HondaOnly

For those of you who have a WDP TL, I was just curious who has experienced the bumper discoloration problem and who hasn't. Also, for the ones who have, what if anything has your dealer done to remedy the problem. I've heard other manufacturers have this problem too, but I'd really be interested to see if it matters what part of the country you live in and whether the weather makes a difference. I'm thinking of making my next car a white one and just wanted to know if it would be a good idea.

gqchicago

It's not a discoloration problem, it's a problem where it doesn't match perfectly from the metal to the plastic areas.


If you scrutinize my WDP closely you might notice? /shrugs Fairly common complaint on this board but personally it doens't bother me.

Go look at some white ones at the dealership and make up your mind, it's not something that happens over time they come that way.

Jesstzn

I just got a WDP 06 and noticed an extreemly slight color difference mostly on the rear bumper. You also have to realize the pearls will pick up colors surrounding them and the rear bumper because of its shape will pick up the pavement color darkening it.
As I detail cars I am very observant of paint reaction to different polishes/sealants so I tried a couple things .. Metallics and pearls really like some sealnts like Klasse SG and Zaino and Menzerna FMJ especially. Glanz Wax is another that really males pearls "pop" but I didn't try it as it isn't layerable and I want to layer this up to a glass shine.

I experimented with the 3 and FMJ did the most. I have polished the complete car with Meguiars #80 Speed Glaze on r polishing pad and applied 3 layers of Zaino to it all but the back bumper ( the one I noticed the color difference on ). The back bumper got 3 layers of Menzerna FMJ.

Because of how the pearl reacts to the FMJ the color difference is only noticeable now to anyone but myself if I point it out to them. Before it was noticed by a coule people.

MichaelBenz

iTrader: (2)

sight difference here....not a big deal though....not enough for most to even notice?

King of Pain

Slight difference here too. I took it to the dealer awhile back. He agreed to repaint, only once, any time during the warrenty period. Repainting it may make it worse. It really depend on the way the daylight shines on it and other factors. I recently clayed and waxed it with meguiar's classic. Improved it the color difference. Jesstzn brought up a good point about picking up the pavement color. Still a great color. Since I drive it so much and look over every detail of my baby I notice more than most. My wife doesn't even notice it. She just rolls her eye when I mention it to her.

streese

Mine is really bad. The biggest cause of the bumper being a different color is due to the lack of a white primer coat against the plastic before painting. I am waiting for a district decision on my car for repaint.

Steve

datmrman

I've only started to notice the color difference on my rear bumper from reading the threads on here. My eyes and ears are more critical now since I've been on Acurazine.

Its not worth it for me to take it to the dealership... and a Ron Jon bumper will eventually fix that.

elee712

hehe...."extremely slight color difference"?

I got a WDP and the discoloration doesnt bother me. I thought it would and it made me have second thoughts about whether to get WDP but after getting it, I have no regrets. you really dont notice it until you're under specific weather/light circumstances.

Unless you have a second color preference that you would have no indifference to, you should go with WDP.

knighj1

ill have to get pics, but i was woried about this before i picked up my 06 and i have to say my paint matches 99% better than and other wdp, not bragging just implying there must be more people out there that theres match pretty good also. also ive seen some other tls in ALL colors that have this problem(except black) its just harder to tell on theirs, but trust me it is there

hostage46

I was out in LA this week on business and came across a filthy WDP in a parking lot. The discoloration really stood out.

Hmmm ,maybe this closes the deal .... for Anthracite

painter

My understanding is that the bumper covers are painted off the car, perhaps in a different location, at a different time, with different equipment, and likely with a different batch of paint. Maybe someone who works at the factory could confirm this.

Some colors are almost impossible to match properly. This is especially the case with white pearls, no matter who the manufacturer is. White is inherently difficult to match, and the pearl exacerbates the problem. Even a slight difference in spraying equipment, even atomization pressure, will cause a mis-match, not to mention a slight variation in the mixing formula. I personally would never buy a pearl white since I know from experience that accident repairs have a high probability of showing a mis-match.

I believe what everyone is noticing on new pearl white finishes is simply a reflection of painting the bumper covers off the car, at a different time and place. Re-painting a bumper cover, on or off the car, to correct this problem, will not likely produce an improvement unless the painter blends into the quarter panels, which I would not advise if the quarters are undamaged.

