[gblaue]

Originally Posted by travislambert

So... my perspective has changed a little since I first started this thread. I was thinking that a factory installed stripe would have a better chance of being installed perfectly straight, no scratches, etc.. I was originally very concerned about the possibility of the stripe being installed at the dealership.

As it turns out maybe I should have been a little more concerned with the quality coming out of the factory. There are scratches in the clear-coat perpendicular to the stripe, on both sides, for the entire length of the stripe. This certainly backs up some of the concerns that others have expressed with the risk of having stripes installed. I'm sure the scratches will buff out, but I have to say it's still a little disappointing.

The scratches are easy to see in person, but they're tough to capture with a camera.

(This is in no way the fault of the dealer. I specifically requested that they not wash the car to avoid potential swirl marks... kinda ironic right?. While the car was dirty, these scratches were not visible. I'm sure had the dealer detailed the car, they would have found and corrected these scratches. )

Attachment 858214

Attachment 858215

Sorry to hear you have scratches, too.

[travislambert]

Originally Posted by KLR ZL1

It almost looks like they taped it off around the stripe but scuffed it outside that. Atleast it will buff out easily.

My guess is the stripe has a temporary backing to it that's slightly larger than the stripe itself. As the installer was removing the air from the stripe with the squeegee/rag, the strokes were moving beyond the backing onto the paint. I'm assuming the squeegee/rag was rough and/or the clear-coat was just extremely soft at the time.

The pictures I posted really don't do a great job of capturing the extent of the scratches. The clear-coat is literally marked the entire length down both sides of the stripe.

The good news is that it all should buff out. The bad news is I have to spend at least half a day driving it to the dealer, waiting to get it fixed, and driving it back.

The moral of the story is... if you ordered a car with a stripe from a dealer that isn't close to where you live, go ahead and let them wash your car and do a paint correction before taking delivery.

[travislambert]

Originally Posted by gblaue

Sorry to hear you have scratches, too.

Thanks man.

I believe it will all buff out, so it should work out in the end. The dealer has kind-of already agreed to fix the problem. They verbally told me to bring it in and they'd fix it, but since the weather is still kinda crappy I told them I'd like to wait a couple weeks to avoid the road salt. I asked about documenting the problem so I could be assured I wouldn't have to pay for the repair once I had the chance to bring the car back. The salesman said he'd check with his manager to find out what needed to be done, and then I never heard from him again.

I'll give him the benefit of the doubt for the moment, but the fact that he didn't call or email me back is a little annoying.

[KLR ZL1]

Originally Posted by travislambert

Thanks man.

I believe it will all buff out, so it should work out in the end. The dealer has kind-of already agreed to fix the problem. They verbally told me to bring it in and they'd fix it, but since the weather is still kinda crappy I told them I'd like to wait a couple weeks to avoid the road salt. I asked about documenting the problem so I could be assured I wouldn't have to pay for the repair once I had the chance to bring the car back. The salesman said he'd check with his manager to find out what needed to be done, and then I never heard from him again.

I'll give him the benefit of the doubt for the moment, but the fact that he didn't call or email me back is a little annoying.

Yea that sounds about right for most dealers. You bought the car, deal is done and they're on to the next sale. There are very few dealers that care about the customer after the sale.

[gblaue]

Originally Posted by travislambert

Thanks man.

I believe it will all buff out, so it should work out in the end. The dealer has kind-of already agreed to fix the problem. They verbally told me to bring it in and they'd fix it, but since the weather is still kinda crappy I told them I'd like to wait a couple weeks to avoid the road salt. I asked about documenting the problem so I could be assured I wouldn't have to pay for the repair once I had the chance to bring the car back. The salesman said he'd check with his manager to find out what needed to be done, and then I never heard from him again.

I'll give him the benefit of the doubt for the moment, but the fact that he didn't call or email me back is a little annoying.

I'm n Tokyo on business right now. I'll take someocturrs of mine when get back on Sunday.

[travislambert]

The scratches were haunting me so I went ahead and buffed them out myself. It took a little bit of time, but the scratches buffed out by hand perfectly using these:

[gblaue]

Originally Posted by travislambert

The scratches were haunting me so I went ahead and buffed them out myself. It took a little bit of time, but the scratches buffed out by hand perfectly using these:

Attachment 858571

Excellent! Trip to the dealership, saved.

[Snakebt6]

Question regarding the stripe.

When I picked my car up it had been sitting outside in the Florida sun on the dealer lot for about a month. I noticed my stripe had some water spots on it. Ive tried to use a clay bar on it and even a mild compound (Griots) in a certain area to test if they would come out. No luck

Also its cut horribly at the rear spoiler. Like the guy did it freehand and there's a wavy line.

Is it a pain in the ass to replace this?