Please Help!! So MAD! Dealer issue - Rear Trunk Spoiler
Originally Posted by G37X GraSdadow
Hi,
So I just got a call from Infiniti and it's really frustrating. To make the story short here is the history
1) 6/27- Bought a brand new OEM rear spoiler through Myg37.com
2) 6/30- Received the item unharmed not damaged.
3) 7/1- Went to infiniti to install - $199 / took 3.5 hours (expecting great result)
4) 7/1 - Received the car, had to go to airport right away, couldn't really check it out.
5) 7/5 - I realized the spoiler was not installed properly. Or not installed professionally. Not good. Even rear camera was not straight.
https://imgur.com/a/lud5I
6) 7/6 - Went back to infiniti and demanded a perfection or a refund.
7) 7/6 - No response from Infiniti same day I dropped off.
8) 7/7 - No response from Infiniti next day
9) 7/8 - No response from Infiniti Today - I called in service department
10) 7/8 - talked Service Adviser and he told me the service manager is not in because his house was hit by a lightening. Waiting on him to make a decision. However this is what he told me on the phone:
(Before I get into this, when I dropped off the car, a technician and another adviser was inspecting and TOLD me that the spoiler was not installed properly. Also mentioned that the camera is indeed NOT straight)
A - "We inspected your spoiler and it looks like the parts you brought us have issues(the double sided tape)"
Me- "It is OEM parts. There should be no issues"
A- "I'm not sure where you got this parts. Maybe from ebay? it looks like the double sided tapes are old"
Me- "I bought it through the forum and everyone else bought them too. Nobody is having issues but me."
A- "If we try to take the spoiler off, it will break. I'm not sure if we can do this. And the camera looks straight for me. I don't see an issue."
Me - "That does not make sense because I drove 30 min to get here instead of a bodyshop near me. And I also paid $200 for it when I could have it done with $50. And you guys took 3.5 hours to do it. I decided to come to infiniti to get professional work. That is not a professional work."
"Everyone bought the same spoiler from same dealer. Nobody is having problem. And when I dropped off the car the other day, an adviser and a technician did told me that the spoiler was not installed properly also told me that the camera is not striaght"
A- "We would have to wait for the service manager and see what he thinks about the situation"
Sigh.
What am I supposed to do when the adviser says something like 'you did not purchased the spoiler from the dealership. There is nothing we can do'
???
Update 1 - 7/8 - 2:26PM
Manager called me. Told me that the doublesided tapes are defected. Told me its their fault that they did not inform me about it in first place. However he gave me two options.
A) Contact the Seller. Return and get a new spoiler. Will install it for free.
- Out of the option. The seller doesn't even have a spoiler to give out. Its all sold out. Plus I'm sure they don't accept returns after installing it.
B) Get a full refund. Take the car with spoiler. Recommended me to go to bodyshop to make it look flush.
They do not want to take off the spoiler because they are afraid they will damage the spoiler. Drilled in the middle section and double sided tapes on both side.
I'm not sure if I should just take option B or keep fighting for a perfection.
I asked them to get a new spoiler for me and install properly but he told me that they can't do that because I did not buy through 'infiniti'. They would eat up the labor charges but not the part costs.
What should I do?
Update 2 - 7/8 3:23 PM
What about the camera? don't you have to take off the spoiler to install? I forgot mention that to the manager.
Update 3 - 7/8 4:09 PM
Told manager about the camera. He talked to the person who actually worked on the spoiler. and this is what he said:
"I just spoke with the tech that did the install. He informed me there was no adjustment to the camera at all, there are four simple screws at the bracket that are not slotted. He did tell me that there is a sticker on the inside of the spoiler that said something to the effect of blemished, no guarantees, no returns. He said he did not remove that sticker, so it is still there. That sticker is not on a new genuine spoiler from Infiniti. I do wish he had brought that to the attention of the advisor, but he was under the impression that you would have been aware of that since you provided the part. "
Manager is keep telling me that the parts are not right. He told me two lead technicians inspected and said it was properly installed but the part is not right; even if they re-install the tapes, it will have gaps anytime since its the part that are too straight(?). Also told me its 'defected' because the reason why the camera is not straight is because it is adjusted to the spoiler; which means the spoiler adjuster is not straight.
He is still offering me the two options. If I take the the option B which is full refund, can a body can fix it for me?
1) I can remove the spoiler double sided tapes with heatgun/goo gone.
2) Can you remove the bolts that were drilled in there? is it possible?
3) Can a decent bodyshop can fix the issue with the camera alginment and spoiler flushness?
