03redline

I have an '03 Redline and suffered approximately 12 paint chips on hood and fenders while driving last october. I suspect this was caused by hitting bugs at highway speeds(app.75 m.p.h.). Now I have 2 unexplained chips on the rear hatch cover. I don't follow gravel trucks and don't travel on gravel roads. I am old enough and experienced enough with cars to know this is not acceptable. I am currently working with dealer to see what response we get from NNA. Would like to hear from others with like problem.

joonur

I have a Pikes Peak White Z and have NUMEROUS chips on my front end. My hood is absolutely fine, no chips whatsoever but the front fascia is ridiculous. Dealer told me the same thing, all they would do is sell me touch-up or charge me small amount for them to touch-up. I just doubt they will do as good of a job as I will. Frustrating to have a car less than a year old with the front-end looking dirty because of all the tiny chips. Can't count them! Have used the Nissan bra much of the time from the beginning but when car is dirty or raining I remove it so as not to damage the paint further. Please let me know if you find satisfaction with a dealer or NNA. Thanks! joonur@hotmail.com

s9am_me

iTrader: (1)

i have about 3 noticeable chips on the front and just found a new one at the rear... paint seems really soft to begin with... even my fingernail (light pressure) creates a deep scratch (tested it it under the car) probably gonna try some touch up paint... but i fear its gonna look worse

krinkov

Im surprised someone else here knows about this!

The EPA had pressured all car manufacturers that sell cars in the US to switch over to waterbased paints to reduce airborne VOC emmisions, since even after a cars paint dries the vapors from the paint curing will be released for weeks afterwards. These VOCs were the largest single source of air pollution generated from car factories.

http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/es/etb/cetc/c..._paints_e.html

Its definitly not just you guys, I go to MANY of the major car forums and they have all been complaining about the paint. Search on Audiworld and Bimmerforums for similar problems. In time they will certainly refine the process, but for now we will all have aotumotive paint that is much weaker than in the past.

If anyone has any questions about paint protection film feel free to drop us a line!
Jeremy
Invisiguard@sbcglobal.net

03redline

Dealer says NNA won't do anything for chipped paint. Says to contact NNA myself, also says that NNA listens to the numbers of people complaining. Please post if you are having this problem and call NNA to let them know. Dealer also suggested emailing pictures of chips to NNA. NNA is replacing my front tires but that is another subject. This paint should not chip this easily,BUGS, and NNA needs to tend to this problem.

desiree27

This is incredibly frustrating. I just got back in from washing my Z and I wanted to scream when I noticed all these little areas with missing paint, let me elaborate. My car is red, and it literally looks like tiny pieces of paint came off and now a white area is exposed, its very disgustingly obvious.

I owned a Honda Accord before this, three years of sitting in the sun and rain and that cars paint looked nearly show room new. Here I am with a new Z, that sits in a garage, is washed and waxed by hand, and it looks like a 5 year old car with a crappy paint job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is simply a slap in the face to all Z owners to have to deal with this and get no help what so ever from NNA.

To those who arent experiencing this issue, count your blessings.

Why NNA wont deal with this is beyond me, anyone who approaches my car to take a look can immediatly see something is very wrong with the paint, anyone who asks me how I like my Z will get an earful.

scream z

I had the same problems with me red 350z also. I can feel your frustration. I followed the steps in owners and went through the BBB, I'm sure I'm one of the few. but they made Nissan buy my car back. I lost 5,000.00 in the process though. Now I have G35 coupe with same problem. The key to your complaint is gonna be orange peel, if your car has is noticable. They wouldn't do anything about the chips, which is crazy.
Good luck,
scream z

desiree27

I think the folks who lease their Z as I do are in for a major issue in regard to the paint. At the rate that the paint is deterioting on my car by the time the inspector comes to check it out for turn in (2 years from now) I will be liable for a whole new paint job.

I have leased cars before and know the process well, I know what will pass and what wont.

I dont know how to convey to the leasing company that this is a defect in the car's paint. Im thinking of taking the car to numerous paint shops to get professional opinions and perhaps get it in writing to submit to the leasing agency.

