Which auto manufacturer has the best paint?

I agree chevy is one of the worst.... my car is flaking and peeling all over the front, and it chips really easily.



Lexus as the best? I would say that may be true for their clearcoated, but I hate doing lexus black being that its single stage... alot easier to dammage if you're not careful.
 
phatphob said:
i'm new to this orange peel concept but i have it all over the bottom region of the doors on my toyota corolla and my subaru legacy.



now is this orange peel effect caused by corrosion under the surface of the metal or maybe somehow the air bubbles under the paint began to expand after the paint dried to a certain extent?
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Don't know about the Corolla, but on the Subaru it IS supposed to be that way. It's a "gravel guard", a additional layer of stuff between the metal and the paint to protect against corrosion in case the paint gets chipped. Keep an eye on it and if/when you get some stone chips you'll see what I mean.



jlfrogy - You're lucky, or else I was UNLUCKY. My C5 didn't have any orange peel, but it had LOTS of other paint flaws. Glad to hear you got a good one!
 
I have a 2002 Ford Explorer XLT, love the paint on it, my wife drives it.

I just bought a 2003 Suzuki XL7 Limited, I drive it , the paint is of the worse I have ever seen, and talking about thin metal, this looks like paper.
 
I don't like honda paint, it shines up real nice but if its not done right then one can definately notice that 3d haze from a poor buff job, not to mention the older cars with a lack of under hood heat pad really had crap paint after just a few years right on the manifold section of the hood and that just may be the reason for the quicker than normal fading, I'm guessing.



Volvo paint seems to be real dry. I'm not sure it this is marketing ploy or real but I remember readin in Zymol's manual that they have a special wax formulated for Volvo and Saab. Plus I would polish my yellow 95 Volvo and it would seem like a week later it needed attention again. Then again, I wasn't actually using a protectant other than some cheapie autozone Zymol liquid polish :rolleyes:



I like Lexus' paint, takes a beating a shines up real well



I have worked with some higher line cars such as Jag, Bentley, Rolls and Porsche but I don't know enough about the actual paitn formula and its additives to make a claim liek X plaint is the best, iot seems like a lot of people in thei thread are donig just that, stating that their X cars paint is nice. In the end though we all have a different opinion of what looks nice and what looks like crap(as far as the literal paint quality) and probably only body shop, paint compaines and maufacture emoployees could really give us any true answer to which paint is the best for whatever factors
 
Scottwax said:
There is very little orange peel on my 90 Accord and most of the newer ones I do are better than most of the BMWs and Mercedes I detail.



Bentley, Rolls, Ferrari and Lamborghini all have pretty flawless looking paint. You'd be hard pressed to find any orange peel on one that still has the original paint.



Lexus and Porsche have great paint and of the domestics, Ford is the best.
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I have a 98 black accord and it is very evident there...not so much to distract but if you look up close you can see it. I noticed it the first day I had the car but it didn't bother me (still doesn't really).



As far the paint being junk...my brother has a 90 accord and a 99 accord, I have a 98 accord, my parents have a 2003 odessey, and my friend has a 2001 crv...same thing on all of them...junk paint. It doesn't hold up near as well as other cars I've seen. Although I am not positive on the 90 accord since it was wrecked and was repainted
 
I would have to say as far as I have seen most GM was pretty good, Toyota is the worst LOL, Lexus is awesome funny how Toyota owns LExus and u wont ever hardly see a Lexus with bad paint but reg. Toyotas a different story! As far as being the best I would have to say that BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, and Lexus, as well as Cadillac seems to have their paint jobs down, I have never seen any better paint than whats mentioned on the cars above! Funny how Cadillac is also a GM product :)
 
Scottwax said:
Bentley, Rolls, Ferrari and Lamborghini all have pretty flawless looking paint. You'd be hard pressed to find any orange peel on one that still has the original paint.

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I was talking to this dude who does the detailing at an exotic repair shop near me and he was telling me that the paint on those Ferraris is razor thin, and that you have to be very careful not to go through it. He said it was about the thickness of the plastic on a package of cigarettes...pretty thin!



The best paint job I ahve ever seen in my entire life, now that I think of it, was a Pearl-Orange Diablo at the same place. The thing was so sick looking I couldn't believe it. The Pearl made the car look 2 different colors...in the shade it was a darker, more saturated orange, and in the light it was more of a yellowy orange. If you looked where the sun hit it it kind of gradiented up to an unbelievable sun yellow color. I'm making it sound kind of cuckoo, but it was actually really subtle and even hypnotic! My buddy and I were drolling over it for about a half an hour. I don't remember any orange peel... :D
 
In high school, my best friend and his father restored old muscle cars as well as classics. At that time, early 80's, orange peel was seen in paints made of enamel. All of his cars were painted in lacquer, then wet sanded with 600 grit. The cars were then rubbed out with miracle glaze. If you have ever noticed the side of a corvette, the fiberglass is wavy. His father had a 69 vette which he sanded to perfection then painted it black. I have never seen any car look exactly like you were looking into a mirror. Absolutely stunning.:shocked
 
This thread sounds like a bunch of rattling to me. Lets get it on focus by defining what is good paint?