Update 4 - 7/8 6PM
The seller contacted me and told me that he will call the dealership for me on Monday. I have informed the manager that the seller will contact him so let's see what would happen next.
So I just got a call from Infiniti and it's really frustrating. To make the story short here is the history
1) 6/27- Bought a brand new OEM rear spoiler through Myg37.com
2) 6/30- Received the item unharmed not damaged.
3) 7/1- Went to infiniti to install - $199 / took 3.5 hours (expecting great result)
4) 7/1 - Received the car, had to go to airport right away, couldn't really check it out.
5) 7/5 - I realized the spoiler was not installed properly. Or not installed professionally. Not good. Even rear camera was not straight.
https://imgur.com/a/lud5I
6) 7/6 - Went back to infiniti and demanded a perfection or a refund.
7) 7/6 - No response from Infiniti same day I dropped off.
8) 7/7 - No response from Infiniti next day
9) 7/8 - No response from Infiniti Today - I called in service department
10) 7/8 - talked Service Adviser and he told me the service manager is not in because his house was hit by a lightening. Waiting on him to make a decision. However this is what he told me on the phone:
(Before I get into this, when I dropped off the car, a technician and another adviser was inspecting and TOLD me that the spoiler was not installed properly. Also mentioned that the camera is indeed NOT straight)
A - "We inspected your spoiler and it looks like the parts you brought us have issues(the double sided tape)"
Me- "It is OEM parts. There should be no issues"
A- "I'm not sure where you got this parts. Maybe from ebay? it looks like the double sided tapes are old"
Me- "I bought it through the forum and everyone else bought them too. Nobody is having issues but me."
A- "If we try to take the spoiler off, it will break. I'm not sure if we can do this. And the camera looks straight for me. I don't see an issue."
Me - "That does not make sense because I drove 30 min to get here instead of a bodyshop near me. And I also paid $200 for it when I could have it done with $50. And you guys took 3.5 hours to do it. I decided to come to infiniti to get professional work. That is not a professional work."
"Everyone bought the same spoiler from same dealer. Nobody is having problem. And when I dropped off the car the other day, an adviser and a technician did told me that the spoiler was not installed properly also told me that the camera is not striaght"
A- "We would have to wait for the service manager and see what he thinks about the situation"
Sigh.
What am I supposed to do when the adviser says something like 'you did not purchased the spoiler from the dealership. There is nothing we can do'
???
Update 1 - 7/8 - 2:26PM
Manager called me. Told me that the doublesided tapes are defected. Told me its their fault that they did not inform me about it in first place. However he gave me two options.
A) Contact the Seller. Return and get a new spoiler. Will install it for free.
- Out of the option. The seller doesn't even have a spoiler to give out. Its all sold out. Plus I'm sure they don't accept returns after installing it.
B) Get a full refund. Take the car with spoiler. Recommended me to go to bodyshop to make it look flush.
They do not want to take off the spoiler because they are afraid they will damage the spoiler. Drilled in the middle section and double sided tapes on both side.
I'm not sure if I should just take option B or keep fighting for a perfection.
I asked them to get a new spoiler for me and install properly but he told me that they can't do that because I did not buy through 'infiniti'. They would eat up the labor charges but not the part costs.
What should I do?
Update 2 - 7/8 3:23 PM
What about the camera? don't you have to take off the spoiler to install? I forgot mention that to the manager.
Update 3 - 7/8 4:09 PM
Told manager about the camera. He talked to the person who actually worked on the spoiler. and this is what he said:
"I just spoke with the tech that did the install. He informed me there was no adjustment to the camera at all, there are four simple screws at the bracket that are not slotted. He did tell me that there is a sticker on the inside of the spoiler that said something to the effect of blemished, no guarantees, no returns. He said he did not remove that sticker, so it is still there. That sticker is not on a new genuine spoiler from Infiniti. I do wish he had brought that to the attention of the advisor, but he was under the impression that you would have been aware of that since you provided the part. "
Manager is keep telling me that the parts are not right. He told me two lead technicians inspected and said it was properly installed but the part is not right; even if they re-install the tapes, it will have gaps anytime since its the part that are too straight(?). Also told me its 'defected' because the reason why the camera is not straight is because it is adjusted to the spoiler; which means the spoiler adjuster is not straight.
He is still offering me the two options. If I take the the option B which is full refund, can a body can fix it for me?
1) I can remove the spoiler double sided tapes with heatgun/goo gone.
2) Can you remove the bolts that were drilled in there? is it possible?
3) Can a decent bodyshop can fix the issue with the camera alginment and spoiler flushness?
