LEAF paint....soooooo thin!

[mwalsh]

I don't know if this is for weight saving or for cost saving, but the topcoat of paint on the LEAF is incredibly thin. Well, it seems to be on the blue cars anyway. I don't know if all the other colors are the same way.

 

[downeykp]

I think you are correct. My black leaf (a pollen car) appears to have a very thin clear coat. The water spotting on a good clear coat is not that hard to rub out. But on my leaf it does not rub out. Dealer even "Cut and Rubbed" it. It did not look any better.
I have been away for almost two months. I am considering having them repaint the whole car. The dealer knows that it is a problem. Does this become a warranty issue?

 

[TomT]

Yep, it is on red too. And very fragile...

I don't know if this is for weight saving or for cost saving, but the topcoat of paint on the LEAF is incredibly thin. Well, it seems to be on the blue cars anyway. I don't know if all the other colors are the same way.

 

[Randy]

The Leaf may be different, but my very experienced detail man Jim Sadler told me that your average car paint thickness is about 9 thousandsths of an inch...That's thinner than I was expecting...

 

[rawhog]

.

 

[gudy]

Apparently it's not just the LEAF, and yes the paint goes off very easily.

 

[lettcco]

so are we talking about the clear coat layer or the paint layer itself? Hand washed my Leaf couple of times, but didn't really notices anything usual (though the water is pretty hard where I live)

 

[mwalsh]

so are we talking about the clear coat layer or the paint layer itself? Hand washed my Leaf couple of times, but didn't really notices anything usual (though the water is pretty hard where I live)

I don't think there is a clear coat over the blue.

 

[LTLFTcomposite]

I wonder if it's feasible to spray another layer of clear coat on while the car is new.

Here in equatorial south Florida cars stay nicer a lot longer if you keep them in a garage, even if it sits in a parking lot weekdays, whatever time it can be under cover the better.

I'm hearing lots of reports of newer cars having paint fail much sooner. Perhaps just more cost reduction, or perhaps environmental rules changing paint/clearcoat formulas.

I wonder if a car cover would be a good investment. I had one several years ago that turned out to be more trouble than it was worth... this sort of "waffle" fabric, pretty bulky and a royal pain if you came out to the car after a rainstorm. Maybe something lighter in ripstop nylon?

 

[Stanton]

I am considering having them repaint the whole car. The dealer knows that it is a problem. Does this become a warranty issue?

Hope it doesn't come to that: my understanding is they have to remove ALL the power electronics from the car prior to painting due to extreme heat used in the process.

 

[Bassman]

My blue LEAF already has a scratch on the left passenger door right at the front edge near the drivers door handle area (about 1/2 inch long down to the metal). I have no idea how it got there, as I park in my garage at home and in a fenced in pen area at work. It doesn't look like a door ding. The paint is very thin.

 

[TEG]

I opened the rear hatch inside an enclosed garage and the plastic electric garage door emergency release handle (hanging down from a cord) brushed against the rear hatch as it opened. Left a noticeable scratch. This does seem to be the most scratch prone paint of any car I have owned.
Also, it lacks any kind of rubber strips on the side to protect from "door dings".

 

[Steve]

One of the first things I notice about the LEAF is the sub-par paint. I've had several black cars over the years, and use very high quality detailing products. My black LEAF had micro-scratches in the clear coat even before I'd had a chance to wash it. I will do my best to keep the paint looking good, but I'm not overly optimistic.

For what it's worth, I highly recommend Griot's Garage for cleaning supplies. I don't work for them or anything. I've just used their stuff for years. http://www.griotsgarage.com/

With paint as thin as ours, I'd highly recommend keeping some speed shine in the car to get bird crap off right away, particularly in any kind of sunny climate.

 

[mwalsh]

With paint as thin as ours, I'd highly recommend keeping some speed shine in the car to get bird crap off right away, particularly in any kind of sunny climate.

Great advice! I don't even leave those little brown spots on for long, never mind massive white seagull sized dollops! :shock:

 

[dpodoll]

Is the problem thin clearcoat? Does it make sense to put additional CC on it before it gets scratched up?

 

[csriram45]

I noticed the issue this weekend. I hand washed my car and then noticed multiple places where the paint seems to have easily come off. I take extreme care of my car and have always parked in garage or in safe areas so I bummed to see some paint removed on the hood side. I also think that the clear coat is thin (is there one on the red?). Also the car seems extremely prone to pebble dings on freeway due to the way the hood is designed I believe....

I have had my 10 year old car and I have not noticed the paint chip off so easily... I was looking to get some paint pen to fix these.

 

[Drivesolo]

I've owned several new Nissan over the past decade and as much as I like the brand, one of my gripes is how thin the paint is on their cars (their trucks seem to have thicker and/or more durable paint). The thin paint isn't specific to the Leaf, but to Nissan cars in general.

 

[electricfuture]

Mine is Glacier Pearl which has an extra paint layer than the rest of the colors because it is a 3 step process. I immediately noticed that the paint wasn't as smooth to the touch as Hyundai's. I waxed it and that improved significantly. But soon I had chips down to the metal on the passenger door.

I broke down and had Nissan dealership put their $700 protection coating on the inside and the outside. They also fixed the chips gratis when they realized that the touch up paint that they sold me would not work without the primer - which they failed to mention.

I was told not to wax it for at least 30 days - which I intend to do.

I also have the clear mask on the front end which will prevent chips below the hood but the hood is exposed. Nissan's body shop suggested that I put a clear mask on the bumper and the HEADLIGHTS!

Now I have noticed that there is already a scratch on one of the headlights. The problem is that the shops that do this don't have templates for the Leaf yet - so it becomes a very expensive custom job.

 

[csriram45]

I also noticed the headlight issue. With the new design.. its right there to be hit with flying projectiles....

 

[thankyouOB]

Mine is Glacier Pearl which has an extra paint layer than the rest of the colors because it is a 3 step process. I immediately noticed that the paint wasn't as smooth to the touch as Hyundai's. I waxed it and that improved significantly. But soon I had chips down to the metal on the passenger door.

I broke down and had Nissan dealership put their $700 protection coating on the inside and the outside. They also fixed the chips gratis when they realized that the touch up paint that they sold me would not work without the primer - which they failed to mention.

Now I have noticed that there is already a scratch on one of the headlights. The problem is that the shops that do this don't have templates for the Leaf yet - so it becomes a very expensive custom job.

what do you mean "without the primer?"
They didnt sell you a primer?