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Hi everyone, we've had our 2013 LS for barely six months. A few months ago I noticed the edge of the hood was stripping paint. It started out as very light streaks but progressively got worse. I suspect this was from going through car washes a few times (although the same car wash has never posed a problem on seven previous family Toyotas and Lexuses).
Anyways, I started touching up the 6-inch gash but it would be stripped off again after each car wash. I have stopped going through automatic car washes but the area continues to widen (get thicker, not longer). I think it is flaking off at highway speeds. I have a $100 comprehensive deductible, should I just go that route? Would hate to repaint the entire hood due to this small area but it is noticeable and will probably only spread if I don't take action before the wet season. What would you do?
I doubt very much it was the car wash. The car was probably repaired and painted at some point. Your dealership should have a paint thckness meter to confirm this.
I doubt very much it was the car wash. The car was probably repaired and painted at some point. Your dealership should have a paint thckness meter to confirm this.
Thanks, Keith, glad to know it wasn't car washes. I purchased it from a private seller that had purchased it as a CPO. I have noticed little paint chips on the door and trunk too. I don't believe the car was completely repainted. The LS just has very soft, brittle paint and not nearly as durable as the LS 430 paint nor past Toyotas. Also a little bit of bad luck on the roads. A piece of asphalt also kicked up and hit the edge of the roof right above the windshield about two weeks after buying the car. A quarter-inch lower and it would have needed a new windshield.
The seller just messaged me back and confirmed he has not been aware of any paintwork under his ownership and he immediately put on the clear bra after he purchased the car. In dealings with the previous owner I have no reason to doubt his integrity.
The hood was most likely repainted at some point by "someone" who did not properly prep the hood properly prior to paint. I suggest checking into a good body shop to repaint the hood. Maybe someone here can recommend a shop or ask a local Lexus dealer who they use...... Good luck with that!
When I was searching for our LS there were a few cars that had body work done that DID NOT show up on any reports but my experienced eye caught the repainted areas. (Sanding marks, orange peel, waves, imperfections, etc.)
The only way to find out if a car was repainted is to hang a paint thickness meter on it because a good body shop can do a "near perfect factory" paint job nowadays BUT if the surface is NOT prepped properly the paint will not last.
That is disappointing if that is the case. It would explain why the primer or layers underneath seemed to interact differently with the touch-up paint when compared to other areas that I touched up.
On the nicks and blemishes above the license plate and roof edge the touch-up paint dries and blends in very well. However, multiple retouch-ups on that hood edge never appeared dark enough. It always looked too bright. The touch-up would apply dark but then dry too silvery, different than the other touched-up areas.
Unfortunately CPO doesn't mean much these days. I recently inquired about a 2014 LS 460L that showed up on Car Gurus. There were no pics as the car was a new addition. I asked the selling dealer if there was any paint work done to the car or if there are any cosmetic issues at all. A couple days pass and they finally get back to me that three panels need to be painted. This is a car that they are selling as CPO. Any car I look at will always have a prepurchase nspection by an independent body shop.
Agreed, mbarron. I had my trusted mechanic do a PPI but I guess he doesn't use a paint meter. Mechanically, everything else checked out...except for a bad ambient light strip we found out later. I thought it being previously CPO-ed would be a good thing but apparently not always.
I went ahead and called in the claim a moment ago and should hear from the adjuster tomorrow. Will also call Lexus in the morning to see who they use but there are two other shops close to home that I've had good past experience with too.
A CarFax should, but not always, shown any body shop repair work if it ever was actually painted. Did you get one with the car when purchased? In any event, the entire hood will have to be painted to be done right. Doesn't really matter how it happened. It could have happened a lot of different ways and then just touched up with touch-up paint which is what it looks like to me. That's why the paint won't stay on. In any event, any reputable ins. company should pay for the job. From the pic, it appears that the hood is a different shade than the fender, but it's hard to tell from a pic. Just get it painted and forget it. Good luck
It's the lighting in the photo. In person there isn't anything about the color that stands out, other than the gash. Looked at LexusDrivers site, Carfax, and AutoCheck, as well as PPI before we bought the car. If the hood has to be redone, so be it. Insurance will cover it and I'll be out $100 deductible, so not that much. They will most likely need to redo the clear bra protector too.
Hood was definitely repainted at some point, that's really the only explanation.
As far as paint, my LS460 has the best paint I've ever had on a Lexus, better than the paint on my LS430 or LS400. It's by far the thickest seeming coat, very resistant to scratching and chipping. Overall Lexus paint has never been great, but the paint on my 460 is excellent.
Looking at the picture....... The hood was definitely repainted. For anyone interested in finding out IF a car was repainted or if any body work was done check out paint meters for sale at www.paintmeter.com Small investment when shopping for a "higher end" preowned car.
Even if the hood has been repainted before, I have not been impressed with the LS 460 paint. This car seemingly picks up new road chips weekly. Thank goodness it has a clear bra on it. There was a photo you posted a month or so ago Steve, I didn't say anything back then but, the way objects reflected off of it, the lines didn't look super smooth and had hints of orange peel. It wasn't terrible but it looked just like how objects are reflected on my paint, so if that is the LS 460 quality then I don't see anything really special. Not bad, but not exceptional paint quality.
What picture? I dont recall having posted a picture of my LS since I bought it in 2015... Every factory paint job has some orange peel, but my LS460 has way less orange peel than any other Lexus I've had, including my LS430 and LS400. They started hand sanding the paint on the LS in 07 when the 460 came out. I was really surprised when I got my 460 how much nicer the paint was.
Paint chipping is just a fact of life with these cars, low VOC "green" paint. My 400 and 430 chipped terribly, as did all my other Lexus cars. That's why I did a clear bra on my GS and a full front clearbra on my LS. That will be done immediately to every new car I buy in the future.
My LS has no chips anywhere, front of course has the clearbra, but nothing anywhere else on the car.
Looking at the picture....... The hood was definitely repainted. For anyone interested in finding out IF a car was repainted or if any body work was done check out paint meters for sale at www.paintmeter.com Small investment when shopping for a "higher end" preowned car.
i dont know how others can tell emphatically that the hood has been painted from soley the photo. Sorry, that reads as very argumentative, but is not my intended tone. In person the car looks beautiful. I can, and have, noticed mismatched body panels at a Carmax lot but honestly could not detect anything looking at our LS. Let me try to post a differnet shot and tell me if it still is obvious to you. Im not upswt if it has been repainted before. I did as much backgroumd check as i could and will add a paint meter check to the list next time. Thanks for the reference link, Chuck. Those are more expensive than I want to spend but I am curious to know what my current paint thickness is before a body shop redoes anything. I'll try to find a more affordable quality one on Amazon and see if I can get a baseline. Here's another shot of the hood.
Originally Posted by SW15LS
What picture? I dont recall having posted a picture of my LS since I bought it in 2015...
I think it was incidental that your LS was in the shot, Steve. It was recently, perhaps the past 2-3 months. I recall it had a home or some property being reflected off the car. Sorry for the vagueness. I will try to find the post again if I can but you're pretty prolific with helpful posts so that would be a lot to rummage through.
The picture you originally posted the flake in the paint doesn't match very well from the hood to the fender. Aside from that, just the damage you described would lead me to believe the hood had been repainted.
The second picture doesn't tell us anything, paint will always look good in the shade. In direct light tells you way more.
08-27-17, 03:06 PM
Paint flaking from hood edge. What to do?
