[Mark R]

What sr71bb said above. I totally get the initial freak-out. My dealer's lackey drilled the license plate holes off center, after scratching the mud off the paint with Scotchbrite.

Take a breath, be grateful you got a brand new ZL-1, and think of these underbody dings like the first scratch in a pickup truck bed. Enjoy !!

[Gunkk]

OP, that dent on the factory lift-point steel is 100% cosmetic. Be glad they didn't trash the aluminum brace. The bumper cover is an easy fix. Our plastic bumpers do expand thermally in hot sunlight, and will poke a bit on one or both sides when hot unless you do the zip-tie thing. See this thread.

I'd much rather have the first scratch or dent be underneath the car than on top.

If OP doesn't get satisfaction from the dealer, then an initial quality complaint to Chevy corporate is probably in order.

[JTS]

First Congratulations you have a Beautiful Car. Relax I know it's upsetting, I was when at my 1st Car Show and the sun heat opened up the gap in the bumper area .
I have the exact same marks no dents ( all or most Chevrolet, GM Dealerships) must purchase the same lifts, and lift them there . As far as being present when you car is being lifted, worked on , I was told by my Service Advisor, only allowed back in Service bays with SA if need be , insurance reasons.

My rear bumper has gaps and grows with direct sunlight heat (opens up) gaps where qtr panel , taillight and bumper intersect . I have chosen to live with it , and may have warranty work before it runs out .
Yours has a clip exposed, and should give your local Chevrolet Dealership to fix the problem .

[SFV1LE]

That sucks, you’ll get the bumper fixed and the other stuff underneath doesn’t affect car and is only cosmetic, and not visible unless lifted.

That being said, find a great body shop nearby and get a quote to fix and align bumper. Then send dealer detailed pics and tell the dealer they need to pay for repair and offer compensation for underbody damage.

I took my new 2018 ZLE to biggest Chevy dealer in Los Angeles, Keyes Chevrolet, and they put 3 dents in it, damaged a new GY 3R making it unusable, and installed wrong oil filter which leaked. They denied responsibility for everything, and GM Cust support backed them up. Keyes is horrible, avoid them like the plague.

[CalgaryZL1]

The gap in one of his photos is not normal, the bumper is definitely out of alignment

[R1jamn]

Originally Posted by radz28

First - definitions:

The panels over the FRONT wheels are FENDERS.
The panels over the REAR wheels are QUARTER PANELS.

So it's clear - you're stating the REAR facia doesn't fit on the driver's side rear facia-to-quarter panel? And you're stating you found damage to the transportation anchor points on the FRONT of the chassis? Further - you're stating you think these are interconnected, causing the resulting rear facia damage you showed pictures of?

If I stated that correctly: they are NOT related. It DOES look like some of the rear facia issues are it was not seated to the tail light correctly. That could have cause the facia to misalign to the mounting clip on the quarter panel, making it stick out. That is all easily correctable, and would only require, probably just a partial removal of the facia. Perhaps it might require a full removal, and reinstallation, but it is NOT a big deal, from what images you've shared.

As far as the transportation anchor points - they are NOT part of the crash protection. That is blown out of proportion completely. They're aluminum panels, and not that big a deal. It's better they didn't bend the bolts for the shear panel inches away, but while - YES - those look crappy, they are NOT a big deal either.

I wouldn't suggest to you these aren't in the least bit irritating, but I would say that your many assertions are not informed. Are these acceptable for a car this price? No - I would not argue that. I would accept that QA/QC is an issue for the facia, but the factory can't be held accountable for a dealership not racking the car correctly, and that's not a QA/QC-issue. I could see an argument for an engineering issue, but that's stretching it a bit, too.

All I'm trying to say that making claims these are safety-related or whatnot is not reasonable, nor true. Again - I'm not taking anything away from your feelings of frustration or anything, and that this is a HUGE inconvenience (I purchased a car, from about the same distance from the dealer as you, so I get it), but these are not reasonable claims. BUT - make your call, and I'd see if there were a dealer that was closer that you could do a warranty claim with for the facia. There's nothing you can do about the anchors, unless you want them mangled into being straight by a body shop, or worse - have them cut off, and new ones welded back on... Which means you're going to destroy the OEM corrosion protection and welds that are still superior to what body shops will do... And yes - I've worked at dealerships and in body shops (QUALITY body shops), so it's reasonable to say I know what happens and what it means to leave OEM alone, for the sake of the car...

