Help! Paint defect on new '03 Explorer Sport

[rdevine]

Hey guys...great forum!

I'm a little disappointed in my latest discovery. I purchased a new '03 Explorer Sport about a month and a half ago, and have had it back to the dealership on several occasions for missing or defective parts. When I took delivery, I pointed out to the salesman that the trim molding was separating from the driver door...no big deal! Since then, I discovered a missing center wheel cap, broken visor mirror, etc. All cosmetic stuff that they quickly replaced.

After washing the truck for the first time last weekend, I noticed very slight paint blistering/bubbling on the extreme front edge of the hood. It looks like some of the spots were the result of air bubbles that got sealed by clearcoat. The majority of the defects can best be described as blisters. BTW, I have Oxford White paint. There are quite a few little "pops" in the paint throughout the vehicle, but the hood gives me concern. On the underside of the hood edge, there are long, thin pockets of extra clearcoat that I'm sure (hopefully!) are factory-related. Has anyone had the same misfortune?

I'm very disappointed in the paint quality thus far. I had the dealer look at it this week, and service advisor was pretty convinced it was a factory defect. I also went to a local body shop for inspection...they said the dealer should make the necessary arrangements to have the hood repainted. I can certainly live with the defects if they don't get any worse. Only bad things can happen with repainting. It would certainly never be the same as factory paint.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated...please help put my mind at ease!

 

[jimbo74]

find a good body shop... usually the high end body shops do the dealer painting...... the dealers normally sublease it out... i used to work by a great body shop, and the caliber of the stuff they did... man, i would say possibly even better than factory... i saw a tahoe with its whole side smashed in come out looking like it was driven off the showroom floor.....

 

[Glacier991]

In the basecoat/clearcoat category, a good paint shop can often exceed OEM paint quality - do not automatically assume that a high quality Base/clear paint job by a reputable paint shop is inferior to OEM. T'aint so!

 

[SiLenZe]

the paint started to bubble on my hood as well. the body shop manager said it was a common problem on explorers. it is called delaminating.
your real lucky to get these things fixed under warrenty. i had a hell of a time getting mine fixed. if you plan on keeping the truck might want to check out an extended warrenty online. your ball joints and many other parts will go bad. after 36K miles its all downhill (

 

[rdevine]

Thanks for the replies guys! Don't get me wrong, I love the truck, but having paint issues crop up on a 2 month old vehicle is completely absurd.

SiLenZe: What exactly is delaminating? Did they have to repaint your whole hood?

I know they crank hundreds of thousands of these things out every year, and there are going to be plenty of defects to go around. But I would think the paint process would yield more consistent results since it's all done by robots anyway.

I'd much rather live with the defects than have a brand-new truck repainted. I know there are plenty of reputable places to have it done, but it just seems so extreme. And why the hell weren't these things picked up at the factory if Ford is always preaching quality. I know my rants may seem petty (I'm sure it could be much worse), but I expected better from a near $30K truck. I've had 7 new cars in the last 10 years, and this is certainly a first for me.

 

[MONMIX]

Originally posted by rdevine
Only bad things can happen with repainting. It would certainly never be the same as factory paint.

Oh that is not a bad thing.
Ford paint sucks. End of statement.
Get the dealership to repaint it under warrenty.

Delaminating is when the paint " looses it's grip "
on the surface. The whole hood ( or what ever part )
needs to be stripped and refinished.

Delamination only gets worse. I would get it done sooner rather than later. Being an 03 it has started real quick.