Update 4 - 7/8 6PM
The seller contacted me and told me that he will call the dealership for me on Monday. I have informed the manager that the seller will contact him so let's see what would happen next.
1) Remove(unscrew) bolts that were drilled (is it possible?) in the trunk to make it lose.
2) apply heat gun and use goo gone to remove the spoiler from the trunk without a damage.
3) Use new tapes(or drill extra holes) and re-install again.
Let me know if I'm wrong. I'm not sure why dealer is telling me removing the spoiler would damage it. I don't understand.
2) apply heat gun and use goo gone to remove the spoiler from the trunk without a damage.
3) Use new tapes(or drill extra holes) and re-install again.
Let me know if I'm wrong. I'm not sure why dealer is telling me removing the spoiler would damage it. I don't understand.
From your list above #1, removing the fasteners won't make it loose but will allow you to remove teh spoiler once the tape is released.
Once fasteners are removed apply some blue painters tape all along the trunk surface that contacts the spoiler edge, I'd make two passes so it's a couple inches wide, this will help protect the paint from any abrasions that the fishing line may cause. And if you can slightly tuck it under the spoiler that would be best. You will then apply heat to soften the adhesive then run your fishing line back and forth to slowly break the seal. Like I said you've got two tape sections so this will take some time & effort. You will have to alternate your heat up & down to heat both tape sections as you move your fishing line from one side to the other.
The one section that I'm unsure is those two outside push clips, and you may have to remove your taillights to get up in there and snip the back of those clips to get them off rather than trying to pry them up.
BTW, did they give you your chrome lip back? If not, that's something else they should give back.
Unfortunately there's no easy way out since this dealer doesn't want to do what's right, and TBH I wouldn't trust them to do another install.
The measurements I supplied in my DIY link should still apply to that spoiler so you might want to double check vs. the holes that will be in your trunk.
I doubt they will give you the templates back, I'm sure they pitched them
Hopefully they can compensate you more than just a refund of your install.
Good Luck.
OP, the goo-gone is only used once you have the spoiler completely removed, when you use the fishing line it cuts into the adhesive so you'll have a lot left on the car. The goo gone turns it into a semi liquid so you can remove it easily.
Turtle wax makes an adhesive, sticker removal spray that should work well too.
Registered Member
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 389
Likes: 132
From: PA
https://imgur.com/a/lud5I
This is the only picture I have at the moment. Yes they are bad pictures
I contacted the seller and he told me he will call the dealership on Monday.
This is the only picture I have at the moment. Yes they are bad pictures
I contacted the seller and he told me he will call the dealership on Monday.
It looks like either 1.) Holes weren't drilled properly OR (and certainly a best case scenario) 2.) the spoiler wasn't pressed into place on the ends, which means a pretty firm push/press on either end might put it where it needs to go (and then the double sided tape would be useful). I remember it a jarring and somewhat uncomfortable feeling when I had to push pretty hard to get them to snap into place but when they did the fit was perfect.
Got another email from manager after sending a email about how we think about the installation.
Again..I cannot proceed any further until we have a good spoiler. I am willing to work with you to resolve the concern, however, continuing to place blame on my staff based off of opinion of those not present to inspect the concern will get us nowhere. The opinion of the professional technicians that are peesent to obseerve the concern is that the spoiler is warped. I have given you multiple options, please let me know what works.
Again..I cannot proceed any further until we have a good spoiler. I am willing to work with you to resolve the concern, however, continuing to place blame on my staff based off of opinion of those not present to inspect the concern will get us nowhere. The opinion of the professional technicians that are peesent to obseerve the concern is that the spoiler is warped. I have given you multiple options, please let me know what works.
Sorry, I don't buy that the spoiler is warped, the fasteners along w/ the double sided tape will pull the spoiler tightly to the trunk surface unless it's grossly malformed. I think if you told the dealership that you bought a $75 spoiler off ebay that opened the door for them to blame everything they did on that "ebay bargain bucket spoiler". Once you place the spoiler down, pull the backing tape and do a final placing of the spoiler it can be nearly impossible to pull back up and place it again, my guess is they placed the spoiler, pulled the backing, the spoiler wasn't set properly and they couldn't get it right, or didn't make much of an effort to get it proper. I'm willing to bet that if you were to carefully remove the spoiler, remove all the adhesive residue and place the spoiler back on the trunk it would fit well.
Oh, and it's worth saying again, if the spoiler was so warped that strong adhesive tape, 4 bolts, and 2 push clips won't get it flush that's something that should never have gotten to the install stage. Spoilers are supposed to be fitted prior to any final installation.
I think I'd get that full refund, then tell them when you remove the spoiler and it ends up fitting just fine that you will tell everyone on the forum the dealership that did you wrong.
