Hello all, I just got back from washing my car and my wife and I discovered that there are a dozen dime to quarter sized areas of paint flaking off our 18 month old Prius. It's parked under a cherry tree and I expect the damage was caused by falling berries. Honestly, I'm quite surprised that after 1 season the damage was as bad as it is. I also have a 2000 Mercedes E320 that I've parked under that tree for 3 years with no visible paint damage whatsoever. Is the Prius paint job just that bad? Does anyone know what I can do about it? Appreciate any and all advice. -Joe 2016 Prius 4 Touring
My first suspicion with cases like this: it might have been repainted. Not for sure, but it happens. Look for signs of over spray, see what the primer looks like under the areas where paint is lifting.
I'm doubtful that it's been re-painted, I bought it new. It was in the country for a whole 3 days before taking ownership here in Seattle. Think I could try for warranty service? Anyone else have success with that? I'm thinking the success rate for that is low.
So did we. an '83 Accord. Someone on the docks sideswiped a bollard, they bondo'd, primed and repainted one whole side. Then sold it us, still "new". Look in your bill of sale, see what they say about stuff like that. Up here the usual contract includes a disclaimer, that the "new" car could have incurred up to 20% of it's retail value, before they have to disclose it. You're free to cross that out, change it to a lesser value, if the seller will agree. Again, not saying that's your issue, but do a bit of detective work: start by at least looking for obvious overspray. You can see the primer where the paint is lifting? Is it the same colour as other areas? If possible, scrape a small amount of top coat off a hidden area, to check the primer colour there. Then touch up paint it. Also, is there any sign of sanding marks, where the paint's lifting? It seems like paint applied over improperly prepped/primed area, like drops of something got on the roof, preventing proper bonding. That could be sign of a rush job repaint. Who knows.
Saw this posting after I posted. I would definitely bring it in, see what they say. FWIW, in our case it was the Service Manager who figured out what had happened with ours, found the documentation from the port about the repaint. Regardless of why, it's worth having it checked out, very possibly a warranty claim. But do yourself a favour: look it over carefully; it's very hard to completely hide a repaint.
Thanks for the replies, I'll do some digging into our paperwork and then contact the service department. I've never seen paint deteriorate so rapidly. Edit: Looking the car over, there are spots from the hood to the rear spoiler. Sigh.
I'd take it to a great auto body shop for an appraisal, the dealer is possibly not a body shop and going to the dealer with prior intelligence might be helpful.
What colour? I'll be interested to see what happens, as I didn't have any success with a FORD with a similar problem.
Daughter bought a Subaru that had been damaged by hail but repaired for 20 ish % off, and the damage as you describe it could be hail with a terrible repair job.
I'm not a paint expert, but it appears to me that the picture shows the makings of a cheap paint over.
