1st Place Finish
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2,950 Posts
how much they charging for it? more than likely it is something that is not needed, the fabric if you are getting cloth should already have a protectant on it, and the paint well they usually just spray some of that liquid "paint protectant" on it and wipe it off... Worth diddly in my book... Just a way to mark up the price... you usually can talk them out of it if it is a deal breaker, but with this car, they will have another in line waiting for it....HRD&FAST said:
do whatever you feel you need to for your sanity, but tell them you know it is just a way for them to mark up the car, and it is not really needed...
I personaly would not get it. All you need to do is when you first get your car do the following:HRD&FAST said:
(1). Use a sealent such as Klasse high gloss sealent glaze or Collinite insulator wax which I think I like a little better. Both go on and come off easy. Let cure over night then..
(2) wax your car with a good Brazilion Carnuba wax. I used Pinnacle Series 11.
It too goes on and comes off easy .
I have a shine and depth on my red Sky like you would not beleive! The wax runs about $30 a can and the saeler about $25. both can be found on the internet.Be certain to use only micro fiber towels to wash,dry and remove the wax and sealer,these towels will not scratch your paint.Do this and I know you will be thrilled with the results no matter how much of a perfectionist you are,I am way over board when it comes to a clean car!
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326 Posts
Scam
Read all the fine print...which they tend not to give--usually just a vague brochure... until after you paid for it. The product they are selling is REALLY a warranty. 1) For the exterior paint it ONLY covers manufacture flaws/defects, and I think for only 7 years but I might be wrong on the time. WHAT? If GM had such a crappy paint job I wouldn't buy the car to start with, and it does not cover what I want it to cover...stains, rock chips, bug juice 2) The carpet interior is sprayed with a protectant & the dealer will remove any/all future stains. Hmmmmm...for $400 I'll replace my floor mats thank you very much and I already have awesome leather cleaner...$8 a bottle.
It is a SCAM.:nono: Dealer profit. Only after complaining to corporate and on this forum, did the owner of all my area dealers drop it as a Mandatory Dealer-Add On to custom ordered SKY's.HRD&FAST said:
Read all the fine print...which they tend not to give--usually just a vague brochure... until after you paid for it. The product they are selling is REALLY a warranty. 1) For the exterior paint it ONLY covers manufacture flaws/defects, and I think for only 7 years but I might be wrong on the time. WHAT? If GM had such a crappy paint job I wouldn't buy the car to start with, and it does not cover what I want it to cover...stains, rock chips, bug juice 2) The carpet interior is sprayed with a protectant & the dealer will remove any/all future stains. Hmmmmm...for $400 I'll replace my floor mats thank you very much and I already have awesome leather cleaner...$8 a bottle.
Well, it's good to know my dealer isn't the only one saying that this is something that is a mandatory add-on! They call it an "environmental package" which entails this sealant business and tinting the windows. This special package is $1,100! Ha! My husband told them they were cracked! This is something they put on every car they sell! Whatever! We're not happy at all about this and have stressed we don't want and or need this added to my car. Now, the sales manager is hedging a bit and says he'll make it right, not sure what exactly that means. It's a total scam! I could understand if it was more reasonably priced, but, tinting 2 windows and putting a clear coat over the paint for over a grand? Sick! 
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295 Posts
Okay kids, here we go.Sunny Ragtop said:
What is First Place Finish?
It is a product that we offer that does several things. On the inside, it will protect your carpet and fabric from any water or oil based stain. If you manage to stain something anyway and the retailer cannot remove the stain, then whatever was stained will be replaced. FOR FREE. FOR FIVE YEARS! Just ask my customer whose toddler spilled milk in the back seat of her SC2 if she beleives in it. MetroTech (the company that makes First Place Finish) spent over $1300 repairing her car. The milk leaked onto the trunk mat, the carpet, and the seat covers. Might even have penetrated the foam. But they fixed it all, removed that awful spoiled milk smell, and she was ecstatic!
The outside protection is for the clear coat. It will protect it from fading, oxydation, and loss of gloss. There is NO product that will protect against acid rain. Not even your manufacturer's warranty will cover that. For leather interiors, it will protect againt the leather cracking. You can't stain protect leather.
And just for the record, there is NO stain protection applied at the factory. Urban legend as far as I know.
One more thing. When I started at Saturn, I told them I would not sell their "Scotch Guard Wanna Be'. Metrotech applied their product on my Nissan for free, so that I could see that it really did work, and that I could sell it with confidence. It works. When my Tupperware popped open on my brand new VUE's interior, the stain came right out! Yes, I am protected with First Place Finish.
Now...I guess I'll go join Delnari on the Saturnfans site...
Cheers,
Jill
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804 Posts
OK, nuff said. Everyone should look into getting some kind of protection for the inside and outside of the car- there are dozens of places that can help out if needed, but just get ref's before you drop a silver dollar. Oh, don't forget the rag top, your biggest problem will be dust/dirt and little white and black presents from our feathered friends, or so I have been told.
Dealers hire minimum wage employees to clean, buff, and wax your car. You can be sure they don't use micro fibre towels...you are lucky if the rags they use were not dropped onto a sandy floor! I have seen where inexperienced employees have buffed right through the clear coat ! They almost always leave swirls that are noticable on dark colored cars. I would pay EXTRA just to leave the waxing and detailing to myself. All I want the dealer to do is check the fluids etc and only because it is required by the manufacturer to validate the warranty. Leave the car as it came off the truck...I will remove the plastic and do the detailing knowing I will not do damage to the vehicle.