So if you must have a pearl white car, my advice is to look closely at it before you commit, in various light conditions and at different angles, to make sure you can live with the mis-match. Same comments apply perhaps to a lesser degree to most light metallcs too, regardless of the manufacturer.

streese

While I would agree that the pearl and paint flop cannot be matched, there is another issue. I ordered an aftermarket spoiler from Canada, which is not only painted in a different place at a different time, they also use different paint. If you look at the color, it matches perfectly with the rest of the car (minus the bumpers that Acura painted). If you look closely at the mica, then you can notice the direction of the pearl moving in a different flow, but I am not showing the car, I am driving it.

Bottom line is that Acura, for whatever reason, is not caring for the bumpers the way they are caring for the rest of the car. I call my bumpers FFFF quality (FFFF stands for Four Fifty Five on Friday).

Steve

Turbonator

Mine is fairly noticable...sometimes it bothers me... I think its what chicago said...its the difference of the WDP paint on metal and on a plastic bumper

Phrosttz0

i have a slight difference aswell, some days it seems more prominent then others, i dont get it, i dont think theres a remedy for this, i think its just the difference between the materials on which the paint is upon

BustedJack

all WDP comes like that. It's the plastic vs metal. Kinda got used to it after awhile.

streese

You guys are killing me. Plastic vs. metal? That would be true if you sprayed the paint directly on the plastic or metal, which is what Acura did on the bumpers. If you've rock chipped the front of your vehicle, you'll notice black very quickly.

This is commonplace in factory paint jobs. If you guys have ever gone to a car show, are you telling me the custom paint jobs there are two-toned? Or are you telling me the car is either all plastic or all metal?

I purchased the WDP because I love the color. If I have to have the bumpers repainted because Acura refuses to, I'm going to do so. I'm not trying to build a show car, but I want a white car with white bumpers, not yellow, which is on the car now.

Steve

WDP TRANSPORTER

I would suggest leaving it as is. As someone already said the problem is that WDP looks different on plastic than on Metal, and it all has to do with lighting and angle. I've painted mine twice and noticed no difference.

KJW73

I'm generally an observant person and I don't see the difference in the color, but my b/f immediately noticed - he is the type of person that will look for flaws in the car, rather than just enjoying it as is. He had said the same about my silver 04 Accord, too.

I guess it's all in the eyes of the beholder...

streese

We should just agree to disagree. I have seen many, many cars with plastic, metal, polyurethane, rubber, and other materials match perfectly. While I am not looking for show car quality paint, I will not settle for mediocrity or be complacent with less than quality work. I've looked in the RL forums, and I don't see these complaints. Is there no plastic on those cars?

If you've painted yours twice and can't notice a difference, I would wonder who you took it to. I only want to know because while I don't settle for mediocrity, I certainly don't want to pay for it.

It is surprising to me how many will complain to the dealer day after day because their license plate bolts are vibrating, the subwoofer is rattling because they have the bass all the way up and are playing old school beat music, but are quick to accept that the paint, which is a visible flaw, as normal.


Steve

painter

Streese is right about the substrate issue. It does not matter if the paint is over steel or plastic, if it came from the same mix and was applied at the same time using the same gun it will look the same on plastic as it does on metal.

Show cars don't usually have this mis-matching problem because the painter made an effort to avoid it.

Paint can be mis-matched for many reasons, and with pearl white almost every variable which can possibly affect the color usually does. It is one of the hardest colors to match, aside from candies.

The basic mix formula is the most probable cause of really bad mis-matches. If you go to any commercial automotve paint supply outlet with a paint code for a particular color, year and make, they almost always have the basic formula plus one or more variations (darker, lighter etc). The only way to tell which one is best for a given car is to spray some of each, let it dry, and compare it to the car. These variations exist over the production run of any particular car, because the paint used by the manufacturer varies over time. Some manufacturers buy their paint from several different suppliers, each a tiny bit different.

Variations in the paint are really obvious when one variation ends abruptly and another starts, such as where a bumper cover meets the rear quarter panel. This is why painters blend repairs.

The mix formula is one variable which affects the color. Others include atomization pressure, temperature of the spray booth, the "wetness" of each coat, etc.

