I'm searching for anyone else who's tried to get Acura to acknowledge the lousy quality of the original paint on '01 CL-S models; San Marino Red in particular. My car 1st hit the road Oct, '00, in Southern Oregon (No sanded or salted roads). Now, 28k miles and 22 months later, the finish on my CL-S (front clip in particular) looks like the car has gone 128k in a gravel pit. Building up wax doesn't seem to help. Every tiny piece of grit that hit the finish, takes out a divit of paint. I had an '84 Toyota (red) w/ 212k miles with better paint than this "high quality luxury" car. The finish on my '98 Mercedes w/ 47k miles still looks new by comparison. The CL-S's paint finish quality is PATHETIC!

So I'm thinking I'm going to start w/ my local dealer, Butler Acura, Ashland, Or. Although they've been responsive to mechanical & electrical problems, I'm doubtful they're going to step up to this issue ...... I'm thinking we're talking about repainting the entire car ...... getting an adequate amount of paint on the metal.

Anyone else already been down this road?

 

my 2002 black CL-S has just under 7000 miles on the odometer and already i have an unexcusable amount of chips on the front bumper and hood..my hood has taken the majority of the damage....ive got at least 10-15 tiny chips all the way down to the metal....it sucks, i got the bra, and that helps alot, and i love the look of it so i keep the bra on my car full time....i tried to complain to my local dealer and they basically laughed me off and said its a car, what do you expect??

 

What gets me even more is the paint quality as it came from the factory. Bubbles, pits, bumps... It's like they painted my car in a dirty environment. Just doesn't make sense...

As for the rock chips, all I can say is grin and bear it. It's all part of owning a car, and regardless of how good or bad the paint job is, it's gonna happen.

 

yeah in comparison to other cars, even as the passats and jettas, their paint jobs are hella betta than ours. I hope acura does a better job with the paint on the 04s

 

Guys,

Pressure is being placed on automakers to use more environment friendly water-borne paints, as opposed to higher-polluting, solvent-borne paints. By using reformulated paints, manufacturers are able to more easily comply and exceed mandated Environmental Protection Agency (reduced VOC and HAP) standards. However, water-borne paints are softer and
more susceptible to damage and chipping. According to industry sources, paint chipping has now become one of the most frequently submitted claims under warranty programs
offered by new car manufacturers.

That's why I recommend that you put an Invisible bra on from UltraShield. It may be to late for many of you, but it is well worth the investment. If your car still looks new and has very few chips already, go get it done!! Check out thier 2 sites.

http://www.ultra-shield.com/

http://www.xpel.com/

 

Those things are a total waste of money. They look like shit 2 years later when they start to turn yellow.

The real solution to the problem is better paint. For some reason, a lot of Japanese brands tend to have very thin and soft paint. My other cars have paint on them that make them look like armor compared to Acura paint jobs.

 

I give up on ever having a car with quality paint. My CL is covered with chips from a lot of highway driving. The plastic bumpers on my previous car faded really bad and at the end were a totally different color than the rest of the car. My car before that was a mid-80's GM POS and the paint flaked off the hood...

 

Tom,

I know you think you are an expert in everything, but I have been installing this 3M product for almost 10 years and I have never seen one yellow in 2 years. In fact, it is very rare for them to yellow at all. Plus there is a 4 year warranty period that if it does yellow it will be replaced.

I hate to reply to your posts because all you want to do is argue, so this will be the last time.

Everyone on here, TommyBoy doesn't know shit about this 3M product. I own UltraShield of Goodyear ( see link below ). Don't listen to anything he has to say. He just comes on here to start arguments; I think he gets a kick out of it. Most of us on here have become tiresome of Tom. Tom, please just go away!

 

I'll back you up, RipsCL. I've got the 3M Chipguard on my car and it looks/works great. It's early yet but there's been no peeling or yellowing thus far.

My friend has had it on his S4 for over 2 years now, and it still looks the same as when he got it.

 

Shit Rips, whats that Fade Film? That shit looks realy sweet. Is it just for trucks though?

 

yeah yeah tom2 you know everything don't you? quit wasting space with your shit.

the invisible bra is perfect for protecting our thin paint. i have used one for about 5 years and not even a tint of yellow -and that's on a white car.

 

You can put it on any car. If they don't have a kit cut for your car, the installer can custom cut the kit. I also do installs on planes, boats, motorcycles, ect.

The product is a blessing in these days of soft, unreliable paints. You can thank the Environmentalist Wackos for this.

 

A guy at work here has had it on his BMW for over three years and it is still nearly impossible to see it (not turning yellow at all). I think TOM2 must have his car in the shop again and has nothing better to do.. YMMV

 

Would that be the same wackos that have gotten regulations passed so we don't have a "Brown Cloud" two miles thick like the one that is covering half of China and all of India?

 

Probably, I never said that everything they do is bad. We are talking about paint for cars….please stay focused here. But they do go to extremes at times. Just look at some of their causes. That's why they have been labeled 'Wackos.' The Earth is here for our use, let us use it!

