Paint Issues - Chipping, Scratches, Etc

Mine scratches waaaay too easily. My fingernail scratched it.

 

i have my hood, but thats from driving on dirt roads...but the whole tailgate is all effed up and i dont drive with it down, the lexus we have has worse paint job then the ford or the civic

 

The more responses I read, the more angry I get. This is a big issue. My last Taco lasted me 10 years. I only got a new Taco for the double cab, so I can put my son's car seat in the back.

If I had kept my old truck it would likely have lasted me another 10 - 20 years easily. My new truck I am not sure it will make it 5 years.

I guess GM and Toyota are trading places in the quality dept.
Toyota customer service also does not seem to be as good anymore.

I realize these are just cosmetic issues, but there are a lot of other little issues that are making my ride a very unhappy one.

I remember how I used to make fun of the Chevy Avalanche because it had more plastic on it than a Tupperware party, but at least the paint stays on that truck.

Sorry, if I am complaining too much. I am still frustrated that the paint on my new truck is coming off so easily and so soon.

 

2 small chips and a few scratches..that are my fault

 

chips o plenty and a few scratches too. a chip or 2 is starting to try and rust too.

 

I know one thing is for sure, my GMC Sierra had a hell of a lot better paint job than my Tacoma. I also found some rust on my roof last week, how wonderful.

 

This paint is pretty weak for sure. It's so easy to get chips and scratches on it. I may have to get my front bumper repainted if this keeps up.

 

This has been a problem since 2005. Seems to be the speedway blue has the worst. Just like all the other problems complained about Toyota has not fixed them since 2005.

 

I am dropping off my truck at the dealership tomorrow to have my hood repainted.

I felt like a sucker for spending an extra $2K on extra paint and rust warranty. Now I am glad I did. I will be coming back to the dealership for every scratch and paint chip until my extra warranty runs out.

I may just have the entire truck professionally repainted in a couple of years. That way I won't be so worried about rust. Until then, I will be visiting my local dealership.

 

I am just wondering if you guys are putting any wax on your vehicles that are getting all these chips. I have a '09 that I have had since last Aug. Chips are very minimal. Mind you I keep some a decent amount of wax on the lower parts. Usually gets 3-4 coats in contrast to the 2 I do on the rest of the truck.

IMO, the clear is pretty hard on this trucks ('09's)... I have a couple of marks on the hood that are a bitch to get out with a DA/Orange Pad/compound. Softer clear, I would have had zero issues. I am getting some M105 this week, so I hope that takes care of them.

Anyways, on all the vehicles I have owned, I have kept more wax than needed on the front. Here in RI, roads SUCK, tons of little stones. In fact, I have more marks on the windshield frorm them than on the front bumber...maybe I should start waxing the windows lol... but, this step always seemed to help out. And on buddies vechiles that didn't do this they are all marked up. I guess take from that what you will....

 

Yes to answer your question. I have waxed my truck in the 3 months of ownership. Also, part of the Pro Pack that I bought with my truck required me to drop off my truck at the dealership 2 days after buying. They waxed the exterior and sprayed some sort of sealer on the interior to keep spills from soaking in and prevent staining. It has been waxed twice. Still, paint chipping off after less than 3 months ownership is unacceptable.

 

I agree 100%. Perhaps you can have the thickness of your paint checked to see if it is uniform around the truck? Perhaps your truck got a crappy spraying of clear on it right? Of course now anything that hits that area will have more of a chance to go through to the paint if the clear is thin.

Mind you, the clear is always thinner on the edges and round surfaces just by the nature of it being sprayed. But if the guy only gave you 1 spray of clear instead of say 4 that the factory requires that could be the issue. And if another Taco on the lot has a thicker paint reading in the same exact area, you might have a case with Toyota for warranty repair.
Plus, that sealent they put on is probally good, but some monkey at the dealership put it on and I would bet that he/she didn't care for 100% coverage like you would be.

Not saying that will happen as I don't work for Toyota but it might be an avenue for you. Most detail shops SHOULD haver a paint guage. They come in2 flavors, a combined reading (that is all coats down the the metal) and ones that can tell you just clear coat thickness. Shouldn't really matter in your case, you just a need readings to compare with.

Would be great if you could beat the dealerships this way! Hope you get a solution.

Also, just a FYI. 3M makes ScotchGuard for Auto's (sold at Wal-Mart pretty cheap) this stuff does not stain and will be great as a 6mo-1yr re-application to your interior. And, I am not sure what type of sealant Toyota uses, but it would be good to know if a strong car wash solution will strip it. Most wax/sealants on the market can be stripped.

 

Good info. Do you know if it is possible to maybe take my truck to a paint shop and have them put on an extra clear coat? Or does this have to be done as soon as it is painted?

 

I doubt that is possible. I would have to think that the area would have to be sanded down first, re-painted and new clear sprayed. Touch up is an answer as well. Have a pro do it if you are not 100% comfotable doing it. You would need to use a toothpich to 'dot' it on. Then, you will need to wet sand to make it smooth and then polish out the wetsanding marks. That some serious work if you are not used to detailing like that. You would want a top notch detailer with some serious pride in thier work to do this. If johnny detailer does it it will look worse than the chips.

 

Guys you are forgetting the most important detail....ALL the metallic colors are alot stronger. They are 3 coat paints instead of 2. Thats why magnetic grey and pyrite ( my color ) are ALOT more durable than per say black or blue. This is why the metallic colors are about $500 more expensive. Something to keep in mind when buying a vehicle.

 

From what I have heard is that the Mica colors have a clear coat on them to protect that flake where the other colors are SUPPOSED to be strong enough that a clear is not needed. This does not come from the dealer, just the net. (my info that is). But if Toyota is saying that it is strong enough that is doesn't need a clear, I have to think that they should all chip the same. But I really have no idea, just speculating out loud. They do make some clear film that should cover everything up there. But, $$$ as expected.

 

That would actually make a good survey. Of those with paint scratches and chips what color is your truck?

 

Metallics do not ad an extra stage to the paint, the metallic is blended right in with the color (first stage) and applied in one or two (hopefully) coats and then the clear (second stage) is applied hope fully in two coats.

This is not true these truck as with almost every vehicle these day is a two stage (color and clear) paint.

There can be a third stage in the case of pearls and other custom colors (third stage applied before clear coat)

The bigigist problem I see with my paint is they did not put enough color (pyrite) you can clearly see the difference between the front and rear door's in the photo below.

It is not just the dust, the dust was applied evenly.

 

I was including the primer. So, Primer + Base + Clear is the 3 coats. That extra step was not included, sorry bout that. Again, only from what I have read and who knowes where that came from but the Mica's have the clear and the non-micas do not. The paint is supposed to be harder. I have no hard core proof on this so take this only as just speculating out loud. But it would make a great poll.

 

Fact still remains, all these colors are two stage, base and clear coat.

Primer is not included as a part (stage) of the paint.