But - it is YOUR car, and YOUR money. I do wish you good luck, either way. It does suck that you have to go through this though.

Thanks for your contribution radz28.

Correct: The rear facia does not have correct fitment over the left quarter panel.

No: I did not state the anchor points were damaged on the front of the vehicle.
I don't know of any anchor points on the ZL1. The pinch welds are not anchor points.
The vehicle appears to have been lifted up on a part of the undercarriage.
This undercarriage is part of the assembly for a stiffener/stabilizer bar that reaches to the other side of the chassis.
It also looks to be spot welded to another part of the cars underbelly.
I cannot see close enough where the other mounting contact point is for this particular undercarriage component.
The damaged undercarriage component appears to be a structural piece of the vehicle.
So, yes I feel this is a safety concern in a high performance vehicle as a ZL1

No: I do not believe the rear facia misalignment and the damaged undercarriage component is related to each other.
It just happens to be another find.

I agree: I believe the misalignment of the rear facia is a small issue and can be resolved with re-alignment and perhaps some new clips.
The rear facia does not have any visible impact zones or identifiers showing cause for misalignment.
My best guess is an assembly issue from factory.

Correct: I believe this is a QA/QC issue from the factor regarding the misaligned facia.

No: I never mentioned the factory was a factor in the crushed undercarriage component.
I did state that I believed this was from a lift or a jack that was not positioned properly during PDI to remove the "spring spacers".
This is performed at the dealership and they would be the responsible party, not GM/Chevrolet.

[R1jamn]

Originally Posted by NicKey

Unfortunately, the majority of Camaros we work on are lifted incorrectly and damaged by the dealership, owners, and or other shops.

Yes, unfortunately it happens more than we know. Thanks NicKey.

Originally Posted by sr71bb

I would sugggest to you that you should buy should LIFT PADS like what Zl1ADDONS sells. https://zl1addons.com/products/camar...558e1873&_ss=r

I have the ZL1ADDONS lift pads already. I bought them for my 2015 ZL1. Thanks sr71bb.

Originally Posted by Mark R

What sr71bb said above. I totally get the initial freak-out. My dealer's lackey drilled the license plate holes off center, after scratching the mud off the paint with Scotchbrite.

Take a breath, be grateful you got a brand new ZL-1, and think of these underbody dings like the first scratch in a pickup truck bed. Enjoy !!

It is a great performance vehicle and a beauty.
My 2015 is a lot of fun but this 6th gen ZL1 is life changing and I am still in break-in mode so nothing over 4K rpm. Thanks Mark R

Originally Posted by JTS

First Congratulations you have a Beautiful Car. Relax I know it's upsetting, I was when at my 1st Car Show and the sun heat opened up the gap in the bumper area .
I have the exact same marks no dents ( all or most Chevrolet, GM Dealerships) must purchase the same lifts, and lift them there . As far as being present when you car is being lifted, worked on , I was told by my Service Advisor, only allowed back in Service bays with SA if need be , insurance reasons.

My rear bumper has gaps and grows with direct sunlight heat (opens up) gaps where qtr panel , taillight and bumper intersect . I have chosen to live with it , and may have warranty work before it runs out .
Yours has a clip exposed, and should give your local Chevrolet Dealership to fix the problem .

I will get the rear facia aligned and proper. I may do it myself as I do not want anymore issues with dealership mishaps.
Many techs are great and very cognizant of the small details (and large) to working on vehicles.
I pulled the short straw on this one. Thank JTS.

Originally Posted by SFV1LE

That sucks, you’ll get the bumper fixed and the other stuff underneath doesn’t affect car and is only cosmetic, and not visible unless lifted.

That being said, find a great body shop nearby and get a quote to fix and align bumper. Then send dealer detailed pics and tell the dealer they need to pay for repair and offer compensation for underbody damage.

I took my new 2018 ZLE to biggest Chevy dealer in Los Angeles, Keyes Chevrolet, and they put 3 dents in it, damaged a new GY 3R making it unusable, and installed wrong oil filter which leaked. They denied responsibility for everything, and GM Cust support backed them up. Keyes is horrible, avoid them like the plague.

