Miata Mailing List: November 1995, Message #217
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   From: LArceneaux@UH.EDU (Lynette Arceneaux)
Subject: New Car Scratch and Headlight Reminders
   Date: Fri, 3 Nov 1995 16:12:06 -0500

Hi everyone!

Wow!  Already, I've learned so much from this list!   

I would like to solicit some advice from you.  I bought my red 95 Miata only
about a month ago from a Mazda dealership.  I agreed to pick up and purchase
the car after they installed the alarm, which they said would take three
days.  I went to pick up my lovely red Miata three days later (a very
exciting moment in my life, I might add), only to discover that, while in
their care, they had put a big nick in the paint on the back panel right
behind the rear window.  Further, they had given the car a nice deep scratch
all the way down to the metal on the hood *and* had given her a nice dent in
the right rear fender with pretty scratches.  I threw a fit.  (It was a
*new* car, for heaven's sake!  It hadn't even been driven off the lot and
was now no longer the car I had agreed to buy!)  OK, looking back on it, I
probably should have demanded a completely different car, but this whole
new-car-buying thing was new to me.  Anyway, they swore they would fix
everything.  When I went to pick it up (oh, about a week and a half later),
they had done their job pretty well.  The nick was completely gone and so
was the dent and scratches in the fender.  Unfortunately, I am sure they
didn't use that wonderful dent removing technique I've been reading about
here lately.  They surely just filled it.  Anyway they re-painted the back
panel and the fender to cover the damage.  Now, here's my dilemma:  The hood
scratch was smoothed out, but they opted not to paint the entire hood
(probably too expensive for them!).  Therefore, there is still a small
defect on the paint of the hood.  Like I said, the entire surface is smooth,
but there is a slight defect which, when you look for it in sunlight, can
easily be found.  It is about the size of a small fingernail and is a bit
grey in color -- kind of like someone marked on the hood with a pencil.  The
dealership didn't seem to think I would mind that, but I thought that maybe
you people would look at the Miata with a bit more love than they did.  

Should I go back and demand they re-paint the entire hood to remove the
slight defect or would all of that re-painting simply do more harm than
good? (I was already nervous when they told me they had re-painted the back
panel and fender!)   What would you do?  Which will de-value my car more:
the defect or all of that re-painting?  There is now protective poly-coat
stuff on it, which the dealership threw in for free to kind of make up for
all of this trouble.  Will that effect choosing to re-paint or leave it? 

Fix it or live with it?  Please help and give me your opinions!

Also, lately I've been reading posts about headlight buzzers and how they
might be necessary to remember to turn off your parking lights.  A buzzer
would be great if you can find one and want to spend money, but if you want
something quick, easy, cheap (and a little silly), here's a tip (Thanks to
Heloise!):  Keep a clothespin in your console, and every time you use your
lights (parking or head) during the day (or night, if you like), take the
clothespin and clip it to the ignition key.  You will never forget to turn
your lights off, when you try to remove your key and there's a big
clothespin clipped to it!  I use a big, obnoxious, plastic, yellow one, and
have never forgotten my lights yet!  (I can't help you if you forget to clip
it on in the first place!)  Anyway, it's a bit silly, but it works!

Lynette