If you parked two pearl white TLs of the same year side by side, the chances are you would see a slight difference in color between the two.

And for the respondent above who got a perfect match on his new spoiler, he just got lucky. How could the supplier possibly know which variation of pearl white he had?

Acura could do better on their bumper covers, but who wants to pay show car prices on a production car?

Again, if you don't want to see a big mis-match on your new pearl white car, examine it closely before you buy. Or buy a darker color!

maluskills

It's all on you whether you'd want to pursue it further...if it's gonna bother you everyday that your car doesnt have a perfect match - talk to your service manager. It was bothering the crap outta me, and I spoke with my service manager, and they are going to re-paint it. He said mine was one of the worst he has seen, but all of 'em have at least a slight paint mis-match

HondaOnly

Is this common?

maluskills

that's not horrible...mine was worse...if you can convince your dealer that its bad enough to warrant a repaint, give it a shot

KJSmitty

I painted cars for nearly 8 years... As I have said in the past, Honda/Acura could fix this if they wanted to... Problem is, the cost of doing so is higher than the necessity given current lack of customer complaints.. Which is evident within this thread - me included...

I noticed a slight color mismatch on my 04 WDP in Dec 03 when I picked it up.. 2.5 years later and I can honestly say it has gotten twice as bad. When it's dirty it looks terrible. When clean and in the sun, borderline acceptable..

One of these days I will point it out to my dealer.. But considering the fact my TL is going on its third year and has yet to require dealer service, it won't get a special trip solely for the bumpers. As others have mentioned (and I know from experience), "re-painting" could leave you with even worse issues...


As for HondaOnly and Maluskills - That's bad... I would say mine is at least 50% better than the photo... But then again, different surroundings/lighting makes it look pretty bad.

Cheers

tmitch2315

I was told by the Manager of the body shop that does the painting for a group of dealerships that includes Acura that the color difference comes from the need to use a different paint compound since it needs to be way more flexable on the bumber or when ever the bumper is hit the paint would crack. ??????????????? Who knows I'm living with it for now its not toooooo bad.

BustedJack

damn, mine doesn't even come close to that visual. Mine if you look harder, you'll notice, but if you don't, you won't. I guess mine was painted a bit closer to the color

maluskills

Did you talk to your service manager at your dealership directly? They are the only ones that could approve a re-paint. Let me know if a faxed copy of the invoice from mine will help....

mlody

Just for this reason, I wish Acura used just a pure white color like they have it for Honda. I have not seen a single Honda with mismatch bumpers, but I can see discoloration on every white TL I see.

BustedJack

If they used pure white, I would not opted for that color.

maluskills

Whats the difference?

KJSmitty

tmitch,
"Flex" additive is used in many paints when applying over flexible surfaces - like bumper covers. Sure it can cause color mismatch - but given the technological advancements and computerized paint mixing/spraying facilities auto manufacturers have, any discoloration caused by the additive could be easily factored out within the color pigment etc..

That's why I am amazed that Acura, on their "one down from the flagship" sedan, doesn't spend the time/effort to get the color match more consistent..

Just one former painters opinion....

Jesstzn

The red Honda Ridgeline has the same problems .. missmatched .. I know my daughter has a new one and I just detailed it.

HondaOnly

I really like the white that Lexus uses. The Acura white looks dull in comparison.

mlody

I think it is not metallic color, it does not have yellowish tint to it, most importantly all the body panels plastic/metal matches. Go to acura.com and select RSX or MDX and you will see Taffeta white – which is just a pure white (Honda rally) color. One day I saw TL and Accord (both white) next to each other – the taffeta white is just really nice color.

Drew408

i really haven't noticed the discoloration. if the color was that off i would have noticed. well...during when the sun is setting and the light shines on my car its sorta like a cream color. not sure if thats what you guys are talking about.

Drew408

btw...i just bought my wdp tl...so maybe they fixed it in 2006 models???

datmrman

After reading so many posts about color mismatch, you'll eventually "see" it too in your car.

Your eyes just get used to scanning for mistakes. Don't start looking for it, cause one day, you might find what you're looking for. Fight the temptation; enjoy the car!

russ0813

I don't notice it. Im extremely happy w/my color selection

Carl Spackler

Didn't notice a thing on my 05 WDP.