Hi,
I was out driving today in my less than one week old CRV - first day that I have been out in it in bright sunlight and my eye glanced across to the passenger side where I noticed a very thin line, about 5 or 6 inches in length, on top of the passenger airbag and curving down towards the glove-box.
At first I thought it was some kind of polish mark but as I drove the more it crossed my mind so I pulled over and had a close look at it. Looking down from above you can't see it but you can see it when sat in the driver's seat when the light is bright. I put some spittal on a finger and rubbed it gently expecting it to disappear but it hasn't.
I was not sure if it was a scratch or some kind of manufacturing mark as, with the dash being dimpled, it does not appear to be deep enough to have 'broken' the dimples.
I was about a mile away from my local Honda dealer so I popped in and asked them to look at it. The mechanic came out, had a look and said that someone had scratched it and that it would not be covered by Honda. He said it would be about 1,700.00 to fix as it is the entire passenger air-bag assembly that would need to be exchanged. His advice was to get in touch with the dealer that I bought it from but he said that I would get no joy from Honda and would have to live with it.
Now I am aware of it of course I am constantly looking at it.
I only had the car delivered last Thursday, have only been out in 4 times and haven't even put anything in the glove box yet let alone gone near the passenger side of the car. I have not rang the dealer yet who I bought it from and don't relish a 160 odd mile journey to get there and a 160 mile journey back. The local Honda mechanic said that Honda might send out an assessor.
Advice appreciated.
Thank you,
T.
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My dash has vertical scratch lines on the passenger side. Due to `someone` ramming large handbags with buckles on past the knees and into the footwell.....
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This comment is not going to help, but I've added Honda to the list of car companies from whom I'm never going to buy a new car. Exceptionally useful, this forum, for developing a blacklist of rubbish dealer support. Less than a week old and they're already washing their hands.
On a lot of cars you can see a crease where the passenger airbag is under the right light. The dash is perforated to allow the airbag to escape in a hurry when it's needed.
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Ive just been out and run my finger over it several times. I cannot feel any roughness as in a scratch so I do wonder if it is some kind of moulding 'run' or something.
Having said that, it is squigdly like a scratch so if it is a scratch I can only assume that something very light made and the plastic is very soft.
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Having said that it is squigdly like a scratch so if it is a scratch I can only assume that something very light made and the plastic is very soft.
Then again, something oily or something in a mould could just as easy cause a squigdly line I suppose?
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Is this not where the air bag will puncture when it inflates; a kind of weak spot so the plastic splits easily to let it out?
Edited by Pica on 07/04/2009 at 17:33
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Is this not where the air bag will puncture when it inflates; a kind of weak spot so the plastic splits easily to let it out?
No, it is not like anything else I have seen on any airbag before.
It is really light - as if something has dragged along it in a squiggle or, as I said, perhaps some kind of moulding run - but noticeable in strong sunlight. It is not rough to the skin when I run my finger over it which I would expect with something that made a mark in plastic.
Also, the local Honda service chap looked at it so he would have known if it was meant to be there.
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This comment is not going to help but I've added Honda to the list of car companies from whom I'm never going to buy a new car. Exceptionally useful this forum for developing a blacklist of rubbish dealer support. Less than a week old and they're already washing their hands.
Looks like you will never buy a new car from any company ever then.
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I already know that my future lies as the third or fourth owner on the V5, AE. :-)
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tawse, I'm not sure that I'd be too surprised to find a minor imperfection on every brand new vehicle. They are, after all, driven around a bit before the first owner gets their hands on. They're not untouched by human hand.
On all the 4 brand new cars I've had, I'm sure there's been a little minor imperfection somewhere. Unfortunately they're only the first of many! It's downhill from here on in. My approach would be to try to forget about it and enjoy the 99.99% of the car which is perfect until it starts getting surfboard scratches all over it! I'd rather avoid confrontation with the dealer over an issue like this.
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When I purchased my Civic as few years back, I also noticed scratches on the dash that the dealer fixed. When I first viewed the car the dash was covered in white plastic wrapping. The 2 scratches I recall were located on items that could easily be replaced ie heater vent surround and passenger airbag... not the full dash. They also refitted the rear windscreen after a bit of persusion but can't remember exactly what that problem was.
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tawse,
I'm with Alanovich on this one, there is bound to be the odd minor imperfection and, inevitably, more will follow.
My CC3 has a scratch on the rear view mirror, which you can see if you look at the mirror glass itself, but you don't tend to notice if you are concentrating on the reflected image.
I'm not going to complain, the rest of the car is as it should be.
If I did moan hard, the dealer might change it, but only because everyone likes a quiet life and mirrors are relatively cheap.
