[Rjzey]

Timely responses requested! I am a few days away from the Porsche dealer prep of my new 2021 GTS 4.0 and have seen many negative threads on the poor quality of dealer preparation, especially with respect to the paint and plastic removal. One horror story stated that the car, following its wash had paint swirls and residue of a dirty rinse.

Any thoughts, comments or suggestions would be jighly appreciated!

 

[GTS]

I would speculate that vehicle prep quality is going to vary greatly from dealer to dealer. I suspect dealerships typically have their vehicle porter's do the prep and wash, so you may not be getting their best paid employee doing the work. These dealers likely don't treat the prep for a sports car any different than a base Macan. But my guess is you'll be fine - my delivery experience was good overall.

 

[Third]

Timely responses requested! I am a few days away from the Porsche dealer prep of my new 2021 GTS 4.0 and have seen many negative threads on the poor quality of dealer preparation, especially with respect to the paint and plastic removal. One horror story stated that the car, following its wash had paint swirls and residue of a dirty rinse.

Any thoughts, comments or suggestions would be jighly appreciated!

Be sure to do a careful walk-around in good lighting before signing the paperwork and taking delivery. The time to point out damage or imperfections is before you hand over your money, while you still have some leverage!

 

[Scrounger]

I agree with Third. If you're happy to let the dealer do the prep then do a good walk around before signing anything.

If your intention is to have it properly detailed, ceramic coated and PPF'd then ask the dealer to leave all the transport protection on and drive it straight to your detailer and let them do it.

 

[Third]

...

If your intention is to have it properly detailed, ceramic coated and PPF'd then ask the dealer to leave all the transport protection on and drive it straight to your detailer and let them do it.

This is a fantastic idea if the dealer doesn't require you to buy the car before it goes to the detailer. Otherwise, I might still prefer to see the car without all the transport protection before I paid for it. That said, I agree the dealer need go no further than removing the protection before sending off for PPF, etc. Great idea!

 

[Rjzey]

My gut tells me to have the dealer remove the plastic, I'll inspect, then complete the transaction.....then off to the detailer. Thank you all for your suggestions.

 

[Box2112]

Sounds like a great approach. Other than that, just be clear ahead of time with any other expectations. If you're in a state that requires 2 plates, are you OK with them drilling the bumper for the front plate? If not, better tell them, etc.... Can't get upset for them doing something (or not doing) if you have communicated your expectations with them.

My gut tells me to have the dealer remove the plastic, I'll inspect, then complete the transaction.....then off to the detailer. Thank you all for your suggestions.

 

[Rjzey]

Sounds like a great approach. Other than that, just be clear ahead of time with any other expectations. If you're in a state that requires 2 plates, are you OK with them drilling the bumper for the front plate? If not, better tell them, etc.... Can't get upset for them do in the same something (or not doing) if you have communicated your expectations with them.

This is my second Porsche from the same dealer and they handed me the plate and frame. no mounting. I drove for over two years without a front plate. Was told to use the usual excuse- "My custom plate holder is on order" still must keep the second plate in the vehicle just in case 😎

 

[alanhats20]

This is a fantastic idea if the dealer doesn't require you to buy the car before it goes to the detailer. Otherwise, I might still prefer to see the car without all the transport protection before I paid for it. That said, I agree the dealer need go no further than removing the protection before sending off for PPF, etc. Great idea!

I had OPTICOAT put on at the dealer by my installer before i picked up the car
he completely checked over the paint etc before the install
the dealer was not keen on me doing at the dealership but it was contingent on the sale

 

[JazzCatGab]

I had my car ceramic coated a week after bringing it home. The detailer did all the paint correction/detailing before doing the coating.

 

[DJ2017]

Timely responses requested! I am a few days away from the Porsche dealer prep of my new 2021 GTS 4.0 and have seen many negative threads on the poor quality of dealer preparation, especially with respect to the paint and plastic removal. One horror story stated that the car, following its wash had paint swirls and residue of a dirty rinse.

Any thoughts, comments or suggestions would be jighly appreciated!

When the dealer did the prep on my car the person removed and destroyed the factory price sticker. I wanted the original sticker from the vehicle. You may want to request, not to remove the sticker until you are in the showroom for delivery, so it can removed carefully. Just a thought.

