Paint Issues - Chipping, Scratches, Etc

This is a common issue with urethane bumpers and flares, the flare are probably more obvious do to the height. Also could be painted in an entirely different factory than the rest of the vehicle.

I live in San Jose just south of the NUMI plant and it is not uncommon to see a truck load of truck bed's being delivered already painted, when we would have to assume the cab and probably the door's are painted on site.

 

The fender flares and front bumper are definitely not basecoat/clearcoat. I have examined nearly every 2nd gen taco at my work and the vehicles with painted bumpers and fender flares all have the same dull, dry paint. I have shown when buffing mine that it is indeed not basecoat/clearcoat. I have also found that the color-matched rear bumper is basecoat/clearcoat, as well as the color-matched side view mirrors.

Also I do retract my statement that I think they are lacquer based - on testing every panel on my truck, the only part that I do believe is lacquer based is the color-matched front door handles. I apologize for the poor quality, but I here is a picture of the q-tip dipped in 50% isoprophol alcohol, after wiping over my front door handle. It has a small smudge of the red from my door handle; I didn't want to rub to much because it is ruining my paint!



Single-stage enamel, which is a 2 part paint (paint + hardener), will not reflow once it is cured by solvent.

Great eye rb11701! That is infact the legendary Dewalt 849 polisher. However the pad is not a wool pad, but an aggressive polishing pad. I was going over her with that setup and some 3M Perfect It II Rubbing Compound when I noticed the red paint coming off my fender flares. Once a year my vehicles get this treatment; it completely removes any swirl marks, clearcoat etching, or whatnot. On the other hand if its a friends vehicle I will only use polish and wax, but my girl gets the full treatment

As for polishing single-stage enamel, I am not an expert. I have been doing auto-body since 1996, and really single-stage enamel has not been used by car manufacturers for my whole career. In the 90's I seen it on Jeeps and fleet trucks/vans, but even those eventually switched to basecoat/clearcoat. I can tell you that the little bit I have worked with it I use the same products, with pretty much the same technique, and I have had great success. It just makes your pads look used and dirty I really feel toyota has dropped the ball with the painting of these parts, but it is clear that not alot of people have complained - that is why the TSB BO003-05 has not been updated past the '05 models.

 

Back from the dealer and not happy.
Replaced windshield.....good
Tried to buff out tailgate, the paint guy told me it's too deep to fix without repainting. My sales lady apparently told him that she didn't think it would buff out. She could have told me that! Looked at rust spot on hood and told me it's "rusty water" under the 3M.
I took a day off work to get this all taken care of and drove over 400 kms round trip to have this done. I waited 6 hours for my truck and all I got was the windshield replaced.
It would have been cheaper for me to replace the windshield where I live with my own money after taking into account lost wages for the day and fuel burnt!

Don't know what the Pro Pack is.... so I guess not. All damage was done before I picked it up.

 

The Pro Pack is an extra warranty the dealer sells at purchase of the vehicle. It is supposed to cover issues like paint chipping, rust etc. I was supposed to drop off my truck today to have my hood repainted due to paint chips, but I was too busy today. I may drop off my truck tomorrow or Wednesday. I will update on the results of the new paint soon as I have it done.

 

Took my truck out to the dealer where I bought it.... The front bumper was resprayed when I bought it and now the paint has bubbled up and flaked off in a couple spots. I showed the manager and there were no grief.
He's gotta call me back because he has to contact the sales department and find out where the bumper was resprayed originally...and whether or not its a local dealership warrantee or factory related warrantee. That'll determine where it'll get resprayed AGAIN.

I requested my local toyota dealer collision center because they have such a good reputation and do very good work.

I bought my truck 25 miles away.....The local dealership sucks!!

 

Jesse2035 do you have any better pic's of your chips? It is hard to tell what is going on with your pictures from the first page. Let us know if your Pro Pack warranty covers them.

Senna, it looks to me that one of your doors was repainted. This could include the fender or bedside also. Look for dust in the paint, uneven or different orange peel, tape marks or paint edges on the backs of the panels, or even overspray on gaskets, inner panels, etc. This may or may not be true, but from the assembly plant I would not expect to see that color mismatches. I have seen brand new vehicles sold to people with repainted panels, and the people don't know about it. Damage happens, but really it isn't the end of the world. There is no way to avoid it 100%.

