Is it worth putting Perma Plate on a new car when the dealer (in this case, Toyota) charges $695 (which the dealers says is discounted from the regular $995)? Is this any better than a good occasional car waxing, and doesn’t the factory usually provide good basic finish protection? The dealer says Perma Plate protects virtually everything except paint chips caused by road pebbles, etc.
You might ask the charlatans at that dealership how “permanent” this bit of latter-day snake oil actually is. The name, Perma Plate, is intended to give one the impression that this incredibly expensive car wax is long-lasting, if not permanent. Ask for a written guarantee of its permanency. More than likely, there is no written guarantee as to how long it will last, and that is because it is just VERY overpriced car wax.
Unless you enjoy wasting your money, I would suggest that you forego this offering as well as the “upholstery protection” and the undercoating that they will also try to sell you. When I buy a car, I make it very clear that I will not buy a car with a “dealer pack” (dealer-installed tape stripes, wheel well mouldings, etc.) and that I will walk out if there is any attempt to upsell me after I have settled on a price. And, I remind the salesman of that fact several times.
I also refuse to have a dealer sticker or emblem placed on my car. I make these terms very clear, and I also hand the saleman a piece of paper with MY final price written on it–and I remind the saleman that it is final–no ups, no extras. I tell him (or her) to get approval from the mythical sales manager quickly, because I am prone to walking out if I am kept waiting for an extended period of time.
If this dealership is successful in getting you to buy this vastly overpriced car wax, then you have essentially given up whatever price advantage you thought that you had gained when you negotiated the price downward from the list price.
It is nothing more than a wax job at best. It is a rip off like all the other stuff they try to sell you as you are buying a car. Don’t buy this or the extended warranty (which is really a very expensive insurance policy not a warranty) or the blinker fluid.
It might be worth $6.95, or the cost of a can of auto wax, which is what Perma Plate is, but there’s no way on earth it’s worth $695.
Another name for this is “Additional Dealer Profit,” which is all it is.
The finish on your new Toyota can stand up to anything short of a low-yield thermonuclear blast with nothing more than occasional washing and waxing. Put the $695 in the bank and earn some interest.
Everything above goes for “fabric protection,” too. It’s just ScotchGard, and you can spray it on yourself for next to nothing.
Oh, I forgot about undercoating. Thanks VDCdriver. The car is ALREADY rustproofed, as are all new cars. DO NOT let them tell you any different, or sell you additional rustproofing/undercoating. It will make the car MORE prone to rust.
It wouldn’t surprise me if the “perma plate” is already on the car and that they are just trying to get more money from you.
I remember when I bought a Toyota T100 back in 1996 it had lojack already installed on it but they wanted to charge me $1000.00 to enable it.
Anything offered to you after you’ve agreed to the price of the vehicle is nothing but profit for the dealership.
Pass on the VIN etch also.
Oh, I forgot about undercoating. Thanks VDCdriver. The car is ALREADY rustproofed, as are all new cars. DO NOT let them tell you any different, or sell you additional rustproofing/undercoating. It will make the car MORE prone to rust.
I wish my uncle would have checked this forum before he did that to his new truck. He had it rust proofed and undercoated. When I popped the hood to look at the engine bay, you could see what looked like the battery had exploded on the rails in the engine bay. Like a thick yellowish green mucus or something. But he didn’t get the bed rhino lined since he was gonna get a cap for it. it cost him $800 for the mucus and blackened fenderwells.
I wouldn’t give a nickel for any of that stuff. When you get a scratch, all bets are off. Don’t park under trees with acorns. Maple trees branches snap off at the ends too.
Perma Plate is definitely worth it if you are the dealer. I actually don’t think they do anything different. I once sold a car to a guy where I made no profit on the sale and he was a pain in the butt to deal with. He goes into financing, gets an extended warranty (even though he will probably not keep the car past the normal warranty), the leather protector and the paint protector. I always checked over the car after the detailer’s prepped it for delivery. I noticed nothing different in how they prepped it, but a $2000 profit for the dealer isn’t so bad.
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I had a friend fall for this stuff. He was bragging about it after buying his new car. I told him to do some internet research and he became ill after reading the facts. He read the guarantee that came with it. It said something that if it ever failed to protect, the dealer would re-apply. So after the car quit beading, he took it back to the dealer and they re-applied the product. The 2nd time it quit beading, he took it back and they claimed beading was not a sign of protection and claimed it was protecting fine. He did his homework and went back after a rain, parked next to a new car and showed the dealer’s service manager the difference and how the rain would not bead or sheet off, and that the finish was no longer slick. He demanded it be re-applied which they finally did. This went on a couple of more times and finally sick of him, the dealer refunded half the cost. It was still too much to pay but at least he got some satisfaction.
I know this is an old posting, but the basics have not changed. I used to work for PermaPlate and I can tell you that 80% of the sales price for any after market products like this is margin for the dealership or commission for the salesperson. The actual ‘cost’ of the product and reserves against future claims is less than 10% of what you pay at the dealership.
These products are nothing but a scam. You don’t have to pay for it no matter what the finance guy says when you go to sign the contracts.
Don’t be fooled, don’t buy aftermarket warranties.
VicBill
3 Likes
This. Better yet, take the $695 and put it in the stock market. Then in 10-15 years you can use the cumulative balance to get a new paint job for the car.
Not that I would spring for a new paint job on a 15-year old car. But my point is that there is not a scenario where paying for this add-on makes sense.
A family friend mortgaged his home and cashed in his retirement to buy GM in March 2008 @BikeGuy88. He and his wife will be working for the rest of their lives with nothing to show for all their years of working other than Social Security.
Diversify, diversify, diversify… The stock buyer’s mantra.
Buying ONLY GM stock is putting all your eggs in one basket and he paid the price for his ignorance.
If he’d invested in the entire S&P 500 stock group, he would have more than doubled his money (113%) in that 11 years tax free until he sells.
yes this is how the dealer makes money with add-on’s but I got it anyhow and glad I did. Just after getting my new truck the kids down the block egged my truck again but this time I had the Perma Plate the egg washed right off after the hassel I had the first time it was well worth the couple of bucks a month
A good wax job would have done the same thing, at a fraction of the cost.
5 Likes
Ok…not really sure how that’s relevant. A friend of mine was killed in a car crash. So we should all stop driving cars and shut down this forum. That’s kind of the analogy you’re making.