Richard
Richard
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295 Posts
ATTENTION EVERYONE!!! In a drastic cost-saving measure I am going to reccommend that we fire our entire detail department! Forget the GREAT job they do prepping cars for delivery, the showroom, any outside events that we display our product at! Forget customer satisfaction! Think of the money we will save! We pay more than minimum wage, and benefits, and 401k also! GM will be profitable in no time! To heck with the Saturn Customer Service! Want your car clean and shiny and full of gas when you take delivery? Too freakin' bad! Want to come in and receive a professional detail after a weekend trip to the beach with the kids? Sorry! We have been judged incompetent in that area! Want quality protection to help retain the value of the second biggest purchasing decision you will make? NO WAY! It has been decided that we are just RIPPING YOU OFF!!! Good gawd Way2, you just have a pissy way of looking at everyone and everything. If you have truly experienced Saturn in a negative way, that is one thing. If you have had negative experiences that you just ASSUME will happen at Saturn, then be an adult and WAIT AND SEE FOR YOURSELF.Way2Fast said:
Cheers (I am soooo gonna get in trouble for this post)
Jill
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326 Posts
HmmTexSon said:
a stain on my black leather seat? Like What? That's why I want leather in my SKY...not so it burns the back of my legs on hot summer days, but to avoid stains & wear. Since my 2000 Xterra came with CHEAP seats, my dad & I mounted a used Lincoln Mark 8 fully adjustable electric leather seat I found in a junk yard for $75. (Neat...my own custom drivers seat!) This leather seat was alreay "used" and I've put 143,000 miles in it. Lots of coffee spills, red clay mud, ink pens out my back pocket, etc and nothing effects it. Yes, I clean it every few months with leather cleaner & follow up with protector...but I don't see how the dealer can offer me anything more.
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18,850 Posts
To Jill
Accidents do happen...even skilled employees make accidents...big big accidents...tell that to the poor girl in North Carolina who had the technician install her mud guards...he put a hole in each of the gals front fenders...he did not know how to put the car on a lift...let's not go off half cocked...but this is a new car even to the technicians...the worst part of that deal was the technician did not even tell his boss...just let the car go. Of course the owner did not notice until she went somewhere else...Saturn is replacing her fenders...
MarlboroMike
Accidents do happen...even skilled employees make accidents...big big accidents...tell that to the poor girl in North Carolina who had the technician install her mud guards...he put a hole in each of the gals front fenders...he did not know how to put the car on a lift...let's not go off half cocked...but this is a new car even to the technicians...the worst part of that deal was the technician did not even tell his boss...just let the car go. Of course the owner did not notice until she went somewhere else...Saturn is replacing her fenders...
MarlboroMike
I'm With Jill on this .....
We have a Detailer who has been with our company for almost 29 years...He does a fantastic job, along with the other 2 detailers. And you would be surprised, they get way more than Minimum wage, and take pride in what they do. Im not saying every dealer is this way, but I know for sure, that the 2 Saturn dealers I have worked at have had these type of dedicated and experienced detailers. As for the add ons, we charge 599.00 for the paint and fabric, or leather protection if you take the warranty, if not we charge 399.00.
We have a Detailer who has been with our company for almost 29 years...He does a fantastic job, along with the other 2 detailers. And you would be surprised, they get way more than Minimum wage, and take pride in what they do. Im not saying every dealer is this way, but I know for sure, that the 2 Saturn dealers I have worked at have had these type of dedicated and experienced detailers. As for the add ons, we charge 599.00 for the paint and fabric, or leather protection if you take the warranty, if not we charge 399.00.
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88 Posts
Jill,
I'm sure you guys have good detailers that take pride in their jobs, but what most people dislike or distrust about car dealers is that they tack on charges for services that were not asked for. If you can do a good enough of a job at convincing each individual to buy the service, then great! But dealers need to stop tacking things or services on that were not requested and then sticking us with the bill!
I'm having this trouble with Ernest's "vaunted" dealer and I'm seeing that there are a number of Saturn dealerships out there that are not acting like "A different kind of car company." They finally get a car that really brings in a new crowd and they get greedy.
The sealant system is another perceived way for the dealersip to "gouge" buyers if it is forced on us!
I'm sure you guys have good detailers that take pride in their jobs, but what most people dislike or distrust about car dealers is that they tack on charges for services that were not asked for. If you can do a good enough of a job at convincing each individual to buy the service, then great! But dealers need to stop tacking things or services on that were not requested and then sticking us with the bill!
I'm having this trouble with Ernest's "vaunted" dealer and I'm seeing that there are a number of Saturn dealerships out there that are not acting like "A different kind of car company." They finally get a car that really brings in a new crowd and they get greedy.
The sealant system is another perceived way for the dealersip to "gouge" buyers if it is forced on us!
Basically what we do is....
We have so many vehicles on the lot with Tint, Stripe, and Paint and fabric protection, and we have so many that do not, we dont force anyone to buy anything that is not on our vehicles. If someone wants a car without stripe, tint etc, then thats what they can get.
We have so many vehicles on the lot with Tint, Stripe, and Paint and fabric protection, and we have so many that do not, we dont force anyone to buy anything that is not on our vehicles. If someone wants a car without stripe, tint etc, then thats what they can get.
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