paint issues

[Lotion]

Honda specs are a lot tighter than any of the Big 3..

I dunno about that i just think thats what owners of hondas say. My gf's mother just got rid of a 2004 Honda civic due to the trans goin out. Gf's old car blew a rod when she got rid of hers. Replaced the tranny on that 2 years prior to that but that one was a 98. My step moms 2006 accord's Drivetrain is in good working condition however the trunk is stuck? Mechanism works when you press the button but the latch disconnected from it.

I have also seen many fords and Chevy's out there pre 1980's that still look somewhat safe, however i cannot see that in hondas. Granted there were several years where i agree GM have skimped out on their cars as well as ford and i dont wanna get started on the Chrysler. But i would say Ford And GM are prolly not only engineering better products than honda but are also making cars/trucks/suv's that will last twice as long as Honda.

I will say that i was happy with my 1990 Isuzu Rodeo though (Alot of it made by Honda) But i had to replace the tranny in that once as well. but it had 150k miles on it lol.

Not to mention if i was to get into an accident i would rather be in a Ford or GM product > Honda any day.

But not trying to start an arguement and ive never personally seen a honda with paint issues (maybe thats what they are good at).

Just my .02.

 

[Fast05]

Being that I live on the coast in south texas it's not rare to see cars driving around with rust or paint issues. I'm just disappointed that the dealership would rather brush it off than back up the product. I don't drive through construction or roads with rocks. This is my 3rd car in 5 years and the 2 cars prior did not have any issue like this after several years of driving. If this were rock chips, I would just tell myself, "oh damn, that sucks." But when I left work and there were no chips, went to the car wash and drove straight home, and there they were. They're hard to see in the picture because of the way the light hits the color, but very noticeable in person, and there's no way they were there before, being that they're right behind the driver's door I would have noticed it. And even hypothetically speaking, if something hit the car, it's amazing that paint would just come off that easy. There are 6 spots, I didn't have that many real rock chips in my last stang and I drove that car everywhere for over two years.

I think the service manager probably came up with every excuse in the book as to why it wasn't going to be covered. Either way though, I'm going to fix it out of pocket most likely and cancel my service plan with the dealership, and never return. Unfortunate for them, my parents are planning on taking advantage of the cash for clunkers program to buy a new Fusion Hybrid, I'll be sure they go elsewhere to make their purchase.

 

[nyuk98gt]

Fast05:

I believe in the power of the pen. Write a letter (yes, on paper and sign it and mail it) to Ford. Be polite and present the facts. Describe the treatment you received at the dealership (sounds like they listened but, for some reason, denied an obvious problem). Paint should not be flaking off a new car. Not any new car. And that is not a stone chip in the pic. It's a problem. In parallel, ask the Service Manager to arrange a meeting with the Regional Rep. This process is described in your Owner's Manual or used to be in the old manuals (like mine). If the S/M says no, your letter might get action. Keep copies of your invoices and service paperwork, too. If you get nothing, contact a local TV or radio show and talk to their consumer advocate. You're the underdog here (man vs. Ford). Don't take no for an answer.

If you do nothing then you will end up with chipped paint and horrible trade-in value when you want to move on.

My 2 cents.

GL and keep us posted.

Chris

 

[TwistedHero]

I agree with nyuk98gt. Write a letter to Ford and contact your regional rep. The process is described in your owners manual. I wouldn't even go to the S/M again. I hope you don't have to pay out of pocket for the manufacturers faults. Keep us updated.

 

[snaggeltooth]

If you do nothing they will be sweeping you under the rug just like they wanted to ... I would at least talk to the owner .. Dont know if the Ford rep can really do anything ..

 

[Fast05]

going in tomorrow morning for the third round of pictures. Seems like the dealership can't take a picture for Ford to go off of either. I'll keep everyone updated as to what's going on. Once they take the pictures they said hopefully they'd hear something by the afternoon.

 

[black2010]

If you can check some other 2010's that are your color. My wife had a 2001 eclipse that after a couple years the paint started flaking off. Dealership said nothing was wrong. Well enough people started talking and it came to found out that they had a bad batch of paint and all the cars within a specific run with the black paint were doing the same. Found that out and took it to the dealer and she got a new paint job. Their was never a recall so I feel for those that have the same issue and didn't find this info.

My point is that if their is a real issue with the paint you wont be the only one. These are painted by robots these days so its highly unlikly only one car will have a problem.

 

[The Fang]

Google "Ford Bad Paint" but be prepared. burn one if ya got it. I think there might even be a forum on the subject.
My 05 came with what looks like a drop of sweat in the hood. A good paint job will consist of multiple layers of color and clear.

 

[snaggeltooth]

If you can check some other 2010's that are your color. My wife had a 2001 eclipse that after a couple years the paint started flaking off. Dealership said nothing was wrong. Well enough people started talking and it came to found out that they had a bad batch of paint and all the cars within a specific run with the black paint were doing the same. Found that out and took it to the dealer and she got a new paint job. Their was never a recall so I feel for those that have the same issue and didn't find this info.

My point is that if their is a real issue with the paint you wont be the only one. These are painted by robots these days so its highly unlikly only one car will have a problem.

Most of the time they are painted by robots, but every now and then robots will go down or just "freak out" and start doing all sorts of crazy things .. So , they shut them off till they can find the problem and people in the booths have to hand spray .. sometimes its or 1-2 hours ..sometimes its all shift ..

