ES - 5th Gen (2007-2012) Discussion topics related to 2007+ ES350

Lexus paint is terrible.

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Old 10-06-10, 02:41 PM
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tardorange
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Default Lexus paint is terrible.

The paints Lexus uses on cars is just terrible. I wash and wax and detail my cars every month but for whatever reason this smokey granite mica color never seems to shine.

I have washed, waxed, polished the car many times but honestly within 2 days its back to its dusty self . Anyone agree?
Old 10-06-10, 03:19 PM
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jagtoes
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Not a problem for me but I have Cerulean Blue which is a light color and always seems to shine. When I had the Ruby Red it always seemed to shine after a wash and I did that once a week.
Old 10-06-10, 04:11 PM
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JRey350hou
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ditto..no problem . Use professional product -- Zaino..many products within line that leave vehicle with excellent results and i tend to be very picky.
Old 10-06-10, 04:25 PM
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LexBob2
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I'm picky too and no problems with Smokey Granite Mica or Starfire Pearl. Both shine nicely.
Old 10-06-10, 04:29 PM
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Vin1971
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Default same problem...

Originally Posted by tardorange
The paints Lexus uses on cars is just terrible. I wash and wax and detail my cars every month but for whatever reason this smokey granite mica color never seems to shine.

I have washed, waxed, polished the car many times but honestly within 2 days its back to its dusty self . Anyone agree?
same problem with my GS...paint just terrible...the clear coat is coming off..its an 06..
Old 10-06-10, 06:20 PM
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Monchie
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No problem with my obsidian black 2008. Just monthly full body waxing (using car wax and not polish "wax"), and frequent, if not daily, water wash only. I use only microfiber wipe and not old cotton shirts/cloth. If I can feel some roughness on surface, I do minor claying to smoothen it again.
Old 10-07-10, 03:36 AM
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garsarno
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Found the '07 paint is softer than my Chevrolet and Ford paint. Real careful not to scratch it. My paint is still shiny after minimal waxing / beads water.
Old 10-07-10, 10:19 AM
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KevGS460ML
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Totally agree that the paint is horrible, but not because it doesn't shine. Mine shines very much. However, when I was out to lunch, and a bird did its business right on the passenger door. I couldn't get home until 4hrs later, but immediately washed it off. Guess what, it stained it. No matter how many times I tried to buff it off, it won't go away.

The MB paint is 10x better. It got keyed three times, and I was able to buff it off all 3 times.
Old 10-07-10, 10:32 AM
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safford197
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I'd have to agree that the paint leaves a lot to be desired for such an expensive grocery getter. I only have about 29,000 miles on my 2007, I'm the original owner, the car has been garage kept but still I have some chips and hair line scratches. I don't think it's held up well under normal or sub-normal conditions, at least it's not any better then my beater VW Rabbit - and that's about $30K cheaper...
Old 10-07-10, 01:36 PM
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tardorange
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Originally Posted by KevGS460ML
Totally agree that the paint is horrible, but not because it doesn't shine. Mine shines very much. However, when I was out to lunch, and a bird did its business right on the passenger door. I couldn't get home until 4hrs later, but immediately washed it off. Guess what, it stained it. No matter how many times I tried to buff it off, it won't go away.

The MB paint is 10x better. It got keyed three times, and I was able to buff it off all 3 times.
Totally agree it stains very easy especially smokey granite mica has dust all over it within 2 days. Every time I wash the ES see some odd looking scratches obviously from the terrible quality of the paint.

The BMW paints are very high quality shine like BRAND NEW. Our 325XI has 58k miles and it gets washed and waxed every few months and it looks BRAND NEW. The leather in the BMWs crack and look like **** though not the case for Lexus leather looks brand new.

On the MB paint had 100k miles on the ML350 and it looked very nice for its mileage better then the ES that's for sure!

Originally Posted by safford197
I'd have to agree that the paint leaves a lot to be desired for such an expensive grocery getter. I only have about 29,000 miles on my 2007, I'm the original owner, the car has been garage kept but still I have some chips and hair line scratches. I don't think it's held up well under normal or sub-normal conditions, at least it's not any better then my beater VW Rabbit - and that's about $30K cheaper...
Our ES is also the grocery getter and DD. It picks up scratches, dirt, and other grime way too much for a 40k car.
Old 10-07-10, 03:00 PM
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Akachan LS
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I have an '08. The only complaint that I have about the paint is that it seems to chip somewhat easily. I have several chips on the front with only 36K miles on the car. Otherwise the paint has held up really well with no polising or waxing yet.
Old 10-07-10, 06:04 PM
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WNCcruiser
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Have 08 pearl white. So far, no problems. Paint still looks great!
Old 10-07-10, 08:29 PM
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racingt
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'08 with Smokey Granite Mica - shines great. Picks up the same amount of dust as my 335i did or as my Titan, which is 'Smoke' in color - basically the color of dirt. Dust accumulation is not a function of paint quality...
Old 10-08-10, 07:31 PM
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miniz
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It's called waterborne paint. Its junk, unless it is topped with a durable hard clear coat. The day Toyota figures this out, I will be very happy. They also need to stop using single-stage (non clearcoated) paint.
Old 10-08-10, 08:54 PM
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jimmy2x
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Originally Posted by miniz
It's called waterborne paint. Its junk, unless it is topped with a durable hard clear coat. The day Toyota figures this out, I will be very happy. They also need to stop using single-stage (non clearcoated) paint.
Car paint has been water based for a long time now. I am not aware of ANY car sold today that does not have clearcoat on top of the paint.


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