[mr_robot]

Have I been cheated by the dealer?

Hello BHPians,

You might have read my pre booking saga with Tata Punch. I've been able to take delivery of Creative IRA MT Tropical Mist Colour.

Key Points on Pre-Delivery & Delivery Experience:
I was shown two cars in Mist colour, both had Tata PDI do not open sticker on all four doors and the dealer refused to open, visually I found the cars to be without any paint damages and dents, so I didn't care much as the cars were in shortage, refusing them meant waiting for at least 1 or 2 months more.

On the delivery day to my horror I found that the two cars which I inspected were still in the stockyard beside the showroom. They showroom people informed me that the cars were stored in the building on the roof, I had checked on the roof that day and didn't find a single tropical mist present there, also the odometer was clocked at 105km. Nothing was to be done, we paid for the car in full.
We were for the lack of a better word cheated by the dealer. Heartbroken, we took the car for Pooja and were happy that everything else seemed to be fine. A couple of days pass and I notice some smudges at different places in the car at a certain angle only, maybe the dealer attempted last minute paint damage/ scratch correction which held upto 2 days. The roof also started to show white colour as opposed to the gloss black at certain places, I had noticed the same damage on Tornado Blue colour which was put on display in my local dealer showroom. The car was of August 2021 manufacturing.
The paint damage according to me looks like the paint was peeled off and the dealer took a kids paint brush and corrected it, it doesn't shine like the other parts and it looks a shade more/less than the other areas with undamaged paint. They also did a Teflon coat before delivery.

What do you think fellow BHPians? Being the first car how do you deal with this dissatisfaction?

[PrasannaDhana]

Originally Posted by mr_robot

What do you think fellow BHPians? Being the first car how do you deal with this dissatisfaction?

In my opinion, it is unacceptable in a new car and you should confront the dealer about it.

I do have a doubt, did you not notice these irregularities during delivery?

That is why it is always a good practice to note down the VIN during PDI. I had demanded the VIN as soon as the car was billed from the factory, and I got it.

Let's come to your query

Were you cheated ? No

If they gave you a car that was once a TD car, with odo clocked back to null, then it is definitely a cheating. This is just 105 km, which is perfectly normal if the RTO is 10-20 km from the dealer.

Punch was launched in August. You got the first lot of production. The paint imperfections may be due to minor scratches during transit.

What you can do now, is to take this issue to the head of the dealership and politely ask him/her to touch up your car to your satisfaction. I understand that it might be disappointing when it is a brand new car, that too, your first one. But it isn't a big deal honestly.

Enjoy the beautiful car. In 6 months time, 99% of all brand new cars get a couple of scratches no matter how careful one is. As long as the car is reliable and does its duty, you should not be worried. Even if there are issues, you have the warranty guarding you.

So, just relax and take away the negative emotions from it and relish the honeymoon period of your new car ownership.

Congrats!!

PS: There is no perfect car

[mr_robot]

Originally Posted by PrasannaDhana

I do have a doubt, did you not notice these irregularities during delivery?

Congrats!!

PS: There is no perfect car

Thank you for your reply.

I’m having a good time with car but around half the time when I look back at the car I see the imperfection in paint.

No, I haven’t noticed these things during the time of delivery. I took delivery on Saturday and noticed this for the first time on Tuesday morning when taking off the cover.

[mr_robot]

Originally Posted by mr_robot

I notice some smudges at different places in the car at a certain angle only, maybe the dealer attempted last minute paint damage/ scratch correction which held upto 2 days. The roof also started to show white colour as opposed to the gloss black at certain places. They also did a Teflon coat before delivery.

Attaching pics.







Please help by suggesting on how to correct this paint issue? Thanks in advance.

[DriveOnceMore]

Originally Posted by mr_robot

Attachment 2240539

Please help by suggesting on how to correct this paint issue? Thanks in advance.

Those white marks are because of leftover cream / solution they use while doing teflon coating.
The places on which the patches are present are usually difficult to reach areas and hence most of the times you can spot it there.
Try to rub it with your hand or microfiber cloth and those will go away.
Sad to see the scratches though.

Did the car have those white stickers which Tata Motors applies as a seal? (something they've started after this COVID thing has begun).
Sometimes the glue used for those stickers leave a heavy amount of residue and then showroom guys try hard to get rid of them by rubbing with cloth (mostly dirty) or so, which could be reason behind that.
Happened while taking delivery of my cousin's Harrier too.

[Aditya]

Dealer delivers a paint damaged Tata Punch to me - Posts moved to a new thread.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by mr_robot

Have I been cheated by the dealer?

Originally Posted by PrasannaDhana

Were you cheated ? No

Of course, he's been cheated! At full price, you expect a perfect, undamaged car. Tata has fairly good paint quality out of the factory so something has clearly gone wrong during transit / at the dealer's end.

You must absolutely escalate this to Tata. This thread being here will help in getting attention. Don't live with this, it has to be fixed. A good paint job is the least the dealer should do.

PS: There is no perfect car

Sorry, but the last five vehicles I've taken delivery of in the last decade, NONE have had the slightest issue with regards to manufacturing/delivery quality. No ding, no scratch, no imperfect paint or fitting.

[veedub89]

The teflon coating that the dealer did before the delivery is why you have those white marks on the roof. Don't worry about it. Just clean it with a wet cloth and it will come off.