 

Good, stick to the subject. You feel that the regulation concerning going to water based paint is a bad one, and therefor the people who dreamed it up are misguided (be nice if you had some information on that, but we can't have everything). And I agree we should use it, and not abuse it. YMMV

 

There is nothing wrong with the paint in general. Honda's clearcoat is a very expensive product and is subject to strict QC and production restraints (dedicated equipment, heavy documentation, etc...). Honda's clearcoats are extremely sensitive to contamination and formulation problems. They also have a short shelf life (the clear coat begins to gel).

With Honda clearcoats, You are basically covering up mediocre latex paint with a high end clear coat. If the clear coat fails, the paint is toast. If the clear coat works, it looks great, has a nice shine, deep color, durable.

Manufacturing of the paint is extremely important in determing the final quality. Paint formulations mean nothing if Bubba the operator does not follow them correctly. Dirty totes + dirty process vessels + improper raws = bad paint. Does not matter if it says Honda on the container, Honda did not make it. No one wants to throw away a $1000/gallon clear coat.

 

Actually, I think it is a good idea.....gives me more business!!! It’s call capitalism in America and its a wonderful thing. More money in my pockets is always a great idea!!

 

my first gen is the same way and i've been waxing it literally every other month.




And the factory allows up to 4 blemishes in the paint for it to be acceptable for sale

 

rips, alot of us here enjoy toms shit talking, just when he's wrong it's always nice to be able to rub it in his face like you just have.


But, him leaving would be no fun, he's been around forever, and you need to understand that alot of people on the internet love to argue just to argue, you could tell me the earth was round and i'd argue it was rectangular to my death just to argue.

Shit happens, people do things, live w/ it.


you have been here a few months, you have no right to judge how people feel or what they think about someone whose been around a long time.

 

Back to the subject:

Courtesy Acura in Florida repainted my entire trunk interior and inside my gas tank opener area as well as repairing a chip on top of my car behind the sunroof at about 3K miles. The entire trunk inside lining had turned black and they claimed it was from mold and running water. I told them that if paint was to wear due to mold in 3k miles or over 4 months than why hadnt the rest of the car paint peeled?? The chip he said must have been from, for example, bird s*it, that was never cleaned- I then had to point out how the clear coat was on-top and that was impossible.....anyhow after being unsatisfied the first time, they got it right the second time-trunk looks beautiful and the chip is gone-funny thing though-as i left i noticed that my fog lamps on oneside had burnt out-just another visit to the Acura dealer again later (aaarrrgghhh!)

 

So Rips, how much $$$ would I be lookin at for one of those Fade Films + Install? Do they make one to cover the whole car, or is it just the front? Do you know any dealers in the northeast?

 

I really don't want Tom to go...he does make some of these threads enjoyable!

 

A friend of mine had that garbage put on her white Nissan Maxima.

2 years later, it yellowed and looks like shit.

But think about this--

Once you put it on, it's on for good. There's no going back.

And now she's drives a white Maxima with a yellow nose

 

$450 to $550, give or take a little. If you go to this website, and look under 'Installation Centers' and put in your zip, it will give you a list of dealers in your area.

Also, they can do your whole car, but that would be very expensive. They try to cover the likely areas where some object may hit your car.

Here is the site....give it a try....

http://www.xpel.com/

 

Yeah, looks real good here

 

Pic of chips in a 3M invisible bra. Looks good, huh?

 

Good too have you back Tom.

First, I can take the 3M product off your car anytime you want.
Second, the 3M product will get little pits from the rocks, sand, dirt, ect., but that is its purpose....I didn't see any paint chips....it worked perfectlly.
Third, are talking about those yellow headlights?

Tom, if you have some questions about this product, I would be happy to answer them for you. I can tell by your statements that you lack information about this product. If you don't want to humble yourself and ask me....go to these websites and read about it.

http://www.ultra-shield.com/

http://www.xpel.com/

http://www.clearbra.net/

 

Thank you all for your learned feedback. I think I'm down to "the paint quality sucks". I could install a $500 plastic condum on my car's nose, but recent photos don't look promising. I could ignore the problem; try to think on a higher plane. Or I could note the finish on my '98 E320; 3 years older & 14k miles more ..... the nose of this dark maroon car is still beautiful. Not all manufacturers are building cars w/ shit for paint. Probably time to cut my losses and look for a different brand car w/ a decent paint job.
Thanks all, tsg77

 

 

Your right, cars manufactured in the US have to meet Environmental guidelines when it comes to paint on the cars, while most foreign cars don't. Don't blame this on Acura; their models that are manufactured in Japan have excellent finishes. It just so happens the CL comes from Ohio.

 

Have had 2 TLS's (2002 and 2003). Both had issues. First replaced by dealer after they painted front clip without authorization. Delaminated under the clear coat. Second has bubbles on roof and now peeling. Anybody else have this issue?

 

you would be better off starting a new thread than bumping this 2 year old thread