[holdoyn]

Hello guys, I've booked a Creta SX(O) Diesel AT last year and finally got a call from the sales guy today.
I've been allocated a unit finally, but it will come with ceramic pre-coated.
Is this possible? I did not ask for it, but the sales person says that the only units (about 2) available are pre-coated with ceramic.
I asked to see the vehicle, but it seems it is still in transit and will arrive by this month end.

What do I do? Please advise.
Thanks in advance.

[SteeringWheel]

Originally Posted by holdoyn

Hello guys, I've booked a Creta SX(O) Diesel AT last year and finally got a call from the sales guy today.
I've been allocated a unit finally, but it will come with ceramic pre-coated.
Is this possible? I did not ask for it, but the sales person says that the only units (about 2) available are pre-coated with ceramic.
I asked to see the vehicle, but it seems it is still in transit and will arrive by this month end.

What do I do? Please advise.
Thanks in advance.

I don't believe pre-coated ceramic from factory. Anyway, if it is pre-coated it will be included in the ex-showroom price. A look at the invoice should tell you. If such a cost is mentioned additionally, then it's the showroom which is doing that.

[Rodie09]

My brother recently bought a Kushaq and he wants to go for PPF. As per him he will first have to get rid of ceramic coating to get PPF done. So, it's not just this Creta but appears that others cars are also coming ceramic pre coated.
Based on above I think sales person may be correct. Of course, worth doing your due diligence.

[holdoyn]

Originally Posted by Rodie09

My brother recently bought a Kushaq and he wants to go for PPF. As per him he will first have to get rid of ceramic coating to get PPF done. So, it's not just this Creta but appears that others cars are also coming ceramic pre coated.
Based on above I think sales person may be correct. Of course, worth doing your due diligence.

Oh wow, I wonder if this will become the new norm going forward.
I, for one am not really happy about this, but looks like nothing else I can do.
Thanks @Rodie09 for the info.

[Akshay1234]

Originally Posted by holdoyn

I did not ask for it, but the sales person says that the only units (about 2) available are pre-coated with ceramic.
I asked to see the vehicle, but it seems it is still in transit and will arrive by this month end.

Do they want additional charges for the so called pre-coated ceramic? If so, its quite convenient that the only 2 available are pre-coated with ceramic for an additional earning for them.

[thanixravindran]

Originally Posted by holdoyn

Hello guys, I've booked a Creta SX(O) Diesel AT last year and finally got a call from the sales guy today.
I've been allocated a unit finally, but it will come with ceramic pre-coated.
Is this possible? I did not ask for it, but the sales person says that the only units (about 2) available are pre-coated with ceramic.
I asked to see the vehicle, but it seems it is still in transit and will arrive by this month end.

What do I do? Please advise.
Thanks in advance.

Please check directly with Hyundai. I am sure they will loop back with dealer but it will be interesting to know what is their take on this factory ceramic coated 'rare' units

[Cresterk]

Do you really think a company like hyundai would ever do this without a massive social media campaign proclaiming the benefits and "first in segment"?

Most likely it's someone else's car that they refused delivery after they had a ceramic coating applied. If the dealership wants extra money for said ceramic coating, then it's just a way to fleece you.

[sf71hvettel]

It is a sales tactic to bill you an over priced VAS (Value Added Service- like teflon coating, PPF). The sales consultant is pushing it since he probably has an incentive linked to it.

You can escalate the issue with Hyundai, but the dealership can also just sell this car to the next customer in the queue and make you wait longer. I think your best bet is a reasonable dicussion with the team leader/sales manager.

[holdoyn]

Originally Posted by sf71hvettel

You can escalate the issue with Hyundai, but the dealership can also just sell this car to the next customer in the queue and make you wait longer. I think your best bet is a reasonable dicussion with the team leader/sales manager.

Yes, I'm worried about this. I do not want to be in a wait list again. The most I could do is maybe negotiate the cost.
I'll update when the SA will tell me about the additional cost tomorrow.

[jkrishnakj]

Ask for the VIN too for the manufacture date. You never know if some one else had asked for ceramic coating and had cancelled which the SA is trying to push to you.

[audioholic]

There is nothing like pre coating of ceramic from factory that too on only two cars. The SA is trying to pull a scam either due to him wanting to make some quick bucks, or because some other customer might have got ceramic coating done on their undelivered car and later canceled the whole deal. Hence they are trying to push it on another customers head and recover the liability.

