I got the car back from the shop... bad news

[vuyodaddy]

SO, the good news is from afar, it looks like the paint is shiny as hell, they detailed my interior (which was needed for a while now), and I'm just happy to have it back. Now... for the problems

*they gave me an old school kidney grill on my '95 e34. Not acceptable. At all.
*the hood doesn't open properly. You need to pop the switch, then lift up the front portion manually, and THEN you can slide it up.
*they replaced my right headlight with a slightly cracked one. I see that being a problem in the future, condensation, water accumulation, yellowing, etc.
*air bubbles formed and popped on the paint, leaving little half millimeter indents in the hood. A whole shitload of em.

Not happy. At all. All I ask is someone give me some advice on how I should proceed at this point. Thanks all!

[SnakeyesTx]

Wait... you mean the hood is supposed to pop out automatically and you're only supposed to have to pull it open from the back the whole time?!! o_O I thought having to pull it up from the front first was mandatory ... shows what I know :D

As for that horrible repair/refinish... I'd go straight back to the shop you took it to with a formal complaint to their supervisors and if you have to get nasty about it, threaten to report it to the BBB (or a firm similar if you're not in the US), and if that isn't good enough, take it to court! Don't get taken for a ride by crappy work.. ever. Document everything with pictures before they get to touch it a second time.

[BillionPa]

1: they probably didnt know better, a lot of people here are gonna say leave it.
2: needs new hood shocks, easy fix
3: get some HID projectors
4: TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!!!!! have them repaint the hood at once. did they use maaco or some crap to paint it?

5:... pics?

[Russell]

wrong parts, broken used parts, poor paint-sure seems like a case for shoddy work.

Need a bit more details such as who paid-you or the insurance company? Sometimes the insurance compay allows used parts. However, they should be the correct working parts. We do not know the extent of your damages. Hood shocks wear out for example. One of the first thing replaced when I bought my car as hood would not stay up after opened.

It sounds like the shop replaced your old damaged hood shocks with used ones. It also sounds like this shop is not familiar with BMWs.

[Anthony (M5 in Calgary)]

2: needs new hood shocks, easy fix


The hood pop is controlled by torsion springs on the pivot tube at the front of the hood, not the gas cylinders. Likely the tube is bent and binding - esp if it was hit.

[632 Regal]

nothing like a in line water filter for paint work. sounds hack, whats the shop so we know who to avoid?

[VentoGT]

Indeed--unacceptable work. You shouldn't have even taken the car with you honestly. If the paint is bubbling on the hood, it is probably going to start bubbling elsewhere--poor prep job. I just got my car repainted at eye-watering cost but they did a fantastic job of it...no dust, very clean, glass out, lifetime warranty if anything does go wrong with it.

[Russell]

Not so sure. my hood would not pop. Put new hood struts on and it popped open. Now my "newer" hood stuts have gotten weaker it does not pop so easily. Or so it seems.

[Yiorgos]

With your narrow grille on your E34, did they at least match the hood to the grille? AFAIK, with the wide grille E34s they had to use a different hood too to suit the grille.

[califblue]

simple but effective...fire bomb the shop and shoot them as the run out:D

oops did I just say that
have them strip and repaint the hood ( also realign it), replace the headlight and grill and you have the final say

[vuyodaddy]

Ok, so to answer some questions...

*The body shop was in Kenmore, WA, right off of Bothell Way. I think they have "Kenmore" in their name, as well as "collision" or "body".

*The hood springs or whatever were probably damaged in the accident. I was hit pretty hard in the front passenger side quarter panel.

*They kept my wide hood and thought they could sneak a narrow grill in there. And the hood shows a slight bend on the drivers side that you can see in the light. Not cool, and not professional.

*Insurance considered my car totalled, and paid me out and I purchased the car back from them. So all these repairs are technically out of pocket.

*My dad is a lot more nonchalant than me, and he was the one who picked up the car from the dealership without even looking at the thing. Obviously not an enthusiast. I would have checked the thing up and down before taking it out of the shop.


SO I was planning on just making a list of complaints, but I think a formal letter as well as some pictures would probably be a better idea. Thanks for all the advice guys. I'm going to take pictures soon and make sure everything gets fixed. Despite my father's lack of care for this whole project, I think for ~$4,000 , the job better be done right. Any more advice is much appreciatted. Thanks for all the help thus far.

[vuyodaddy]

And the whole firebombing thing sounds so tempting. Especially for them trying to slip that grill past me. And giving me a cracked headlight. I'm pissed, but I'll keep the language clean for the sake of the older crowd here at the E34 forums.

