Dealer and Chrysler refusing to Repair damage from dealer lot

[jth877]

I picked my new 2020 truck up a couple of weeks ago. A few minutes after getting home I noticed a ding on the tailgate. A small dent with a paint chip in the center. I immediately took pics and sent them to the sales guy I dealt with. This is less than 2 hours after taking delivery. The sales guy emailed me back quickly and said they would take care of it. A few days later I brought the truck in to the deal and their offer was to PDR the dent and "blob" touch up paint on the chip. Yes, he actually used the would blob. I said that was unacceptable and called Chrysler Corporate.

Fast forward to today. I got a call back from corporate (The initial person on the phone agreed with me to the point of getting angry herself). The case worker that I finally got a hold of told me that there is a "strict" vehicle condition report that the dealer has to fill out before delivery as to the condition of each vehicle they sell. Their report said the truck had no damage. I do not trust the general manager. What stops the dealership from lying on that vehicle condition form? If the purchaser doesn't catch the ding before taking delivery he's screwed. I would even accept for them to PDR the dent and get a professional chip repair guy to fix it. They won't do it.

 

[SD Rebel]

That sucks man, you are being very reasonable here, because honestly this is unacceptable for a new vehicle delivery.

Since FCA is telling you they will only act on what the dealership tells them, it means you need to work on the dealer. I would go there in person, speak with the salesman and ask to speak with the general manager and then the owner. I would try to be nice and professionally, hopefully you can get them to change their mind.

However if not, you can try to make a stink on all their social media platforms. They are also afraid of bad reviews on the dealership surveys. My buddy had an issue with his dealership in that they didn't want to take credit for. He emailed the owner & general manager directly, told them he was going to local TV news about bad business practices and highlight this issue along with any social media platforms they were on. He got a call within 24 hours to fix it.

 

[jth877]

Not going to lie I'm a bit nauseated over this. The fact they can get away with selling a vehicle that has a little damage and Chrysler corporate will back them on their word is outrageous. This was less than 2 hours after leaving the dealership.

I did take it to the dealer first. They will only do touch up paint. The GM even accused me of causing the damage and I'm lucky he'll go that far! I really like the truck, but after buying 3 vehicles from them this is the last. I will slam them on social media and every survey I can.

 

[AmericanRebelution]

How do you know this happened on the lot?

This highlights the importance of taking your time when you are taking ownership of a vehicle. Tough situation from the dealer perspective too.

Sorry this happened to you either way. It really stinks when something like this happens to a brand new vehicle.

 

[SD Rebel]

Not going to lie I'm a bit nauseated over this. The fact they can get away with selling a vehicle that has a little damage and Chrysler corporate will back them on their word is outrageous. This was less than 2 hours after leaving the dealership.

I did take it to the dealer first. They will only do touch up paint. The GM even accused me of causing the damage and I'm lucky he'll go that far! I really like the truck, but after buying 3 vehicles from them this is the last. I will slam them on social media and every survey I can.

You bought 3 vehicles from them and this is how they treat you? Yeah, I would make a stink.

 

[highgear2005]

Few weeks back, waiting on my free oil change. I was walking the dealership lot. Looking at the only truck with ram boxes. I noticed the paint was worn of the side of the lid. I know it’s exciting when buying a fancy new truck. But alway walk around, look at the paint from different angles! And always look at it in the sun! It’s unfortunate that the dealer won’t stand behind what they sold you. But it happens all the time with all brands.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[VectorZ]

It usually costs less than $50 to file a small claims court case.

 

[Adrianp89]

It usually costs less than $50 to file a small claims court case.

This will get it fixed real quick.

 

[jth877]

It happened before I took delivery. I drove home and parked in my very suburban driveway. Unless some ran up to the back of my truck on the way home and stabbed it with a screw driver the dealership is responsible 100%. I would not be surprised if the GM was lying. The truck also had a ton of surface scratches in the clear coat when I got it under decent light. I removed all of those with my DA, Orange/Green Lake country pads and Megs ultimate polish. I detail as a hobby.

 

[SD Rebel]

It happened before I took delivery. I drove home and parked in my very suburban driveway. Unless some ran up to the back of my truck on the way home and stabbed it with a screw driver the dealership is responsible 100%. I would not be surprised if the GM was lying. The truck also had a ton of surface scratches in the clear coat when I got it under decent light. I removed all of those with my DA, Orage/Gree Lake country pads and Megs ultimate polish. I detail as a hobby.

