Hi Folks
This is one of the most painful posts for me. Today i had decided to close out on the scratch treatment for my car and called the hyundai center for 3M treatment. They were not taking cars today hence thought even Carz Spa was decent( based on the trial) so let me go there. This has turned out to be the worst decision for my car so far and here is the painful recount of the days events( so that others can learn). I had almost thought- let me wait till the weekday for 3M but for that i would have to go through some more effort and had decided to finish it today so went ahead to Carz Spa which is 10 minutes from my home
1. The guy had asked me to come at 10:30- he happily turned up at 11:00. He was the guy who is probably the head technician there and not the manager
2. He washed the car with water and pressure jet, i told him no need as i am not interested, just want a good proper scratch removal, but took that since it was part of the package
3. They started to clay- and this was a HUGE shock for me- why? well for once they used some old clay, which was not well kneaded and god knows how many times used over. They used just plain water and guess in how many minutes they clayed it over- MAX 5 minutes. I told him -does it not take 30 mins to do a proper job, he just said, it does but urs is done properly. I thought let me go with the judgment of "experts"-
4. Next- the car was wiped with some dirty and shabby microfibers which had been washed god knows when. I asked- don't u guys wash the cloth, he said yes we do, but clearly those were not. In fact the windows were smudged like the way you have when the service center guys do as their cloth is greasy.
5. By this time another car came and the manager of the place from Bimal came in. As soon as that happened the other 2 folks who were claying the other car ( innova) spent about full 25 minutes claying it. NOW i came to know what was done with my car:(- nothing but a time pass work of claying
6. The first thing he ( the main technician) applied was No 66- Quick Detailer by Meguiars. I was asking him- why cause i recall in the trial he put Diamond Cut- No 85 first. He said he is putting that only. I thot i made a mistake in seeing what bottle he used after pouring from the can so was ok
7. Now comes the horrific part- After using the machine on the bonnet, i saw SWIRLS which were ABSENT, appear:( I was aghast..they were minor ones- could easily be missed by the untrained eye but i was specifically looking at my scratches. I also saw NEW SCRATCHES APPEAR
I immediately told him, he said- no probs, next coat will clear it. He also cleaned the pad and started again.
Somehow i was convinced again and thought let me see the boot- which had been tested on by these guys
After that-
THE ENTIRE BOOT and later i saw -more parts of the car was covered with
NON EXISTING SWIRLS- minor but again only seen when viewed against the light
I showed him, he then applied Diamond Cut and Speed Glaze, but i had given up by then and was praying if the next application would remove them.
On the bonnet- some
NEW SCRATCHES Came up- where i asked him to apply diamond cut again.
Apparently now he agreed he had put Quick Detailer- which they had been told in their training in Surat...and THAT HAS MESSED UP ( as per me)
In the trial he had NOT APPLIED THIS- and i am SURE THIS ONE has for some reason ADDED SCRATCHES AND SWIRLS:(
I was in a daze as to what to do- cause i am really not the kind who will shout and fight. I told him- and said- let me out of here with my car and take whatever is justified as i will not pay the entire 2.5K. He said some discount and offered 200 rs less. I then LOST IT and thought let me talk to the manager
I then went to the bimal showroom and talked to the manager who was very apologetic and i was in a strong but clear way telling him- you can charge whatever, you have clearly messed up my car.
He promised to get a solution, do it again for free etc etc
I was so disgusted and unwilling to create a scene and fight- i told him whatever your judgement allows- charge and let me out of here
He charged Rs 1500 and promised to get me a solution by talking to his technical folks
He claimed this is the first time it has happened etc
My Point is this: I know they must have done what was told to them or what they felt is the best application
However noting the way things work there and what people work i conclude
THEY are nothing but a most unprofessional set of people, who have just got some training and have NO IDEA what product they are using and for WHAT REASON
SUGGESTION:
Giving them a chance with your car is like going to a doctor who has READ from BOOKS and never practiced. He may give you the right medicine but may end up killing you
I have been promised that i will be given a solution- but i am SCARED even to go back to have them touch my car again
Although none can see when you see the car that it has swirls
- as they are only on some parts and not the big ones- but on the roof and some other parts i can see clearly NEW BLEMISHES and swirls that were NOT THERE
I think i will go to 3M sometime later and just get them to do what they did and get this cleared up- at least they had cleared up 90% and had NOT INTRODUCED anything new. OR Maybe i will clay at home and use my own polish and Wax to remove as many as i can( which i hope to as they are not major ones)
I wonder if using the QD- No 66 messed it up or what was it
If you are looking at going there for surface treatment- AT YOUR OWN RISK
The rest of the things - interior cleaning, washing etc- ANY PLACE IS AS GOOD...i went there ONLY CAUSE MEGUIARS prods are used
Maybe i should wait for that guy to come back and show me a small area where it really works and then put the entire car back in their hands...but i am scared that so many applications may just remove the paint totally!!!
Overall- please learn from my experience and forget about car detailing centers in india- just trust the service center where you get it serviced and really do not be paranoid about minor blemishes etc..