My car is apparently too difficult to work on and get correct (BMW). Goes in for an accident repair, post repair I first noticed the front driver fender and driver door are misaligned. I bring this to their attention that it does not match the passenger side (not affected by the accident) as it appears this was difficult to initially accept without a clear comparison of variation.
After the fender was adjusted, the car was given back to be with a fresh ding in the same fender that was just adjusted. Initially a remark was made that this could have been a possible customer issue that occurred between the car being delivered to my house and my bringing it back in to point out the misaligned fender/door.
The ding was fixed but after a day of operating the vehicle for the first time after the repairs it was noticed my window was not properly sealed between the front and rear window. I visited the shop again, they looked and although the windows of my convertible physically rolled up to different points, it was pointed out that its a soft top so the windows may not sit in the same place on both sides. I may not be a certified mechanic, but cars are generally equal on both sides in everything. After more complaining and trying to prove that the car should be identical on both sides, the issue was reviewed and it was determined a window regulator which was re-installed in the impacted / replaced door was bent (presumably from the accident). The regulator was replaced and that issue resolved. During that resolution my door speakers were not reconnected, so my car had one side with no audio which required a re-visit to Gerber again. During that repair my recently painted door was scratched in a manor that chipped the new paint which required the door to be repainted again!
I was asked to visit the shop in two weeks once the previous paint had cured, so the chipped paint on the door could be corrected. During that two week period I observed that during highway driving I had what sounded like a substantial amount of wind passing through the door behind the door speaker attached at the window at the C pillar, on the impacted door. My interior door handle also was not screwed tight after the door having been worked on so much so it pulled outward toward me each time I closed the door.
The last two items regarding the wind noise and door handle were to be addressed during the repainting of the door. I received my car and could immediately tell the wind noise was going to be a problem, as the mirror on the affected door is not as solid fitting as the passenger mirror. Shop staff do not agree, but the wind noise coming through the area says otherwise, which is what led me to investigate the variance between the mirrors on each side of the car. Technician Carlos rode in my vehicle, heard the noise from the passenger seat, and delivered this info to the shop staff. After pulling my vehicle around and management and techs looking at it the vehicle was brought back to me with a fair amount of excuses as to why this would occur. Carlos proceeds to point out all of my seals on various windows. This would include the windshield, the rear window (my issue with air is at the front window at the side mirror), and any other seal that could be included in the conversation. The age of my vehicle 2008, a classic car in Carlos's words, 11 years old is really the reason for the wind noise I am suddenly hearing, and nothing to do with the way the vehicle was put back together. Although the air is coming from a very specific place, Carlos assures me there are no fixes for this other than likely replacing the rubber stripping etc and has advised me to go elsewhere to have it looked at, like an upholsterer.
I find this entire conversation I had today with Carlos to be one that pulled at straws to pin the issue on anything other than the work at Gerber or the accident. I will take my car to the dealership to get to the bottom of all the wind noise I suddenly hear. Carlos believes the plastic mirror being removed and replaced may have caused this to eventually not be as tight, but largely attributes it to my car being older and wear and tear. He mentioned this is possible anytime someone buys a used car, so in other words I shouldn't buy a used car, but if I do, expect to have road noise, but only after an accident.
My car had no such wind noise issue before the accident, and I'm not certain it had the issue immediately after the repair and could have developed the issue with the taking on and off of parts to correct an issue with the window regulator that was not initially found during the initial car repair. Regardless, I am not happy with having to revisit this shop no less than 6x, and the damage caused to my car while it was being repaired at this shop and the lack of proper repair initially which brought me repeatedly into the shop week after week after getting the car returned.
This company will not get my future business. read more
