Didn't know if i should post here or in the Paint Forum, sorry! Anyway i just got my 08 F-150 FX2, exterior paint color, black w/ blacj leather..... I was so paranoid that the dealer would scratch it i didnt have them touch it all when it came in, literally! So today, 3 days later, i washed, dryed, and began to wax. After the wash i did a walk around and noticed 3) 4" circles in the paint that are extremely dull and you can only see them when in direct sunlight. It almost looks like it was from an assembly machine. There are 2) on the gate and 1) on the ext. cab door. Then as i was waxing noticed several paint defects, these look like a spec of dirt was on the truck then it was painted. there are at least 8 spots like this! I am so frustrated right now! i spent a 100 bucks on all MicroFiber products so i could take the best care of my trk. now this. I dont know if i should take it back and have them buff the circles? What about the paint defects? These might cause the paint to peel? They might want to repaint bad spots, then i worry about a non match between color and orange peel!!!! I'm in a bad bind here, i have severe OCD when it comes to this truck! Any advise would be great!!! Anyone else have these problems?

 

Make sure you bring this to the attention to the dealer. The 4" round circles sounds like the suction cups that are used to install the tail gate, and those marks aren't noticeable until after paint. The spec's aren't normal, but if their fixing the circle marks they might as well do everything else. Thanks for the info, I'll need to look at my truck for circles as well. Good luck.

 

take it back to the dealer. my truck had "specs" of stuff in several areas also. I took it back and they fixed all of them at no cost...just 5 days without my truck

 

Iirc... (the last I knew) Paint/Body "defects" were only warranted for 12K? So make sure the dealer knows about it- preferably a supervisor/mgr. along with proper documentation and pictures if applicable.

 

I think the amount of orange peel on these trucks is insane. I guess they don't wet sand at the factory anymore, or the new environmental laws make it hard to get a good paint job anymore. The dealer can get the spots off by wet sanding your truck. One product i would try is Meguire's Scratch X, followed by Meguire's NXT 2.0. The Scratch X is amazing. I had a couple of faded spots on my F250 when i had it. That stuff got it right out. Yeah i know what you mean about taking care of a black truck. I have permanent water spots from the dealer leaving my truck on the lot for a couple of months. How do you leave a $45,000 truck outside and a $13,000 focus inside?

 

Quality has sure gone to hell in regards to the paint. My 06 must have the cheapest clearcoat ford could find. If I even look at the truck wrong it gets scratched. Due to a complete ******* decideing to beat the mirrors off my truck with a bar, I had my pass side door repainted with Dupont clear and the difference is amazing. I think you could skate across that door and not leave a mark. But if my fingernail rubs the truck anywhere else I'm buffing out a scratch. With what we are paying for these trucks you think they'd use half decent products. I you have noticed places like under the hood, the paint is a different shade called a "value shade" and uncleared, all in an effort to reduce costs.

 

We all have OCD when it comes to our trucks and SUV. I still fret over my '88. Anyway, I was polishing my '04 Expy shortly after I bought it and found some defects in the rain gutters on the roof. I took it right in and had it fixed, no charge, no problem and it looks great.

Be ****, go over it with a fine tooth comb, make a check off list and make the body shop person walk with you.

Tim

 

[QUOTE=duste] But if my fingernail rubs the truck anywhere else I'm buffing out a scratch.QUOTE]

interesting...i was scratching some tar off the paint with my fingernail and what do ya know..i scratched it all up....

 

Where were your trucks made, Dearborn, or the other plant? My Stone Green 08 has no orange peel that I can see, and the clear coat is pretty tough. I've scratched dead bugs off with my fingernail, and it didn't scratch. I have to agree/say black is next to impossible to keep clean and scratch-free. Probably be easier to repaint it once a week than wash it.

 

New trucks don't stay new for very long...

I like keeping mine looking new...but nothing and I mean NOTHING is perfect...yes, even a $40k truck!

Also, I'd rather see them put my money into a solid powertrain, brakes, frame, and other TRUCK stuff than worry about a ferrari-quality finish.

 

i feel your pain , my new 2007 leftover i just got has 6 or so dirt specs under the paint. its frustrating to say the least but what can you do. im not gonna have the panels repaired for fear of mis matched colors / texture. so im gonna just live with it.

 

The dealer should offer to repair obvious defects from the factory, but make sure they don't let some hack touch it.

The dealer I bought from moved to a new building that has no paint facility since they kept the old building for their Mazda dealership that has a paint shop (and probably also because a new paint booth is hellish expensive with all the new regulations to meet).

When I got my '07, it had a defect, and the salesman said they had some guy that came once a week to fix up those kinds of things. That didn't sound quite right, so I took it to their body shop. When I told the body shop manager about the salesman's offer of the traveling fix-it guy, his first response was "yeah, you don't want to do that".

They ending up shooting a large portion of the passenger door under warranty, and it looks just like the rest of the truck. The color is perfect to my eye, and the lay of the metallic flake even matches, so that particular painter knows his stuff when it comes to matching OE paint.

 

Welcome to the wonderful world of black vehicles...they only look good right after a wash/wax or when sitting in the showroom.
I had one...never again, it made me crazy

 

Sorry for the late reply guys!!! So i called the dealer and they are going to fix everything at no charge. Which they should!! However i'm a little more troubled today though! After i posted i went back to work on the truck and noticed 3) chips in the paint in addition to the prev. problems! Like others here i'm just awe struck at the poor finish quality on new vichles. And it's not just Ford's. They all seem to have problems!! Also, i just want everyone to know, HArd water will scratch the hell out of the clear!!!! After i scratched the hood, i realized i couldn't dry with a wiping motion! I had to "Blot" the entire truck with a microfiber sponge!! It looks awesome though!!! and yeah, Black is a real pain!! I spent all weekend on her and i mearely drove to town to return with a dust covered truck!! I blame the salt/dusty raods though. A good rain should help wonders!!!

 

Hard water won't scratch the surface I have hard water here...it could be the towels you're using (really). I just use natural cotton (white) bath towels...they work great! Dyed fabric can make scratches.
Black will show ALL the swirl marks from wiping your paint dry. What I've come to find and I learned the hard way with my black vehicle it...instead forcibly rubbing on the surface trying to dry it, take your drying towel and toss it over the surface like you're throwing a sheet on a bed to make it. Then...pull it across the horizontal surfaces alowing the water to suck-up into the towel. This grabs the water and minimizes any scratching/swirl marks to the clear.
*Before doing this, the (best trick) is to first sheet the water off the vehicle's surface. Take the spray nozzle off the hose and start with the roof, then hood/trunk and then vertical surfaces flooding the surface trying not to splatter/splash the water. Let the flow of water cascade over the surface...it must have a coat of wax on it and the water will pull itself off the surface. >much less water to remove ='s less swirl marks.

PS the BEST thing I've used on my black vehicle was Maguiar's M21...and I've tried almost everything else.