thickness on are 50k automobile paint job...I mean really ,its like everyday i notice a chip...the paint job is way to thin..of course theres always the clear bra ..but to me thats like having plastic on your furniture....Dont get me wrong i love my new RL but the paint thcickness is inexcusable...

 

Isn't this new paint method a water soluble base?

I was told by more than one salesman the dark colors do show chips readily.

What is everyone out there doing to protect/prevent chips? Is the nose of the car prone to chipping like I'm told? How are those with dark color RL's holding up?

Should I paste the wife to the nose of the car everytime I anticipate freeway conditions?? How bad is it?

 

its pretty bad ..if you get hit with a pebble your gonna have a mark every time ..im taking a trip to florida (mother in law ..cant wait ) and im anticipating getting a bra..its still an awesome car i havent had any issues so i guess this is my only complaint..

 

Anyone any experience with Invinca-shield? The kit looks promising for those who have the darker paint and are concerned with paint chips.

http://www.invinca-shield.com/asp/genkit.asp?kit=135

Pete

 

Lot of Zaino !
Welcome to the Honda family of "thin paint coats".......this is an area they "cut cost".....Yeah, they will tell you fancy smancy paint blah blah blah ! They use very few coats of paint ! A COMMON complaint of Honda customers !

 

i've had some issues with chips too, i have them all over and i'm just at the point where i've accepted them. can't do anything about them really, thought about getting the 3M clear bra.....i have chips already. when i had the TL, it was much worse. i don't think there's anything out there that'll really help either....

 

I saw someone's TL that had the film thingy and I could see where wax left a line and it didn't look good. We should NOT have to invest in more options on a $35- 50 K vehicle !

 

I saw someone's TL that had the film thingy and I could see where wax left a line and it didn't look good. We should NOT have to invest in more options on a $35- 50 K vehicle !

 

I disagree. It's not just Honda.

Starting in the mid 90's, if I remember right, the environmentalists pushed for a legislation that will ban the then-current painting process. They pushed for a water-based paint method, and this is just what we get -- thin and weak paint.

Don't blame Honda or any car companies. Blame the treehuggers.

By the way, I religiously apply Zaino to my car. Doesn't help much.

 

We have a Mercedes at work (used for management transport where needed, one of a few machines we have for that) that cost more than $125,000. It chips worse than my 05 RL (in less miles).. so we don't have it all that bad

With 11,000 miles on my 05 RL now (yeah, i drive a lot bought it in January) i recently had the dealer touch up the chips and such.. for $125 the guy touched up about 17 chips on the front side of the car (couple of fairly large ones) and he did such a good job on it that i can't even tell where they were anymore.

Had the same done on the wife's MDX and that cost a mere $45.

Tracer

 

Fabvsix, get your facts straight. It is the paint. Legislation passed during the 90's means that probably by the end of this decade if not sooner, all auto manufacturers selling cars in the US will be using paint made from a water-based solvent instead of the older organic solvents. The results is a more brittle paint, but it is significantly more environmentally friendly.

Volvo was one of the first manufacturers to switch to the new paint and their owners complain about the paint chipping too. It's not perfect, but you learn to live with it.

And what's another $300 for a full front clear bra if you're going to be buying a $50k car anyway. Check with board vendor RockBlocker to see if they are doing a clear bra kit for the RL and if they are going to be doing discount pricing on it for board members.

 

This is the only thing about this car that I am really unhappy with. After 3K miles, the front of my Carbon Grey RL is a mess - chips all over the place and I am very careful to stay clear of trucks/buses etc... on the highway to the extent that I can. But, it sounds like this isn't just an Acura issue.

 

Look out your going to wake up all the environmentalist !

 

If you really are that concerned about the appearance of the front end, the clear bra is an excellent option and isn't that expensive. Plus, it doesn't mattere what car you get these days, you're likely going to need some form of protection up front to prevent damage.

 

Those clear bra's show lines, esp. with those careless folks that wax their cars with cheap wax. It shows on the edge of that clear bra

 

Then those people need to learn to properly wax. The clear bra should not show lines if it is done right.

 

not everyone is anal like we are when it comes to waxing our cars with GOOD wax (like Zaino) !