Bought It. Now Time to Detail It.
04-23-13, 10:44 AM
#31
Yea I got it from them.
Just got back from the body shop to have them look at the car... the haze is just overspray... everywhere on the car. I took it to them to see if they could re-align the drivers side headlight as it's positioned slightly down compared to the left side... boy oh boy did I find out a lot.
The entire front end was resprayed, and not very well. The guy said he suspected an auto auction had tried to hastly repair it for auction. The driver side fender must've been hit as it is in the wrong position and wasn't repaired properly. The paint really doesn't match either. So first bid is 1800.00 worth of repair and Luxor is trying to dodge coughing up any money to reimburse me. Gotta love post-sale customer service from used car dealers. Had this been disclosed I obviously wouldn't have bought the car.
Looks like the detail project is on hold as one way or another i'm having it all re-done and put together properly. Just a matter of whether or not i'm 2k poorer or not.
Just got back from the body shop to have them look at the car... the haze is just overspray... everywhere on the car. I took it to them to see if they could re-align the drivers side headlight as it's positioned slightly down compared to the left side... boy oh boy did I find out a lot.
The entire front end was resprayed, and not very well. The guy said he suspected an auto auction had tried to hastly repair it for auction. The driver side fender must've been hit as it is in the wrong position and wasn't repaired properly. The paint really doesn't match either. So first bid is 1800.00 worth of repair and Luxor is trying to dodge coughing up any money to reimburse me. Gotta love post-sale customer service from used car dealers. Had this been disclosed I obviously wouldn't have bought the car.
Looks like the detail project is on hold as one way or another i'm having it all re-done and put together properly. Just a matter of whether or not i'm 2k poorer or not.
04-23-13, 11:26 AM
#32
That's total crap, and exactly why a clean carfax report can mean almost nothing. Unfortunately you didn't catch these things until you bought the car and took it home, but then again, that is understandable. You were the perfect buyer for this dealership. They knew you were coming in from a long distance and intending to drive the car back that day, so they knew they had a buyer who was very serious and was intending to leave with a car. Now that they've sold you the vehicle,they probably couldn't care less about you. I'm sure you bought the vehicle AS-IS, and so even if there was a limited dealer warranty that they offered, it won't cover bodywork. I think you're going to get stuck with the $2K in proper repairs.
04-23-13, 11:39 AM
#33
Instructor
^^^sorry to hear this.
04-23-13, 12:58 PM
#36
My 2011 isf was a lease as well and the dude seriously neglected it! I thought it was terrible but it wasnt quite as bad as yours. Hard to comprehend how people can neglect such an awesome car
04-23-13, 02:01 PM
#39
I was naive I suppose to think I could just fly in, pick up the keys and leave with a nice car but i'll chalk it up to a learning experience and not do it again. I think the rest of the car is nice and again, mechanically it seems to be sound and the accident wasn't bad enough to damage any of the bumper supports or frame, or require a hood replacement so i'll just grit my teeth, get it repaired, and hope the dealer covers at least part of it.
04-23-13, 02:21 PM
#40
Yes but I had already had purchased the car and the title had already been sent so it was already my car. On balance in hindsight it would've made sense not to accept the car or try and work something out but again, it's not like I had a certified check with me that I hadn't already handed them and signed papers. I had already paid for it, done all the paperwork, etc so I doubt there is little they would've done to help me out to begin with.
I was naive I suppose to think I could just fly in, pick up the keys and leave with a nice car but i'll chalk it up to a learning experience and not do it again. I think the rest of the car is nice and again, mechanically it seems to be sound and the accident wasn't bad enough to damage any of the bumper supports or frame, or require a hood replacement so i'll just grit my teeth, get it repaired, and hope the dealer covers at least part of it.
I was naive I suppose to think I could just fly in, pick up the keys and leave with a nice car but i'll chalk it up to a learning experience and not do it again. I think the rest of the car is nice and again, mechanically it seems to be sound and the accident wasn't bad enough to damage any of the bumper supports or frame, or require a hood replacement so i'll just grit my teeth, get it repaired, and hope the dealer covers at least part of it.
04-23-13, 02:37 PM
#41
Oh you bought it sight unseen? Well that was.... trusting. It does no good to pile on you now with what you should have done. I think you learned this lesson the hard way. Like you said, it is still an awesome car, and it is just going to cost you a few grand more than you thought. I see that you're in to detailing, but unless you're equally adept at mechanical stuff, it'd probably be worth your while to take it up to your nearest Lexus dealership or trusted mechanic to just give it a once over... or maybe even hook up with a fellow ISF owner to have them check it out to make sure it drives like their own car does. Maybe this is overkill, but you never know.
04-23-13, 04:26 PM
#42
Yes but I had already had purchased the car and the title had already been sent so it was already my car. On balance in hindsight it would've made sense not to accept the car or try and work something out but again, it's not like I had a certified check with me that I hadn't already handed them and signed papers. I had already paid for it, done all the paperwork, etc so I doubt there is little they would've done to help me out to begin with.
I was naive I suppose to think I could just fly in, pick up the keys and leave with a nice car but i'll chalk it up to a learning experience and not do it again. I think the rest of the car is nice and again, mechanically it seems to be sound and the accident wasn't bad enough to damage any of the bumper supports or frame, or require a hood replacement so i'll just grit my teeth, get it repaired, and hope the dealer covers at least part of it.