 

[allcarfan]

I finally got around to washing my new gt yesterday. We have had it for a week.

Let me just say that out of all the Fords that I have ever owned, this is the WORST paint job that I have ever seen. There is excessive orange peel in my opinion. When I look into a car after waxing, it should be smooth. When looking into this paint job, it looks like my reflection is "pixelized."

 

[Fast05]

the dealership just called, ford concluded that it was in fact a defect and not rock chips and have instructed them to fix it, now i just have to wait til tuesday next week to take it in. I'm relieved they are making it right

 

[Blackout737]

its good ford it stepping up to fix a problem.

glad your getting your paint fixed

 

[Fast05]

Well I dropped the car off this morning and I have to say I'm more than done with this dealership's service department. First they didn't want to give me a rental car because by ESP only covers rental if the car is in the shop for mechanical problems...give me a break. Anyway, finally an hour later it was approved and i'm driving around a Pontiac G6 (woohoo lol).

Thing that irritated me the most though, was that while I was standing in the service office waiting for the paperwork to be filled out one of the mechanics wandered up to the front, saw the car, and in a real smart ass tone of voice said, "is that the same damn blue mustang that's here every day?" Wow, I guess I know what they think about me already. I'll wait until they finish repairing my vehicle and will sit down and write a letter to the area manager. How unprofessional can one be to make that comment in front of customers, especially the owner of the car. What a jackass.

 

[allcarfan]

Yeah...Id say that is unprofessional. But remember, a lot of mechanics are just car guys talking shop. However, that was still uncalled for.

At least you got a G6. We were stuck in a cobalt....a nasty little piece of trash.

I hope your paint job comes out better than factory paint. I have never seen so much orange peel

 

[Fast05]

I think my G6 is powered by the same two hamsters though ha ha.

 

[Justin01]

Just read the second page....I would have recommended a different dealer to have the paint fixed at, but at least now they have a warranty they have to honor. Touch up paint will go a long way too. Interested to see what comes from it all.

Agree on the totally unprofessional comment, shop talk should stay in the shop. It's still a business. And if that bastard would have fixed it the first time, you wouldn't have to come back everyday.

 

[Fast05]

This will probably be my final update as I finally picked up the car today...

Anyway, to say the least, A LOT has happened this week. I penned a letter to the regional manager Tuesday after I dropped the car off and you wouldn't believe how quickly things swung into action after that. (well actually yes you would, people that high up don't want to deal with stuff like this) Anyway, as soon as he was made aware of the problem the GM at the dealership was the only one contacting me daily to update me on the status of my car. Even the one time I called service directly they transferred me to him. I appreciated the ass-kissing effort but had yet to be impressed. Apparently they had difficulty getting the paint to match (not sure why) so they pulled the hood off a new car and swapped it onto mine. Now I'm starting to get impressed, considering they had to transfer the car from another dealership to do it. Hope they get my hood right for the next guy.

So I go to the dealership and let's just say I got the feeling that everyone knew who I was, even the people I didn't know, lol. The GM was called to the showroom floor as soon as I walked in, he walked me to the back to inspect the car. Looks great, there were 2 very minor specks that can be buffed out, so he's going to call me Monday morning and arrange for me to bring it in so they can finish it all up for good. I told him I'd rather drive my stang this weekend than the G6 I'd been driving all week and had no problem. When I go back Monday morning I won't have to wait in line, they're going to put me ahead of anything else they're working on at the time to get it done so I don't have to wait.

So at this point in time I'm just glad to have my car back, and the GM is even turning in my rental for me tomorrow because Enterprise was already closed, and I appreciated the lengths and the effort they went to in order to get me into my car before the end of the day. To say the least, I'm a happy customer again, much more happy than I was Tuesday morning. So he goes back inside, I get in the car and start adjusting my seat, and guesssss what? The old service manager that had a bad habit of implying I was lying came out, shook my hand and said, "Sorry about all the trouble, nice car ya got there, make sure you keep all the rock chips off it"

Needless to say I was a little shocked to be hearing what he was saying after everything that had gone on this week, as if he had to get the last dig, but what he doesn't know is that I'll be back Monday morning. I'll still give them a good grade on the survey, but I'll be sure as hell to let the GM know that after all his efforts to make the situation better the bitter old man had to start it all up again.

Sorry....long post. You should have seen the letter to the regional...lol. Just had to tell the story though. I think I know now who I'll deal with in service if I ever do go back, and who to avoid all together. Either way, I got ma baby back woohoo!

 

[Teleplayer]

Of course it shouldn't take writing a letter to get the kind of service you deserved all along. Maybe you need to find that guy's car and give it a real rock chip, if you know what I mean.

 

[05MGT]

If it's brand new out of the factory the paint sometimes itsn't fully cured.
Honda told my wife to wait 1-2 months before any real washing or waxing to let the paint and clearcoat harden fully. I've heard similar things from other dealers.

 

[fladriver]

I finally got around to washing my new gt yesterday. We have had it for a week.
Let me just say that out of all the Fords that I have ever owned, this is the WORST paint job that I have ever seen. There is excessive orange peel in my opinion. When I look into a car after waxing, it should be smooth. When looking into this paint job, it looks like my reflection is "pixelized."

I have been in the garage detailing my new 2010 today and the paint is 99.9% perfect. I am not seeing any orange peel some have mentioned and after a cleaner and polish I am almost ready to start waxing. The gloss is already very deep on the torch red paint. It is like looking in a mirror.

Steve