mporter410

I don't have much to complain about my NBP Navi 6 speed TL. It is absolutely the best car I have ever owned. However, I cannot stand the paint Acura uses on the car. I am constantly getting stone chips and such on this soft paint!!! I have had the car 1 year now and drive it everyday worried about where I am going to have to use my touch up pen next.

On the other hand my wife's Volvo XC-70 (all black and one year old as well) has rock hard paint. I have only had to us the touch up pen on it twice since we bought it. granted the XC-70 has a lot mor rubber around it to absorb rock dings, but this paint just seams better.

WTF is wrong with Acura?

I eventually plan on having the whole car re-painted with a more durable paint. If I don't is will be a mound of touch-up paint in a few years.

Let me know if you have problems with the paint as well.

Ok...I am done complaining.

NEVERaDuLLmoment

Where did you get a touch up pen? Can you get touch-up paint from the dealership? If so, how much do they charge?

(I bottomed out so bad the other day pulling out of a friend's driveway. I was going pathetically slow, but i still ended up with scratches underneath the front.

ChrisD7351

i have a WDP 2004 TL, my hood has dings and such from road stones, and the bumpers do not match if i in fact owned this car it would have been returned, at the dealer you cannot really tell the bumpers dont match but after just a few months of driving the bumpers faded. I am meticulous with cleaning my car and these things really bother me becuase i cannot fix them and they are not from poor up keep this car is washed at least once a week during the summer, and once every 2 weeks during the winter. THANK GOD ITS A LEASE

dezzzmond

Yup I have a NBP too and my front end looks horrible. It's not chips but it looks like the paint is peeling where the bumper comes together with the fender. I tried to touch it up, but its not the same. I'm just putting layers of wax every so often to protect the front end.

Xpditor

I have NBP also. My car is 16 months old. I have yet to get a paint chip of any kind.

It must be the Clear Bra. :wink:



BTW: this is the first pic I have taken that shows the clear bra and the line. You have to have just the right light and be close to see it.

From the front or side, from 3 feet away, you can't see it.

swtato

The clear bra is a great idea, but I don't think you should have to use one. The paint is obviously soft, I even have small nick on the trunk I have no idea how stuff gets back there. Point is a 35K car should at least have as good of paint as a 19k Chevrolet! I love this car but the paint is lousy. I have a NBP which may show every flaw but I have a black Expedition Limited and a black Corvette which have minimal nicks.

dezzzmond

I agree. I have a dark green 1998 Mustang that I've driven for 6 years with over 100K miles. There's only a few nicks on the hood and bumper. I've taken that car all over the place (my high school/college car). The the TL i've only had it for 11 months now and it disappoints me

Xpditor

I don't think Corvettes are painted. Isn't the color IN the plastic? If they get a chip, it prolly doesn't show like a regular car. I would expect them to be more resistant to chipping.

Yeah. I hear you. It was complaints about the paint that led me to install the clear bra.

I have heard that the reason our paint chips is that it is too HARD, not soft. Whereas M-B uses a softer paint that is more forgiving.

Also, in recent years, because of environmental concerns, mftrs have had to switch to water-borne paints. This is causing some problems for everyone as they try to adjust.

I think there are only 3 or 4 major auto paint makers that they all use.

Anyone know about that? Anyone? Buhler?

mporter410

Sorry to hear about you bottoming out.

I don't actually have a "pen." It is a touch up paint in a bottle with a small brush that I got from my local dealer.

swtato

The fiberglass is painted.

Xpditor

I also heard that Corvettes are no longer fiberglass. I heard that they are now plastic, like many cars' fenders and doors, but that Chevrolet doesn't want to make a big deal of it.

Anyone know for sure?

swtato

Of course I am speaking about my 1978 Corvette Indy Pace Car which is fiberglass. Check this tread and it should answer your questions.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show....php?t=1164547

Xpditor

Thanks. If those posters are correct, the C5 and C6 Corvettes are not fiberglass but plastic in one form or another.

And, the color is painted on according to one poster.

I thought I remembered having read that.

"Not that there's anything wrong with it..." :wink:

frenchnew

I find it no worse then other brand of vehicle I had, 2 Hondas and 8 GM Products and 1 VW product.

I have a customer who has a Volvo S40 and you should see the front end full of stone chips.

To prevent stone chip damages over the years I have tried the following:

Car Bras - a total waste of time and only offer partial protection. Need to be removed when it is raining. Need to Remove it to wash the Car and then hose down the inside to get rid of the sand pebles trap in the material.

Hood Deflectors - Only good to protect the surface just behind it.

Paint Protection Film - The TL is the second car I had this applied to. The first one was a 2003 Honda Odyssey EX. After 2 years of use as a working car I only had one dent on the hood after it got hit by a 1 inch rock on a 2way road travelling at 55 MPH. The film was damaged but the paint was not even scratched. It only required a paintless dent repair.

My first Honda Odyssey Ex, a 2000 had a hood deflector and that was useless. I had to do so many touch up on the hood that it look like it had a disease with all those touch ups not being the perfect color (I had bought the Touch up from my Honda Dealer).

I you want to keep you car in pristine condition, get some paint protection film installed as it is the only thing that will protect the surface

The guys who did my TL do mostly Audi, BMW, Mercedes & Porsche as these are the cars they get most demand from. I was the first 3rd Gen TL they did this past spring.

Also, when you are mentioning you wife's Volvo holding up better, Is it driven in the same way, following other cars at the same distance you are, travelling the same roads and finally doing the same kind of millage?

Best regards

frenchnew

Jmark

Bought my paint PEN from Acura for $11 CND.

Also had the 3M Material put onto the whole front of the car and the mirrors. Living in Alberta EVERY car will have chips on the car as we have to deal with the Oil industry using our roads. And believe me those off road rigs throw off a lot of crap when they finally hit a highway. Already (2months) the 3M material has paid for itself as I've got at least half a dozen hits and the 3M material has absorbed the impact of the rocks and left the paint untouched! I highly recomend the 3M material!

Ever had a seen a four inch stone coming towards your head at you at 60 mph ! Each of my new vehicles (save the TL) has been hit by at least one of these stones. Not only does it cause you to check your pants after being hit, it does one heck of a lot of damage ! Part of the price of living in oil country

John