Worse case is just to pay for the PDR guy to take out the ding, you touch up the paint and buff it out. At least it will get fixed and you can avoid this dealer going forward.

Heck, I do my own oil changes instead of using my free coupon for one because I simply don't trust them with my truck. Only for a warranty issue I cannot fix myself will they see my truck on their lot.

 

[jth877]

That is my exact plan. I'll let them PDR then I'll touch it up/ wet sand/polish.

I also, do not let anybody do oil changes. I've seen some dumb stuff happen over the years with free dealership oil changes. It's pretty sad when Jiffy Lube is better at changing oil than a dealership.

 

[WXman]

Can we get a picture of this dent?

Reason I ask is because over the last few years I've seen some really ridiculous complaints on forums. I mean, damage you can barely even see with the naked eye some guys will burn bridges with people over. It blows my mind. I'd rather maintain a good relationship with my dealer than **** them off over a dent I could get fixed for $50 bucks, especially when I know it's a truck and will get dents and scratches over the next 5 years of use anyhow.

 

[jth877]

I will try and post a picture off my phone. After looking at reviews it does seem this dealer has plenty of complaints. Just curious why do you feel that people paying more than $50k for a vehicle should have to live with dealer induced scratches and dings? That's insane. I don't care about the little dent. Those come out easy. It's the paint chip.

I take extremely good care of my vehicles. I do not let the dealer wash them or perform any routine maintenance anyway. I have purchased 6 new vehicles in my life and probably 6 more used. I have never seen corruption like this.

 

[jth877]

Here it is

 

[mikeru82]

It usually costs less than $50 to file a small claims court case.

He'd be throwing his money away. The burden of proof would be on him. Unless the dealership admits guilt, there is no way for him to prove where, when, how this happened, so the claim would get dismissed.

 

[jth877]

You are exactly correct and the dealerships know that. My next vehicle purchase will be done in daylight and I will take pictures and inspect every panel carefully.

 

[NorthStar]

Sorry to hear about your issue as that is never good with a brand new truck.

I’m an old guy and one thing I’ve learned and taught my son is never purchase a new vehicle at night and always ha an uninvolved party with you to survey the vehicle before you take possession.

Dealers prey upon the excitement of a new truck and know how to do it far better than most customers can resist it. A second set of eyes will be more valuable than buying them lunch or dinner.

Also, video tape using your iPhone the entire walk around with the salesman in the video so nobody can dispute it. This way if you do miss something, it is on video and hopefully you can reason with the dealer after the fact.

 

[Bluesurf]

Back in 2001 I purchased an Acura RL Sedan. A week later I noticed above the driver side headlight a nick dent, with paint gone and rust. I was really surprised, I went back to Scarsdale Acura and the "boss" looked at it and told the salesman, it was doubtful it happened on their lot. They go over their cars before turning them over to the buyer. In the next breath, they told me as a courtesy all would be taken care of free of any charge. My salesman told me it was $1100.00 respray, and installed a new HID headlight and all, I was blown away. What a TOP class operation! It was all about making the customer happy. I bought several more cars from them. FCA doesn't know how to re-image themselves from a truck store to a upscale Truck store. When I had my Ram in for repair of the electronic pedal controller, they tried t give me back the truck with some deep scratches to the lower dashboard. The head of the service came out to see me, "oh its not so bad" really get me the parts out of a new car and you deal with ordering parts. I left with my new lower dash parts. I had some prior issues with them and they didn't want any more trouble. Unfortunately, its always a crap shoot.

 

[Biga]

You are exactly correct and the dealerships know that. My next vehicle purchase will be done in daylight and I will take pictures and inspect every panel carefully.

Yes, also a good idea to give the truck a good once over after leaving it with the service department even for an oil change. Been thier done that.

 

[Trippi]

Here it is

I feel bad for you, that looks bad. I had something similar that I noticed on the door handle after I got home. Like you I called up right away to my sales guy. I was out there that weekend for something else and showed the service department before I left. He said yeah that's a scratch and we can't buff it. We could maybe touch-up paint but let me take a picture and talk it over. He called me back in like 30 minutes and said we will order you a new handle it will be here next week. It's all installed looking much better. Good luck to you.