Ouch....Some owners do have it much worse than me. Thanks SFV1LE

[clg82]

Originally Posted by R1jamn

I will get the rear facia aligned and proper. I may do it myself as I do not want anymore issues with dealership mishaps.
Many techs are great and very cognizant of the small details (and large) to working on vehicles.

There is a great write up on here about replacing the rear tail lights that may help you with fixing the alignment yourself. It's a pretty easy job and being able to fix it yourself in your own garage will help you get to know the car better as well. Hell sometimes the wife is looking for me and i'm just under my car looking at stuff and admiring all of the engineering work that actually goes into these beautiful machines.....

[george]

I'm sorry you had these issues. It reaffirms why I always check the dealers and insist on watching the car when its worked on. I caught my dealer charging me for 0w/40 Dexos oil in 2020 when in fact, he actually put the Euro "Non-Dexos" 0w/40 in the car. When I confronted them by checking the oil container they used, they ended up having to replace it with the correct fill as warranty calls for Dexos.. The next oil change I found fine metallic glitter in the oil when I sent it to Blackstone for analysis. That was 500 miles ago and three oil changes later, with no more evidence of glitter and all lab results show excellent values and no wear. Needless to sy, I haven't been back to that dealer. Car runs fine and no evidence of engine damage, but I can't help but think that someone contaminated the oil with malice. With my 2017 ZL1 being an early model, that kind of oil contamination can't be good for those of us with an oil pump that has a high incidence of failure.

I wish you a long and happy drive with your ZL1 and quick resolution, as best as possible.

[R1jamn]

I attempted to contact the general manager at the dealership yesterday, (Monday).
I called him and left a voice mail on his phone. He never called me back.
I also called back to the dealership later in the day and talked with the receptionist.
She verified he was at the dealership but was in a meeting.
The receptionist was kind and she took my information and said she would give it to him.
Again, I never heard back from the general manager.

So last night I wrote an email to him and attached photos of my findings.
I also sent video's of my findings.
I won't go into detail regarding the email I sent him but I did ask him for resolution on this quickly and respectfully.

I did find more damage.
The underbelly of the front splitter has scrapes and rash marks.
However, the plastic stiffener bracket that bolts up underneath it is new.
The stiffener bracket that is attached to the underbelly of the front splitter does not have any scrapes or rash marks whatsoever on it.
It appears to be a newly installed stiffener bracket.

[Greg83]

Originally Posted by R1jamn

I attempted to contact the general manager at the dealership yesterday, (Monday).
I called him and left a voice mail on his phone. He never called me back.
I also called back to the dealership later in the day and talked with the receptionist.
She verified he was at the dealership but was in a meeting.
The receptionist was kind and she took my information and said she would give it to him.
Again, I never heard back from the general manager.

So last night I wrote an email to him and attached photos of my findings.
I also sent video's of my findings.
I won't go into detail regarding the email I sent him but I did ask him for resolution on this quickly and respectfully.

I did find more damage.
The underbelly of the front splitter has scrapes and rash marks.
However, the plastic stiffener bracket that bolts up underneath it is new.
The stiffener bracket that is attached to the underbelly of the front splitter does not have any scrapes or rash marks whatsoever on it.
It appears to be a newly installed stiffener bracket.

Man that’s horrible. Very sorry for you. I found a brand new 2023 fresh off the truck at a dealer near me. I put a deposit on it, ran to the bank and came back with a check, but decided to check the car with my paint meter first… most cars measure around 4-6 microns. This particular Camaro was measuring about 13 microns everywhere!!! I assume it came from the factory this way. Maybe they resprayed this car for some reason, IDK but I walked away. I would try to borrow a digital paint meter if possible and check the car. Hopefully you can get this resolved.

[R1jamn]

Originally Posted by Greg83

Man that’s horrible. Very sorry for you. I found a brand new 2023 fresh off the truck at a dealer near me. I put a deposit on it, ran to the bank and came back with a check, but decided to check the car with my paint meter first… most cars measure around 4-6 microns. This particular Camaro was measuring about 13 microns everywhere!!! I assume it came from the factory this way. Maybe they resprayed this car for some reason, IDK but I walked away. I would try to borrow a digital paint meter if possible and check the car. Hopefully you can get this resolved.

Yes...Getting the paint thickness measured is a great idea.
I do have the trunk lid paint drip phenom on the bottom edge of the trunk lid and quarter panel.
My 2015 has this as do many Camaros. So I didn't give it much thought.

