So, after lots of "around" I've gotten my car back. It is just "OK". They finally got the paint match to an acceptable level. It doesn't look all mismatched like it did before. The application of the clear on the other hand is terrible. I'm going to have someone else sand and polish it. That should clean it up. It is just so frustrating... What started as a small repair to the lower part of the rear driver's side door turned into almost the whole side of the car being painted... On a side note... I did end up with two nasty dings repaired.. I can't believe a dealer that is soooo good with their customers has a contract body guy that is just that bad. I'm sure other cars go through there and come out perfect. So, that got me thinking.. Jaguar themselves may have indirectly caused the problem. Since this was a warranty repair, they probably "allow" a certain amount for repair, and this body guy cut corners to make money. Well, I hope he learned his lesson! His cut corners ended up having him do the entire job four times! But, overall, I am the looser in this. I see every flaw in the car now. I tried to assure the service department that our relationship was OK, but it isn't. I'm sure they know it. In my eyes, they've ruined the car. Now for some other "kickers". I noticed some very minor paint/rust bubbles on door sill. Those look to be caused by small chips that were there. And the real kicker... The 2006 Dodge Gran-Caravan has the paint bubbling up on the front of the hood!

AAARRRG.... I'm moving to Arizona!

 

Hi Jeff,

1. It's 113 in Phoenix with thunderstorms. Monsoon season is delightful in the desert.

2. Is your Dodge Caravan's paint covered by warranty? You may be able to get it repainted.

3. No doubt the rust and paint fiasco cost the dealer a lot of grief that it shouldn't have. Rather expensive object lesson that maybe the body guy will learn, but doubtful.

Mike

 

Tell me about it ... The roads here are terrible, the salt is horrific and the drivers are even worse! When they salt my road the spreader hits my front door with salt! My frickin' front door has body rot!

So what's this place called Carusos' in NJ? I'm in N. Jersey and I'm always looking for a good paint shop. Or is it a bar ...

Bob S.

 

1. When I was 19 I lived in Tucson for two years. Also, just got back from a business trip to Phoenix... It's a dry heat

2. Yes, but I just have this sinking feeling of "here we go again".

3. Yup

 

Worse drivers??????? I grew up in Jersey! Trust me, Bob... Don't go to Ohio! The drivers here make the ones in Jersey look like performance driving school instructors!

Caruso's is a body shop that my cousin uses / found. They are awesome! We have a buddy that owns his own shop yet Ed sends any collision work to Caruso's. Al is OK when it is a restoration job, but isn't as good as Caruso's when it comes to blending and color match. They have a website. Worth bookmarking if, God forbid, you ever need their services.

http://www.carusosautomotive.com/

 

So is a furnace. At least Tucson was about 10 degrees cooler than Phoenix. I was stationed at Ft Huachuca three times for Intelligence School. It was pretty nice and was about 10 degrees cooler than Tucson due to being 1000 feet higher. We actually got a little bit of snow there, about 3 inches or so on the base. You could drive up a couple of miles and the snow would be about a foot deep in places.

If worse comes to worse you could always apply a carbon fiber wrap to the Dodge hood. Call it a work in progess.

 

On a side note... My very young brother-in-law was stationed at Ft Huachuca as well, supposed to train in Intelligence. Well, the Army decided they needed more infantry... He is now deployed in Iraq for a year, then will be deployed to Afganistan... Needless to say, we are just a bit concerned...

 

The drivers are always the worst you've ever seen whereever you live ...

Thanks for the info I should probably go by there sometime. I used to live in Warren just up the hill.

Bob S.

 

Talk to Chuck as I mentioned to you at lunch back in July! (If it is going to be at your expense).

I feel for you Jeff, nothing like loosing "that loving feeling" about your vehicle. So whats the verdict, for sale sign and a new Accord?

Sunny South Carolina is nice!!!! And you'll be closer to your inlaws in Fl., could be a good thingy or not.

 

I plan on talking to him, just haven't yet. I am also going to talk to the guy that fixed a co-worker's Trailblazer. This guy lives down in Akron by me. He fixed a nasty dent in Tom's Trailblazer that was on the rear quarter. The SUV is silver.. Tom got it back and it was a perfect job... and this guy did it in his GARAGE!!!

Yes, I'm frustrated with the car.. But not frustrated enough to give up my rear wheel drive! Also, it is a real bad time to buy a used car. Prices are through the roof on late model / low mileage cars.. Just read another trade article (Automotive News) that states used SUV's and Mini-Vans are up over 30% since the beginning of the year.. Cars are close behind in the mid 20% range. Makes sense.. an 08 S Type 3.0 at my dealer is listed at 24k with 56k miles!! Another 08 is 28k with 21k miles. From what the industry experts are saying, this will be the norm for a while. Reduced production, much fewer leases, and the demand from consumers looking to spend a bit less than new on used has driven the prices way up from only a couple of years ago.

Now I did see a real nice CTS Sport Wagon on the way to work today..

 

How much longer is your Select Edition warranty in place?

Do you plan to keep the car once that warranty is history?

 

My warranty will expire on June 21st, 2011.

I don't know at this point. I try not to buy when I need. I tend to browse and shop all the time. I love cars... I'm weird enough to look at car lots almost as car shows.. The past three transactions happened while "just looking".. In that same time I probably passed on at least another dozen deals.

I really like this car, and the market for used cars is real bad now. I just don't know if it will come back anytime soon. Banks and finance companies are still real tight with leases plus the US market is still only at about 11 to 13 million new units run rate, depending on what industry analyst you look at. That is still way shy of where we were at the end of 2007 (16/17 million units). Lower production with an even lower percentage of that production entering the used market after 2 to 4 years has really driven the prices up.

 

Hi Jeff,

The situation you are describing would indicate your Jaguar has not decreased in value over a year or it may have actually increased slightly. In my area (within 100 miles) the 2005 3.0s are listing from $14K to $18K. This is about what the market looked like 18 months ago when I bought mine. Relatively speaking you might be OK. However, the question is what do you replace it with? The cars in the same class may have their own issues that you may or may not be familiar with.

So far, my only expenses have been the normal gas and oil changes etc. The big ticket items noted for failing (differential, a/c bits and the coolant tank) have all been replaced under warranty. Since my car doesn't have the auto leveling headlights that's another thing I won't worry about.

Regarding your Dodge Caravan,

NASCAR-ize it.



Mike

 

Actually this matches better since it is the same body style and color..

God, she would kill me if I did that to her van!

 

Jeff,

Don't lower it quite so much and put in a kiddie changing table.