Janster, got any pics? It sounds like the paint is de-laminating. This is typically due to poor surface preparation, but also sometimes could be blamed on the product also. Every shop I have ever worked at has offered a lifetime warranty on their repairs, so stick to your guns on getting it fixed.

 

Unfortunately, I don't have a better camera. I am in the process of moving from DC to Texas and don't know where the good camera is. Also the dealer is giving me a hard time about repainting my hood now. They want me to stop by the dealership again tomorrow so another person can take a look at it. I am getting ready to go postal if they refuse to repaint my hood.

 

Believe me, I work in the industry and I do some of those repairs on car before people even see the car, sometimes right off the delivery truck.

It's quite common to see week paint on a lot of these newer cars, they don't even clear under the hood or deck lid.

 

I hear ya man. But again, damage on new cars is going to occur, and if repaired correctly, it isn't the end of the world. Although it doesn't appear to have happened like that for Janster.

Also, I have seen the dull paint under hoods and deck lids to be basecoat/clearcoat. They put a matt paste in the clear to give it a dull finish. BMW used to do this, and may still do. It makes matching the finish somewhat difficult because you have to have a feel for exactly how much matt paste to mix in the clear.

 

Sorry I didn't take any pictures. All the rust spots were on the front portion of the roof. More than likely they were caused by rocks. It took them about a week to do the repairs, they had to remove my windsheild. But it's all good now.
I think it depends on your service writer? First time I took it in they didn't even want to replace my tailgate.
But this time (different service manager) they set me up with a new gate, and painted my roof, no questions asked.

 

My 09 is less than 2 months old. I have rock chips - but then I've had chips in my last 4 (GM) vehicles. I'm glad this 'coma has the unpainted bumper. I have quite a few nicks, but at least the color is consistent and they don't show.
What puzzles me is a couple of small scratches on the side. I don't know what would cause them, and they aren't oriented horizontally, or even slightly upswept, like a rock from the tire. I just see them as normal wear & tear. Will need touch up paint before winter.
GM (used to work there) trucks paint shop at the factory are very focused on finish quality, lack of dirt, and durability (customer satisfaction). Early 90's they got suckered like other manufacturers to not use a primer, by the paint manufacturers. The paint flaked off.... big difference in flaked off, vs chipped.
GM uses an antichip, similar to what Toyota uses on the rockers - leading edge of hood, etc. However GM has refined the process so it doesn't look like oatmeal. I suspect Toyota doesn't apply antichip to the front hood area, or it would look like their rockers.
Paint cost is a focus for savings. GM is focused more on efficient robotic paint paths and electrostatic painting to get the coating on the panel, and reduce loss through overspray. They don't paint the interior fully. Vehicles have an elpo dip electrochemically bonded to double sided galvanized sheet metal.
So - GM - galvanized metal, elpo, primer, antichip, 2 paint coats, 1 clearcoat.
Can't speak for Toyota's coatings.
Guess time will tell how the paint stands up, but so far, not seeing anything unusual.

"Also, I have seen the dull paint under hoods and deck lids to be basecoat/clearcoat. They put a matt paste in the clear to give it a dull finish." quote --
uh - no.
Basecoat has a matte finish when dry. Clearcoat gives it the gloss. Seeing dull surfaces underhood is a cost savings measure to save on clearcoat application. Customer doesn't see it day - day.
Kills me to see Harley charge more for the 'denim' finish, when it's non-clearcoated basecoat.

 

Coma09, basecoat by itself is porous and if left without a clearcoat it would rust. In addition, all of the UV protection is provided by the clearcoat.

Vehicles are not being manufactured with only basecoat paint jobs.

 

Well maybe HD's demin finish isn't basecoat only, but it sure looks like it. I know, as I've seen a lot of it. Actually on 2nd thought it's not likely basecoat, as current waterborne basecoats are not tough enough to stand up to use on their own, esp. in wear areas on a motorcycle.