I don't think you have any chance of getting a £1,000+ dashboard changed because of a minor blemish.
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Try cleaning it with something or other and see if the scratch disappears (or gets hidden).
The last thing I'd want is the dash replacing - what are the chances of it going back squeak and rattle free?
The one thing I dislike about Honda is that many options are actually dealer fit accessories - I prefer my cars to be untouched once they leave the factory. Most dealers can't even put the number plates on straight.
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Tawse,
I don't want to be dismissive as I haven't seen it, but it does sound like something that comes under the heading of "not absolutely perfect" which of course nothing is - not even me!
There will be a few of this sort of thing on every car. There's also a human trait of picking up on very small, or in some cases imaginary, defects when said humans have parted with a lot of money. Dealers call this 'buyer's remorse'. It wears off.
A surprising number of new cars have had remedial body work either at the factory, or subsequently. If all you can find is a barely visible irregularity in appearance, your car is much better than average and as Bill P implies certainly better than it will be when it has spent a day in the workshop being 'rectified' - they'll likely do more damage than that every time it goes for a service. Dashboard aside, the plastics on Hondas mark fairly easily as you will find when someone catches the sill with their heel, or rams a briefcase between their knees and the dash, or when you have loaded and unloaded some luggage a few times.
Try a proprietary car interior cleaner, or Mr Sheen, or vinegar and water on a cloth and see which reduces the noticeability the most; acknowledge it's there, and try to decide it's not going to annoy you. In a couple of weeks you'll probably forget it's there most days, and later most weeks.
I once had a new Golf which had clearly had a front wing replaced - it was a different shade of white and didn't fit quite right! As it was a company car I was obliged to live with it - I thought it would irritate me for two years but I'd managed to all but forget it after two weeks, and nobody else ever noticed.
Enjoy your new car.
Edited by Manatee on 07/04/2009 at 22:10
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Enjoy your new car.
But if a new car it should not have marks like this? Tawse, are you sure it's a scratch and not how the airbag comes out? It sounds like a scratch/mark to me.
I'd contact the supplying dealer...
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>>I'd contact the supplying dealer...
With what remedy in mind? By all means give them a call. They might suggest something but it won't be without paying them a visit, at which point they will observe that it's not really a fault and it's impossible to say how it got there anyway.
The truth is (allowing I haven't seen it) there is nothing material wrong with it. They aren't going to give Tawse a new car, and he's better getting on with the rest of his life than cultivating dissatisfaction which is probably not capable of being remedied.
As someone said above, cars are not untouched by human hand - it was made several weeks ago (at least), has been kept outside, moved around, possibly been in a showroom or demonstrated...and of course it's not new now anyway because Tawse has had it for a week.
So it's a scratch. Get a good light on it and I dare say there'll be a few more to find to get needlessly worked up about. Life's too short.
Personally I always feel I can relax when that first imperfection or stone chip comes to light and it's not too noticeable.
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Why not have a good look at a showroom car, see if the mark is evident.
If not get the dealer to change it. Why does it have to be the suppling dealer?
The warrentry is with Honda, at lest for the first year.
Bit surprised at the amount of negative comments about Honda dealers, all the surveys i have read gave them good write ups.
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Bit surprised at the amount of negative comments about Honda dealers all the surveys i have read gave them good write ups.
I'm not surprised in the slightest, they've had a good reputation on their past customers average age being 50+.
With the launch of the Civic they suddenly had a much more savvy and demanding demographic to deal with.
I noticed that my last post on this thread quickly disappeared, but I would no longer ever trust a Honda dealership - I think they are still in the previous mindset of dealing with doddering mimsers.
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You're kidding, right? The older generation are some of the hardest negotiators and tightest wossanames imaginable! Yes, some are defferential and will accept whatever they are told on trust. But I don't think one can generalise.
In 11 years I'll be 50+ and I like to think I'll still be at least a bit savvy and demanding.
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In 11 years I'll be 50+ and I like to think I'll still be at least a bit savvy and demanding.
Apologies Alanovich! I meant the previous older generation - you know the ones, blue-rinse/flat cap brigade!
I think that with the web, people can quickly recognise if a problem is common or not and that may be the older generation has in the recent past not been as web savvy.
No doubt the whole generational web skills is changing fast, just feel that Honda dealers as a rule haven't kept up.
Anyway, this still doesn't excuse the service that I've had recently and from others I have spoken to, just thought this may have been a reason why.
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OK, fair dos. The Mazda service centre I use is in fact a Honda dealer, they don't sell new Mazdas but are approved service agents for them. They've been marvellous on the two occasions I've used them, very thorough, professional and helpful. The service manager surprised me by still being at work at 7pm and calling me with updates at that time. I'd highly recommend them - Maidenhead Honda.
