jdinco

A couple months ago after driving my SC thru a car wash (no brushes) I noticed 2 half dollar size spots on the drivers door where the paint was gone. Looked bad. I went to Lexus and they basicaly said "too bad, not their problem". About what I expected being the 3rd owner of a 9 year old car.

Figured I'd make it thru the winter and get it touched up by a pro. The weather has been so nice we took it out today and got on some icy salty roads. Didn't even think about what happened last time, drove it thru the same wash and now have 4 LARGE spots of gray primer showing on a black car. The largest being about 8 inches across. The others 5 or 6 inches. At this point I;m confused on what to do next. I am curious if anyone else has had paint issues with their SC. Very upset right now....thanks in advance for any replies. I can take some pictures tomorrow if anyone is interested in seeing them.
The car is a black 2007 SC430 with 47,000 miles on it. Excellent condition except for the paint.

mrblister

Check the vin paint code and see if it matches up for the same color. Check the car fax and see if any damage was reported

jdinco

Nothing on the Carfax and the paint code appears to be correct. Thanks

mrblister

I would contact lexus corporate see what they say and be firm

Aron9000

I'm betting the door has been repainted at some point. Although if you're the type who runs a black car through a car wash, you might not have the eye to notice it. Park it in direct sunlight and see if the paint that is still on there looks wavy or inconsistent from the rest of the paint. You can also use a florescent lamp and compare the door to the rest of the car. The florescent lamp is great for looking at orange peel in the paint, it should have the same amount of orange peel as the hood, fender, roof, etc if it is factory paint.

jdinco

Running a black Lexus through a car wash may be an issue, most cars, it's not, but I wouldn't expect it to take the paint off. I use ANY car wash sparingly, when your undercarriage and sides are coated with salt, I prefer to get it off as quickly as possible. I spent 8 hours this summer working the paint and getting all the swirls out. Then made the mistake of taking it to the dealer for a recall. I didn't know they would wash it. The swirls were 10x worse. You make me sound like a Lexus abuser for using a brushless car wash to try and protect the paint. Geesh......

I've had the dealer look at it and a pro painter, no evidence of it being repainted at all. I can find small bare spots all over the car, the large ones are on the door and quarter panel. I'm trying to contact the previous owners to make sure I'm not missing something they can fill me in on.

JohnnyCake

I think you should go through the car wash a few more times and see whether it keeps happening. After about another dozen washes, you will be down to bare metal and won't have to pay for stripping before having the car repainted.

Aron9000

Sorry to insult you like that. Not everybody on this board is an enthusiast

Anyways, try talking to the people at the car wash. Those high pressure "touchless" washes can be pretty bad news for your paint if they aren't set up correctly/the equipment isn't maintained.

Its like pressure washing your house or a building. The right amount of water pressure will clean, too much will start taking off paint.

jdinco

I am an enthusiast, and thought I would find the same here. I didn't know that a Lexus should not go thru a car wash like every other car in the world! My bad there.

I have to admit that the insults caught me off guard, I posted looking for some serious suggestions and help....Johnny Cakes can bite me, you come across like a know it all snob, I've been on this board a long time and read it regularly. One of the main reasons I sold my BMW was that all of the other BMW owners I met were such jerks that it distracted from the car. It appears there is some of the same with Lexus owners. I apologize for even thinking of posting here. a holes. I'm done and gone, no need to reply any further. I hope you all have flat tires on a regular basis.....thanks for nothing.

JDaveSC430

JDINCO; The paint issue is indeed unusual if it is the original paint; whether you use a car wash or hand wash. I agree with the poster who suggested Lexus corporate; the dealers themselves put customer cars through their own brushless car washes so obviously Lexus approves of that kind of wash.

As to the insults you received; yes, I would agree with you that they were intended just as you surmised. While most of the men on here ( and the few women ) are mature, grown up, and very helpful, there are some who have the social media disease of making themselves feel like big boys by acting like faceless bullies who hurl an insult then hide in the house behind their big bad laptops.
No doubt as kids they hid behind mom's skirts; it is pathetic and so sad and no wonder society is sinking.

Most of us ARE enthusiasts, and a few are definite A.holes; the kind that think buying a 10 year old luxury car makes them millionaire posers; SO SAD !!
What a sad couple of comments to a legitimate and well written question; I'm sorry to see other SC owners treat another like they did.

LOL about the flat tires, too; yep, Karma's a b***h!

Good luck with corporate; absolutely escalate if you know the paint is cared for and is the original.
I definitely feel your frustration with trying to find help on these forums; manners count here as much as anywhere and I hope you can shake off the bad commenters and resolve your paint issues.
Hope you can keep your mature attitude and dust the rude remarks off your shoulders like the dandruff they are; Happy New Year seriously.

NickTee

Based on your attitude and your response to banter you seem to very well be one of those aforementioned BMW jerks

mrblister

Knowing Johny Cake first hand I really think you over reacted to his banter. I have always found him to be lightly spirited and fun to converse with. We all need a sense of humor. I know your question was serious and I did respond in a serious way. I still suggest you hang in there and speak with corporate and find a resolution to this issue. I have always washed my own cars because mine is black as well as yours and I find that black is really not a color its an occupation because it takes a lot of work to keep it looking good. I am sure Johnny cake meant no harm. Please stay with the forum

Coleroad

I hang out here on this forum because the BMW forum is quite rude in general. This forum has been very great for the most. A rude comment or two let it roll off. I really enjoy the forum here, and I'll take this opportunity to say thank you. Thankfully not all of us BMW owners are stuck up.


As for the paint problem. The Lexus paint process is one of the best in the auto industry. Orange peel is almost nonexistent. If that door was repainted it probably have more orange peel than the rest of the car unless it was color sanded to match the rest of the finish. Sounds like the problem GM was having in the 80's. The wrong primer for galvanized steel. It then allowed the paint to peel. If it's only happening on that door. I would think the door had been repainted. It doesn't have to have been in an accident for someone to have had it repainted. Just have gotten a real nice scratch or something similar. The only fix is to get it stripped and re painted correctly. I think your chances with Lexus helping pay is about the same as frosty surviving here in Houston. There are just to many points of argument for them to put out their. I hate to hear that this has happened to your beautiful car. I feel for you.

Coleroad

Just yesterday I made a post that came across the wrong way. It's one thing I hate about texting or written communication. You miss the emotional part of it. The smile, the chuckle, the silliness, happy, sad. These things can be hard to convey in written form. Give the benefit of the doubt. Like I had said its a really great group here.

jdinco

Somehow one of the above posts made it to my email, it was much appreciated. I over reacted to a few bad eggs there and apologize for my reaction. Like I said, it caught me off guard when I was bummed about what was happening. I indeed put myself in the same group of bad eggs. So....sorry about that. Enough drama.

The paint is having problems all over the car, it's just worse on the door. The previous owner says nothing was repainted under his watch. I admired the SC for the last 10 years and finally am in the position to have one as a second car, so I'm not giving up on it, off to the paint shop this afternoon to see what they have to say. I'll update the tread as I go, the black is certainly a lot more work than I ever imagined, though it goes against my grain, if and when the car gets repainted, it may end up a different color. Thanks again for the positive responses........pictures coming.