Oh, and it's worth saying again, if the spoiler was so warped that strong adhesive tape, 4 bolts, and 2 push clips won't get it flush that's something that should never have gotten to the install stage. Spoilers are supposed to be fitted prior to any final installation.
I think I'd get that full refund, then tell them when you remove the spoiler and it ends up fitting just fine that you will tell everyone on the forum the dealership that did you wrong.
Last edited by blnewt; Jul 8, 2016 at 10:45 PM.
Registered Member
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 389
Likes: 132
From: PA
Totally agree w/blnewt. It'd be one thing if your eBay spoiler was an no name brand fiberglass spoiler, but its a genuine infiniti part. Hard to believe one random spoiler would be so deformed, and again as has been said, there's no way a "master tech" worth their title wouldn't test fit the spoiler on the trunk ahead of time to see if everything is in line, especially because its a customer bought part.
If you follow Brad's instructions and have even a little DIY experience and a lot of patience you can make this right for G. Hopefully the dealer will make it right for your wallet.
Good luck with everything!
If you follow Brad's instructions and have even a little DIY experience and a lot of patience you can make this right for G. Hopefully the dealer will make it right for your wallet.
Good luck with everything!
Techs don't test fit OEM parts. They're OEM parts. What are they testing for fit? They assumed it would fit properly and that all the hardware, fasteners, etc. we're like every other one they've installed.
Whether the issue is bad mounting tape or lack of skill this is a fiasco. Take your refund, take it to a skilled auto body professional that's willing to deal with it, and start over completely.
Whether the issue is bad mounting tape or lack of skill this is a fiasco. Take your refund, take it to a skilled auto body professional that's willing to deal with it, and start over completely.
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 6,103
Likes: 593
From: People's Republic of IL
I guess the dealer has some weight in claiming that it's not an oem part. Unless it was sold by a nissan/infiniti dealer, it's difficult to prove one or the other. Fake parts are sold all the time, esp on ebay.
And to clarify, you bought the part on ebay, not this forum.
That said, even genuine oem parts fail to fit sometimes.
With all that said, if others were able to install theirs properly, then the issue really is on the installer. I bet the dealer delegated this job to one of their porters and not a real tech. No reason this should take 3 1/2 hours to install for someone that has a clue what they're doing.
Moral, if you want it done right, do it yourself.
And to clarify, you bought the part on ebay, not this forum.
That said, even genuine oem parts fail to fit sometimes.
With all that said, if others were able to install theirs properly, then the issue really is on the installer. I bet the dealer delegated this job to one of their porters and not a real tech. No reason this should take 3 1/2 hours to install for someone that has a clue what they're doing.
Moral, if you want it done right, do it yourself.
Techs don't test fit OEM parts. They're OEM parts. What are they testing for fit? They assumed it would fit properly and that all the hardware, fasteners, etc. we're like every other one they've installed.
Whether the issue is bad mounting tape or lack of skill this is a fiasco. Take your refund, take it to a skilled auto body professional that's willing to deal with it, and start over completely.
Whether the issue is bad mounting tape or lack of skill this is a fiasco. Take your refund, take it to a skilled auto body professional that's willing to deal with it, and start over completely.
There's just no way (at least in my mind) that something so warped would not be caught prior to final install. And really, the only way an oem part that is mass produced would get to that point would have to be severe heat, damaged during shipping, or a knockoff fake oem part. None of that has been reported for any of these spoilers.
And yes, agree 100% this is a complete fiasco!
One last thing OP, don't confuse goo-gone for another solvent called goof-off, the goof-off is much stronger and will harm your paint finish.
Registered Member
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 985
Likes: 144
From: Baltimore
I bought a after market spoiler a few years ago and had the same problem. The double sided tape didn't hold because the spoiler was a little warped. Installed it myself. I did a test fit before but it looked like it was good. But it sounds like you're getting on their nerves when the blame is on the spoiler. Luck for me the seller sent me another one and all was good. They are being nice by offering you a refund so take it and just order another spoiler and put it on yourself. They already drilled the holes for you. Just be sure to not move the spoiler once the tape touches the car cause that will weaken it's bond.
Registered Member
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 985
Likes: 144
From: Baltimore
For a spoiler they will lay it to the body panel prior to removing the fastening tape, even if it's some assembly line tech.
There's just no way (at least in my mind) that something so warped would not be caught prior to final install.
And yes, agree 100% this is a complete fiasco!
There's just no way (at least in my mind) that something so warped would not be caught prior to final install.
And yes, agree 100% this is a complete fiasco!