself - without the customer ever being told.
Your right to have concerns, but it very easily could've happened without you ever knowing.
When I ran logistics for a manufacturer the only thing that we wouldn’t get fixed was roof / pillar damage (as in bent, not paint) - they got scrapped. Everything else got repaired - if we deemed the original damage was too bad to sell new we just put them in company fleet once they were fixed.Your right to have concerns, but it very easily could've happened without you ever knowing.
It would be worth asking what the roof repair would mean for your manufacturer paint warranty. Most new vehicles come with many years paint warranty but once a manufacturer finds a panel that’s been repainted they often won’t cover that panel. Not saying you will have issues, but if you intend on keeping the car a long time and find yourself with an issue you want to know it’ll be covered as you’d expect.
Monster Mash said:
It would be worth asking what the roof repair would mean for your manufacturer paint warranty. Most new vehicles come with many years paint warranty but once a manufacturer finds a panel that’s been repainted they often won’t cover that panel. Not saying you will have issues, but if you intend on keeping the car a long time and find yourself with an issue you want to know it’ll be covered as you’d expect.
Suzuki in New Zealand only offer 3 years paint warranty. As cars generally don't rust in NZ given salt isn't used on the roads, there's no call for an extended paint warranty. FWIW the dealer principle who's dealing with this has assured me that the roof repair will be covered by the warranty.
The dealers sound great for fessing up to the chip being there. The car will almost certainly get many more stone chips over the years to come.
Kurust, some touch up paint, T-Cut and polish will see you right.
Asking for money off is also an option. A couple of hundred quid should do it!
Kurust, some touch up paint, T-Cut and polish will see you right.
Asking for money off is also an option. A couple of hundred quid should do it!
As above a touch up done by a pro should be invisible, which makes me wonder if its more than a chip possibly an actual dent or scrape in the car somewhere from the numerous variables of transporter damage.
Dents in welded in parts of the car usually mean a declassed vehicle no longer able to be sold as new perfect, bolt on panels not the same issue for obvious reasons, i'd be inclined to make the journey and see the car for myself.
Dents in welded in parts of the car usually mean a declassed vehicle no longer able to be sold as new perfect, bolt on panels not the same issue for obvious reasons, i'd be inclined to make the journey and see the car for myself.
I bought a used Peugeot 405 estate (25 years ago now that I think about it!) I test drove it and was happy to buy it however there were scrapes on the roof from where something had been carried on the standard roof rails. The dealer offered to either knock £250 off the purchase price or that they would paint the entire roof, taking the rails off while doing so. I opted for the repaint. The job was perfect, unnoticeable from standard and I had no issues in the 4 years that I owned it.
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