The basecoat and clearcoat are both paints. Basecoat is applied over primer, which is very porous so as to allow the paint coating to flow into it and bind better.
Waterborne basecoat, which is being used, is a softer coating than lacquer based paints. However far more environmentally friendly. It's porosity is partly determined by it's epoxy content, which is the component that makes it oxygen 'tight'. Basecoat is more porous than the clearcoat, as its needed to provide 'tooth' for the clearcoat. However 2 coats of basecoat are applied, and this provides a pretty fair coating for the panel. Clearcoat is generally solvent based urethane providing a harder coating for protection.
An underhood area un-clearcoated isn't going to rust as a primer only finished panel would.
As for non-clearcoated surfaces on cars - that's not likely to happen, as the basecoat is not durable enough for the long haul - and we like our cars shiny.

 

Check out this crap if you think it chips easy. I was washing the wheels and my two yo had the hose with a metal nozzle on it. I had my tail gate down, I guess he was knocking on it, and I had no idea because the tunes were cranked up, and I was on the opposite side front wheel. What do you suggest I do to fix this? Could I fine sand it and touch it up?

 

did I forget to say CRAP MY NEW TRUCK! Oh well it is a truck, I am not worried it is going to get scratched but I need to figure out what to do. I washed and waxed it real good...I guess I could touch it up, but I an not sure if I should sand it or not??? Help!

 

ow .. that's a lotta chips.
You could be patient and spot touch them all, but in my level of handiness it'd look touched up. I've painted a few vehicles, and if you can see the defect, re-painting will still show it. Were you to repaint the whole tailgate, you'd need to sand the area to the point lightly running the backs of your fingernails over the spots feel no edge.
Also sanding an area that big, you run the risk of going through the primer to bare metal in places. Takes practice to finess an area like that.

Might not be too expensive to leave the tailgate with a pro as a filler job, and you still have the use of your truck.

If you elect to spot touch, I'd clean the area with alcohol to remove wax residue. Also would do a very fine sand with 800 grit water sandpaper where I'd spot touch. I'm no pro, and maybe someone else would give additional info.

My truck, I'd likely sand the tailgate, and finess out the chip area. prime if necessary, and respray the whole thing. Looks like white - not a metallic, so fairly easy job. But then I've made mistakes on old beaters I don't care about and have some experience how to sand and spray.

 

If you do use touch-up, use a toothpick to apply. 'Dot' it on real light. Try not to gob. After it is fully cured, use a sanding block (most important thing, do not forget) and try 2500 grit wet sandpaper. Soak it overnight before using it. Only go one way with the 2500 gently. Feel it to see if the bump is still there. If not, use 3000 soaked the same way and go the other way. This way you can see if you took out all the 2500 grit marks. It should look dull. You will then need a machine to polish it back to normal. A rotary buffer or a dual-action polisher.

It is some serious work to do this. especially with all those marks. If you don't feel good about sanding your paint. Don't do it. Have it repainted. Seeing it is the gate, there will not be alot of factory paint around it to compare. Should blend in. BUT, if you are going to get it repainted. Do the touch up for practice on the wet sanding. Great skill to have. And who cares if you go through the clear, you are getting it repainted!

 

I am with rb on this one. Touch up the chips with paint, and you can get some for your vehicle color from the dealer. A toothpick is a good idea. I like to use something like this:

http://store.rightlook.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=109&MMP=1015331491

If you are confident with a professional buffer, like the dewalt 849 I used above, you can lightly sand the area and polish back to shine. I would go more aggressive than rb, and hit it with some 2000 grit. If you are not confident with the buffer, just go with it as is; you will probably be the only one who notices it.

Unfortunately to get it perfect it needs repainted, regardless of your polishing abilities.

 

Yes it is super white so no metallic. Thanks for all the tips. I think I will try the sanding here soon. My bro in law is good with this type of stuff, and your right if I mess it up I can always have it repainted. Do you think after I touch it up and sand it I am going to need to put clear on it?

 

You can probably go down to about 1500 grit and be able to polish out the scratches, although on fully-cured paint I wouldn't go below 2000 grit. Anything more coarse and you most likely will have to re-clear.

Again it takes someone with polishing experience to polish out scratches, and if you haven't done it before you most likely will burn through the paint. Simply touching up the chips with paint may be your best option.