[SnakeyesTx]

In your letter, keep the language very formal, very stern, and very free of threats other than legal action. Send a copy of that same letter with a formal complaint to the Better Business Bureau as well. Here in Houston we have this guy on the news you can write to with problems such as this and he will do an expose on the company and make things happen in your favor. Maybe your local area news has an "avenger-type" like that too?

[Qube]

Mismatch grill/hood! GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Bad paint!

Cracked lens!

Crap man! You PAID for it out of pocket. Time to *calmly* raise holy hell!

BTW do it now. Take LOTS of pictures of things they did wrong.

[vuyodaddy]

Mismatch grill/hood! GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Bad paint!

Cracked lens!

Crap man! You PAID for it out of pocket. Time to *calmly* raise holy hell!

BTW do it now. Take LOTS of pictures of things they did wrong.


Dude, "GAAAAAAAAAAA!" is really the perfect word to describe how I feel right now. It makes me feel better that fellow E34 owners understand my irritation.

Indeed, the hour for holy hell to be risen has come. Pictures will be taken, and I will post some for everyones enjoyment. Thanks.

[Rigmaster]

There's no need to raise hell or start writing letters........yet.

Take the car back to the shop and ask the manager/owner or whoever is in charge to take a look at it with you. Calmly point out the things you are not happy with and TELL him what you'd like them to do to make it right- don't ASK him what he's gonna do- TELL him politely what it's gonna take for you to be happy. Now you will have to be reasonable (i.e.- don't expect a complete repaint), but you have the right to a car that is repaired correctly. They should be able to source the correct grille + an uncracked headlight, sand + repaint the hood, and realign it to open properly. (it may just need some grease on the pivot points to help if open a bit easier)


Don't be surprised if the repainted hood comes out with some other issues- sounds like they are not the best place when it comes to quality- but you should be able to at least get a decent paint job and correct parts out of them for your $$$$.



Bret.

[Mendozart]

I'll buy your narrow grill if it's available after all is said and done.

[Tiger]

Totally unacceptable. Tell them to do the job right. Use right part... Use new parts. If they want more money, teke them to court.

[Macv]

Rip their scrotums off.

I feel horrible for you man, I don't know what I'd do in your position. Deffinately take many many pictures and keep on them. I'd report it to the news, similar to what SnakeyesTX said. But I'd only do that because I'm stupid.

Good luck on future events.

[Rigmaster]

Totally unacceptable. Tell them to do the job right. Use right part... Use new parts. If they want more money, teke them to court.


WTF?

How in the world do you know what the original estimate called for?? Maybe he agreed to good quality used parts in order to save money.

Taking them to court is not always the best answer- despite what you see/hear on TV.



Bret.

[vuyodaddy]

Thanks for all the input guys. I really think the calm approach will possibly help them empathize with me and feel some sort of duty for doing the job wrong. The threatening approach will probably get them thinking I'm an ******* and keep them from helping me to the fullest extent. But pictures and formal list of problems is a definite must.

[Wes F]

It's seriously stories like this that scare the crap outta me. It seems like when it comes to paint/bodywork, shops can do either high quality work, or horrible crap that shouldn't be seen on even an old beater. I need some rust patching and paint respray in some areas, but no way in hell do I wanna bring my baby in to some idiot who's gonna make it worse...the problem is, unless you talk to someone who has first hand experience, you have no idea what kind of quality work a shop can do.

Some years back I remember my dad had a pristine '89 560SL, absolutely cherry - had like a silver/champagne color with deep red interior - gorgeous. The only thing wrong with it was a tiny dime size spot of rust forming on that little bottom panel right behind the door. The panel itself was only the size of a small plate. Anyway, so he took it to a shop that his mechanic recommended to get it fixed. 2 days later go to pick up the car, and was stunned. The freakin' panel was a totally different color than the car, completely stood out. On top of that, f*cker had grease and dirt and sh*t all over the interior from when the guy was getting in and out, and as if he had the windows down/doors open from when he was sanding and sh*t. Anyway, so of course that didn't fly and made the guy redo the panel to match the car. But it's sh*t like that that makes my skin crawl when I start to think about handing over my car to some dumbass...

[gmannino]

ya that really sucks, too bad you have to go thru this. Make them fix it or small claims court.

[Yiorgos]

Have you taken any pictures? If so, can we see?

I'm still quite taken aback that the shop you took your car to tried to give you your car back with a narrow grille, when it is so clear to see that it wouldn't sit correctly with the wide grille hood.

