jjbodean

this is about as ridiculous a suggestion as i have ever heard on this board. i feel sorry for anyone who would take this advice and go complain to your dealership about your paint not being thick enough. who in the world even has guidelines about how thick the paint is to be anyway?

twister

Oh believe me, we [macho man] get it too I'm in a same boat being 32 while looking like 25 or younger. When I bring my car to dealership, they see a baby car seat in the back and a plastic protective cover on the back of the front seats, and probably think I'm driving my parents (may the rest in peace) car. I'm not even bother explaining its for my baby daughter, just like I'm still OK being carded in the bar

Regarding chips and scratches, well - its just a car. Its one hell of a nice expensive brand new car, which makes it harder to see being scratched up, but what can we do? We got this machine to enjoy everyday on the open road, and not to baby it and to keep it in the garage spotless for car shows

2thfixr

Almost all cars have clear coats these days but Mercedes uses a special Ceramic clear coat that is super hard. It even requires a special polishing compound that is made by Menzerna.

gs9351

Since this seems to be a topic of interest to many CL posters, I thought I'd share my experience with a new product that I've had good success with. It's not a conventional touch up paint, it's actually a felt tip marker with your Lexus paint code filled inside. It's available for any color, any year, in fact any car mfr. I went to a website called http://autovisuals.com, it's expensive but worth it. They have your paint code on file, even an application that helps you figure it out. For those in the know, paint code is on your Lexus door jam after the C/TR field. Perfect color match for chips on bumper, hood, etc. As a felt tip marker you can easily control the quantity of paint so as to avoid heavy blobs. I filled in a few chips on my bumper and you cannot see them. Just thought I'd share with the crowd.

audimerc

Actually GS350s idea of going to a specialist to get his paint checked for density of thickness is a great idea. There is an instrument that can be used to check the thickness of the paint and each manufacturer has a specific thickness on the cars. When I went in to trade in my Mercedes they used this instrument to see if any of my panels was painted just in case I was lying about any accidents. So if the paint thickness is not up to specs on silvercvic GS he can get Lexus to give him a paint job or new vehicle. If Lexus won't do it I am sure a lawyer somewhere can help him sue. It is possible the car was not charged properly during the painting process and the paint did not adhere to the metal properly.

EXP_Cougar

I've used these for one of my other cars before... which reminds me, I've no idea where I put that damn pen, but I digress... it does work pretty well... but if you're not careful, you can still wind up with a blob!

mel's-gs

I know you're right. But it still sucks. That I-95 driving is what kills my car. Besides, I don't have any babies, and don't even have a puppy (yet), so for now this car is, by default, my baby.

jjbodean

yes, i am aware of this, i use one every day

http://www.paintmeter.com/

you can walk around an entire car and come up with different levels of thickness on each body panel on the same car. please let me know what the factory specs are for paint thickness - i havent been able to find them anywhere

still a bad idea - good way to get laughed out of a service dept

Terrapin

If you live in Colorado you WILL have the problem. Every car looks like it has been sandblasted after a year or so - reason? - because they have. I lived in the Denver suburbs for six years and hated the fine gravel they put down on the snow. Pits windshields and dings paint like nothing I have ever seen, no matter how carefully you drive and how far back you try to stay. I've driven in many "snow" states and have never encountered anything like the junk they put on the roads in CO. Just returned from a week of skiing and they are still using it.

GreatSmile

It's not just in Colorado, same thing will happen here in Pennsylvania. 3M clear film helps with the front end a lot, but there is nothing I can do about pitted windshield.

2thfixr

I have to agree. Newer paint is not very durable and rock chips are a fact of life. I have had them with every car that I have owned and the GS is no exception. In fact, I noticed a couple of chips on my GS last week as I was cleaning the bug graveyard off of it. Similarly, all 4 of the Toyotas that I purchased in the last 2 years have been prone to chipping. 2 silver, 1 white, and one grey. They all had chips where the paint and primer layer chipped off leaving black plastic.

The pen thing is an absolute joke if you have a metallic car. The paint does not match at all. I called them up and let them know that it did not match so they sent me another one and it didn't match either. FWIW, if you insist on using the pen, you can use a product called Langka to even out the blob. I tried it and it works beautifully on touch up paint blobs.

The best thing to do is take the car to the Lexus dealership and they can have thier bumper guy respray the bumper for $125-150. It will look perfect and you will never know that anything was done. Then Stoneguard it and drive the crap out of it like I do.

drodella

i have the same problem on my 14es350 it’s bad the salt and it kicking up literally ate and chipped away! Now it looks like a thousand BB guns were shot at it smh





=INHOCJP;2511977]It's a common complaint. My 2nd GS had similar problems, so after a repaint, I had a clearbra installed.

I decided not to get clearbra on my current GS (since it's a lease), but I sometimes regret that decision. Rocks and road debris are not kind to a dark colored car. My front bumper looks horrible after 1.5 years of So. Cal. freeway driving.[/QUOTE]