ChuH

Just check the status of my car at the body shop. As I have expected they weren't careful on masking my Lowenhart rims. Now the highly polish lips have a matte finish from the clear coat. I brought this to the manager's attention and they said their will take care of it. I don't really trust them at this point on being careful. If they use a dirty rag to polish the rims they can scratch it permanently.

Can anyone recommend how to remove the oversprays??? Claybar, rubbing compound, metal polish compound, etc...

Chu...

Johnny Mo

Chu,

claybar should work just fine.

0260n5.7

Chu,

Clay bar or some Mothers wheel polish should do it. Just be careful that the overspray doesn't become "rubbing compound." Change the soft cloth VERY frequently.

I didn't see you @ the grand opening of the new Lexus showroom? Sorry to hear about all this crap you are going through. What shop did this? Please advise so the rest of us can avoid it. Hope all turns out well. Manny PMd me today. We should all meet next weekend. What do you think? Let me know.

MAC

ChuH

Hi Mike:

It was AK Body Shop. They normally do quality work but this time they had some kid painter working on my car. Wasn't Dan the master painter (the guy who came in 2nd place in Tokyo competition) like they said will be the one who was going to paint my car. Instead of painting the damage areas they painted the whole side of the car without telling me. In addition, instead of removing the L-Tuned badge they put masking tape over it then went ahead and painted the fender. The clear coat were very rough and was not properly buffed at the painted areas. When I saw it yesterday morning I lost my temper (even complain to Dave Toves). They end up removing the L-Tuned badge and repainted the fender. Ben (body shop manager) called me up to apologize and agreed on the poor workmanship. Now Dan is fixing the problems. This morning I briefly check on it and it looks okay but still some minor problems (overspray, area that need to be buff, etc). Haven't check it out in detail yet. I am schedule to pick it up tomorrow. They are now redoing the fender because of the removal of the L-Tuned badge made a indentation from the paint they applied.

I still will go to and recommend AK body shop if the right person such as Dan was the one doing the work like they promised.

Chu...

ChuH

Meet next weekend sounds good to me. Still got to check out your TTE front spoiler.

Are you going with the GroupBuy for the TorqueMaster Plugs? I just order a set for my GS from Steve Ganz.

Chu...

babyGS3

Chu!!!

that's the exact same damn thing that happened to my car when i had it done at AK!!! They totally fuked up my car.. and the rims... Their excuse was well, you win some you lose some... I complained to him about the windows and he flat out denied that they had anything to do with it. I was telling him, i have a 1994 Benz that still looks like new... no scratches at all... and you expect me to accept this on my lex? I just let it go. But I have been Un-recommending AK bodyshop to everyone that I hear that goes there. when they replaced my sideskirts after the first accident, it looked misaligned... but after the 3rd accident, when i put on the new L-sportline kit, i found that they did not put back any of the screws/clips to hold the damn things in! They put overspray on my tires and rims... overspray on the black c panels and black parts of the door... i guess they put overspray on the windows and tried to remove it (that's where the swirls came from... after 3 days, the paint started chipping and fading and did not match the rest of the car. dont let me get started with the bodywork that they did on the car that compromised the structural rigidity of the rear which led to the extensive damage i suffered in this last accident...Ok now thanks to Guranteed, I am finally satisfied with the car.

Sorry to vent.. but I think this is a permanent mar against these people...they seem to be trying to cut costs at the expense of the customer... taking advantage of their reputation as the dealer's bodyshop...charging outrageous prices for shoddy work! Or maybe they do good on some peoples car and *****ty work on others??? dunno...

Anyway, BE CAREFUL when removing the overspray from your wheels!!!!!!!! even the claybar scratches a little!!! but it will definitely get the overspray off... i forgot to show you my rims which dont have a gloss anymore since AK painted my car. I wont be doing anything with the rims since i will be getting new ones soon...
I hope you didnt sign the release.. or pay them for anything they have done! If you can, you should get new rims if they cant restore it to its original finish!!!! DONT LET THEM BUFF THOSE RIMS!!!! DO NOT ! DO NOT!!! it will absolutely ruin the finish!!!!