[Gunkk]

Originally Posted by R1jamn

...the plastic stiffener bracket that bolts up underneath it is new. The stiffener bracket that is attached to the underbelly of the front splitter does not have any scrapes or rash marks whatsoever on it.
It appears to be a newly installed stiffener bracket.

That is an air dam, not a stiffener. The air dam is sacrificial (designed to take abuse from parking bumpers, speed bumps, etc.) and consumable.

The air dam is installed by the dealer during PDI. So the damage occurred prior to that, i.e. during transport: rolling on or off the trains and/or trucks.
The dealer's PDI tech certainly would have seen the damage, and may or may not have mentioned the damage during PDI to their boss. You have two or three people who may have said something or may have just kept their heads down. Depends on the dealer management and how they treat their people. Just curious, did you receive the orange spring spacers at delivery?

As to paint. All of our cars have drips in one corner or another, it's how they're sprayed at the factory. Even though my car is a show car garage queen, it's still a Chevy muscle car with a few Chevy warts. It's always gonna be a Chevy with a few warts. Cindy Crawford, Eva Mendes, Blake Lively, Rachael McAdams all have warts and I'd certainly take them for a ride.

The first scratch I got on my car was a gash in the bottom of one of my rockers from a bungy cord I didn't avoid well enough. 1st one always hurts. Shit happens. Next time, do your pre-purchase inspection underneath the car as well (bring an inspection mirror on a stick).

Sorry not sorry for the tough love, but the sooner you accept that hot girls and hot cars can have a few warts and still be a helluvalotta fun to hammer on, and just go out and drive it and enjoy it.... the happier you will be.

[R1jamn]

Originally Posted by Gunkk

That is an air dam, not a stiffener. The air dam is sacrificial (designed to take abuse from parking bumpers, speed bumps, etc.) and consumable.

The air dam is installed by the dealer during PDI. So the damage occurred prior to that, i.e. during transport: rolling on or off the trains and/or trucks.
The dealer's PDI tech certainly would have seen the damage, and may or may not have mentioned the damage during PDI to their boss. You have two or three people who may have said something or may have just kept their heads down. Depends on the dealer management and how they treat their people. Just curious, did you receive the orange spring spacers at delivery?

As to paint. All of our cars have drips in one corner or another, it's how they're sprayed at the factory. Even though my car is a show car garage queen, it's still a Chevy muscle car with a few Chevy warts. It's always gonna be a Chevy with a few warts. Cindy Crawford, Eva Mendes, Blake Lively, Rachael McAdams all have warts and I'd certainly take them for a ride.

The first scratch I got on my car was a gash in the bottom of one of my rockers from a bungy cord I didn't avoid well enough. 1st one always hurts. Shit happens. Next time, do your pre-purchase inspection underneath the car as well (bring an inspection mirror on a stick).

Sorry not sorry for the tough love, but the sooner you accept that hot girls and hot cars can have a few warts and still be a helluvalotta fun to hammer on, and just go out and drive it and enjoy it.... the happier you will be.

Thanks Gunkk...

Ok...The splitter was damaged prior to delivery at the dealership and the air dam installed during PDI...This is why the air dam is undamaged...This is very helpful.

Yes the spring spacers were removed during PDI. This is the first item I checked for. The orange spring spacers were removed and I found them in the trunk in front of the air compressor.

I also brought a digital tire pressure gage with me and checked the pressures on all four tires. They were set at 37 to 38 psi and the ZL1 was in the showroom so the room temp was at approx 68 to 70 deg F.
I dropped them down to 32 psi for my road trip back home.

I also checked the oil level...Yes...I asked my salesman to bring me paper towels. Yes, it was full of oil.

I am very practical and understand that issues arise and nothing is perfect.
However, my radar is on full and I want to know of all the issues now rather than later.
I am seeking compensation for diminished value as I do not expect to have the undercarriage fixed or replaced.

I intend to investigate further.
I will remove the trunk liner and check for damage.
Then I will have the paint thickness measured.
If it is obvious that it was crashed and repaired then I will go the route of a consumer protection attorney for fraud.

Also...There was not any disclosure, either verbal or written in my paperwork at the time of my purchase indicating that the vehicle was damaged or repaired.

I have not heard back from the general manager at the dealership.

I hope I don't find more damage.

The investigation will continue.