In other news I also heard from my uncle that even Hyundai ASC is pushing ceramic coating as a service item. Just like the other items. They sell a no name brand and make a huge margin on it.

[Chhanda Das]

Originally Posted by holdoyn

I've been allocated a unit finally, but it will come with ceramic pre-coated. Is this possible? I did not ask for it, but the sales person says that the only units (about 2) available are pre-coated with ceramic.

It seems as if they are trying to pull a fast one. The best way to verify this is to get the full 19 character VIN (not the shortened 17 character version) and enter it on the Hyundai Global Service Way or GSW website (link below) after registering on the website. Please click on Hyundai and not Genesis which is a luxury sub-brand of Hyundai :-

https://service.hyundai-motor.com/euro5/login.tiles

Please note that you cannot officially register on GSW website from India (since our laws are weak/non-existent in this aspect) but it works if you show your location as one from a European country using a good VPN or virtual private network service since the laws there make it mandatory for vehicle manufacturers to share almost all vehicle details with interested parties like independent repair shops, customers with a DIY inclination, etc.

After entering the VIN, the vehicle's details should pop up. And if Hyundai did the ceramic coating then it would be definitely mentioned here. For example, here are the details of my own 2017 Creta as visible on the GSW website :-

If you do not find ceramic coating mentioned anywhere then it is very likely that the dealership did it and the vehicle was probably allocated to or earmarked for someone else who rejected/canceled it for some reason. Also, please make sure that the car you are getting is compliant with the latest BS6 phase two norms even if it is manufactured this year.

Even if you find that Hyundai did indeed do the ceramic coating, personally, I would still advise you against getting this vehicle. This is because once the ceramic coating is done professionally, you would need to repeat the process after every few years and it is not cheap. It would be cheaper, in the long run, to get the entire car repainted instead. Additionally, a small layer of the original paint gets removed before every single time ceramic coating is done. And you can obviously forget about the clearcoat from the factory.

I hope this helps

[G V Krishna]

He's making a jackass out of you. Off late, this is one the of trick the dealers are pulling. KIA dealer pulled a similar trick on my friend by saying some customer rejected a car but it is ceramic coated & he has to pay the diff (~INR 30k ) so that he need not wait another 1-2 months. How lucky was my friend? same exact color, same trim, just that some random dude cancelled after getting ceramic coat...I had to step in and call the dealer's bluff & my friend got the same car without the ceramic coat in a week.

The thing is dealers aren't happy with the margins, and always try to push services that have very high margins to unsuspecting customers. Unbranded accessories, teflon coating, ceramic coating etc., are services where they can make a quick buck.

Note: Hyundai is in car making business and not detailing business. If they start adding ceramic coating to their cars in the factory itself, it would be heavily marketed.

[Raghu M]

The claim seems to be a little wild. I don't think a factory would do that to begin with. If they start doing ceramic, teflon and ppf coating, the dealers will go out of business. The dealers get money mostly from stuff like accessories, value services (ceramic, under body etc.) and then regular service. It's these services that keep them in business. The manufacturer does only one job and that is to assemble the car together. Let's say they did ceramic, then why is it that they cannot assemble a basic part like mud flaps? The claim seems to be exaggerated. Please do due diligence in such cases. I for one would not believe an SA at face value. They have targets and will do many things to push the products out of the showroom.

[holdoyn]

Update:
I spoke to the SA today and I asked him if the ceramic coating charges are part of the ex-showroom prices and If so, can I see them?

Now he says "why will they be part of the ex-showroom price? The car will not come with the coating but rather they'll do it" Shocked, I reminded him of what he said last time we spoke and he denies saying that at all and goes on to say that "I told you that it was coming in the dealer's quota and I had personally requested that the car be allocated to you as you were waiting for an year...I never said it comes with the ceramic pre-coated"

After a little back and forth, when I asked him if that's the case, then I don't want the coating, he said he'll talk to me about that again later.

Guys, is this similar to "buying in black" where you pay certain amount to get the vehicle in advance, jumping the queue, only in this case a service item instead of cash?

Originally Posted by Chhanda Das

It seems as if they are trying to pull a fast one. The best way to verify this is to get the full 19 character VIN (not the shortened 17 character version) and enter it on the Hyundai Global Service Way or GSW website (link below) after registering on the website.

Thank you for the very detailed info mam.
Also, the SA now denies he said that the car comes pre-coated. It looks like he tried to pull a fast one.
Anyhow, I'm hoping I can avert that ceramic coating without much fuss.