The marks that you see on the panels are very superficial.
My guess is that these marks were put there after delivery. Most likely caused by the belt buckle of the guy cleaning your car when leaning against the body to clean the roof of the car. You will be surprised how common this issue is.

Again, don't worry so much. Enjoy your car and assume nobody cheated you unless you have some hard evidence to the contrary.

Life's too short to worry about such minor issues on a car no less.

And if these issues still bother you, be rest assured that they are all fixable. Visit your nearest car detailing store and you will come out happier than ever!

[iamahunter]

This seems to be a case of fear. Fear of being cheated with a Tata Car.
Even the small niggles might make the customer feel cheated or being taken for a ride.

I expected this to be more common following the recent Safari issues.

Originally Posted by mr_robot

Attaching pics.Attachment 2240538

Attachment 2240537

Attachment 2240539

Attachment 2240540

Please help by suggesting on how to correct this paint issue? Thanks in advance.

Does the white part feel smooth like a paint or is it rough and not shiny?

If its rough, its probably left over of the polish, you might need to rub it a bit, as it might have been stuck/hardened.

The other scratch looks pretty minor, possibly which will only be noticeable on keen inspection. Request the dealer to buff it and it should go away.

If these are the only things bothering you, rest assured, you were NOT CHEATED.

Enjoy the car mate, its one of the safest cars in India currently.

[ike]

Originally Posted by mr_robot

Attaching pics.

Please help by suggesting on how to correct this paint issue? Thanks in advance.

I'm no expert but it looks like wax/some polishing compound that dried on the car. Maybe the guy polishing was in a tearing hurry to get it over with and did a shoddy job. The most common place I have seen this happen is around the fuel lid.

[kushagra452]

You have clearly been cheated by the dealership. It seems the dealership has sold a "used" car (returned by another prospective customer after PDI). Write to Tata and escalate to the higher management. You have the right to demand a brand new car without imperfections. Best of luck!

[nirmaljusdoit]

This is a clear case of repair and repaint being done and usually happens as a result of transit damages or while storing at yards. It happens quite often and dealers usually do a repair and paint of the affected area.

Those small dots and indentations you see are pinholes and dust which is normally found in repainted cases. Nothing to worry, looking at the lines and panels doesn’t seem to be a major damage. Just visit a good detailer close by and show them. It may require a little wet sanding and rubbing and polishing, should sort it out and get the gloss back. Those white deposits are polishing compound which has not been wiped off properly or as we say in detailing - gap cleaning not done.

[PrasannaDhana]

Originally Posted by kushagra452

You have clearly been cheated by the dealership. It seems the dealership has sold a "used" car (returned by another prospective customer after PDI).

Never knew that the term used car had another meaning until I read what you have mentioned above.

All I see is some touch up and incomplete polishing remains. Cheating is a big term to be used here.

To the OP, you definitely can ask your dealer to rectify it. It's a one day job at the maximum. Don't lose your peace over this.

[mr_robot]

Originally Posted by DriveOnceMore

Those white marks are because of leftover cream / solution they use while doing teflon coating.
Did the car have those white stickers which Tata Motors applies as a seal? (something they've started after this COVID thing has begun).

Originally Posted by veedub89

The teflon coating that the dealer did before the delivery is why you have those white marks on the roof.

The white marks to appeared 4-5 days after taking delivery, so I don't think they are leftover cream/solution.

Originally Posted by DriveOnceMore

Did the car have those white stickers which Tata Motors applies as a seal?

Yes, the car did have the Tata PDI stickers, 4 of them on all 4 doors.

Originally Posted by libranof1987

You must absolutely escalate this to Tata. This thread being here will help in getting attention. Don't live with this, it has to be fixed. A good paint job is the least the dealer should do.

I don't want to escalate this issue as I expect the worst to happen with my car when I leave it there for service(then too I can escalate, but then how many times). I will as suggested by veedub89 and iamahunter take it to detailing shop or ask the dealer to buff it.

Originally Posted by veedub89

Most likely caused by the belt buckle of the guy cleaning your car when leaning against the body to clean the roof of the car.

It might be the case, that might have caused those scratches.

Originally Posted by iamahunter

Does the white part feel smooth like a paint or is it rough and not shiny?

It feels smooth.

Originally Posted by mr_robot

We were for the lack of a better word cheated by the dealer.

Again, I know it is a strong word, but when only two cars of Tropical Mist were shown to us in the stockyard and on the roof of the showroom I didn't see Tropical Mist colour(I saw 3 Blue, 3Red, 2Grey, couple of Nexon and Altroz) when finalizing the colour, I couldn't understand where this third Tropical Mist car which was allocated to us came from with odo at 105km and RTO office at 1.8km from the showroom. I don't know what word to use!
I even had a chat with the CEO of the dealership and he told me that ARAI selects random cars on the company lot and tests them(I didn't want to challenge his claim as I don't have any knowledge on how ARAI tests) and our car might have been a part of that test vehicle.

Once again, I'm very much enjoying the car. Here's a collage of the pics showcasing the beautiful Tropical Mist colour.



Thank you all.

[plosh]

Personally, I'd recommend you take it for ceramic coating treatment. Those folks do paint correction and ceramic is recommended as well, since it's about protecting your paintjob.

Originally Posted by mr_robot

Attaching pics.Attachment 2240538

Attachment 2240537

Attachment 2240539

Attachment 2240540

Please help by suggesting on how to correct this paint issue? Thanks in advance.