I went through my local car wash today. My rear left black trim completely came off and was only hanging on by the light bulb wiring! I'm extremely pissed off at the car wash but this should not have happened in the first place. The car wash says they will fix it for me but if they don't does my Mini warranty cover something like this? Anyone else had something similar happen to their mini?

 

Wow... Warranty won't cover it, your insurance will have to.

 

Pretty sure this will not be covered under any kind of MINI warranty.

Mark

 

These things happen in car washes and owners are usually very good about paying for them in the stories I've heard. You have legal right to seek repair from the owner of the car wash as long as you have proof and/or their agreement that the damage was indeed caused there.

 

Wow, if that happened to your trim, I can only imagine what that car wash does to your paint!

 

Yeah, I usually wash my mini by hand but since its way to cold out to wash by hand I figured I give the new local car wash a try. Never doing that one again!

 

Was it a "Touch-less" car wash, or one with brushes? Those brushes not only rip parts off, but really damage your paint. In cold weather it's best to either stay dirty, or go to a wand-wash, and spray off the worst of it, the salt mostly.

Mark

 

It was one with brushes. It was the first time going to this car wash. I think my mini just going to stay dirty for a while until spring.

 

Sorry for your problem

No way MINI is gonna cover this ... and most car washes have signs saying they are not responsible for ... but if the owners says he will the worst that happens is he changes his mind when he gets the bill and then you can try small claims court

On the other hand given the horrible cold snap we're having here on the Space Coast I was tempted to take one of my cars to an automatic wash the other day .... I didn't and I think I decide right! I haven't used an automatic wash in a good 8 years now. In a pinch - use a 'wand place' {including using the brush with no ill effects but I rinse it with the pressure wash first} and take some drying towels and if brave a bucket and wash mit (brave cuz if there is a line and you try to use this you could get nasty looks or worse depending on where U live fill your bucket with the suds from the 'brush' then hand wash). Go very early or very late to avoid evil looks from someone waiting . . .

 

Most of these clips which hold the fender trim pieces on are designed to snap off anyways, so just inspect the inner trim u grooves of the black trim. If those are intact, all you need are some clips from MINI and they are about 3 bucks each......

 

The dealership washes mine.

 

Where all the other cars washed at with yours damaged?

If not your trim was probably loose and the car wash just finished it off. From the car wash perpective it was pre-existing damage.

 

Go easy ladd. Some times the whirling pieces of carpet can get a hold of the fender trim from the under side of the wheel well. Typically it happens due to poor maintenance of the car wash's whirling carpet sections. They can become frayed at the very ends leaving longish strands of nylon just looking for a piece of car to lasooo and rip off.

 

I the part costs something like $32 and literally just pops on. Not a big deal.

 

Sure looks like a brush caught and then yanked the part, or caught and then the car moving forward yanked it. I think it's bad luck. Avoid car washes, but here and there I think it best to wash the car than to leave salt for months unattended to.

 

Me too. Prestige Mini right?

 

Couple of years ago the car wash ripped off the rear taillight on our old Jeep Wrangler. Like someone said, best to leave it dirty until you can wash by hand or spray the big stuff off at one of the DIYs...

 

I know this is WAY too late - but if you care about your car and its' paint/finish - never take it through a automated car wash.

Even the 100% hand wash - you have the guys drying your car with dirty terry cloth towels, the automated escalator (I'm not sure what they're officially called) scraping up your wheels, etc.

I'm sorry to hear about your car!

 

My car has never seen a car wash. If I dont wash it it dosen't get washed. I'm a little nuts about keeping it clean. I wash it every 2 weeks if it seats in the garage or every 2 times I drive it. Only hand washed.

 

I avoid car washes in favor of the DIY drive-in washes. I wish I could wash my MCS myself in the winter, but everything's frozen. Wish it weren't so.

 

If you ever saw how most dealers wash cars, you wouldn't let them touch it.

 

This kind of caught my interest - care to shed some light on how it is done?

 

Luckily we have quite a few Hand Car washes by me...

 

I've seen them use wooden handled brushes for wheels and bumpers, and using the same cloth to wipe the body after wiping the wheels.

It's truly horrifying if you're into hand washing your cars with the two-bucket method...

 

Check with your dealer, the rear trim on my 07 MCc was hanging by 2 clips and they fixed it.