You can look at paint from two different perspectives:



1. Asthetics

2. Durability



Hmm. . . starting to sound like a "best wax" thread.



Asthetics are effected by orange peel, clear coat thickness and other paint defects.



Durability is your chip resistance, paint hardness, paint adhesion, etc.



Alot of times, achieving the best of both perspectives is a compromise. Such as harder clear or paint will be more prone to chipping. Thicker clear coat will increase likelyness of chipping.



So what perspective are we talking about here? Durability or Asthetics.
 
Okay then, Bryan.

Nissan paint must be the poorest.

We have launched a class-action lawsuit against Nissan for the durability issues, but litigation is slow.

I sprayed the front bumper at a car wash, thinking I was spreading mud across it. I wasn't: It was the paint coming right off.

There is not a plastic piece on my car without large PIECES of paint missing.

The hood is not much better; more chips after 2 years, than my old VW Fox (read; MEGA economy car) had in 12.

It's theonly thing I hate about my baby.

That, and the fact that the whole car is entirely covered in orange peel.

Crappy, orange-peel paint for all 2000+ Nissans, and Infinities by the sounds of it.

Hmmm.:(
 
audio1der said:


Crappy, orange-peel paint for all 2000+ Nissans, and Infinities by the sounds of it.

Hmmm.:(
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Just FYI, mine's a 98.



Actually my mom's 2k1 seems to be holding up fairly well...although it is rather succeptable to scratches...
 
Bryan,

Thanks for trying to get this thread on track. My initial thought was asthetics, lack of orange peel, good shine, etc. But, when people started adding durability issues it seemed to make sense to include that in the discussion. I was hoping that the guys that detail lots of cars would have a broader sample of paint to draw from and be able to make more critical comments (some of you have, so thanks!)



I guess if you are going to talk about paint then both asthetics and durability have to be considered. I mean, who wants great looking paint that comes off at the car wash?
 
larry_bar56 said:
Bryan,

Thanks for trying to get this thread on track. My initial thought was asthetics, lack of orange peel, good shine, etc. But, when people started adding durability issues it seemed to make sense to include that in the discussion. I was hoping that the guys that detail lots of cars would have a broader sample of paint to draw from and be able to make more critical comments (some of you have, so thanks!)



I guess if you are going to talk about paint then both asthetics and durability have to be considered. I mean, who wants great looking paint that comes off at the car wash?
Click to expand...



With respect to which manufacturer has the best paint you have to take a number of things into account:

1. which manufacturer makes the highest quality paint (In my opinion 2 of the best are Sikkens and Standox) and which car maker uses which brand of paint.

2. what each manufacturer does in their paint shop process (quality control, their paint specifications).

3. The model of car that is being painted (obviously it makes no sense to compare the paint from a $200000 Rolls to a $15000 Hyundai).

Something to think about.
 
Of the cars I have owned, or that members of my family have owned, in the last 10-12 years, I would say taking into consideration both aesthetics and durability, the paint on the two Porsches I have owned has been hands down the best (very few flaws and very good durability). My Boxster (Artic Silver) had more flaws than my 993 (Speed Yellow).



The worst was my father’s ’93 Nissan Altima (a burgandy color). It looked alright but it chipped very badly. Various Hondas and Acuras were “ok� nothing to get excited about in either durability or aesthetics. 2000 BMW (jet black) looks great but seems somewhat brittle and susceptible to chipping. 2000 (jet black) Jetta: looked good but very thin and brittle and chipped easily on the front end.



I have friend that sells exotic used cars and I am always most impressed on a purely aesthetics point of view by Ferrari paint (virtually no flaws). Most of these cars have less than 15k miles so durability is impossible to determine.
 
I check in and say that our VW's (red and silvers) have had excellent paint with virtually no orange peel- and highly durable, though my first Jetta is the only one that had any mileage on it. Just about 100k in 2 years and the paint looked as good as the day I took delivery of it. Of course there were some rock and sand truck chips, but all in all the finish was in excellent shape with no paint failures; I did wax about every six weeks during the 'season' and washed quite frequently-garaged of course..
 
Another vote saying Nissan's blow! Espcially black



And, another vote for Lexus. The paint on my mother-in-laws pearl white LS430 is to die for!!!
 
Patrick VW, Auburn, MA., really does a fantastic job as far as the sales and delivery process goes, don't have much experience with service. We have taken delivery of four new vehicles from them and each one was in perfect condition; and I am very, very particular, taking about 10 minutes examining the finish BEFORE the vehicle is accepted. No request, from moving the car into the service area under the lights, to putting the vehicle up on the lift was ever even questioned...



Really cannot say enough about my TDI, have had three, and my wife's new Passat 4 Mo, superb in every way including the paint.



180* difference from our last two Subaru Outbacks of which we owned five and of which we will never own another.
 
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