Its just so upsetting when you take such good care of your car, especially when your busting your behind washing and waxing and all you see is these little white paint chips..........ahhhh its crushing.

baileygirl_25

I am having the same problem with paint chipping, but have done nothing about it yet. I'm just glad that my Z is silver, so you can't tell unless you are up close.

rokhal

Have same issues with my Silverstone Z. I assumed it was the 80 highway miles a day I travel along with the low front on the car. I have countless small knicks in the front bumber cover and a few in the forward part of the hood. Even backing off a couple hundred yards from the trucks on the turnpike here don't seem to help stop the paint damage from pebbles and sand. I am sorry I did not visit forums like this b4 I bought my Z, otherwise I would have gotten one of those clear paint protective films installed the second I took delivery of the car.

03redline

NNA says it makes no difference if rocks or bugs cause the paint to chip, both are the same to them, they will not cover it. VERY aggravating to have a 10 month old car that looks worse than my '92 Accord. Very disappointed in Nissan, thought they were a quality company.

krinkov

If you read a few posts above your own you will see that the new water based paints are much softer than the older solvent based paints and this is no fault of Nissans, ever car manufacturer is having the same problems. Search on Bimmerfest.com or Audiworld.com for 'paint chips" for the same complaints of cars made in the last few years.

zeroday

well here's my 2 cents...when i bought my z (new) the dealer had scraped the front bumper during prep. I had them repaint the entire bumper at a reputable body shop. I now have 5k miles on my car and I have exactly one pinhead sized chip on my bumper. I assume they used the new water based acrylic...but I don't seem to have the same problem others here do. Draw your own conclusions. Maybe i'm just good at dodging rocks.

krinkov

nope, just the oposite. Body shops here still use solvent based urethanes(though they are trying to change that here in Cali, but not yet!) So your situation makes perfect sense

zeroday

hmmm...so maybe instead of shelling out all that $$ for clear bra people should just get the hood/bumper re-painted at a good body shop and be done with it? I know that sounds a bit rediculous but the cost is about the same and you won't have razor marks or the seam lines..??

krinkov

heh, yeah that would acctually help a bit, although it would likely cost you about 2-3 times as much as a clearbra to get a decent paint job(unless you like macco ) and urethane paint still isnt majic, go walk around a parking lot and look at the front ends of cars made 5-10 years ago, they will still get pretty beat up, just not so quickly.

On the other hand, I know a couple people here that had there 350s repainted because they were sick of the orange peel and mismatched finish, so maybe it wouldnt be a bad idea

shortcut3d

I had my hood and rear bumper repainted. My front bumper is holding up really well. The body shop was honest and told me to hold out on repainting the front until I was confident that their paint was not chipping as fast as the Nissan paint. Of course, I regret not having the front bumper repainted because so far (knock on wood) the body shop paint is holding up better.

ahagist

Had my Z for about 3 months, with 4k miles. I have more chips than I can count. I have them all over the front bumper, a few on the hood, about 4 on the roof, and even some on the rear and the doors. It reminds me of my face in high school! WTF?? I wax the crap out of it on the weekends, and I dont tailgate, and get the hell out of the way for trucks and such. What should I do about this, can I just go to the dealer and have them inspect the paint as well? My old neon looked better than this and it was 6 years old. I love this car but the longer I have it the more I feel like its kinda cheap. Oh and is the Shifter suppose to vibrate constantly and move just a little bit as you accelerate?

baileygirl_25

I was told that I should have had a clear coat put on it as soon as I bought it. I stupidly declined it. As for the vibrating shifter, there was a service bulletin put out that all Z's need to have the toe alignment checked out, b/c the specs were supposedly all wrong when manufactured. This cause my shifter to vibrate, as well as the rest of the car when driving, and the dealership replaced my front tires for free. The misaligned toe cause my tires to wear unevenly, causing the vibrations. New tires have stopped that completely.

03redline

I don't believe the "new" paint theory because the other make cars I see in parking lots are not nicked as is my Nissan and I baby my car. Park in the furthest reaches of parking lots, don't go down gravel roads, etc. Just got back from vacation trip with the 350z and have to get out the touch-up paint again. Never had to do this with any other car and no of NO ONE else doing this with other makes of new car. This is a problem only with Nissan from what my personal experience shows me.