Cheap paint - 2005 Baja?

[mtnpat]

Anyone else have problems with paint chips on the hood of their 2005 Subarus?

 

My Baja with 1300 miles on it, already has 5 - 7 chips....I do not tailgate other cars, or push gravel trucks down the road.

 

I am thinking "stuff" (rocks, cigarettes, etc) bouncing off the front of cars at highway speeds is inevitable, but I am just wondering if Subaru paint sucks?

 

I don't want to buy a "stone deflector", but I may have too.....off to buy color code 33J touch up paint - sigh.

[Seahag1978]

I spent all day Sunday washing and waxing my 05 Baja. I was actually happy with the paint job on this car, the clear coat is clear and bright, paint laid smooth and even.

 

My car was used (5,000 mi.) when I bought it. I know the area where the car was driven, the main highway is terrible, I got a cracked windshield traveling that road a few months back.

 

I noticed 3 stone chips in the front cladding paint and 2 in the paint on the hood. I blame it on the Massachusetts roads... they're AWFUL!

 

I also have one stone chip in the windshield (which the dealer will fix.) I think the rock chip problem has gotten worse than in years past is the higher speed cars are travelling.

 

Now compare it to my 04 Hyundai. That was the cheapest paint job in the industry. The car was black and there was orange peel in all the recessed areas, the clear coat was hazy. No matter what you did to that car it looked like a 10 year old paint job. Junk.

 

I think the plastic cladding on the Baja would have benefitted by another coat of paint, or a clear coat, but other than that, the quality of the paint on the metal parts is fine. I'll need the Monterey Silver and Brilliant Silver touch up. You are on the right track for the bra... how well do those magnetic ones work? They also have the clear for a bazillion dollars.

[richierich]

A good wax job does wonders for protecting the paint. Might want to get a bra for winter driving, especially if they gravel the roads.

 

Any chance your hood has been repainted due to shipping damage?

Look for overspray. Dealer does not have to tell consumers of damage unless it is above a certain amount of dollars. Then all they do is use it as a demo and then sell it used.

[Grimmreaper]

I just bought a 05 Baja Sport Last November and it currently has about 5,000 miles on it. So far there are no paint chips that I can tell with the exception of a light scratch above the left front wheelwell from a shopping cart.

[Martinjmpr]

You might look into just a hood protector rather than a full bra. I got one for about $25 through JC Whitney for my previous vehicle (Ford Ranger pickup.) It goes on the front of the hood and protects about 1' back. The nice thing is it's easy to remove for cleaning and it doesn't interfere with opening the hood. This will protect the front of your hood.

 

My '99 OBW had the factory bug deflector on it when I bought it in '03. Unfortunately, it has worn some of the paint off at the corner of the fender where the rubber "stop" rubs against the paint. Because of this, I have decided to leave it on (my rationale is that it can't get any worse and at least the deflector covers up the ugly paint damage.)

 

However, one unexpected benefit is that I have no chips or cracks in my windshield or my hood, even after 80,000 miles on Colorado and Wyoming roads. My brother, who has an '02 Impreza TS with less than 30k, already has a couple of nice cracks in his windshield from gravel and rocks, as well as a nice "peppering" of paint chips on the front of his hood. I think the bug deflector either intercepts the rock before it can hit the windshield, deflects it out of the way, or at the very least slows it down enough so that by the time it hits the windshield it's not going fast enough to chip or crack the windshield.

 

In fact, this is the first vehicle I've owned in over 20 years that I've driven this long without getting any cracks in the windshield.

 

Personally, I'm willing to trade some inconsequential paint damage in exchange for protecting my hood and windshield.

[brus brother]

A good wax job does wonders for protecting the paint. Might want to get a bra for winter driving, especially if they gravel the roads.

 

Any chance your hood has been repainted due to shipping damage?

Look for overspray. Dealer does not have to tell consumers of damage unless it is above a certain amount of dollars. Then all they do is use it as a demo and then sell it used.

 

Well here in Connecticut it is illegal to sell a car that has had any work done after the factory unless the buyer is notified. This stemmed from an incident where a carrier filled with BMWs rolled over and they didn't think they needed to mention the repairs to buyers. The State Attorney General thought otherwise and the legislature passed a law. Funny from a state that is mockingly referred to as Corrupticut, huh?

[Seahag1978]

A good wax job does wonders for protecting the paint. Might want to get a bra for winter driving, especially if they gravel the roads.

 

Any chance your hood has been repainted due to shipping damage?

Look for overspray. Dealer does not have to tell consumers of damage unless it is above a certain amount of dollars. Then all they do is use it as a demo and then sell it used.

 

 

Sand on the roads isn't the bad part here, it's the chunks of asphalt from the potholes that are big enough to swallow a Buick!