WE should all meet! I really want to see you guys' cars... i swear once you've started upgrading, you will never stop!!! Mike, i was about to get the l-sportline roof spoiler like you did.. but i think i might get the UGO instead... I will probably be getting bilstein coilovers... the WORK Euroline LS wheels from GS4will (or your rims!! heheeh ) I need to save up some money to get my BRAX amp and I might get 2 JLAUDIO 12W7's. Then I will be putting the Lexus, Aristo, V300, in black pearl (from steve ganz).

I really want to find out how to change the color of the instrument panel in the car.. I will either go with blue or I might just go with amber. I have a friend who might be able to convert those stuff...Anyway... Next weekend is fine for a meet... or how about july 4th??? anyone going to the carnaval???

~Manny

babyGS3

PS...
they probably repainted the whole side because they couldnt match your paint. and it will be less obvious if they repaint the whole side... that's what they did to mine... they repainted the back rear door even if it wasnt damaged... then it faded... and was yellowish... while the other parts remained white...

Somehow, my car turned black after a while... hehehehehe... I like the new color though..

~manny

ChuH

Hi Manny:

I had some bad experience with other body shops and AK has in the past done pretty good job on my previous cars.

Your right I am going to stop them early tomorrow morning from attempting to remove the overspray on the rims. Just check my stock of claybar and have only one bar left that I will save for the car body. Will do a complete Zaino job this Sunday if weather permits. I will need to check around Guam as to who may sell claybars. Do you have any recommendation?

Yeah, let's all meet next weekend.

Chu...

GS400Lex

I was just wondering how your rims are holding up... the AT ITALIA's. I just ordered a set and wondered if they were gonna stand up to the bumps and dips around my area.

0260n5.7

WOW!. I'm quite surprised that it was AK. They are the 1s that did the TTE and the roof spoiler. They did a great job on those parts. Perhaps because they were not on the car at the time.

Chu, I know Proline carries the mothers clay bar as does Ace. I really hope all goes well with your sweet ride.

Manny, damn dude how many accidents have you been in? Glad your OK, though.

GS400Lex, you will love the ATs. I really like them. I've been lucky so far. They are doing very well in the harsh environment (roads and weather) on Guam. One suggestion, wax the ***** out of them when you get them. I did the 3 step Mothers process on them right when I unpacked them. Now, I just wax them 1ce a month and they are holding up very well (knock, knock on wood). I actually use running water and my bare hand when washing the dirt off. Then I use a soft rag to get into the nooks. Enjoy your wheels and post pics when you put them on. Good choice!

MAC

GS400Lex

Thanks for the tips on taking care of those rims... I'll post pics as soon as the car is ready...

babyGS3

CHU,

I have an unused zaino claybar sitting here in the house inside its original container if you want. I even have the carwash concentrate to use as the lube...
yes.. other body shops also do shoddy work... but I'm just mad because they are the dealership and they have a rep.. and they charge an arm and a leg for that rep... and they are not living up to that rep. You are not the only one I've heard horror stories about AK body shop from. I dont know.. I think they pick and choose who they will service good. I've seen good paint jobs come out of AK bodyshop...paint jobs that look like they are not even paint jobs... cant tell that it was repainted... But then again, there is another side of the story. one that happens all too often, when the job is done sloppily... and the same amount is charged... and they try to weasel out of fixing something that they messed up. I just gave up with dealing with them... maybe I'm a bit too harsh on them...but maybe my expectations are too high of them because of the rep and the fact that they are the dealership's bodyshop. oh well...

but hey.. if you need the zaino claybar... i can give you one... just say so.

~Manny

ChuH

Hey Manny:

What are you doing up so early? 5:15AM

Thanks for the offer for the Zaino claybar. Can we meet somewhere so I can pick one up from you? I will replace it with another new one on my next order with Zaino Bros. Don't want to try other brands at this time. I like the Zaino products therefore would like to stick with them if possible.

Chu...