 

[Shivaswrath]

I'd say either transport it as is....or have the dealer's detailer coat and prep.


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[Mozella]

Yesterday I took delivery of my 2021 Cayman after it was lost for nearly two weeks after getting off the ship in Jacksonville. Based on what I read here and on other forums I asked the dealer to check the alignment and print out the DME (ECU) data. No fault codes or other problems; however, the alignment was out of specification and needed adjusting. Not much, but it was definitely out of wack so I'm glad I got it checked, especially since it was free. They actually volunteered to laminate the window sticker without me asking.

I asked them NOT to wash the car. Because I wondered if the delivery delay may have been due to repairing shipping damage, I took my paint light, a flash light, and a mirror and did a very thorough exam. The dealer has a "delivery room" to present a new car to the owner and it's nice and clean with good lighting so I could make a good inspection. The floor was clean too so it was easy to skid around on my back examining everything I could see on the underside. I checked every door gap, verified the flat repair system, tool kit, etc. etc. Everything was in perfect condition, much to my relief.

I'm happy to say the paint is absolutely flawless. I showed the salesman how to use the paint inspection light on my car and then invited him to go the the showroom and examine their brand new Boxter with a big SOLD sign under the wipers. He was astounded to see how many scratches they put in the paint during dealer prep. I reminded him, that's why I insisted they not wash my new car. It will accumulate paint damage over time, but at least the scratches and swirls will be mine, not theirs.

Bottom line: If you're fussy about your paint, especially if you plan to put on a ceramic coating right away, don't let them wash your new car.

 

[GusRandall]

I took delivery on Friday evening (outside with the sun at 10 degrees over the horizon) and couldn't see anything. I drove straight to Xpel and they found dozens of problems: swirls, scuffs, even scratches - hard to know where they came from but some were almost certainly from the dealer. I called the dealer from Xpel to document the problem brought it back the next morning covered in little masking tape tabs marking the issues. They sent it out for full body level 2 color correction. I pick it up today and will again be driving straight to Xpel to get their review. Dealer told me that if Xpel found issues they could fix then to do so and bill the dealer. If the paint can't be fixed without repainting, the dealer said Porsche would have to build me a new one (I did a lot of unusual options so there is no way to "find" one that'd be close).

 

[Mozella]

.... snip..................... I drove straight to Xpel and they found dozens of problems: swirls, scuffs, even scratches - hard to know where they came from but some were almost certainly from the dealer. ........... snip............

Disappointing, but hardly surprising. About 40 years ago, Frank Zappa (google him if you don't recognize his name) said that if you plan to remain sane, you had better prepare to deal with complete idiots. I remember thinking, "Gee, Frank is exaggerating isn't he?" How wrong I was.

It shouldn't surprise any Porsche dealer that many of his purchasers will be much more interested in paint quality than the average Ford or Chevy buyer. And knowing something about the cost of paint correction or repainting why in the world wouldn't a dealer train one of his mouth-breathers on how to perform a two bucket wash and supply him with the proper equipment.?

 

[GusRandall]

Disappointing, but hardly surprising. About 40 years ago, Frank Zappa (google him if you don't recognize his name) said that if you plan to remain sane, you had better prepare to deal with complete idiots. I remember thinking, "Gee, Frank is exaggerating isn't he?" How wrong I was.

It shouldn't surprise any Porsche dealer that many of his purchasers will be much more interested in paint quality than the average Ford or Chevy buyer. And knowing something about the cost of paint correction or repainting why in the world wouldn't a dealer train one of his mouth-breathers on how to perform a two bucket wash and supply him with the proper equipment.?

Oh, I know Frank Zappa, thanks and he was dead right then and far more correct today.

 

[Rjzey]

Following up on my older post, I had a successful delivery of my 2021 GTS 4. The prep to the paint was minimal which was fine for me as I drove the car right away to Lee Berbs Detailing in New Jersey. Expel Ultimate was applied to the entire front end, rocker panels and spoiler. Then the entire car was coated with Crystal Serum ceramic. Hopefully this was a wise expenditure!