Is anyone else having paint issues with their G? I have a 2004 Laser Red G35 Coupe and in a nut shell I absolutely love the car! It spent most of the winter in the garage and with only 12,000km on the car I was really stoked about bringing it out this year. I never drive behind people, I have never driven down a dirt road, and even though I have been caught in the rain a couple of times it really shouldn't effect the paint.

The front bumper is riddled and almost sand blasted with stone chips, the front fenders where it meets the headlights and front bumper is missing big chunks of paint. The hood looks like it's about 7 years old and driven on country roads behind some 4X4... There must be at least 200 small to medium size "white" stones chips all over it. I even have stone chips on the sides of the car and on the rear pilar!!!!!!! How the heck did 2 stones remove paint from way up there?? I mean I am absolutely disgusted with the way the paint has held up in only 5 1/2 months... I took the car to Infiniti and they said there was nothing they could do, and that I would have to wait 3 weeks for the Infiniti rep to come in and inspect the car. I am really not holding my breath!!!

I am so angry that while writing this post I am writing Infiniti a very nasty letter to demand action. When buying the car they asked me if I wanted the clear bra for $660.00 and I said no because I didn't want to drive my brand new $55,000 sports car with a condom on it, plus i hate the way it looks! Also what do you do when the bra looks like the rear wheel well shields? Replace it? What about fading issues on a red car?

Anyhow, I believe with out a doubt that it's the crappy quality and prep work they did at the factory when they painted these cars. I have a 1997 Grand Am GT with 260,000kms and I have 3 stone chips on the leading edge of the hood. Up until now I told everyone I know to go buy one of these cars and they will love it forever!!! Now I find my self telling everyone to stay clear of them if they want a quality paint job. The way this thing is looking it will have no paint left on the car when it reaches 100,000km. Thank god it's a lease, Infiniti will have to repaint the car when it comes time to give it back, in the mean time I have to live with it!!!

BADG35

 

$55k car wow where did you buy yours? But seriously i have to agree with oyu on the paint durabily/quality issue. I don't have nearly as many chips as you but I do have quite more than some other cars I drive that have 20x more miles on them. It seems people here on the board like to chalk it up to enviromental regulations that require automakers to use less durable paint. Personally, I chalk it up to Nissan cutting corners to keep costs low or profits high (depending on your mood).

Either way I am going with a clear bra in the next couple of months. Strange thing is, I too have a couple chips on the sides of the car, how the hell does a stone do that? Is it the rock shaped like a boomerang?

Let us know how your meeting goes with the infiniti/nissan rep. Good luck!

 

I bought my G35 at Grubbs a couple of months back and drove it back to San Diego. When I got here it had a bunch of chips in the front end from the cross-country drive. Last week I took it to an independent shop to have the front bumper/spoiler repainted and just got it back on Monday. I washed it today and found that there are at least 3 brand-new chips in the bumper cover.

My wife's '03 FX35 has the same black paint as the coupe. It's got over 28k miles on it and there isn't a single chip in the paint on the front end. It's also about two feet higher off the ground.

It ain't the factory or the paint.

 

I believe that's Canadian dollars.

Infiniti is not the only auto brand with 'bad' paint. My 1998 Volvo and 2002 WRX had this problem. A paint protection installer told me it's due to a less toxic acrylic paint formulation. Remember thoses American cars that where painted by dipping into a big vat of paint? No paintchips with lead based paints.

 

Since he is talking in Km I would assume that those are Canadian Dollars.

 

Sorry to say this, but this is normal for cars painted w/ today's regulations..........nothing much you could do. I drove my car w/o the clear bra on for one month and picked up qtr sized chips.........yeh, why didn't I do it since I'm in the industry.........too busy..........

Had it repainted and put the bra on after they baked it at the bodyshop.

 

My bumper was all rock chipped and nasty after driving the first year. Was going to have it repainted ($400 from body shop) but hit a deer instead and insurance paid for it. Not the way I wanted a new one but it worked out in end.

 

Another hint is that he says his location is "Ajax, Ontario (TORONTO)"

 

This thread should really be titled: "Absolutely disgusted with myself for not getting the clearbra!!!!!!!" (just joking)

In the last few years, I believe new regulations were passed that mandated changes in the formulation of paints. I've read that lead, which was commonly used (on your 1997 Grand Am for instance) can no longer be added to paint. This makes the paint softer and more prone to chipping. And this problem is common on almost all newer cars... my 2002 TL suffered from this as well.

The only solution is to spend the $500-700 dollars for a good clearbra. I've had mine on for more than 2 years now and there's been no discoloration issues. I've also had pebbles hit the front that have actually gouged the bra, but left the paint intact... the clearbra is certainly worth it's price.

 

BadG35 that's too bad about your paint. If your windshield has no marks on it at all you may be able to prove the paint is weak. I argued the same point years ago with Honda on my wifes new '92 civic after it was about a year old. I had the bumper, hood, and front fenders all repainted under warranty.
My laser red G is still in great shape after 7k and about 10 months old( 4 months of storage) I'm getting a clear bra put on it however in about a month. I think many manufacturers car paints are weak but the car design is the contributing factor to problems. My MX6 before was terrible, same with Honda prelude too but my Jeep is very good. The low cars are bad and the ones up off the road are ok.
Good luck with your discussion with Infiniti. Go in friendly and professional asking for assistance politely but firmly.

Deane

 

Hey Man,

Sorry to hear about the stone chips. i had a similar problem with my 1998 accord after i lowered it. with reference to the clear bra, i am certain it was the best 600 bucks US i spent. the complete kit was installed by the dealer and it included the front bumper, hood, both fenders, door edges, inside of the door handles, around the gas spout and around the front of the rear wheel well. i have a black 05 coupe and to tell you the truth i can barely see it, i know its there, but most people cant tell unless i point it out. its actually one of the things i make a point to show people.

i guess its too late for your current car unless they paint it for you. i agree with the poor paint qaulity, the car scratches very easily, the paint seems very soft. im also not a fan of the rippled paint (orange peel effect) as the dealer calls it. but when you are driving one of the sexiest cars out there, it might be a small (yet annoying) trade off.

lucky you leased the car and brought the chips to their attention so when it comes time to give the car back you have a complaint on file.

if you are willing to spend a few hundred dollars and want th echips removed for peace of mind there is a great company in toronto called paint medic, they will fill your chips with a microscopic brush and you cant even tell its there.

they were going to do my whole car for 300 including a detail job. they will even come to you if you want.

www.paintmedic.com

G's Up

 

you bought yours 55k with or without tax ? i got mine 05 6mt with nav for 49k plus tax. wondering if it's a good deal

 

All I know is, last year I got rear ended in my Lincoln Mark VIII, and the paint on the bumper didnt chip one bit. I dont know what they made the bumper out of, but it didnt crack or anything, it just bent in, and popped right back out like it never even happened.

The person who hit me, however (my girlfriend , in her jeep grand cherokee) had $5000 worth of repairs.

My car is about 10 years old now, and i swear the paint is almost as good today as it was the first day someone drove it off the lot. Theres naturally a bunch of wear on the front bumper, but you really cant tell at all . I've probably got more perminent bug-gut stains than rock chips.

Regulations, cheap bastards, whatever. All I know is the paint on nissans these days definately blows.