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My experience of Honda Dealers has on the whole been pretty good. When I bought my CRV there was a minor scratch on the door mirror and I was not bothered but the dealer insisted on picking the car up from me, leaving me a courtesy car and fitting a replacement part as (in his words) "I want the car to be perfect for you"
The car was returned to me cleaned, and with a full tank of petrol. So thumbs up to this particular Honda Dealer (although, shame about the brake discs but overall I cannot complain).
In my limited experience the Honda dealers I have used are head and shoulders above the Ford, Vauxhall and VW dealers I have previously dealt with. A mate of mine has recently been chuffed with Toyoto too.
I would score them as follows (in my personal experience):
Honda 8/10
Ford 4/10
Vauxhall 3/10
VW 6/10
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Agree with Pica, dealers vary so much that you cannot write off an entire manufacturer because of one dealer. I have owned Fords, Fiats, Vauxhalls, Seats and now a Honda, so I guess that I must fall in the "typical" Honda age bracket according to some other posts! However, I would rate dealers as follows :
Ford 5/10
Vauxhall 3/10
Fiat 1/10
Seat 9/10
Honda 9/10
Both Seat and Honda have been a delight to deal with, unlike some of the others. Any good dealer will take notice of a genuine complaint as they will want not only your ongoing business, but also to protect the reputation of the manufacturer.
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Looks as though some contributors to this thread need to read a bit less motoring 'journalism' and take a look at the real world.
I'm nearly 60 years old and I can't remember the last time I saw anyone with a 'blue rinse'. Flat caps are very practical headwear for anyone a bit thin on top - my pal has worn one since he lost his hair in his early 20s - and it isn't a Burberry either.
I've owned (2 and 4-wheel) Hondas (on and off, but mostly on) for more than 40 years, among a slew of other up-market motors paid for with my own money, so I've qualified for almost all age groups so far.
The business of Hondas being traditionally bought by 'doddering mimsers' is the sort of carp that is put about by the company car/Mondeo man brigade because they won't pay for or can't sell enough double glazing/mend enough photocopiers to drive something decent. In my own experience Hondas have been bought by all sorts of people, not least those who appreciate high performance and driving pleasure. Why do you think the boy racers drive old Civics, etc, as soon as they can afford the insurance - more bang per buck and street cred, that's why.
As for Honda having to deal with a younger and more demanding 'demographic' (whatever that means in real English) when selling the 'new' Civic, I would say the opposite is the case. For the first time they are dealing with people so undemanding that all they want is something that looks a bit like the plastic motor scooter they owned not long ago.
Rant over.
In the meantime, I would ignore the comments made by a mechanic who has no interest in sorting out the problem and take the CRV back where it was bought to see what response you get. It might be a few miles but driving them will be a pleasure...
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I had a minor but expensive(ish) problem within the warranty on my 307. Passenger visor and included vanity light broke = £70. Supplying dealer didn't want to know, took it to another dealership, which now features in HJ's list of recommended garages and it was changed without quibble while I waited. I suggest you try another dealer for your Honda problem.
Edited by Armitage Shanks {p} on 08/04/2009 at 15:58
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The business of Hondas being traditionally bought by 'doddering mimsers' is the sort of carp
Honda themselves have said the average age of new Jazz buyers is 63.
And wifey has one and she is a fair bit younger than that, and a young couple down the road own one too, so some owners must be very very old indeed! :)
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No complaints so-far - when I took my car, the sales chap was proficient enough to check that the alloy wheel nut key was there - it wasn't. No messing the nuts were drilled out and replaced. So far so good. I am 49 I have no flat cap (or a whippet), my friend who was with me bought a brand new Civic (1.4 Type S) - she is also 49 and very demanding, very very demanding. She was happy as well.
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In the meantime I would ignore the comments made by a mechanic who has no interest in sorting out the problem and take the CRV back where it was bought to see what response you get. It might be a few miles but driving them will be a pleasure... and my advise too
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Not all honda drivers are mature, i bought a fantastic looking Honda accord saloon, in 1980ish i was 30!
It was one of the first in the country, in deep metallic red a 1.6 85bhp engine, it was at the time, 10 years in front of my previous mk4 cortina, which after my mk1 was complete rubbish.
I have not had a ford or honda since, but i would have another, if enough boxes were ticked.
My age group spent a lot of time diy repairing, to keep costs down, how many of you young people replace engines, gear boxs, suspension and brakes etc, and i don't just mean pads?
Edited by xtrailman on 08/04/2009 at 20:56
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