The grille part of your array of problems should be very easy to prove -- take a photo of the front of your car pre-accident with you to clearly show the difference between both grilles. We had a similar problem with the family's Holden Commodore VL wagon that a truck smacked into some years back -- got it back from the panel beaters and they had put a tailgate from a VK (Some 4 years older than the car), which didn't fit properly, rear washer jet wasn't compatible and was rubbing against the chassis of the car, rubbing the paint. Lucky we had photos of the car pre-accident, took it to the insurance company and gave them hell for it.

Give 'em hell!

[Alexlind123]

I wouldnt be complaining if they gave me a narrow grill upgrade.

[BillionPa]

they gave him the "update" but it still has the wide grill hood on it!

[angrypancake]

I had a similar experience. My car was sitting in the back yard of the shop for about a month and a half, though they promised that it would be done in 7-10 days... They kept saying they were "so booked" and all this ****, yet I'd drive by every day and see cars that were brought in after mine sitting out front all done. Finally they got around to "fixing" my car... The rear bumber add on wasn't touched, they said it was a complete rear bumper. Oh wait, arent those screws in it, attaching the add on? Uh yeah. So I got a new stock bumper instead, whatever, **** happens. At least I kept the old one (note to self, learn how to paint).

Finally the day comes when I can pick the car up, I go over all excited, and I see it out back, getting a nice wash. Oh wait, it looks.... different.... IT'S F*CKING PINK. Turns out that after all this time they didn't match the paint. The quarter panel is pink, the bumper is pinker, the trunk lid is some odd shade of ****, and just yeah. I took the car home because I missed it and needed to drive it, then brought it back Monday morning first thing (picked it up at closing on Friday afternoon). Father and myself brought the owner out, and told him to take a look. He apologized profusely and promised to handle it. I took the time to tell him that the inside was coverered in about an inch of dust (sanding with the windows open or something) and got them to paint my wing. When I got it back, they had blended the entire passenger side of the car, and it looks great. Sorry for the long post I just never got around to the body shop rant.


Cliff Notes: I went through the same thing. Go back to the shop with your father, and be up front. "Look at this, its poor service, and it needs to be fixed. It hasn't been completed in a professional manner, and I cannot in good conscience drive this car and be happy with you guys' work."

[Mendozart]

what's the narrow grill update? pics?

[Alexlind123]

what's the narrow grill update? pics?

My sig pic is an example of a narrow grill. Some e34 owners maay desire to change their wide grill to narrow girll after a collision.

[angrypancake]

cause wide grill sux0rz.... ohhhhhhhhhhh there i said it :p

[hakwuzhere]

Hrm, I thought it was the other way around?... Im in the process of changing to a wide grill

[Yiorgos]

Some people prefer the narrow grille to the wide one offered on the later manufacturing run of the E34s.

If you've smacked out your front end in an accident, it's usually an ideal time to make the conversion, since the hood also has to be replaced -- the grooves are wider to accomodate the integration of the wide grille as opposed to the narrow variety.

I personally find the narrow grille to make the E34 look more dated, and I'm very glad I have a wide grille on my 525i -- this is entirely my opinion though, and there are many people that prefer the narrow.

I think after about 1994 all E34s came with wide grille as standard (don't quote me on that year, memory is quite sketchy).

[vuyodaddy]

Well, I'm not settling for no narrow grill. I too think the narrow grill makes the Bimmer look overly old school. But some people are cool with that. I, on the other hand, will get my damn wide grill.

And then I think to myself, should I have them install my clear corners for me while they're at it? I don't want to do it myself and make things rattly. Especially if theyre replacing my headlights anyway. We shall see.

Thanks for everything thus far guys. Definitely a helpful community here.


P.S. I'm working all day today, so I'll get to taking and posting pictures tomorrow. That way, everyone can see the shoddy work and be pissed with me. Yess!!:D

[Alexlind123]

Well, I'm not settling for no narrow grill. I too think the narrow grill makes the Bimmer look overly old school. But some people are cool with that. I, on the other hand, will get my damn wide grill.

And then I think to myself, should I have them install my clear corners for me while they're at it? I don't want to do it myself and make things rattly. Especially if theyre replacing my headlights anyway. We shall see.

Thanks for everything thus far guys. Definitely a helpful community here.


P.S. I'm working all day today, so I'll get to taking and posting pictures tomorrow. That way, everyone can see the shoddy work and be pissed with me. Yess!!:D

NO, do not have them install anything else for you. They screwed up once, and you shouldnt give them any more business. You shouldnt have anything more to do with them, other than making them fix what they screwed up.

[vuyodaddy]

NO, do not have them install anything else for you. They screwed up once, and you shouldnt give them any more business. You shouldnt have anything more to do with them, other than making them fix what they screwed up.

Point taken. Thanks.

[632 Regal]

the clears are easy too.