I was naive I suppose to think I could just fly in, pick up the keys and leave with a nice car but i'll chalk it up to a learning experience and not do it again. I think the rest of the car is nice and again, mechanically it seems to be sound and the accident wasn't bad enough to damage any of the bumper supports or frame, or require a hood replacement so i'll just grit my teeth, get it repaired, and hope the dealer covers at least part of it.
04-24-13, 05:33 PM
#43
Day 3 - Interior Misc & 2nd Coating of Leather Conditioner
Not much to do (or that I could do today) as a thunderstorm was rolling in this afternoon. I was planning to do a pity wash on the car but that will have to wait until tomorrow. So consider this a mini update.
Tried to bring this back to life... but it was too far gone. New mats will be ordered shortly.
Only got slightly brighter.
Passenger side seat after 2nd coating of AMMO leather conditioner. The seats have been so starved of any conditioner that when I opened up the pores cleaning the dirt out of them they basically just sucked up the first coating of conditioner within 48 hours.
So I applied another layer, and will probably have to do so again in another few days. But the leather is starting to get much softer and before, if you pushed it in with your finger, it would imprint in the material and not "spring back" but now the material is starting to get it's rebound back and relax.
Vacuumed the interior floors, headliner, and floor mats, then finished them off with the obligatory detail striping on the carpets.
Tomorrow i'll wash the poor thing as the wheels have enough brake dust caked on to start pitting them so it will get a pity wash for the time being, but no further paint detailing as it will be going to the body shop in the next few weeks and there is no sense correcting paint that's getting sanded off, or correcting the back of the car when there will inevitably be more imperfections and overspray left on the car somewhere by the respray process.
Not much to do (or that I could do today) as a thunderstorm was rolling in this afternoon. I was planning to do a pity wash on the car but that will have to wait until tomorrow. So consider this a mini update.
Tried to bring this back to life... but it was too far gone. New mats will be ordered shortly.
Only got slightly brighter.
Passenger side seat after 2nd coating of AMMO leather conditioner. The seats have been so starved of any conditioner that when I opened up the pores cleaning the dirt out of them they basically just sucked up the first coating of conditioner within 48 hours.
So I applied another layer, and will probably have to do so again in another few days. But the leather is starting to get much softer and before, if you pushed it in with your finger, it would imprint in the material and not "spring back" but now the material is starting to get it's rebound back and relax.
Vacuumed the interior floors, headliner, and floor mats, then finished them off with the obligatory detail striping on the carpets.
Tomorrow i'll wash the poor thing as the wheels have enough brake dust caked on to start pitting them so it will get a pity wash for the time being, but no further paint detailing as it will be going to the body shop in the next few weeks and there is no sense correcting paint that's getting sanded off, or correcting the back of the car when there will inevitably be more imperfections and overspray left on the car somewhere by the respray process.
04-25-13, 06:06 PM
#45
Day 4: Wheel Clean / Pity Wash
Until the car gets it's front end redone I thought it at the very least deserved the removal of 1600 miles of road grime, dirt, dust, and bugs, and the removal of the caked on brake dust. The wheels will need to be clayed to remove the rest of the brake dust but this was just a first attempt to get the brunt of the filth off.
All the gear used on the wheels. Dedicated wheel gear - not used on any other part of the car. DO NOT USE THE SAME WASH MITT FOR THE PAINT.
BEFORE
AMMO Plum applied.
Eating through and pooling grime (it turns it plum purple).
Long brush + AMMO Brute wheel cleaner to pull dirt out from inner barrel and behind spokes + brake caliper. Always work top down so the cleaner is running down and removing grit down the wheel before you get there with your brush.
Small brush for agitating dirt out of lug nut holes and around air valve.
After.
Gilmore foam gun + AMMO car wash gel
Soaking in (idea is to let the suds pull what dirt is possible away from the surface and run it off the car prior to you hitting it with your wash mitt.
Finished it off with AMMO Hydrate to wipe down the car with a FULLY DAMP microfiber towel. Don't use it dry - that's when you put the most fine scratches into the finish!
AMMO Mud for the tires.
Polished Test Panel
Not Polished Area
Not much more to do on it until new floor mats arrive, and the car gets back from the body shop for the paint correction to begin. So next update will be in a few weeks.
Until the car gets it's front end redone I thought it at the very least deserved the removal of 1600 miles of road grime, dirt, dust, and bugs, and the removal of the caked on brake dust. The wheels will need to be clayed to remove the rest of the brake dust but this was just a first attempt to get the brunt of the filth off.
All the gear used on the wheels. Dedicated wheel gear - not used on any other part of the car. DO NOT USE THE SAME WASH MITT FOR THE PAINT.
BEFORE
AMMO Plum applied.
Eating through and pooling grime (it turns it plum purple).
Long brush + AMMO Brute wheel cleaner to pull dirt out from inner barrel and behind spokes + brake caliper. Always work top down so the cleaner is running down and removing grit down the wheel before you get there with your brush.
Small brush for agitating dirt out of lug nut holes and around air valve.
After.
Gilmore foam gun + AMMO car wash gel
Soaking in (idea is to let the suds pull what dirt is possible away from the surface and run it off the car prior to you hitting it with your wash mitt.
Finished it off with AMMO Hydrate to wipe down the car with a FULLY DAMP microfiber towel. Don't use it dry - that's when you put the most fine scratches into the finish!
AMMO Mud for the tires.
Polished Test Panel
Not Polished Area
Not much more to do on it until new floor mats arrive, and the car gets back from the body shop for the paint correction to begin. So next update will be in a few weeks.
